Take Me There

Sob Stories and Sex

Chapter Two

 Two days before our eighteenth birthday, my twin brother left.
 It had been almost four months, and still just thinking about the look on my mother's face when I came downstairs that morning made me want to crawl into a ball and cry.
 It was like everything happened in slow motion. I'd read the note he left over a million times that day, the five words scrawled onto the paper etched into my memory. It was scary how someone could sum up an entire lifetime with just a few words.
 It was all too much.
 That was all we had. That was all I had. No sort of explanation as to why he would take off in the middle of the night, wiping out our entire joint savings account for college in the process.
 Sometimes I felt like I should be mad at him, and at first I honestly was. I think I might have even hated him. He was my best friend, the one person I knew I'd always be able to count on. And just like that, he was gone.
 Our birthday had been a complete blur, and I could hear my mom sobbing from her bedroom as my dad called the local Ford dealership to resell the car they'd bought my brother. We'd both gotten new cars that day; him some sort of silver truck and me a 2012 black Focus.
 I didn't even smile whenever my mom handed me the keys. I just cried. Cried because I got a new car and cried because my brother did too. But mainly I cried because my parents had taken out a second mortgage just to buy us both our dream cars, and Austin wasn't even here.
 Ever since Austin left, things hadn't been the same. And even though that was probably to be expected, it still hurt nonetheless. My parents became strangers, my dad was rarely ever home from work, and I spent less and less time at home. Even though it scared my mom for me to be away so much, she knew that I was safe with Drew.
 Drew had practically been the only person I felt safe with. Over our entire relationship, I'd never felt as close to him as I did right after Austin left.
 Ever since, he'd been my safe haven.

 "Dallis?"
 I let out a deep breath whenever I heard my mom's voice calling me from the living room. I slowly shut the back door behind me, sitting my keys onto the counter and slipping off my shoes. There was still sand on my feet and the backs of my legs from my beach day with Sadie. My skin was tingling from the slight sunburn that was already showing up on my shoulders.
 It had been a long but amazing day in the sun.
 "Hey," I sighed, stepping onto the soft carpet in the living room.
 Whenever my mom saw me, a small smile made its way onto her lips, her eyes crinkling the slightest bit at the sides. "Hi honey. Fun day?"
 I sat down on the edge of the couch adjacent to the chair she was sitting in and nodded my head. "I probably should have put on sunscreen."
 She gave me a disapproving look. "I thought you were my smart child."
 I tensed at the mention of Austin, my eyes immediatley snapping over to the family portrait that was hanging over the fireplace. It was of just me and Austin two summers ago, we both even still had braces. His arm was thrown over my shoulder and we were both grinning from ear to ear.
 The picture made me want to cry.
 My mom finally broke the awkward silence by clearing her throat. "Do you have plans for tomorrow night?"
 Tomorrow was Saturday, which was mine and Drew's usual date night. But the desperation in my mom's eyes made me reconsider the drive in movie I was supposed to see with Drew.
 "No," I said, shaking my head slightly, "I don't."
 A look of relief mixed with slight panic crossed her face. "Me and your father would like it if you'd stay home for dinner. I'm going to cook your favorite."
 I raised an eyebrow. "What's the occassion?"
 My mom brushed a piece of her brown hair out of her face. "We just have some things we'd like to discuss. As a family."
 I thought for a second before I finally nodded, standing up from the couch. I brushed off my jean shorts and mentally decided that I was going over to Drew's. If I had to eat dinner with my parents tomorrow, I was definitely not going to be stuck in the house for dinner tonight.
 "I'm gonna go clean up and then head over to Drew's," I said, walking towards the staircase in the back of the house.
 My mom didn't say anything, but I could feel her eyes on me as I walked up the staircase. I wasn't really sure what was up with her, but whatever it was, I had a feeling that I wasn't going to like it.
 It took every ounce of strength that I had not to open my brother's bedroom door as I walked past it, memories flooding my mind. It was still such a fresh wound and it hurt even worse that I didn't know if I'd ever see him again.
 I stopped at the bathroom in the middle of the hall, the one I'd always shared with Austin. But for the last few months, it was just my bathroom. Just like the entire upstairs floor was pretty much just mine. And as much as I'd always wanted my own bathroom, I never wanted it to happen like this.
 I took a deep breath and entered the largish bathroom, shutting the door behind me. I stood in front of the white counter that held two sinks, putting my hands flat against the cool surface. I stared at my reflection in the mirror, my medium length blond hair still pulled back in a ponytail, my usually blue eyes suddenly a dull grey color. My mom had always said that I had a pair of the most unusual eyes she'd ever seen.
 I pulled the band out of my hair and slipped out of my clothes. I winced slightly at my sunburnt shoulders, wanting nothing more than Drew to rub some after sun lotion on them. Even though it was Friday and only a day after graduation, I was really hoping he wasn't busy.
 Cuddling with him was practically all I could think about as I took my record fast shower, not even bothering to shave my legs for the second time that day. I quickly shut the water off and wrapped a towel around myself, stepping out of the shower and heading towards my bedroom.
 I dressed in a pair of Nike running shorts and one of my many Lawrence Vineyard shirts, quickly brushing through my hair and deciding to let it air dry. I slipped on a pair of my flip flops and grabbed my phone before leaving.
 The drive to Drew's house was an easy one for me now. I'd learned an amazing short cut so that instead of thirty minutes, the drive only took me about fifteen. I drove up into the back driveway and parked my car in my usual spot, excited whenever I saw that Drew's parents were also home. They were practically my second family.
 "Dallis, hi honey!" Annita Lawrence said from the backdoor. She gave me a huge smile and held out her arms, which I eagerly stepped into, wrapping my own around her.
 "Is Drew home?" I asked, stepping into the house. "He wasn't expecting me."
 Annita walked towards a huge pot on the stove, nodding her head. "He went surfing with a few friends earlier today. But he's been in that room of his ever since he got home."
 I turned to head for the back hallway where his room was located, but Annita stopped me. "Are you staying for dinner? We're having She-Crab Soup."
 I smiled. "Sounds good."
 

