Price Check On Monogamy

"Tandem, can I take the blindfold off now?"

I could hear the chuckle in his voice as he tsked me. "Be patient, Tiger, Jesus. I promise, everything's almost ready."

I tried to pout, but couldn't keep it together before I burst into a smile. It was my birthday, and Tandem, amazing as ever, had whisked me away to a cabin in California. We'd spent the day playing in the lake out back, watching movies, and eating almost more junk food than I could bear. It had been the best day of my life and, even as I sat in the living room, blindfolded, waiting for my "big surprise", there wasn't a thing in the world that could make me feel anything other amazing.

Then again, ever since we'd gotten back together, that had pretty much been my permanent state-- and not just because Tandem was the most amazing boyfriend on the face of the planet. After that perfect kiss, well... it felt like everything had just fallen into place. But that's a lie, too; things with me and Tandem, things with the world in general, never just "fell into place". But for the first time in my life, I felt like everyone I knew and loved didn't have to beat the pieces to make them fit together.

Jeremy and Tawny were just about the most adorable couple ever. They were attached at the hip, and I hadn't seen Tawny glow like that in years-- maybe ever. The only time she'd done anything less than shine was the last day of school... when Adam had tried to apologize to her. And when his apology was swiftly ended by Jeremy's fist plowing into Adam's mouth, well, Tawny had gone right back to glowing. The second that school was over and the graduation ceremonies had been tied up, Jeremy had shown up at her house with a rose and his typical goofy smile and taken her to go meet his parents. They'd liked her so much, apparently, that they'd offered to take her with them on their annual month long trip to Spain-- and she had wasted no time throwing everything she could handle into a suitcase, promising me that she'd celebrate my birthday the second she got back, and jumping on the plane. Every day I wake up to a picture of her and Jeremy, somewhere in Spain, and every day, she looks more and more happy.

Katy and Drew, and Heather and Caleb, for that matter, were all... happy as can be. Katy came back from her concert and the first thing she did was give me a huge hug; she thanked me for covering for her, babbled for a straight five minutes about how much she'd loved California, and then... told me she loved me. My sister, who had never been anything other than embarrassed of me, told me she loved me. Every Saturday night, me, Tandem, Drew, Katy, Heather, and Caleb do something. What was awkward at first turned into some of the best memories I'd... ever had with my family. We all got used to each other; Katy and Tandem got used to the fact that me and Drew had so much in common, Caleb got used to the fact that Tandem was never happy unless he had a hand on me somehow, and everyone got used to the fact that Caleb and Heather, though completely in love, still argued every other second. Me and Caleb hung out when we both had time and, unlike when we were kids, I didn't resent the fact that, sometimes, that meant we didn't hang out. Sometimes we were both busy, and not seeing my brother didn't mean he'd decided to be an asshole again. Sometimes smiling and teasing each other in the morning before we both left was the best sign that we were twins again-- and that was the most amazing feeling ever.

And yet, with all this couple happiness going on, nothing could top the two meekest people I knew: Jason, who had decided that he couldn't wait the extra year, proposed to Lexy the day before Tawny and Jeremy had left for Spain. After insisting that we should spend the last night that we had with Tawny at Lexy's house, just like old times, we were woken up by the song "You're Song", by Elton John, blaring through the windows, at five in the morning. He'd wanted to make sure that everyone was there when he, in true Jason fashion, built a giant Lego ring out on Lexy's front lawn and knelt in the middle, singing every single word to what had been "their song" since they'd met, wearing the Lego Man costume he'd made and nearly scared Lexy to death with the day he'd asked her out; after numerous failed attempts to even talk to her, he'd decided that the problem was that seeing her beautiful face twisted him so badly that he couldn't get a word out. So, instead, he'd made a Lego Man outfit, God only knows why he'd chosen Legos are his romantic muse, and spelled the words out on his chest-- then followed her around until she read it and, after much hassling to see who it was, said yes. Apparently, Jason had never forgotten and, by the tears in Lexy's eyes as she stood in the doorway with us, it was clear that she hadn't, either. Once Lexy had gotten over the shock and staggered out into the front yard, Jason pulled off the head, pulled out a beautiful diamond ring, and asked her to marry him.

Needless to say, Lexy, through her tears, choked out, "Yes".

"Tiger?" Tandem's voice jolted me back into the present moment as I-- finally-- felt his hands on the tie at the back of my head. "Are you ready, baby?"

I could feel myself grinning like an idiot; going over how amazing things had turned out, remembering that the best times of my life... remembering that I hadn't even gotten around to thinking about my amazing boyfriend and the fact that we just felt so right together.

