Becoming a DeMarlo

13: "You're a virgin?"

Chapter 13: "You're a virgin?"

Charlie came home around six that evening, and immediately came up to my room.

"How the hell did you manage to get suspended in your second week of school?"

I looked up to see that he looked more amused than angry.

"It was self-defense," I insisted, making him laugh.

"You're okay though, right kid?" he asked, becoming a little more serious.

I nodded.

"If anything is going on at school that you need help with, you can come to any one of us, okay? I know that Elijah acts like a jerk, but he would do anything to keep you safe."

"He took away my phone," I complained, making Charlie chuckle.

"So I've heard. Don't stress about it, he'll give it back soon enough."

Charlie was right.

The next morning, Elijah gave me my phone back, along with a warning to not irritate him again.

I was surprised to see zero messages from Tyler.

He had left me on read after I asked why Emily had been so angry the day before.

Weird.

Priya had texted me, saying she had heard about what happened and hoped I was okay.

Nothing from Tyler.

When I got to school, my lovely boyfriend was waiting for me by my locker. 

"Hey, beautiful," he sheepishly smiled.

I didn't know whether to be upset or not. 

"Hi," I replied, curtly.

"Baby, I know you're mad. Listen, I just wanted for us to talk in person."

"Okay. Explain, then. Why was Emily so angry at you?"

Tyler glanced around us before speaking.

"Look, Emily and I dated for a while last year. We, uh, did some stuff. I..had some of her photos. You know what type I'm talking about. But I deleted them after we broke up, because it didn't feel right to have her personal photos. A few days ago, she heard from someone that I still had them and was showing my friends, which is why she was so angry yesterday."

"You don't have any of these photos, do you?" I asked.

Tyler shook his head, to my relief.

"I would never do that. I just didn't want to text you all this stuff. I wanted for us to speak about it."

I believed him, and with the tension between us now gone, we easily went back to normal.

I told him about my half-day suspension, and he apologized profusely. I insisted it was fine, but he said he wanted to make up for it.

"How about we go on a date?"

I raised my eyebrows, unsure of how to let him off easy.

"I don't know, Tyler. My family is a little..over-protective."

Elijah would shoot him.

"Sneak out. Or ask to go out with a friend," Tyler suggested.

Sneaking out would be impossible with all the bodyguards and supposed cameras Elijah had around the house.

I could try and lie about it.

"Come on, Maya. I really want to take you out on a date," Tyler begged, pecking my lips.