Hello hello hello!
Okay, this is an experimental piece. This is not my usual writing style, but I thought I might try something different. Be warned, it might come across as a little brutal. It is an exercise in reality. A to the point, no holds teenage romance. Should I bother continuing? Criticisms are welcome.
** Oh, and for those who care, I'm not abandoning my other stories to write this one. The others are just in need of editing before I post again.
~Hailey~ xoxo
PS. Rated for sexual content.
Love is nothing like storybooks
He lay panting above me, his skin laced with sweat. The alarm clock blinked staunchly, completely unaware that the world had just shifted. Its neon glow was the only light source in the dark room, the only thing reminding me of where I was. If it hadn’t been there, I could have pretended I was dreaming. The cheap bed sheet was making my bare skin itch, and the smell of his sweat surrounded me.
‘How was that?’ he whispered. I remained silent, afraid to open my mouth. My body trembled uncontrollably. I tried to calm myself down, so to ease the shaking, but it only seemed to worsen. He rolled off me and sat up. It was a relief to be able to close my legs and cover myself, trying to reconstruct my shattered self-protection. I pushed myself up and hugged my knees to my naked chest. We sat in awkward silence for a moment.
‘I’m gonna go and get cleaned up,’ he said softly, climbing off the bed and walking into the adjoining kitchen, leaving the curtain open. I immediately struggled back into my pyjamas. I silently cursed the skin-tight tank- top I had worn, knowing I had donned it exactly for this event. I mean, I had imagined it, but I never for a moment thought it would actually happen…
I scrambled off of the bed and tiptoed through the kitchen, trying to escape into the other bedroom, to where I should have been fast asleep in the bunk over Rachel. He was in the tiny bathroom, standing next to the sink. Wait, was he washing his dick? I scanned through the memories of sexual encounters I had shared with my ex-boyfriend. Was it normal for guys to wash their dicks after sex, or did he just want to wash me off of him? The door creaked quietly as I opened it, giving me away. He turned off the tap, spun around and grabbed my arm.
‘Where are you going?’ he asked.
‘To bed,’ I replied simply.
‘Won’t you stay with me the night?’
I shook my head. ‘I can’t.’
‘Please?’ he begged quietly. I gently tugged my hand from his.
‘Goodnight, Jake.’
I strode into the cramped room and shut the door without turning around. Once safely out of his view, my composure slipped. I leaned against the door, shaking madly, as tears began to leak from my eyes.
You think your so clever, don’t you? So smart and cool and brilliant. So what am I, then? Some silly little girl who thought you owed her something? Did you roll your eyes and impress your following with stories of my efforts to catch you? Well let me tell you something, I didn’t choose to fall in love with you…
A lifetime ago...
The scratch of chalk on the board was unbearably dull, an omen for what would undoubtedly be another event-less day, so much like the ones before it. Yankalilla wasn’t exactly at the hub of the news. A tiny town that balanced dangerously on the edge of being forgotten completely, the school contained a scary total of exactly two hundred-and-twenty-three students. And it was an area school.
Rachel scratched absently on the table beside me, her mind far from the maths textbook open before her. Her mahogany hair fell in curtains around her face, contrasting with her abnormally pale skin. I knew that expression she wore, the mournful turn of her mouth and the crinkle of pain between her brows. I gently nudged her with my foot.
‘What?’ she whispered.
‘Stop it,’ I chided. The crinkle on her brow deepened.
‘Stop what?’
‘Thinking about him.’
She rolled her eyes. ‘So you’re monitoring my thoughts now as well?’
‘You know it just makes it worse. He’s an ass, Rach. He doesn’t deserve your thoughts.’
Rachel sighed and returned to vandalising the table. She didn’t believe me, of course. Ryan was perfect. She was the one with the problems and it was inevitably her fault that the relationship had ended. She failed to take into account the fact that it had been Ryan who had cheated, not the other way around.
I kicked her.
‘What?’ she hissed.
‘You deserve better. You were always way out of his league.’
‘If I’m so good why did he choose Leah over me?’ she snapped.
‘Because he was intimidated by you,’ I replied.
‘No, it’s because Leah is prettier than me and-’
‘Ladies, do you have something you would like to add?’ Mr Jervois barked.
‘No. Sorry, Mr Jervois,’ I said meekly, poking my tongue out at him when his back was turned again.
Of course Rachel thought it was all about appearance. When she looked in the mirror, all she saw was fat. Sure, she was a little overweight, but she didn’t realise that she was absolutely gorgeous. Me, on the other hand…
A loud knocking interrupted my musing.
‘Come in,’ Mr Jervois called, exasperation weaving through the tone of his voice.
The door swung open and in stepped our Principal, Mrs Hodgens. She was, in my opinion, prime evil. She was large, with short chestnut hair. She was usually clad in some outfit that wasn’t suited to her job; today’s number was a bright, canary-yellow shawl over a more austere top-and-skirt ensemble. It was her face that spoke of her wickedness, though. Thin, arched brows topped her hard, hazel eyes, and her mouth always wore a smile that was more like a leer than a grin. Rachel and I exchanged a grimace.
‘Do you mind if I steal your class for a moment, Tom?’ Mrs Hodgens asked in a high-pitched voice. Mr Jervois merely waved his arm in consent and turned back to the board. Mrs Hodgens stepped into the room.
‘Good morning, year elevens, and what a bright morning it is!’ she greeted us with cheeriness that rang false in my ears.
‘I have some wonderful news for you. A new student will be joining your class at some time today. His name is Jake Lain, and I expect you all to make him feel welcome here,’ she announced. The sudden change in the room’s atmosphere was almost tangible. The students around me shifted, sitting up straighter, and all eyes were focused on Mrs Hodgens.
‘Where is he from?’ Jessica Mormon asked sweetly. She was blonde-haired and blue-eyed, the typical class Barbie.
‘Sydney. His family moved here rather suddenly, which is why he didn’t begin the year here,’ Mrs Hodgens answered, eager to share the gossip.
Huh. A newbie. Well, the school would certainly gobble him up the moment he set foot on the grounds. Jessica was already shooting warning glances around the class, as though staking her claim. She must have finally run out of boys to date. Though, mind you, it wasn’t such a difficult feat.
‘I expect he will be in at around recess time. Keep an eye out for him and make sure he doesn’t get lost,’ Mrs Hodgens said, before retreating from the room again. Ha, funny. Lost in a school this size…
A buzz of anticipation zipped round the room as the door clicked shut, the sleepy year elevens suddenly roused. A new student! How very exciting!
‘Maybe I’ll have something to distract me from Ryan after all,’ Rachel giggled. I shook my head at her hopeful smile.
‘Why do you think he will be any different than anyone else here? No, forget it. Just realise that you’d be competing against every other single girl in senior school. He probably isn’t worth the trouble,’ I warned.
The smile slipped from her face.
‘I’m not ready for another relationship,’ she said stubbornly. I shrugged.
‘I’m just saying in case you were.’
‘I’m not, but you might be, Sam.’
I snorted. ‘I doubt he’d have anything that would interest me.’
Rach smiled coyly. ‘Maybe.’
