Tearing Down the Walls

“Hey, Cass,” Tyler greeted me, grabbing the chair in front of my desk and spinning it around to face me.

I blinked in return.

He pouted. “What?”

I arched an eyebrow. “Shove off.” Tyler was just one of the many idiotic creatures that dwelled in my high school. Popular, athletic, your stereotypical jock.

He rolled his eyes. “You know, I’m starting to think you have something against me…”

“She does. Now fuck off.” The voice, deep and loud, interrupted Tyler’s mentally screwing me or whatever the heck goes on in that sewer of a brain. I looked up to see the school’s one and only Adam Gontier.

Tyler shut his mouth and got out of the chair. Adam plopped himself down into the chair.

I blinked again. Adam was a bit of a loner; the only people who really hung out with him were his friends who were in a band with him.

Was he hot? Yes.

Was I attracted to him? Yes.

Did I ever think anything would happen? No.

I finally realized I had been sitting there in my own world for a few seconds. “Yes?”

“Okay.” He leaned forward, voice low. “I kinda suck at English, and need you to tutor me before I fail and my parents send me off to boot camp.”

I tilted my head, thinking. What could I possibly gain from this? Adam was tough, he knew how to fight and handle himself; surely he’d be able to help me learn to handle myself if anything happened to me. Or, you know, if I wanted to scare off Tyler and his idiots. Besides, this could also give me quality time with him. He intrigued me. It didn’t hurt that I had a crush on him. I finally leaned forward. “Fine.”

“Yes,” Adam hissed, looking relieved.

“If,” I continued.

He groaned.

“If you teach me how to fight.”

He blinked at me, much like I had earlier. “Oh. Okay then.”

I stuck out a hand. He stared at it for a second, like I was offering an alien to him or something, and then shook it. “When and where?” he asked.

I bit my lip, thinking. “My place; after school.”

“Okay, see you then.” He smiled and walked off.

I stared after him, thinking about how he wasn’t all that scary, no matter what people said about him.

~

I had my red hair pulled back into a high ponytail, tank top, gym shorts, and sneakers on. My doorbell rang right after I had pulled my hair up, and I ran down the stairs to open the door.

Adam was leaning on the door frame, a serious look on his face. “Okay. Which first?” he asked.

I noticed the stack of books gathered in his arms. “English,” I answered.

We studied English for an hour, and then went into my back yard. Adam taught me how to punch and throw different blocks. After an hour, I was gasping for air, sweaty as anything. Adam, on the other hand, was fine, his shaggy dark hair dry; no sweat on his face. We agreed to go again the next day.

Over the following weeks, we’d developed a bit of a friendship. I noticed that he was really good at English; he didn’t need any tutoring. There was no way he could’ve failed, but I never said anything.

One day, we were taking a break during my fight lessons. “You know,” I told him, grabbing my water bottle, “You’re not as scary as everyone says.”

He chuckled. “I don’t know about that.”

I peered at him. “I think… I think you just pretend to be scary. So you won’t have to open yourself up to everyone.”

He stared at me. “You’re crazy!” He took a sip from his water bottle. “Absofuckinglutely crazy, you know that?”

“Oh, please!” I rolled my eyes. “The tone of your voice implies that I struck a nerve. You know I’m right.”

He stared at me silently.

“So… what… happened? To make you like this?” I questioned.

He made no sound. His blue eyes bored into my hazel ones.

I stared back defiantly. I had a reputation for not backing down, and there was no way I was losing it now.

He grabbed his water bottle and walked into my house. I jumped up and followed him as he walked straight out my front door, not looking back once. I stared out of the front door, watching him drive away.

There was something more to Adam Gontier than he liked to show, and I would be damned if I couldn’t tear down the wall and find out.

~

The next day at school, I stopped Adam as he was walking down his hallway. “Your books,” I told him, shoving them into his arms. “The rest of them are at my house.”

He glared at me. “Great.”

“Come by after school to get them.” I was plainly ignoring his glare.

“Fine.” He stalked off.

Later that day, my doorbell rang. I opened it, and there was an extremely pissed-off-looking Adam. “Books.”

“Come in,” I told him.

He didn’t move.

“Come in, or you don’t get the books.”

“I could sue you for theft,” he muttered.

“And I could sue you for giving me a bruise the other day in the lesson. Now come in.”

His jaw worked, muscles clenching and unclenching. Finally, he stepped into my house. “I’m in. Books.”

“Go into the living room, Gontier.” I rolled my eyes.

“Fine, Lee.” He practically stomped into my living room.

“Sit down on the floor.”

He did so, looking angry.

“We’re going to play a game,” I told him.

“What? I just want my damn books!” he yelled.

I ignored his outburst. “I’ll ask you a question. For every answer, a truthful answer, you get a book.” I had four books on the floor next to me.

He rolled his eyes. “Fine.”

“Okay. One, why do you try to scare everyone?”

He looked at me. “You were right. Everything you said.”

I handed him a book. “Two, what made you like that?”

His jaw worked. “I… didn’t exactly have a good childhood.”

I nodded. Fair enough answer. I handed over another book. “Three, why do you not reach out?”

He stared at me. “Tried once. Ended badly.”

I handed over another book. “Finally…” I cradled the last book in my hands. “Why did you ask for tutoring if you don’t need it?”

His eyes widened. “Screw it. I’m leaving.” He jumped up.

“No, wait!” I cried. “Come on! It’s just a little question!”

He stopped at the door, his hand on the handle. He stood there for what seemed like an hour, and then suddenly whirled around. He took three strides towards me and grabbed my shoulders, pressing his lips to mine. I stood in shock, then began to kiss back as fire spread through my veins. He pulled back, panting slightly, and whispered, “I just… I’ve been looking for a lifeline.”

I handed him his last book, then grabbed the back of his neck and pulled his lips back down to mine.