Sticks and Stones

Chapter 5

"Where are you going baby? The fun's just getting started." I twisted my neck around to look up at him from his position behind me. My eyes landed on a P tattooed behind his ear in old English script. This was Peter then. His brilliant blue eyes burned down into mine, a devilish grin plastered to his face.

"Don't worry, I don't bite," he whispered, teeth grazing my earlobe, "much." Warmth spread from my reddening face to my lower body. I blushed furiously, desperately hoping he wouldn't notice.

"You know I'm not really in a dancing mood."

"Liar!" Peter whispered, brushing his lips along my neck as he pressed himself flush against my back. I couldn't help myself as I shivered and ground my hips back into him.

"Much better." Peter moved against me and I followed, adjusting to the beat of the music. Our bodies moved together, lost in the same seductive dance as the rest of the mob. I lost track of where I was, just part of the sea of moving bodies and pulsing beats. I was cold and on fire, alone and surrounded, lost and found, all at the same time. No walls, no fear of being beaten, no tormenting jeers. Here I was just another body, the same as everyone else.

Suddenly, on some irresistible impulse, I lifted my eyes to the stage. The singer was staring at me, his emerald green eyes burning into mine. As he paused for breath he flicked out his tongue, licking his lips in a seductive grin.

"I'm not paralyzed but I seem to be struck by you. I want to make you move, because you're standing still." Never once did his eyes leave mine as he sang. I couldn't think, couldn't breath, couldn't look away. I was caught like a mouse in his emerald serpent's gaze. Finally I was able to tear my eyes away as the song ended and the singer signaled to the DJ in the back to start playing. He took a swig of water from a bottle before tossing it into the crowd and exiting the stage with the rest of the band. My chest heaved as I came down from the trance he'd placed on me. Not daring another glance, I resumed dancing with Peter though for some reason I couldn't get back into the rhythm we'd had before.

Warm hands suddenly grasped me by my hips and while their owner ground against me.

"Hello, Benjamin. I hope you've enjoyed your time in my kingdom." I swallowed hard as I turned to face the singer, his green eyes dark and mischievous.

"Yes." I managed to croak out in a hopefully audible voice. His very presence was enough to twist my stomach into excited knots and freeze my words in my throat. I'm sure my expression was one of a deer in headlights quality as he smirked and leaned in close to me.

"It's so cute when you blush." He whispered, lips barely an inch from mine.

"Uh, I, thanks!" I stammered, unable to think coherently as the boy stared deep into my eyes.

"Do you, uh, wanna dance or something?" He seemed to consider it for a moment before letting a smile play across his face. Without actually answering he grabbed my arm and tugged me back to the center of the mob. I almost felt guilty for leaving Peter but I knew he wouldn't have any trouble finding a new play toy. The current DJ favored pop both past and present over the old band's punk metal and lasers had now joined the strobes. The singer grinned at me and I felt an answering smile break across my face as I prepared to fall into the beat again.

As we reached the center of the floor the song cut off. The singer raised his eyebrows as if in surprise but his actions showed otherwise as he stepped confidently into the newly formed ring of dancers in the floor's center. I remained confused for a few seconds until the tell tale first notes of Michael Jackson's Smooth Criminal pulsed through the room. Rory, that bastard! This had to be his doing since he was the only one who knew about the dance classes I'd taken. The singer, who I now assumed had to be the infamous Cole, looked at me expectantly. I slid into the circle, stopping on a dime and popping my collar while spinning around in a classic MJ twist.

I nodded towards Cole and cocked an eyebrow. Let's see if his moves could match his admittedly sexy body. As if on cue he jerked to life, his body flowing as if he'd been practicing the moves all his life, which he very well might have. Finally he stopped and struck a pose, flipping off his shirt into the mob in the process. I stared hungrily at his toned chest and abs before focusing once more on my own body, determined to outdo him. As the song progressed we moved less as competitors and more as partners, each seeking to build on the other's movements.

The songs began to blur together in a rush of background noise as my world became separate from anything but myself and Cole. I could taste his breath on my lips in the few moments his lips ghosted past mine, could smell the the musky scent of his exposed skin which gleamed with a sheen of sweat. His body was hot on mine when we would touch for a few fleeting moments, each ramping up the pounding of my heart and sending heat coursing to places I'd never felt it before. Nothing else existed but our bodies and how they melded together.

Struck by a sudden urge I pressed myself against him, grinding my hips into his. Cole's eyes widened slightly before darkening. He crushed my body into his, crashing his lips into mine in a fiery kiss. It was a kiss that said he was no longer playing games, that he was in control. I parted my lips, moaning slightly. How could he effect me so much? Though if what I could feel through his dark, fitted jeans was anything to go by, I affected him just as much.

Without warning he seized my arm and dragged me off the dance floor, pulling me out a steel door and onto the unoccupied space of the roof. Without missing a beat his lips found mine again as he backed me up against a cold stone wall. The dimly flickering lights on the roof cast bizarre shadows across our bodies, making everything all the more exciting.

Stifling a groan, I brought a hand up to run through the hair at the base of his neck while the other gripped his hips. I shivered as his lips left mine in favor of kissing a burning trail down my neck to my collar bone.

"You smell so damn good." He growled as he bit my neck, pulling my hands off of him and pinning them against the wall in the process. I moaned openly now, not caring what he wanted to do. All that mattered was that he kept touching me. He dropped my hands in favor of swiftly undoing the buttons on my shirt, pushing it down off my shoulders until it fell to the ground. I ran my hands over the toned muscle of his back and chest, feeling it flex beneath my touch. I need him to touch me, to feel his skin on mine.

Cole stepped closer, molding his chest to my own as he ground his hips into mine, his lips still trailing over my neck and shoulders. I'd never kissed anyone like this before. I'd never wanted anyone as much as I wanted Cole now. My jeans were tight, too tight. The friction of them rubbing against me as I pressed myself into Cole was almost unbearable.

"Cole, I...I" I panted, praying he understood what I had meant. He bit down on my neck, making me groan and thrust against him as I closed my eyes.

"Shit." Cole groaned. God let him do that again. My heart was pounding by now, racing to keep up with the heat Cole was spreading through my body. He stroked his fingers across my bare chest and down my sides to stop at my hips. The callouses on his finger tips dragged on my skin, leaving a faint tingle anywhere they trailed over.

"Ben..." Cole breathed across my skin as he slid his hands to the button of my jeans. Instantly I jumped back as if he'd stuck me.

"I... I can't..." I barely knew his name, I certainly wasn't ready to go any farther than I already had. I hugged my arms to my chest, my heart racing out of fear instead of anticipation when I realized my shirt was no longer on my body; my beaten body, marred by ridged scars and bruised flesh. I hurriedly tugged it back onto my arms, fingers flying to do the buttons. Please don't have let him seen. With any luck the dim lighting had hid the evidence of my abuse. I was far overdue for a bit of luck. Cole caught my hands and stared down at me.

"Hey, hey, calm down. I'm not going to force you to do anything." He murmured as he helped to do up the last few buttons. Once finished, Cole's warm arms pulled me firmly against his body. He stayed there, supporting me until I began to lean into him with my full weight. Slowly Cole sank down to a sitting position, pulling me with him and resting his forehead against mine. He continued to inch back until we were both on the ground with our legs intertwined. I rested my head on his chest and listened to his still slowing heartbeat. Warm lips ghosted across the top of my head as he kissed my hair.