Grace
Jackson’s voice sounded so broken over the phone, and it only took seconds for me to slide on my shoes.
When I made it to his house, he didn’t say a word. He pressed his lips hard against mine, kissing me deep, kissing me long, kissing me as though he hadn’t yet kissed me before.
He pulled my shirt over my head, and with one snap of his fingers, he had my bra unhooked. Our bodies tangled together, and as he moved on top of me and slid in, I almost cried out from the way he took over my body. Each thrust felt like a broken part of his soul intermixing with mine. He was low that afternoon, yet I welcomed the feeling. The truth was, it wasn’t a good day for me either. I needed him to roll inside me, needed it hard, fast, rough, painful…
His hands wrapped around my wrists, and he pinned my arms over my head as he thrust deeper inside me, making me moan out his name as ecstasy overtook my body. We dripped in sweat and misguided emotions as he lowered himself on top of me and whispered into my ear. “I want you.” He sucked my earlobe. “I need you.” He slid in deeper and pulled out slowly. “I want you.” he repeated as he slammed into me, making me gasp for air. “I need you.”
My hips arched up, begging for more, and more, knowing it would never be enough.
The way we used one another was more than just sex, more than just wants or needs…
It was shockingly healing.
Without our bodies against one another, there was a real possibility that both of us would just drown into nothingness.
Our mutual sadness was the only thing keeping us afloat.
It was odd, how two sad people could make one another breathe.
* * *
“Are you okay?” I asked, getting dressed as he sat with his hands wrapped around the edge of the mattress.
“I’m always okay,” he replied coldly.
I crawled over to him, kissing his shoulder blade. “You can talk to me, you know.”
He grimaced and shut his eyes. “I don’t talk.”
I sighed, sensing the weight of the world on Jackson’s shoulders. All I wanted to do was help him with his load, but he was completely against that. He lived in a world where he felt as if he had to carry all his baggage alone.
As I opened my lips to speak once more, Tucker walked past the doorway of the bedroom, moving slowly in the direction of the living room.
“He’s been limping,” Jackson whispered.
“Is he okay?”
He shrugged. “He’s old, blind in one eye, and can hardly get around without my help.”
“Is that why you carry him throughout town?”
“He loves the park. Even with all his issues, he loves the park.”
“I saw you swinging with him one day,” I told him. “With Tucker in your lap.”
He nodded his head and looked down at his hands, which were clasped together. “He’s a good boy. I’m just debating how selfish I’m being by keeping him around. He’s just…” He took a deep breath and turned to me. I gave him a half frown as he kept talking. “He’s all I’ve got, really.”
“Tell me more about him.” I climbed into his lap and wrapped my legs around his waist.
His lips parted, and he cringed as he placed his forehead against mine. “I don’t know how to open up to people.”
“Well, you don’t have to open up to people, just me.”
Before he could answer, his cell phone began to ring, and he released a heavy sigh as he moved me from his lap. As he answered the call, I tried my best to give him his space.
“Hey, Alex, what’s up?” he said, then paused. “Are you shitting me? No, it’s fine. I’ll be right there. No, really, it’s fine. All right, bye.”
He hung up, and the weight of the world was solidly back on his shoulders. “I gotta get going,” he said, gathering his clothes, and tossing them on.
“Is everything okay?” I questioned, standing quickly and wrapping my arms around my body.
“Yeah—well, no. My dad’s just a fucking drunk, and is causing a scene down at the shop. I just gotta go handle him.”
“Oh, well, do you want me to come with you?”
He shook his head. “No. If he saw you, he’d lose it even more. I’ll talk to you later,” he told me. “Just close the door on your way out.”
