Book 1: Valentina

Chapter 12

"I can't keep doing this." Cole stated parking in front of my house.

With all of the mess going on between Cole and Marco, I figured that he'd break up with me sooner or later.

" If that's what you want. I just hope that we can stay friends." I said looking through the windshield.

" What are you- ...You think I'm breaking up with you?" He asked half chuckling.

"I mean it's been coming since Marco started threatening you, right? Its fine though I've been preparing myself for it." I say.

Cole chuckles and looks out the window and back to me, before he speaks he looks down at his wrapped up tattoo and shyly smiles.

" Do you know how rare it is to be a teenage artist and be able to actually find someone you're compatible with?" He asked looking at me with a small smile.

"Its like you mentally prepare yourself to be lonely for the rest of your life so you push people away, no one is attractive to you, because you've told yourself over and over again that you all aren't compatible and then you wonder why your single and your first thought lands on the fact that maybe you're ugly." He chuckles as he says the last part.

I sit there listening to his rambling hoping that somewhere I'd understand what the hell he was getting at.

" For three years I've been at this school and girls really didn't start paying me any attention until second semester last year, I figured it was because I hit puberty later, I don't really know. But no matter how many girls threw themselves at me, I couldn't get myself to even try to talk to them, they weren't interesting to me, just by looking at them I could tell that they just wanted me for arm candy. Brittney even tried it a few times. Still does. But one day I was sitting in History and heard Brittney talking about some "black hillbilly freak with tattoos", her words not mine."

"I actually wanted to see who she was talking about because she didn't specify if it was a girl or a guy. So one day, I'm running late to class and I just so happen to see this black hillbilly freak with tattoos punch Brittany right in the face. Granted I never saw your face until one day I saw you walking to the restroom, I wanted to know every single thing that I possibly could about you, so I waited outside the restroom for you to introduce myself and then Marco walked in and I thought it was planned, so I left. Then I started talking to Nate about you and then I found out that you hated Marco and that you were an artist and my heart almost did somersaults in my chest."

" I probably just dragged that on but my point is, I'm not breaking up with you Artura, I love you. Everyday that I spend with you is like watching my favorite movie over and over again, but every time there's a new scene added, a better scene that pulls in deeper and I'm sorry to say that I'm in too deep now to let Marco ruin this." He said rubbing his thumb up against my cheek.

" Are you sure?" I asked.

He dropped his head and chuckled.

"Yes, I'm sure, I've never been more sure about anything in my life." He said.
"But, you need to make it clear to Marco that you're not interested in him, even after what happened two months ago, he's gotta get over it." He warned.

"That wasn't even anything serious though he just- he didn't "have sex" with me it was more digital. Like fingers." I said uncomfortably.

"But, still he feels that he has some type of rights to you because he's seen you naked and I haven't and I'm your boyfriend. Not saying that I want to see you naked-- and nor saying that I don't because I'm pretty sure you have a great body. I'm not here for just sex." He rambled.

"I know that. But it's not going to be easy talking to him. I don't even want to talk to him." I replied.

"If you don't talk to him then he won't quit, hell think that you like his attention. Unless you do?" He asked