 There are few better feelings than laying in bed, wrapped in your boyfriend's arms after just finishing an amazing supper.
 I nuzzled against Drew's chest, closing my eyes slightly as he softly scratched my back. A long day of being out in the heat was catching up with me, especially now that I had Drew with me and I felt like I could really relax.
 I smiled to myself whenever Drew started playing with the promise ring on my left hand, twisting it back and forth.
 I looked up at him, smoothing my fingers along his jaw line and enjoying the feel of his stubble against them. He finally glanced down at me, a small smile on his lips. "I love you."
 I leaned up and pressed a kiss to his lips, one of my hands propping me up and the other smoothing across his cheek. His fingers were resting on the skin of my exposed hip, and whenever his tongue slid across my bottom lip, I slid even closer to him.
 I wrapped my arm around his neck, trying my best not to break my lips from his as I rolled over so that he was on top of me. I slid my hands up the back of his tshirt, my fingernails grazing the tan skin of his back. He moaned into my mouth, causing me to smile against his lips.
 He slid his hands up my sides, pushing my tshirt up along the way. He broke the kiss for a split second, pulling my shirt over my head and tossing it onto his floor. My toes began to curl as he placed kisses down my neck and jawline, his lips stopping in between my breasts as he unsnapped my bra.
 I finally pulled his lips back to mine as his fingers trailed down the front of my stomach, leaving a line of goosebumps. My stomach was in serious knots as he started to push down my running shorts, my mind racing. It wasn't that Drew had never seen me naked before, because he had, I mean we'd taken hundreds of showers together. But that didn't mean I was ready for sex.
 Because honestly, I wasn't. I had no idea why, but I just didn't think it was the right time yet.
 As I fought my internal battle, Drew had managed to slide me out of my shorts and take off nearly all of his own clothes. Obviously he was more than ready.
 He placed another long kiss on my lips, his fingers slipping under the band of my underwear. For a second, I thought about letting this continue, but I finally decided that it couldn't.
 I grabbed his hand and pulled my face away from his, panting slightly. He looked down at me, his eyes full of lust. Not love. Just lust.
 "What is it?" He breathed, his eyebrows furrowed.
 I wiggled under him, his body heavy on top of mine and suddenly extremely uncomfortable.
 "I don't want to do this."
 Drew stared at me for a second before climbing off of me and sitting on the edge of the bed, his back to me. I looked up at the ceiling, knowing that he was going to be pissed.
 "Is it me?" He asked, not looking at me.
 I sat up, covering my chest with his sheet. "Of course it's not, Drew."
 "Then what is it, Dallis?" He ran his hand over the back of his neck, something he did when he was nervous or frustrated. He stood up and turned towards me. "Do you not trust me? Is that it?"
 "Yes I trust you," I ran a hand over my forehead. "I'm just not ready."
 "What is there to be ready for? We've been together for almost two and a half years, Dallis," He gave me an exasperated look, "That's two and a half years of absolutely no sex for me."
 "Why is sex so important to you?" I asked, my voice laced with irritation.
 "If sex was that important to me, I would have broken up with you a few months after I realized I wasn't going to get any."
 My head snapped over to him, my eyebrows raised. "Could you possibly be a bigger asshole about this?"
 "I'm not trying to be," He ran a hand through his hair, "I just thought that once you realized how serious I was about us, you'd want to actually want to be with me."
 I glanced down at the ring on my finger. "So that's what this is about?" I pointed to the ring. "This is just your way of trying to get in my pants?"
 He gave me a look. "Why would you even think that?"
 "You pretty much just said it, Drew!"
 I climbed off of his bed, grabbing my shirt and pulling it over my head. I slipped on my shorts and walked across his room, searching for my shoes.
 "Don't leave, Dallis."
 I was so angry that I could feel tears brimming my eyes, which just made me even madder. I hated that he was the one person that could make me feel every emotion in the span of ten minutes.
 I turned to look at him. "Why can't you just be with me?"
 He walked over to me and placed his hands on either sides of my face. "I don't want to fight with you over something this stupid."
 "Then stop trying to pressure me. We should be past this."
 He took a deep breath before finally placing a kiss on my forehead. "I'm sorry."
 I nodded my head, pushing my hair behind my ear. This was not how I imagined my night going, especially since me and Drew rarely ever even fight.
 But usually whenever we did, it was about this exact subject.
 "I'm gonna go," I said, breaking the silence.
 He frowned. "You can stay, Dallis. I won't try anything."
 "I'm tired."
 "You can sleep here."
 I shook my head. "I'll see you later."
 I placed a light kiss on his lips and he whispered an I love you. I gave him a small smile and turned around, quickly walking out of his room and house.