What a Wicked Game

“Lindsey, time to wake up!” Lindsey Baker’s mother, Sheila, yelled down the hall towards her daughter’s room. Lindsey sighed, very much wanting to stay in bed and continue sleeping. Were it not for being able to see her boyfriend, Jordan, she would not want to go to school. So, reluctantly, she crawled out of bed and started looking for clothes to wear. Settling on Jordan’s Nirvana t-shirt and a pair of jeans, she walked to the bathroom to brush her teeth and comb out the tangles in her straight black hair.

“Hurry up, I need to piss.” Her brother Zack-affectionately known by many as Zacky-knocked on the bathroom door. Lindsey opened it almost immediately, shooting him a narrow-eyed look, “There you go, oh wonderful brother.”

“Sarcasm is not funny in the morning.” He smiled teasingly.

Lindsey shook her head at their almost daily morning ritual. After she grabbed her purse, she said goodbye to her mom and left to go to school.

She was greeted at Huntington High by her best friend, Paige, who was easy to spot with her shoulder-length red hair. Lindsey and Paige had been best friends for years, ever since Paige moved to Huntington Beach when she was only five years old. The two were nearly inseparable, much like Zacky and his group of friends.

“Guess who skipped school today?” Paige said as soon as Lindsey stepped out of her car.

“Who?” Lindsey asked, only vaguely interested this early in the morning.

“Brian.” Lindsey immediately smiled, because this was a normal occurrence. Brian went to a different high school, so he would often come here for a day instead to see his three friends: Zacky, Matt, and Jimmy. They would do the same to go and see Brian.

“Is he here now?”

“Is someone speaking of the devil?” Brian popped up out of nowhere behind Lindsey and Paige, nearly scaring them out of their skins.

“Warn us next time, asshole!” Lindsey hit him playfully on the arm while he laughed mischievously.

“Shut up and give me a hug.” Brian gave the greatest “bear hugs”, second only to Jimmy. “Where is that brother of yours?” he asked as they pulled apart.

“He’ll be late, as usual.” Lindsey noticed that Paige blushed at the mention of Zacky. “But I need to leave so I can go meet Jordan at my locker.”

“Oh please, don’t let us keep you from making out!” Brian and Paige then proceeded to make gagging noises, trying their best to tease Lindsey, who always ignored them. Joking aside, Brian was one of the guys who were always there for her when no one else was. Whether it was beating up boys who had been mean to her or just lending a shoulder to cry on, he was one of her closest friends. All she had to do was ask and he would be there.

Jordan was waiting for Lindsey when she arrived at her locker. His blonde hair was spiked into a Mohawk, and he was wearing black jeans, a Metallica t-shirt, and a jean vest; one of those typical punk/bad boys of the scene. Contrary to appearances, he was very sweet when he wanted to be, he just never openly advertised the fact. Lindsey smiled as she approached him, “Good morning.”

“Morning…” he seemed anxious, “um, we need to talk.”

‘We need to talk’ was never a good thing to say, in her book. A chill started to settle at the pit o her stomach, “About what?”

He scratched the back of his head, obviously trying to choose his words carefully, “Well…I think we should break up.”

Lindsey raised her eyebrows, completely off guard. Her and Jordan had been dating since sophomore year, why would he want to break up now? Though it felt as if someone had just punched her in the stomach, she swallowed the lump in her throat and ventured to ask, “Can I ask why?”

She figured that was the one question he didn’t want her to ask. He clicked his tongue, “I just feel like you don’t trust me.”

“What? Of course I trust you! I’ve told you things I’ve never told anyone else, I don’t get jealous around other girls, so why would you think I don’t trust you?”

“We’ve been dating for three years, Lindsey. I would just think you’d trust me enough by now to…” he trailed off, hoping that she would know what he was talking about.

She stared at him, confused for a few seconds, when the realization struck her. It was the same situation he had brought up once before, but she thought she had talked him down from it. “You want to break up because I don’t wanna have sex?” the words came out cold and hurt.

