Misconstructed

Fourteen

Getting back to the house, music is blasting from the inside and it's intriguing. Why the hell do they need the music that loud? Walking into the house, the four of us are greeted with Maddie and Danny horizontal on the couch while Allen and Roy are dancing with each other. I can't help but stop in my tracks at the sight of everything, everyone else seems pretty normal about it but it's the fact that Allen and Roy are dancing with each other a bit too close. Are they... hooking up? Not that I would care, you can love who you want to. I just never pictured them getting together.

Unsticking their lips from each other, Maddie shoots me daggers, "Finish with your girlfriend?"

"You're sick." I tell her even though I wouldn't mind the title just to throw it in their faces. I walk over and plop myself on Danny since he's laying in my seat. Maybe I won't meet Maddie tonight, if she wants to continue to act like this.

"Can you wait a minute?" Danny asks but I ignore him, only getting up for my benefit. "So how'd it go?" He asks me, now taking over Rexs seat as I've successfully detached the two.

"Yeah, what happened?" Roy asks, seeming interested for the first time since he's found out.

"Well, nothing really." I shrug my shoulders.

"That's complete bull," Allen tells me.

"How would you guys know?" The silence is deafening in this huge house. "No, seriously, how would you guys know? None of you were there. None of you know, so just take my word for it." I tell them, trying to win them over. I really don't want to or feel like spilling what we talked about.

"Did you kiss her goodnight?" Allen asks.

Everyones gathered around the coffee table in the living room and Rex goes to pack the bong for all of us to pass around. "No, he was too scared."

"She has a boyfriend," I tell them. They gasp, liking the gossip.

"Tell us more."

"Yeah, it's not every day a hot teacher acknowledges one of us."

"It's not every day for you guys." I tell them, my ego spiked to an all time high. I keep my chin up high, feeling like the man but the attention is starting to get to me.

"Here." Trevor puts another carton of joints on the table for me. Daniel goes to reach for one and it's now that I bare my teeth. Snarling my nose, I'm ready to bite off his hand if he touches my stuff. I don't think he notices me yet but there's a sudden shift in the energy around the table, telling me that some of the others notice. His hand just touches the carton when I go in to slap his hand away.

"What the hell dude?" Danny snaps at me.

"Those are mine." I bark back through gritted teeth.

"Okay, calm down guys." Trevor tells us, to which I actually try listening to him.

"I am calm, just don't touch my stuff."

"Sorry, Jesus." He rolls his eyes.

"You clearly heard they were for me, don't act dumb."

"Who are you calling dumb?" I can tell that Danny wants to shove me, but he just stands up instead which was his mistake. I get up along with him and tower over him. Even without my shoes on, I would tower over him. He's the same height as Maddie, maybe an inch or two taller but he's obviously no match for me, regardless of height.

"You." I tell him flatly. He's raising his voice now, yelling at me, but I notice that he hasn't tried touching me yet.

"Okay." An arm snakes around my collar and grabs my shoulder, dragging me away from a fight that would be started and finished in a second. "Let's go outside for a minute." Trevor tells me. Dustin gets up and tries to calm down his cousin but I just give him the middle finger.

Shutting the door behind us, he lets me go. "Stay out here and calm down for a minute."

"I am calm!" I yell at Trevor. I'm inches from him and I know he's losing his patience with me. Putting his hands on my shoulder, I take a deep breath like he's taught me to do from time to time.

"In and out. Okay? In and out." Which is what I do. "Now stay out here, take your time, then come back in." He tells me with his hand on the doorknob. I nod at him, breathing in and out as I hop from one foot to the other.

"Saxton?" a voice calls out to me.

"What!" I yell at it, as I'm still heated.

"Are you okay?" Janice comes from around a bush and exposes herself.

"Were you still walking home from the coffee shop?" I ask her, not realizing what time it is.

"Kind of, boyfriends playing video games again."

"Oh." I tell her, walking towards her. I feel bad that I yelled at her, but how was I to know it was her from around the bush? "Shall I walk you home?" I ask her, rubbing the back of my head.

"Sure," she gives me a side smile, letting me know that I'm making progress. The two of us walk side by side down the dimly lit street. I feel powerful in this very moment, that I could take anyone on and protect her. "As long as I'm not taking you from your friends that is,"

"Those assholes? Never." She laughs under her breath and I feel proud of my remark. Looking down at her, I think of how I want to play this right now. "Tell me about yourself."

"What do you want to know?" She looks up at me questioningly, but with a look so intense that it almost cracks my diamond core.

"Where is that accent from?"

"Well, I grew up in Texas."

"So you had horses and a farm?" I laugh.

She nudges me, taking my playful comment. "No, I didn't have a farm. But I do have two other siblings that annoyed the hell out of me."

"Ew. I'm sorry to hear that." I cringe only to have her laugh at me.

"Don't you have a few yourself, Mr. Rivers?"

"Ah, so you've read my file." I start tensing up but I don't let it stop this moment between us as I lean into her shoulder.

"You might have intrigued me." She shrugs her shoulders while sticking out her lower lip.

"Well then you owe me at least five questions." I informed her.

"That's fair, four now." she tells me as she stands in front of some steps that lead up to a modern day looking home. We're inches from each other and it's clear that the tension is rising. What do I do? "Any pets?"

"No, my boyfriend's allergic to cats and dogs." I feel bad for that. I don't know what I would do if I couldn't have a dog. I plan on getting one when I move out of Barbs.

'Oof, that's rough." I tell her. "I should get going though." I tell her. The tension between us is so thick that you could cut it with a knife. I want to wrap my hands in her hair and put my lips on her neck, but that 's not what's going to happen tonight. Instead I'm going to raise my hand, tell her to have a good night, and go home like a gentleman.

"Have a good night, Saxton."

"You too, Janice." I tip my imaginary hat as I start walking backwards, until I get a great idea. Jogging back to Janice, I call out for her. "Tomorrow, for the tattoo. Would you want to meet up after school and go together?"

She takes a good moment to think about it, not being sure that it's a good idea and she ultimately agrees. "Great, put your number in my phone." I tell her, pulling out this now perfect thing that holds her digits. She takes the phone, giving me one last look before entering the only thing I care about at this very moment.

"Just don't blow up my phone." She informs me, to which I put my hands up in defense.

"Don't worry," I tell her, putting my phone back in my pocket. "Have a good night." I tell her, walking away again. Realizing what I had just done, this woman has entrusted me not to ruin her, but all I can think about is showing the others. The guys are going to have a field day about this.