Misconception

19: Blackmail

Clementine's POV

I can tell I must've surprised Chris because he hesitates to kiss me back for a beat, but when he does, he pulls me tightly to him and kisses me back with skillful lips. I cup Chris' face in my hands and push away from him as I steal a glance at Vinny. He's still in a kiss with Delilah, but his eyes are open and he's staring angrily at me. I feel Chris' fingers lace in the hair at the back of my head and guide my lips back to his. I feel the couch shift beside me and open my eyes to see Delilah leading Vinny up the stairs. As soon as they're out of sight I stop kissing Chris and jump off him with an urgency as if he were burning me. Chris looks up at me with lust in his eyes and breathes,

"Why'd you stop, we were just getting started."

"I didn't want to do this. You're blackmailing me."

I reply angrily. I stomp up the basement stairs back to my bedroom, feeling dazed and confused as to what I just did with Chris. I cry myself to sleep that night over the mess I'm in, wishing I could go back to when my brother was just my idol and sex was just a topic we discussed in health class and not the new urge that's now floating in my head.

I wake up the next morning to texts from Chris and Ricky. I ignore the one from Chris for now and open the ones from Ricky.

Ricky: Is everything okay down there?

Ricky: I hate to leave right now, but Ryan's wasted and insisting he can drive himself home, so I'm gonna give him a lift. Text me tomorrow how everything went?

Ricky: Hey, is everything okay?? I'm worried about you...

Me: Hey, sorry! I'm okay! Chris didn't say anything to Vinny.

I reply vaguely because I don't feel like going into details about how I kissed Chris when I'm starting to have feelings for Ricky. I bite the bullet and open the text from Chris.

Chris: A little rude of you just to run away from me. Let me guess, you ran into Ricky's arms since Vinny's are full with Delilah?

Me: What exactly do you want from me besides to torture me??!!

Chris: I'm not sure exactly yet, but I'll have fun playing with you in the mean time. ;) For now you just have to accept that I have information on you that you don't want getting out.

My phone goes off with a notification from Ricky.

Ricky: I texted Vinny that I'd come over to help him clean up from the party, see you then?

I groan as I roll over in bed. When did everything get to be so complicated? Not that I don't want to see Ricky, because I do, but with Chris looming over my shoulder it just makes things difficult. I roll out of bed and head into the bathroom for a shower and text Ricky back,

Me: Yep :)

My grumbling stomach finally makes me muster up the courage to head downstairs to the kitchen. My heart drops into my stomach when I walk in and see Delilah rummaging around in the fridge with nothing but one of Vinny's t-shirts on. It takes every fiber of my being not to run away sobbing, but I'm saved by the doorbell. I breathe a sigh of relief when I see it's Ricky and practically tackle him with a hug. He's taken aback at first, but eventually embraces me back and pets my hair as he asks,

"What's wrong, hun?"

I can't exactly tell him that it's because my brother's girlfriend is traipsing around the house, so I go with an equally, if not worse, reason to be sad, so I say,

"Everything with Chris."

He comes inside and shuts the door, but before he can say anything Vinny and Delilah burst out of the kitchen.

I spend all day up in my room while Ricky hangs out with Delilah and Vinny. I have a feeling he hasn't come up to see me at all because he doesn't want it to look weird to Vinny. The only person I could talk to all of this about is the last person in the world I want to talk to. As if I had manifested it, my phone goes off.

Chris: I know what I want.

Me: What is it?

Chris: Meet me in person at the park a couple blocks from your house and I'll tell you.

Me: Fine.

I'm not in the mood to argue anymore. I just want to do whatever I need to do so I can leave this all behind me. 

I leave the house with no protests from anyone. They must all be down in the basement playing Call of Duty again.

When I get to the park I spot Chris under a pine tree leaning against it. He pushes off the tree and walks forward to meet me when he spots me.

"What do you want from me?"

I ask, not even bothering with a 'hello'. Chris just chuckles,

"Hello to you too."

He starts to walk in a slow circle around me as he calmly states,

"I want to be your boyfriend."

I gape at him as I say,

"You can't be serious."

He only nods before he says,

"And I'd like for you to tell everyone."

This only makes my jaw drop even more.

"Vinny will be upset, and Ricky will be hurt, and my parents will be confused."

I sputter. He stops walking in front of me as he asks,

"Why will your parents be confused?"

"They think Ricky's my boyfriend."

Chris just laughs and starts pacing around me again before he says,

"Then you'll just have to tell them that you broke up and your parents will just have to deal with the fact that their daughter's becoming a bit of a whore."

He stops in front of me and begins to twirl a strand of my hair around his finger. 

"And if I don't?"

I ask, looking directly into his eyes. He leans in close to my ear and whispers,

"Then I tell everyone everything."