“Come on, don’t make it sound so bad. I just figure if we haven’t done it by now, you just don’t trust me in that way.”

Lindsey didn’t know what to say. Was it such a crime that she wanted to wait until she was sure of what she wanted to have sex? Apparently it was as she heard countless times before-in high school, boys only want one thing. As hurt as she was, she made a decision, “Fine. Go find some sleazy cheerleader to fuck. I don’t care anymore.” She set her books down on the floor and went about taking off the shirt she was wearing, left in a small white tank top. The Nirvana shirt was thrown straight at Jordan’s face, and Lindsey walked away with tears in her eyes as the bell rang.

At lunch, Lindsey wasn’t feeling much better. Paige tried cheering her up by talking about how they were going prom dress shopping later, though it had the opposite effect. “I don’t even have a reason to go to prom now.”

“Of course you do! We can go together, okay? It doesn’t look like I’m getting a date anytime soon, so why not?”

Lindsey shrugged and picked at the bland looking mashed potatoes with her fork. It’s not that she didn’t want to go with her best friend, she just wasn’t in the mood to talk about it. An awkward silence was settling before Brian walked over and sat next to Lindsey, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

“I heard what happened.” Lindsey nodded in response, her gaze settled at her feet. “You’re worth a hundred of that asshole, got it?” A loud laugh echoed across the schoolyard, where Jordan was with his group of friends. He had been glancing over smugly at Lindsey every few minutes. All too quickly, she could feel Brian’s body shudder in rage. Before she could look up and talk to him, he had left the table and headed toward Jordan.

“What’s he doing?” Paige asked, almost afraid of the answer. Lindsey shook her head, thinking that whatever Brian was doing, she wouldn’t try and stop him. They both watched anxiously as Brian stopped in front of Jordan, the pair exchanging words and various hand gestures. If that was the extent of it, Lindsey would have been satisfied, but the next second she saw Brian’s fist collide with Jordan’s face. He staggered back, then punched Brian square on the nose.

“Brian!” Lindsey yelled, getting up from her seat and running towards the fight. Other students had gathered around by now, cheering the two on for more. Lindsey tried to squeeze pass them, Paige not too far behind. Everything happened in a blur. The principal of the school and the gym teacher came out to break up the fight. Everyone was told to go back and finish their lunch. Brian and Jordan were pulled along to go to the office. There was no chance for Lindsey to tell Brian off…and thank him.

After school, Lindsey conceded and went prom dress shopping with Paige, even though she badly wanted to see how Brian was doing. Despite her bad mood she enjoyed looking at the dresses, carefully deciding which one she liked the best. Eventually, after at least three hours of searching, she settled on an emerald green dress that fell just above her knees, with a halter top and a gentle flow of glitter running down the side. Paige chose a short, strapless red prom dress that poofed out slightly at the bottom.

Lindsey said goodbye to her friend after they purchased their dresses. She had almost forgotten about what happened that day due to the time she had spent with Paige. When she pulled into her driveway, she was surprised to see Brian standing there, a large bruise already forming on his nose. She scrambled out of the car and ran towards him, extending her arms to bring him into a close embrace. He wrapped his arms securely around her.

“Are you okay?” her voice was muffled against his chest.

“I’ve been in worse fights than this.” He said, slightly amused that she was so concerned over one punch to the face. “That asshole deserved it.”

Not a moment after he spoke, Lindsey started to cry. She had successfully held it in during the day, but here in his arms, she just fell apart. Brian didn’t say anything while they stood there. Even when the sun was setting and stars were shining brighter in the sky, he didn’t make to pull her away. He would stay as long as she needed him.

