Despite the chill, the wind, the salt of tears blending into our kisses, I was burning. Burning with something I couldn’t name. It scoured through every cell as our bodies moved together in perfect synchrony, driving us closer to the cliff’s edge.
This wasn’t sex.
It was worship.
The steel wire in my chest wove between us, around us, through us-bindingus. Together, we leapt off that precipice and succumbed to the tidal wave our bodies created.
28
Ollie
Ileanedback,asssliding to the edge of the plastic chair as I stretched my arms high overhead. Quiet discussions- part English, part broken Spanish- floated around the classroom while our little foursome sat in strangled silence. Miranda’s pouty lips pressed into a thin line as she shifted her seat, keeping her gaze firmly on her textbook while Courtney gnawed the cap of her pen like it would magically turn into candy.
The final member of our group, Brandon Carlisle, slapped his textbook in frustration. “Are you going to actually contribute this time, Wallis?”
A shark's smile pulled at my lips as both Courtney and Miranda rolled their eyes. A few weeks into the semester and Merit was suspiciously absent, leaving me perpetually paranoid. The never-ending anticipation of a dire phone call, typed threatening letters or suspicious vans with blacked out windows, kept me on edge. But I discovered an outlet for all of my restless energy: unraveling the prim, proper poli-sci major reeking of entitlement and condescension.
“Nah, I don’t think so.”
Miranda’s lips twitched. She continued neatly printing on her own page.
Brandon’s manicured fingers drummed the desk. “Care to share with the group?”
“Nope.” I shrugged, sliding my completed translation to Courtney, who shot a nervous glance at Brandon as she accepted it.
“You just-” Brandon gasped.
“She’s notthe group.”
“Dick,” he muttered. An irritated huff from Miranda, a sigh from Courtney; they’d formed an unspoken alliance of annoyance. I toyed with a lock of my girl’s hair as she wrote, admiring the way the afternoon light sheered out the silvery strands.
When the silence got too much, Brandon twisted in his seat, poking Miranda with his pen. She bristled. He smiled, oblivious. “You excited for the party tonight? KDD and AEP make a perfect pair.”
Her dead-pan glare in response was comedic gold. I snorted a laugh. Sharp pain radiated from my shin and Courtney hissed, “Baby.”
“Did I say something funny, Geed?” Brandon spat and tugged at the starched collar pressed over his cashmere knit.
“Enlighten me on that derogatory term again,” I mused, weaving my pen through my fingers.
“GDI.”
“And that means?”
“God Damned Independent.”
I chewed my lip, feigning consideration. “I don’t see how that’s an insult, I’d rather not join the hive mind.”
Brandon’s cheeks flushed red, his nostrils flared, and a chunk of his meticulously shaped brown hair sprung free.
“I’ll break this down in a way you can understand,” he sneered, straightening the cuffs of his shirt for the fifth time. “Some of us seek roles in leadership, meaning we’re in the market of making connections with the right people, does that compute?”
I tilted my head, tongue swiping across my teeth to sharpen my words.
“Spoken like a true politician. I’ll make sure to spread some exciting slander for you to practice coming back from.”
“Enough,” Miranda snapped. “You’re both annoying as fuck.”
Brandon blanched, fidgeting hands balled up on his thighs. I snickered and draped an arm across the back of Courtney’s chair, sighing contentedly.