"I'm taking that smile as a, 'yes, Tandem, I'm ready for my surprise'." His deep laughter made me laugh, too, and I went to kiss him the second the blindfold dropped...

... and all I saw was a tousled blonde head with bright blue eyes and a fat lip staring at me like a deer caught in the headlights. He'd grown, he'd bulked up, he'd gotten a little more tan, but he was unmistakably the monster that had been hiding under my bed for years, ruining my life and my well being-- Wesley Parker.

I couldn't help it; I screamed, but it came out as a gurgled choke, and slammed myself back into the couch, curled my legs up to my chest. I was suddenly unbearably aware of the fact that I was still in shorts and a bathing suit top, and all I wanted to do was disappear into the couch and away from those horrible, horrible blue eyes.

"Tiger!" I didn't register that Tandem was calling my name until he picked me up, cradling me to his chest. I could feel his lips against my hair, kissing my head, whispering, "It's okay, baby, it's okay. I'm never gonna let anyone ever hurt you again. It's okay." And, after a few deep, labored breaths, I calmed, slowly relaxing in his arms. Tandem must have felt me, because I could feel his mood switch instantly from the warm, protective boyfriend I loved to the boy who must have busted Wesley's lip.

"You. I think you have something to say."

I forced myself to look at Wesley, whose eyes were huge and focused on Tandem. "I... I..."

"Speak the fuck up. And it's not me you're talking to."

Wesley actually flinched. I could almost hear gears turning as he shifted from looking at Tandem to looking at me.

"I... I'm so sorry for what I did to you, Tiger. I... I was drunk..." He swallowed as Tandem tch'd loudly under his breath. "I never should have hurt you. I never should have done what I did, and I know you don't forgive me... but I'm so, so sorry."

And, just like that, the moment was so surreal that it almost hurt. Part of me wanted to scream. To cry. To tell him to fuck off and die, because no apology would ever fix what he'd done to me, physically and mentally, and how dare he think that an apology could ever make up for anything, especially when he probably hadn't even thought about it until my boyfriend had, amazingly, managed to pull a miracle where Caleb had failed and track him down.

But another part of me was realizing that Wesley looked terrified. That he looked sick and afraid, like he was staring judgement in the face. And, as I remembered that I was still being held by Tandem, I wasn't entirely sure that he wasn't. Or if he hadn't already gotten a taste of it.

Tandem...

After that kiss-- a kiss that the entire senior class saw, and interrupted with thunderous applause behind us that made us both turn bright red when we realized that the door had fallen open-- I promised myself that I would do everything I could to make things work with the boy who made me feel so perfect and complete, even in front of a huge group of people that, as far as I was concerned, made me feel like shit on a regular basis. I felt untouchable in his arms, and I felt like I was finally at home.

So that night, on his living room floor, in the middle of a horrible slasher flick that he'd dug up from an old movie collection, I told him everything. I hadn't meant to, but a part of me slipped, and... I just couldn't stop it. I told him about Caleb, about Wesley, about my therapy and my craziness, and by the end, I was sure that he thought I was certifiable. I'd sat there, wide eyed and terrified, trying to choke out that, haha, it was all a joke, I'm not really crazy, I promise... and he'd pulled me into his lap and kissed my forehead, stroking my hair and telling me not to cry. Weirdly enough, I hadn't even noticed that I was crying-- but once I did, I couldn't help the sobs that wracked my chest. And Tandem, playful, happy-go-lucky Tandem, had held me while I heaved against his chest, and waited until I'd quieted down to tell me that he loved me with all his heart and he would do everything in his power to make it all better.

And he did.

Tandem took me to every single therapy session, half the time forcing me in to and out of the car. And he'd waited in the lobby until I was done, and taken me, every time, without fail, to get ice cream as soon as I walked out. And, over ice cream, we'd talk about anything I wanted to talk about-- and, somehow, that had turned into my therapy. I'd whine about how much I hated Mrs. Calehay, and somehow it would veer into talking about everything that I was supposed to talk about with her... and Tandem would listen, eating mint chocolate chip ice cream, staring intently at me until I'd finished, and giving me his advice and thoughts once he was done. Every time I had a nightmare, I called Tandem without even thinking about it-- a few times, he'd even woken me up from it with a call, like he'd known that I needed him, and eventually, the nightmares disappeared. Every time I was sad or anxious, he was there to talk me through it, coax me into the crowd, show me that there wasn't anything to be afraid of as long as I held tight to his hand; the few times that hadn't worked, he'd pulled off his jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders, like a jacket could keep everyone out. And, weirdly enough, it worked.

