Renegade Revival

Chapter 22: Cigarettes

Taylor's POV

"You waited?" Hayley asked as she walked up to me, the only sound of her shoes against the asphalt and the crickets that sang their monotone song.

"Of course," I said. "I said I wanted to have a smoke with you. Not by myself."

Hayley studied me for a moment as she lit her cigarette.

"You smoke more than once a month," she stated before she took her first draw. I nodded as I began to light mine. "Put that thing down, York." Her voice was full of anger, it nearly scared me. I slowly took the unlit cigarette out of my mouth.

"What's up with you?" I asked.

"How often do you smoke?" she demanded.

"Once a week, why--"

"You're going to die, if you keep it up," she snarled, glaring at me. "Christ, York, you're so..."

"I'm so what?" I giggled. "What am I, huh? I'm so what?"

"Shut up, York," she spat.

"What am I? Spit it out, Hayley," I teased.

"You're so stupid! You're so damn stupid, Taylor York!"

"What else am I?" I quizzed as I walked up to Hayley.

"You're a man whore! That's what you are, a man whore! A-and a tramp! And you're sickening!"

"Sickening?" I teased as I rose a brow.

"Yes, sickening as shit!" she spat. "And I hate you! I hate you, you stupid man whore, sickening tramp!" She smacked me on my chest with a frustrated yell. I giggled at her.

"You hate me?" I teased.

"Yes, I hate you," she almost whined.

"I can prove you wrong," I snickered.

"Really? How?" she demanded. I cupped her face in my hands and took her into a kiss that lasted for what seemed like forever. Hayley never did fight me off. She pulled me closer as we kissed. I pulled away with a smirk.

"You still hate me?" I quizzed.

"No," she hesitated. "But you're still a man whore."

"I'll change that too, I promise," I said as I tucked her hair behind her ear.

"Don't you dare pick up another cigarette," she snarled, returning to her cold glare.

"Says the girl holding a lit cigarette," I teased. Hayley crushed the newly lit cigarette and tossed it to the ground.

"I'll quit if you quit," she said, folding her arms.

"Easy for you. You don't smoke every week."

"Every month. Same thing," she groaned as she rolled her eyes.

"There has to be a different consequence than 'I do x if you do y'."

"Fine," she huffed. "If you don't quit, I'll... I'll..."

"You'll what?" I quizzed, thinking it couldn't be bad.

"I'll leave you," she forced out.

"No, you wouldn't," I said. Hayley's eyes met mine, hers full of pain and honesty.

"I will. Taylor, stop smoking," she begged, her voice breaking a little. "I don't want to do it, but if I have to... I will do it."

"Hayles," I sighed, caressing her face. She broke into tears at my touch; Hayley held my hand closer to her cheek, then hugged me.

"I just don't want to lose you, Taylor York," she sniffled. "Not to anyone, anything... Nothing! I don't want to lose you."

"You won't," I reassured. "You won't, rebel."

"How're you so sure?" she managed to say.

"I won't let it happen. I won't let you go through what I went through." Hayley looked up at me as tears fell down her face, her hazel eyes still full of tears. I wiped the remaining tears from her face and planted a kiss on her soft lips.

"Cheer up, love," I said with a small smile. "Let's have our last smoke together, alright, beautiful?" Hayley nodded. I took two cigarettes from her pack and put one between her lips and lit it. I lit mine last and gave Hayley another smile.

"To us?" I tried, tilting my cigarette towards her.

"To us," she said with that dazzling smile of hers, and nicked her cigarette with mine before we took our first draws.