It was prom night, the culmination of the high school year for some people and a night for sex and booze for others. Lindsey Baker stood outside the front of her house, waiting for Paige to come out with her date. Much to Paige’s surprise, Lindsey’s brother, Zacky, had asked her to prom a week ago. She reacted like Lindsey expected her to-like a total thirteen year-old. It was entertaining to see her best friend so worked up over a boy, and it made her happy. Paige had been crushing on him for a very long time.

After what seemed like an hour, they both came out the front door, trying to wave off their parents. Zacky’s black hair was slicked back into a tame, nice fashion. Paige’s hair was curled into soft waves that fell beautifully around her shoulders. They certainly did make a cute pair.

The three of them were greeted at the hotel ballroom-and it really did look like a ballroom by now-by Matt, Jimmy, Brian, and their respective dates. Brian’s date, Lindsey couldn’t help but notice, seemed annoyingly smug that she was with him. She recognized her as Melissa Day, one of the “Miss It Girls” at her high school. A strange surge of jealousy crept into her.

As soon as they were inside, there was no stop to the pounding rhythm of the music and dancing. Even Jimmy, who was not a very good dancer, had tried to dance with his date. The keyword here being “try”. His lower lip stuck out when he returned to the raucous laughter from his friends. “I don’t see any of you pussies dancing!”

Matt held up his hands, “I think you danced enough for all of us, buddy.”

Lindsey looked around, laughing quietly at Jimmy and Matt messing around with each other. Brian and his date had disappeared a few minutes ago, but she didn’t see them on the dance floor. Then again, why did she care where he was? ‘I must have had some spiked punch’ she thought to herself.

“I know Lindsey will dance with me.”

Lindsey looked up when Jimmy mentioned her name, “Okay, but I’m showing you how to actually dance.” Matt and Zacky whistled as she grabbed Jimmy’s hand and pulled him out into the crowd. There was an upbeat pop song playing at the moment, though neither of them knew what it was. Lindsey tried to get Jimmy to move with the beat of the music with no such luck. Hilariously, he did whatever he wanted to, almost starting to mosh at one point. She could barely keep dancing when she was laughing so hard.

There was a tap on her shoulder and she turned around to see Brian, looking at Jimmy like he had never seen him before, “You let him out here?” he yelled over the music.

“He’s having too much fun!” As if to exaggerate her point, Jimmy started jumping against other people, trying to get them to do the same as him. Most of them walked away.

“Dude, can I steal your…dance partner for a minute?” Brian wasn’t sure if Lindsey was necessarily Jimmy’s dance partner anymore.

He came to a stop when his friend spoke up, “Sure, I’m fine here! Tell Matt to get his ass over here.” Brian gave Jimmy a thumbs up before grabbing Lindsey’s hand and pulling her off to the side. He didn’t stop until they were out in the hallway, where other students were gathered with their friends or dates to talk without having the music so loud.

He stopped by an exit door and leaned against it, sighing with what seemed like relief. Lindsey was confused, “What’s going on?”

“I had to ditch my date. She was getting really fucking annoying.”

Lindsey almost laughed, “Then why did you take her to prom?”

Brian shrugged, “I don’t even know. I didn’t get a date with the girl I really wanted to go with, and Melissa ended up asking me, so I said ‘what the hell’ and went along with it. Does that make me an asshole?”

“No…you probably should have told her that you were going to end up ditching her. But she’s a bitch anyway so I don’t feel too bad for her.” She paused, “Who did you really want to go with?”

A bashful smile appeared on Brian’s face for a few seconds before it was wiped away, “I’ll tell you some other time.” His eyes flashed down the hallway, “We should probably get back though, I guess. Before Jimmy causes a riot.”

“No…why don’t we just leave?” the words were out of Lindsey’s mouth quicker than she had realized what she said.

Brian blinked, “What, just go?” he weighed the option, “That sounds better than having to hear her talk again. We could go back to my place and watch a movie.” Without another word, they both left for the parking lot to get into Lindsey’s car.

