Font Size:  

My first kisshad been with Calax.

I had been touched before - violated, some would say - but I have never been kissed.

I remember that night vividly. The humid, scorching air despite the absence of sun, a multitude of stars breaking up the monotony of darkness, the singing of crickets.

My parents had been furious with me that day. No reason, really, besides the fact that I existed.

They hadn’t noticed the garden, and, if they did, they hadn’t cared. I realized that my reaction to Calax may have been a tad overdramatic, but he had hurt me.

That girl, that beautiful girl with ebony skin and luscious hair, had introduced herself as his girlfriend. I hadn’t realized until that moment the extent of my feelings for the grouchy man. Her words were a stab to my heart.

So I had reacted, as I always did when faced with immense stress, and I watched him drift away from me. He didn’t know that I remained after our fight, hoping to apologize. He didn’t know I saw him leaving only to return with two females.

I wouldn’t ever tell him that.

Surprising even myself, I stared up at the apartment complex. Why had I come here?

I didn’t have the answer. Even if I did, I didn’t want to look at it too closely.

Resisting the urge to run up to Calax’s room, I changed direction and walked down to the pond.

The moonlight reflected off the tranquil water, yellow combining with pale silver. It was a beautiful sight, but I couldn’t focus on it.

I couldn’t focus on anything besides the pain in my stomach from where my dad had hit me and the knowledge that, somehow, it was my fault. I could come up with no other reason why my parents would continually torture me. Surely, I did something wrong.

“Addie?” a surprised voice said, startling me, and I spun around on the bench. Despite the darkness obscuring his features, I would recognize his broad silhouette anywhere.

“Hey, Callie,”I said absently. I turned back towards the water,watching a few flowers sway over the surface.

“What are you doing here?” he asked gruffly. I heard rather than saw him take a seat beside me on the wooden bench.

“Thinking,” I answered. I didn’t really know how to elaborate. There were some things that I couldn’t tell him. How does one say that she’s consistently getting beaten by the very people who are supposed to love her? How would he even respond to that revelation?

We were silent for a few moments, each lost in our own thoughts. I didn’t know what he was thinking, but the moonlight illuminated an almost contemplative expression on his face.

“I fixed it,” he said at last. His voice was uncharacteristically quiet.

“Fixed what?” I still didn’t turn to look at him; he didn’t turn to look at me either.

“The garden. I fixed it.”

At that, I whipped my head towards him.

“Why would you do that?” I asked. Why would he have broken it only to fix it again later? The only solution I could come up with was that he was psycho...or that girl had been lying.

“I stayed up all night.” He let out a heavy sigh. “I made it bigger than before - added a few more flowers and a couple of pumpkins.”

I repeated myself. “Why would you do that?”

In answer, he leaned forward and kissed me. It was my first kiss, and tiny pinpricks of heat raced up and down my spine. His lips were soft over mine.

But I didn’t want soft. Not then. I was consumed by this need to feel loved and cherished, instead of just wanted. Trust me. There was a difference.

My tongue touched his lips, demanding entrance, and he easily complied. His gentle kisses turned into ones that emitted a feral hunger. He kissed me like he wanted to devour me; he kissed me like he would never kiss another girl again.

His hand twisted in my hair on the back of my neck, pulling my head up to reveal my neck.

Oops. Apparently, I needed to breathe.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
Articles you may like