Tame This Animal

Riley’s nerves were having a field day. She was fluttering around the kitchen, but that was nothing to the butterflies fluttering around her gut. She had invited Adam over to watch a movie. Ben was furious. Riley baked fresh brownies for him to take to work to try and sweeten him up a bit, but he was still not talking to her.

He couldn’t believe she’d snuck behind his back to go to some jerk’s house and have dinner. Better yet, he couldn’t believe she’d invited him over to watch a movie, alone. He was almost positive she had lost her mind.

Her phone vibrated on the counter and both of their eyes turned to it. Riley glanced at Ben sitting at the kitchen table before she picked the phone up. “H-hello?” She sounded like a small child as she stuttered the greeting. She knew it was Adam, but talking to Adam in front of Ben made her anxious.

“Hey Rye, I’m at the front door and no one’s answering. We still on for tonight?” He was worried that she’d got sense knocked into her and now things were over before they started.

“Um, yeah. Just come around to the back door, I’ll let you in.” She darted her eyes to Ben again and he had a disgusted expression that made her heart sink.

“Alright, see you in a sec, babe.” Excitement filled his veins at the pet name. She bit her bottom lip and ended the phone call.

“Adam’s here.”

Ben grunted in response and looked down to his hands. Riley sighed as she crossed her arms.

“Can you please, pretend to be nice?” She looked hurt and heartbroken, and Ben couldn’t take it anymore. He stood up from the table and threw his arms around his sister in a tight hug.

“I’m not happy about this Riles.” He frowned as he pulled back and so did she.

“I know, but this is my decision.” She blinked back tears. “I like him, Ben. I know that’s hard for you to understand, but I do and he likes me to. It’s not so complicated.”

He tried hard not to roll his eyes. “I don’t think I can do nice just yet. How’s polite?”He cracked a crooked smile that grew when Riley giggled.

“Polite will have to do, I guess.” A hard knock came to the back door that startled them both. “That’s him.”

“Better answer it then,” Ben mumbled and went for the stair case. “I’m going to grab my bag.” He called over his shoulder as she went to the door.

Riley swung the door open and felt that impulse to pull Adam close and run her fingers through his hair again. She smiled at the fact that she could technically do it now and not be considered a freak, though she still refrained herself from doing so. Too soon, she argued.

“You look gorgeous.” He breathed out slowly. It had only been two days since he’d seen her, but the two days had been hell. He’d wanted to hold her, smell her, see her, and now he could. His chest felt ten times lighter.

“I’ve been baking.” She glanced down at herself. There were spots of flour on her shirt, smudges on her jeans, and she was sure her hair was a mess.

“And it smells lovely.” He smirked and took a step closer, placing an innocently sweet kiss on her cheek. “Is that for us or Ben?”

“Ben.” She confirmed and turned back to the oven. She bent over slightly to check on the brownies as Adam eyed her backside. “They’re almost done.” She frowned as a bit of goo stuck to her toothpick.

“Good, cause I’ve got ten minutes before I’ve got to be clocked in and ready.” Ben bounded down the back staircase with a messenger bag over his head. Adam turned to the boy and immediately noticed the similarities to Riley.

They had the same hair and eye color, the same stance, the same small nose. It was adorable on Riley, but Ben made it look handsome. He nodded toward Adam with a grim expression. Riley took it upon herself to make friendly between the boys.

“Adam, this is Ben. Ben, this is Adam.”

Ben was trying his hardest not to glare down the boy, for his sister. “Hey man, I’ve heard a lot about you.” Adam chuckled and held his hand out. Ben pressed his lips together hard and forced himself to shake hands with another nod.

“So,” Riley attempted to break the tension between the two boys. “Is Shelly working tonight?” She asked casually as she pulled down a carrier for the brownies and a lid.

“Yeah, she’s in charge tonight.” Ben mumbled. Thinking about work helped distract him from the piece of shit in his kitchen.

“Does she work you harder or does she go all soft on you when daddy’s not around?” She smiled at the tease, but then dropped it a little as it had no effect on him.

“She’s a hardass when it comes to work, but after these brownies she’ll be in love.”He leaned against the counter and crossed his arms.

“Oh, wait! Before I forget,” Riley jogged to the staircase and then up them.

Adam sat at the kitchen table, in the seat Ben had occupied only moments before, completely befuddled. He twiddled his thumbs at the awkward silence that settled. As the seconds ticked by, Ben’s anger overflowed. He’d never had much of hold on his temper anyway.

“I don’t like this.” Ben turned his stone glare to the other boy and kept it there. “Riley’s a good girl and she doesn’t deserve this shit.”The venom in his words surprised Adam.

“I know she’s a good girl.” He stated slowly, trying to sift through the confusion. Ben had always been pleasant in Riley’s comments and memories.