Sometimes, I hate myself for how much of a burden I am on him; I'm his girlfriend, after all, not a child, and the fact that he has to treat me like one half the time is un-fucking-bearable. But it's like every time the thought comes up, he can just sense it.

"Knock it off, Tiger," he'd said as he'd shoved me one day. He'd taken me to a restaurant, and I could see him shivering as we waited for our table because I was wrapped in his jacket, my hand gripped tightly on his. "I love you and I will do everything in my power to help you. Stop thinking whatever it is you're thinking about not being good enough, because I can tell you one thing: you didn't change me so much that I would do this for anyone, Tiger. Only a perfect girl-- smart, beautiful, fun, talented, absolutely amazing-- could get under my skin." The look in his eyes had seared me, but not because it was unfamiliar-- that look, full of love and passion and undeniable truth, was a look he gave me every single day, and it always left me speechless. "You're the only girl I'd ever work so hard for, baby, and don't you ever forget that."

And, time and time again, Tandem had proven that to me.

"Tiger?" And there he was, whispering into my hair again, drawing me carefully back into reality. "Tiger, baby, how are you feeling?" The concern there broke my heart and filled me with so much love that I thought I would burst, all at the same time. "I will break him in half if that's what you need to feel better, baby, just say the word."

I blinked the world back into focus, and there were those blue eyes, staring, terrified, at me and Tandem. There was my monster. There was my past. And I knew that Wesley wasn't actually sorry, the same way I knew he'd probably done to other girls what he'd done to me-- but I also knew that he would never, ever do it again, whether or not Tandem made sure he never walked again.

"Get out," I said quietly. I wriggled a little until Tandem caught on and put me down, and staring up at Wesley, I said again, "Leave. Now. And never forget the fact that, even after everything that happened, I'm the one standing between you and my loving boyfriend ripping you to shreds."

The relief that flooded his eyes was impossible to miss before he turned and sprinted out of the cabin, not hesitating at the door that was still open, and flying down the road until he was gone-- not just from my sight, but from my mind, too. I took a deep breath and I turned, smiling, to stare into the golden eyes that I wanted to see, every day, for the rest of my life. The golden eyes that I wanted in my dreams, every night, to replace the horrible blue ones they'd scared away for good.

"How did you do it?" I asked quietly, arms crossed over my chest, lips a breath away from his.

Tandem laughed and ran his hand through his hair. "Called in some favours, looked into some stuff. Told him that I was a scout come late and I wanted to see if it was too late to offer him a full-ride scholarship." The wicked gleam in his eyes was as unmistakable as it was bad, and it made me smile so broadly, it hurt.

"You are so bad," I scolded playfully, and that gleam was back again right before he swept me up into his arms and walked to the back of the cabin. Kicking open the door to the patio, I almost squealed with delight: he'd made me dinner and set it up with candles, a bucket filled with ice and bottles of coke in the middle of the table next to what looked like a strawberry smothered cake. The view over the lake was gorgeous as a fat moon hung over it, surrounded by bright stars.

"You love how bad I am," he teased as I slung my arms around his neck and gave him a neck-breaking hug. When I pulled back, he looked at me again with that look of such intense love that I felt it all through my body. "And I would move heaven, earth, and hell to make sure that you get the world-- just like you deserve."

I opened my mouth, but I couldn't think of a thing to say. I couldn't put into words how much I loved him, every part and faucet of him: from his playfulness to his seriousness to his sudden frustration at times. To the fact that he couldn't help looking at other girls, but he always looked back at me like he was ashamed and I couldn't help but forgive him, because he was trying, and I knew it. To the fact that, if he ever caught another guy looking at me, hell would break loose in a heartbeat. To the times he fell asleep snuggled in my lap and he looked so innocent and peaceful that I couldn't bring myself to wake him up. To the fact that he called me baby more than he called me Tiger, sometimes, and even though it irritated me at first, if he ever stopped, I'd probably freak out, because I was more vulnerable than I had ever been in my entire life-- which might link directly to why I was happier than I'd ever been in my entire life. To the fact that he was gorgeous and it intimidated me almost as much as it made me so amazingly proud that I could point at him and say, "That's mine." The fact that, without fail, Tandem could always pick me out of a crowd and, without an ounce of hesitation or fear, tell anyone that would listen, "She's mine." Everything about him, big or small, I absolutely adored. And I couldn't even begin to put it all into words.

So instead, I pulled his lips to mine and kissed him, trusting him to read my mind the way that only he could-- and I couldn't help but smile against his lips because, by the way he kissed me back, I knew he did.