I'm Gone...

Chapter 6

Brantley's POV:

Krissa was trembling behind me on the bike, trying to peer over my shoulder to see. I didn't know if she was scared or excited. I remember her mentioning that she'd never been on a motorcycle before. I grabbed her by the leg and yanked her around me, plopping her little ass in my lap so I could see her face. She squealed when I moved her. "You're shaking like a leaf, if you're scared of the bike we can walk Krissa. But I need to know what's going on in that head of yours darlin." I told her softly. "N-no! I wanna take the bike, I'm not scared, just nervous. Excited. I've never ridden, but I always wanted to." She said shyly. I grinned. "That a girl! You wanna sit up here so you can see around me? Or on the back so your hair dosent get messed up?" I asked her. She snorted and climbed off the bike, yanking her hair into a quick braid under her helmet, then climbed back on, her back against my chest. I was mighty proud. Amber hated being on the bike. She always said it messed up her hair, and she couldn't wear heels. "I'll be gentle and take it slow." I reassured her. She looked up at me and smiled, full of nervous energy. "I trust you B, you've been riding since you were a kid. You know what you're doing, and I doubt I'd be ok with riding with anyone else." She said honestly. It made me feel 10 foot tall and bullet proof. I smuggled her closer against me and her breathing quickened. When I rested my hand on her stomach, I felt the muscles clench. She was small-statutes, but she had a body that just didn't quit. With my hand spread open on her stomach, my finger tips brushed the bottom of her bra, and my palm was sitting on her belt. I felt massive sitting behind her. I took off slowly, letting Krissa adjust to the bike and learn to move with me. I kept it slow and steady, only speeding up when she giggled. When I made to turn into the diner she pouted. "No, I don't want it to be over!" I kept going instead. She laughed and smiled excitedly as I sped up. "Faster B! More!" She giggled happily. Screw it, I thought. If I scare her, I'll apologize later. I headed in the direction of my house, hauling ass and pushing 80mph. Expecting Krossa to panic, I was shocked when sheet out a rebel-yell threw her hands up in the air. I laughed right along with her, howling up at he sky just to get her laughing again. "Put your feet on top of mine and trust me." I told her over the rumble of the engine. She did as I said, and I stood, bringing her with me. She squealed and spread her arms out wide while I steadied her. She was standing on my boots, pressed against me from head to toe. We sat and I turned into my driveway. When I stopped the bike and we got off, she was still grinning from ear to ear. "How'd you like it?" I asked curiously. "Oh my God! I loved it!" Krissa gushed, launching into a full on recap about her favorite parts, babbling 90mph. I just smiled and led her in the house. She stopped and looked around, finally realizing where we were. "Did you do this?" I asked her pointing to an ugly ass vase that took up way too much room and didn't match. "God no!" She cringe away from it. I grabbed it. We continued through the house doing this. Once we were done, I grabbed all the things Amber had picked out for the house and chunked it all in the fire pit in the back yard. Krossa looked at me like I lost my mind. "She has bad taste." Was my only answer. Krissa snorted and cracked up. When I finally finished we headed into the kitchen. "I know you said the diner, but I figured here we could actually talk. I'm not sure what there is to eat, but I'm sure I've got something." I started looking through the cabinets. "Move. Let me do this." Krissa laughed. She walked to the freezer and pulled out a pan of something. "What's that?" I asked her curiously. "Lasagna. I'd make up a week or two worth of meals and freeze them. When you left, I'd come by and put them in the freezer with instructions for Amber." She stuck the post it note with directions in the counter and popped the tray in the oven. "We've got about 40 minutes, what did you want to talk about?" She asked. I was still stuck on the lasagna. "Is that the one with 6 different cheeses? And the homemade sauce?" I practically drooled. She nodded. "Same one I ways make to send." She said. I moaned. "You've got some serious skills in the kitchen." I complimented her. "Thank you." She smiled genuinely and sat next to me at the island. I decided to dive right in. "Why didn't you ever say anything? I mean, all these years I assumed you only tolerated me being around. You were ways quiet, and a little distant." I asked her. She blushed and looked straight ahead. "Well... You intimidate me.always have." I went to interrupt her. But she stopped me. "I don't mean in the physical sense. I'm not afraid of you, but emotionally, you intimidate me. Anytime I spend a decent amount of time around you, I can't think straight. My head gets all screwy. I end up breathless, flustered, and confused all over again. Back in high school, I was this tiny little thing, really quiet. Shy. I thought Amber was my friend. But I'm fairly certain that she kept me around just to make herself feel better. When I made the Mariam's of telling her how I felt, she jumped on the opportunity the very next day. I had never said anything to you other than a few words here and there. All I knew was that you were this big ass guy who rode a motorcycle, played baseball, and liked music. We didn't really seem on equal playing fields. If we crossed in the hallway, I was worried you'd step on me. You were ways a big guy." She snorted and shook her head. "You haven't exactly gotten any taller sweetheart. What changed?" I smirked. "Shut up! I grew!" She huffed and swatted me. I laughed all over again. "But really though, I just got used to it. You come in handy for a lot of things. I know I'll ways be the little one. The bigger you got, the less it freaked me out. I realized that you weren't actually going to run me over." She chuckled. I snorted and tugged her stool closer. "Your turn. You said something about wires being crossed?" She asked me. I nodded and turned to face her. "I'd always seen you around in school. And like you said, you were a tiny little thing. As you know by now, I tend to be slightly protective." "Slightly?!" She cut me off. I laughed. "Alright, very protective. Especially towards women and kids. I always felt the need to look out for you, not in a creeper kind of way. You were quiet, but so good. So pure. You were the girl I could never have. No matter how I felt, I knew that there was no way in hell someone as incredible as you would ever come near a hellion like me. So when Amber asked me out, I said yes. She was wild, a partier. And nothing about her reminded me of you. Which was a good thing. She wasn't sweet, she was catty. She wasn't genuine. You've ways been there, and the longer I fought it, the worse it got. Amber and I were miserable together. Sure, she liked spending my money. But that's about it. I haven't felt like myself in a long time. Until today." I looked at her. "I can't be someone's second choice." She whispered sadly. "You weren't anybody's second choice. You were always my first choice. But when I realized that I didn't deserve you, I settled for something less." I rumbled. "Why do you do that? Why do you cut yourself down?" She asked curiously. I shrugged me. "Everyone's got a past. I've never hidden mine." I said. "But you're not this terrible person. You're a great guy. Really great. Sure, you're rough around the edges, but that's what makes you you. You've never went out of your way to intentionally hurt someone, you make it a priority to be respectful, you're funny, you're sweet, and underneath all that alpha male, caveman stuff, you're a big softie." She grinned at me. "Well you just have me a figured out don't you little one?" I chuckled. She grinned. "Considering I've known you this long, yes." She said. By this point we were facing each other, snugged in all close. God she smelled good. I was trying my damnedest not to just grab her and kiss her until her eyes crossed. Just when I thought I couldn't control it anymore, the oven timer dinged.