“She doesn’t deserve to be yanked around so you should just leave her alone.”He growled. “Do you even know why she wants to be a therapist so bad?” There were so many other things he wanted to scream at the man, but he didn’t get the chance. A ringer went off and Riley shouted down at him to take the brownies out.

Ben sighed loudly but let the subject go as he turned to grab the oven mitts and take out the brownies. A minute later, Riley bounced down the stairs with a large grin and a small box.

“I found these at a cart this morning, near campus. They’re absolutely beautiful, but not my type so I figure Shelly can have them.” She handed the box over to Ben and went about cutting the brownies.

“You bought her earrings, Riles?” Ben scrunched his eyebrows together as he opened the box. “Don’t you think you’re going overboard with this whole thing?”

“No, I’m not.” Riley huffed and then turned to her brother with a frown. “I just want you to keep this job.”

Ben laughed. “Okay, for one, I want you to know how irresistibly retarded you are right now.” He counted on his fingers and Riley smacked his arm playfully. “And two, I want to keep this job too, but I think we can stop with the bribes. They’ve got plenty.” He chuckled and pulled his sister into another bear hug.

“Okay, fine.” Riley gave in and grinned. “But honestly, when I saw those I just had to buy them. I couldn’t let them die on the side of the road because nobody else would have stopped by. They’re so pretty. Somebody should wear them!”

“You sound like ma,” Ben rolled his eyes and Riley gasped.

“I am not an impulsive buyer! They were just—,”

“So pretty.” Ben finished and then chuckled. “Yeah, yeah. I’ll take them and tell her it’s an old family heirloom. Are the brownies finished?”

“Yes, smartass.” Riley mumbled and shoved the container at his chest.

“Tsk tsk, Riles. No cursing for you, remember? Daddy says it’ll rot your teeth out.” Ben smirked and winked before ducking her next smack. “I’ll be home around one or two. Don’t wait up.” He grabbed a coat and slipped out the door.

“Wasn’t planning on it!” Riley shouted before the door closed and they both heard Ben’s laugh before it closed too. She sighed and turned to Adam with her hands on her hips. “That’s Ben.”

Adam snapped out of his daze. “That’s Ben.” He agreed and stared at the door. He couldn’t shake the things Ben had said. He couldn’t even understand the things Ben had said.

“Anyway, what kind of movie do you want to watch?” Her bright blue eyes sparkled and he decided to forcefully push the thoughts out of his head so that he could focus on Riley. So her brother didn’t like him; that should have been expected.

“An eighties film?” He smirked and she rolled her eyes as she led the way to the living room.

“Ha ha, very funny.” She remarked sarcastically and dropped down in front of the television. “There’s the Lost Boys, Sleepy Hollow, Season One of Supernatural, a whole bunch of seasons of House, Jericho, Andromeda Strain, any of this sounding good or familiar?” She looked over her shoulder with her eyebrows arched.

“What the hell’s Andromeda Strain?” Adam took a seat on the couch.

“It’s this virus that gets out and kills a whole town so the government brings in these scientists to figure out a cure before it takes over the world.” She was grinning wide and he chuckled at her as a blush crept to tint her cheeks. “Ben and I are big Sci-Fi fans.”

“I can tell. Let’s watch Andromeda Strain.” She squealed with excitement and turned back to the TV. He shook his head and slipped his shoes off.

“Okay, the film is going to start. I’m going upstairs to change real fast.” Riley stood up and walked to the stairs. Adam watched her and just as she reached the top of the stairs a grin was breaking out on his face. “Don’t follow me!” She shouted and he sat dumbfounded.

Riley hurriedly switched from her jeans and shirt to clean pajama shorts and a tank. She ran a brush through her hair and applied a little chapstick before jogging down the stairs. She didn’t want it to look like she was trying too hard but at the same time, she wanted to look at least a little attractive.

Adam spent the few minutes putting his thoughts together. By the time Riley returned, he’d decided to ask her about what Ben said. It just bugged him that Ben had brought up her learning to be a therapist.

“Did I miss the satellite falling?” She asked as she walked around the couch and sat on the middle cushion.

“Is that what that was?” Adam smiled as he put an arm around her. Riley arched her eyebrows at the boy but then scooted over a little so that their sides were touching. The contact sent electricity running through her.

“You have to pay attention or you’ll miss everything and be so lost.” She sighed contently and pulled her feet up. She bit her bottom lip as she very gently rested her head on his shoulder.

“I’ll try.” He grinned and looked down at her cuddled up against him. The moment was so perfect. He decided to ask about the therapist thing later and then forced his attention to the movie. He was sure Riley would ask at least one question to make sure he’d been watching.

Two hours went past and Riley brought out popcorn and soda. Two more hours later Adam asked just how long the movie was and Riley smirked before saying six. The last two hours were spent exchanging small kisses and stealing glances at each other while secretly holding hands.

As the credits started to roll, Riley was completely leaned against Adam and a little bit drowsy. She let her eyes drift close as she yawned. “Hey Rye?” Adam started to play with her hair, like he had wanted to do the first day he met her.