Brian’s parents were already asleep when they walked into the dimly lit house. The two of them crept silently up to his room and closed the door, trying their best not to wake them up from the noise of the movie. They ended up choosing A Nightmare On Elm Street, one of Lindsey’s favorite movies. Lindsey took off her high heels and sat on Brian’s bed in the corner of the room, scooting back so that her back was against the wall. He threw his suit jacket on the floor and took off his shoes just as the movie started.

They sat next to each other on his bed, talking quietly here and there whenever there was a lull in the movie-they had seen it before, after all. Lindsey couldn’t shake a thought that she had to get off her chest ever since Jordan broke up with her three weeks ago. “You know, I don’t think I ever would have slept with Jordan.”

Brian, who was staring intently at the screen, turned his head toward her, “Why not?”

“Well, after he broke up with me, I did have those thoughts where I told myself I should have just had sex with him. After being together for so long I shouldn’t have made him wait. But now that I think about it, he should have waited patiently for me if I meant so much to him. If he loved me, he should have understood that.”

“That’s what guys are supposed to do. Unfortunately, too many of them are assholes to understand that.”

“Besides, sex is not the most important thing in a relationship.”

Brian chuckled, “Try telling that to all of the hormonal guys in this city.”

“I’m serious though!” She turned her body more towards him, “The most important thing is trust. Maybe I never did really trust him, because he probably would have broken up with me after I gave him exactly what he wanted.”

Brian shrugged a shoulder, “You’re probably right. That’s why you just have to find a guy you can trust.” He touched the back of her hand, “Don’t feel rushed just to have sex, okay?” he smiled and turned his attention back to the movie.

Lindsey was struck silent. She stared at him, a light and bubbly feeling welling up inside of her. IT felt like she was seeing him for the first time-his high cheekbones, light brown eyes, and the smile that could light up a room. The one person she could trust more than anyone else was sitting right in front of her, and he had been all this time.

“Brian, who did you want to take to the dance?”

He tensed up slightly, “Hey now, I thought I told you-” just as he was turning his head towards her, he was cut off when her lips connected with his. He froze, unsure of exactly what was happening at first, before he relaxed into the kiss and moved his lips slowly with hers. He pulled back slightly, though their faces remained centimeters away, “Lindsey-”

“There’s no one I trust more than you, Brian.”

He looked up at her, wanting to do this but not wanting her to feel like she had to. “Are you sure?” She nodded, and he brought her lips back to his in a more desperate kiss.

Brian hovered above Lindsey, his naked chest covered in a thin layer of sweat. All of their clothes were thrown clumsily to the floor. The only thing separating them was the cool air between their bodies. He leaned down and kissed her softly, “This is gonna hurt, and I’m really sorry in advance.” He said, wanting her to be prepared.

“It’s okay, I want this.” With her approval, Brian pushed in slowly, holding her hand tightly in his. Lindsey bit her lip to keep from screaming out. She had heard how much the first time hurt, but she had no idea that it was going to hurt this much. As Brian pushed himself in a little more she couldn’t help the small whimper that escaped her mouth. He quickly came to a stop, worried that he had hurt her, but she told him to keep going.

He was slow and gentle, only starting to move when she told him to. It still hurt like hell, but with every thrust he gave it started to hurt less and less. The sharp pain was replaced with pleasure that was touching every corner of her body. As the feeling began to intensify, Lindsey let out a loud moan, “Brian…” An unfamiliar sensation was building up in the very pit of her.

His breathing was heavy, “I know, just let it out.” Once he gave a hard thrust, Lindsey’s back arched and a white hot pleasure coursed through her, setting every nerve on fire. Brian moaned, collapsing against her as their orgasms came to an end.

Lindsey turned to her side, feeling very light and happy, “Thank you, Brian.”

Brian smiled, and brought her lips to his again, “Don’t thank me.”

“Okay, I won’t. I’ll just tell you that I love you.”

His smile widened as he heard those words he had been dying to hear for so long, “I love you too.”