Freedom -- A Rocky Lynch Story

Chapter 17

Usually, Riley's mind was always bustling with thought after thought, never letting her relax and live in the moment. She over analyzed, calculated, and anticipated every little detail. Her mind lived in the past and the future, never in the present. Something different happened when Rocky kissed her.

With his lips on hers, her mind stopped completely. It focused on the way his lips felt on hers. She felt every movement of his tongue as it passed over her lips and his teeth when they pulled on her bottom lip. She could feel his rough, calloused fingers rubbing her cheek and travelling down to her neck. When they pulled away slightly for breath, she could feel the hot air exiting his nose. Nothing in her mind was telling her to stop. Everything was quiet.

She was living in the moment.

Rocky could taste the gum that Riley had been chewing. Her soft lips brushed over his with a couple of small, gentle pecks before they had pulled away from each other. He was afraid to break the silence -- afraid that she would flee, that he had made a mistake. When he finally opened his eyes to look over at her, he saw her cupping her face in her hands, covering her expression. Great, he thought. Now she's crying. You really fucked this one up, Rock.

To his surprise, when she pulled her hands away from her face, he saw the biggest smile across her face. He had never seen her smile so widely, and her eyes gleamed and sparkled in the light coming through the window. Rocky couldn't help but laugh at her expression. Something about it filled his heart with joy and excitement. Never in his life had he ever seen her light up that way. "Are you okay?" he asked.

Riley giggled and her hands returned to her cheeks. "My cheeks hurt," she laughed. WIth a deep breath, she slumped back into the couch, covering her face again as the giggling continued. Even though it hurt, Rocky smiled widely as he watched this strange girl curl up and laugh herself silly.

"What is so funny?" he chuckled, moving closer to her.

"Everything!" she laughed. She sat up straight and took another deep breath, clutching her stomach. Her eyes squeezed shut as she tried to focus on regaining composure. "Rocky, so much shit has happened in the past couple of days. Everything is moving so fast."

His heart stopped. It never occurred to him that her laughing could be a defense mechanism. Maybe she wasn't as happy as she looked, but was just covering up her true emotions. In his head, he cursed himself for making a move. It wasn't as safe as he thought it had been. "I'm sorry," he sighed as the corner of his mouth fell into a slight frown. "I shouldn't have kissed you like that. You're right, a lot has been happening the past few days."

"No!" Riley exclaimed, her voice almost reaching a yell. Her face got serious all of the sudden as she looked directly into Rocky's eyes. "Please don't be sorry. I've wanted to kiss you for years." She leaned in and pecked his lips once more, lingering for a moment. "I really liked it," she said quietly, her lips brushing over his with every syllable.

"I really liked it, too," Rocky sighed. He yawned as she pulled away from him, stretching his long arms over his head. His back arched as he let out a long sigh. "I'm exhausted."

"I believe it," she murmured. "Let me take care of you for once?" He nodded slowly before she got up and disappeared into the other room. When she returned, she was carrying an ice pack wrapped in a white dish towel. She positioned herself at the end of the couch and motioned for him to join her. "I think we both need a few boring days," she said as Rocky leaned onto her. She rested the ice pack on his cheek and brushed the long brown strands of hair out of his face.

Within a couple of minutes, Rocky was sound asleep. Little snores exited his mouth as he inhaled breaths of air. He went limp on her as he leaned his body into her side, his arms wrapped around her waist. She wasn't particularly comfortable, but it would have to do. It didn't take long for her to drift off as well.

They were so far gone that not even the constant buzzing of Riley's cell phone on the coffee table could wake them up. Every couple of seconds, a new message would arrive, causing it to vibrate against the glass. After a few messages, there was a call that would ring until the voicemail kicked in. This happened for about ten minutes straight before Ross walked in, coming home from a long day of acting.

Ross noticed the phone buzzing on the table and glanced up at Riley and Rocky. He contemplated waking her up and letting her know that her phone was ringing off the hook, but decided against it. Another call came in and Riley's mom's face came up on the caller I.D. Quietly, he picked up the phone and hit the green answer button. "Hello, Mrs. Marks?"

"Who is this?" Emily demanded. She sounded shaken, as if her whole world was falling apart. "Where is Riley?"

"This is just Ross Lynch. Rocky's brother?" he clarified. She sighed in relief at the familiar name. "Riley is here at our house. She fell asleep, which is why she didn't answer the phone."

"I think you should wake her up," she said, her voice filled with uncertainty and fear. She felt like crying, but tears just wouldn't come anymore. "It's really important."

Ross sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, glancing back over to the sleeping couple on the couch. "Can I give her a message?" he asked. "I just think Riley needs to sleep right now."

A frustrated grumbling came from the other side of the phone. "This can't wait!" she nearly yelled into the phone. Ross jumped at the sudden outburst. Once Emily regained what little composure she could find, she spoke into the phone once again. "There's been an accident."