“Hmm?” She was too tired to even answer properly.

“Why do you want to be a therapist?” He knew instantly that the question was a bad one. Her body tensed against his and she slowly sat straight up, slightly turning her head toward him. Her blue eyes had a million emotions in them.

“What?”

He furrowed his eyebrows together. After that reaction, there was no way she hadn’t heard him. Something was wrong. “Why do you want to be a therapist?” He asked again.

Her throat was swollen and her mouth was dry. She tried swallowing several times to make the hysteria go away but it didn’t work very well. She was close to panic. “Um, I—,” her breathing started to become labored as her eyes darted around the room.

“Are you okay, Riley?” He leaned towards her worriedly. Her face was paling faster than he could blink. Her mouth opened but nothing came out. She started to gasp for air. “Come on, Riley, breathe! Breathe with me.”

She closed her eyes and focused on her breathing as instructed. It started to get easier and soon she was able to nod her head to Adam’s insistence on whether she was okay or not. “Panic attack.” She vindicated and opened her eyes, making sure to stare straight ahead.

“Does that happen often?” He didn’t understand how she was so calm with the fact that she’d nearly passed out on him. He was terrified.

“I should explain.” She licked her lips carefully and continued to avoid his stare. “You . . . I . . .” She took a deep, steady breath. “I kept to myself in high school.” Adam was baffled by the new direction of the conversation, but he stayed quiet. She had said she would explain and he trusted her to do just that. “I didn’t have friends because I always had my nose in books or experiments and that kind of thing. Ben had lots of friends and okay grades. My mother became overly concerned about me as two years went by. At the beginning of my junior year, she put me in therapy.” Riley dropped her gaze to her hands. “Ben tried to convince her that I was fine. I was just a quiet person, but she didn’t listen. My therapist,” she paused and bit her bottom lip as tears accumulated in her eyes. It took a few more steadying breaths to continue. “He, uh, he used me, I guess. I didn’t pay any mind to it at first, but it quickly went from just bumping into me to touching and so forth.”

Adam was frozen. He shocked and he was angry. The two emotions didn’t mix well. He stared at her and thought of how fragile and scared she would look sometimes. This is why, he told himself. He wanted to touch her, to make it better somehow, but he knew he couldn’t. She was gone already.

Riley cleared her throat. “It went on for a year and a half. I was molested and raped on several accounts. I didn’t tell anyone because I was petrified. Ben found the bruises one night and I broke down to him. He told my mom, my mom sued the practice and got the therapists thrown in jail. That’s when my brother became convinced that money meant power.” She snorted and wiped at her wet cheeks. “After all that, I knew what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.” She smiled a little. “I wanted to help people. I wanted to take his place and be better at it so that more people could be saved.” She glanced at his astonished expression but quickly fixed her gaze back on the wall. “And so when people ask why I want to be a therapist, I remember, and I have a panic attack, and I cry. It’s all pretty mundane.” She shrugged and tried to laugh. It came out chocked as another tear slipped from her eye.

“Riley.” He could finally move again at the sound. It hurt him physically to see her in such pain. He pulled her into his arms and rubbed her back soothingly, cooing into her ear. “Don’t hold it in, baby. Let it out.”

“No.” She shook her head fiercely and pulled away from him abruptly. He frowned. “I’m not going to cry over it anymore. He doesn’t deserve tears. He doesn’t deserve me to think about him. He doesn’t deserve it.” She repeated the words Ben had told her time and time again. She was strong. She had lived through it and now she was living still. She could do it.

Adam recognized the term Ben had used earlier. She doesn’t deserve this, he repeated in his head. The words made more sense now. Ben was worried. She’d broken her own rules for Adam. He realized now that the patient/therapist rules meant more to her than he could ever imagine. He pushed her to break them. He was sick of himself.

“I’m sorry for ruining the evening with my pity story.” Riley sighed and Adam snapped from his thoughts to stare at her bewildered. Always thinking about someone else, he shook his head and frowned at the thought.

“There’s no reason for you to be sorry.” He reached over and grabbed her hand, lacing their fingers. “Besides, I don’t think the evening’s been ruined.” Her chin tilted up as she searched his eyes and finally smiled a little.

She bit her bottom lip with apprehension. “Would you stay over?” She blurted out and felt the blush creeping up her neck and into her cheeks. Adam was taken aback. “It’s just, I don’t want to,” she paused worriedly. She didn’t want to sound desperate, but then she suspected she was desperate. “Have nightmares,” she added lowly and chewed on her bottom lip as she waited for his reaction.

“Course, I’ll stay.” There wasn’t much of a decision to make for him. There was no way he’d leave her to fend nightmares of the son of a bitch who’d hurt her on her own. No fucking way.

She smiled. “Thanks.” She leaned forward to press a soft, small kiss to his lips, making everything instantly better.