Sanctuary

"COME ON REF! ARE YOU FREAKING BLIND?!" Taryn shouted from the bleachers, joining in the mass of students around her who were protesting the referee's terrible call. Her voice was lost in the resonating sound from her peers, standing on the benches in the student section of the football stadium. They were decked out in red and black, Brighton's school colors, as they cheered on the Brighton Bears in the annual Homecoming game. Usually Taryn wasn't that into football. Or the student section. But today marked her first big event at Brighton, and she wanted in on the action. She didn't want to miss out on anything just because of everything she had been thinking about lately.

Hallie gripped Taryn's shoulder, struggling to see over the six-foot kid in front of her. "It's okay. We're still winning. And there's only five minutes on the clock."

"Yeah, but so much could happen in those five minutes," Taryn said, waving at Shane as she saw him climbing the bleachers with his friends. He had a Brighton t-shirt on, his ever-present smirk glued on his face as he passed her.

Luckily, their opponents weren't able to pull off an upset in the last few minutes of the game, and the student section exploded with school pride as the marching band led the singing of the alma mater. Taryn and Hallie joined the flood of students heading out of the bleachers. They were headed to Parker's house for the official after-party that would last for the rest of the day and into the wee hours of the next morning. Homecoming was big on Brighton's campus, bigger than it had ever been at her other school. Taryn was excited. It had been a few weeks since she had gotten out or hung out with her friends worry-free.

"Hey!" Parker greeted at his front door as the girls arrived. The rest of their friends were already inside, lounging on couches. The windows were all open, a light fall breeze ruffling the shades and cooling off everyone inside. The summer heat had stuck around a lot longer than it probably should have, and it was still relatively warm for October. Parker wrapped his arm around Hallie's shoulders in a quick hug, and Taryn smirked at her. They really were cute together, now that she thought about it.

"Beer's in the kitchen if you want it," Parker said. "And snacks are on the way. Soooo make yourselves at home!" With a smile, he retreated to the couch he had been sitting on when they arrived, resuming a conversation with Matt and Maggie. Taryn glanced out the window. Multiple houses down the street had started their homecoming festivities as well, students loitering on porches and front lawns, tossing frisbees with plastic cups in their hands. The entire atmosphere both in and out of the house was exciting, like something great was about to happen.

The rest of the afternoon and early evening was filled with visitors, stopping by to hang out for a few hours before leaving again and moving on to the next house. Hallie noticed a lot of kids from her classes and even Radnor Hall, stopping in to say hi to Parker and confirm plans for later that night. Only Taryn and Hallie's close friends remained in the house for most of the day, drinking a few beers and snacking on pretzels as they got to know some of Parker's other friends. Taryn's phone chimed with texts from Danielle and Shane, wondering what her plans were for that night. She ignored them, trying to focus on Jocelyn and Audrey and Matt and Parker and Maggie. She wanted to be closer to them.

Eventually Hallie and Taryn disappeared upstairs for a quick nap on Parker's bed, sleeping for a few hours before getting ready. They headed back to their room at 9:30 or so, getting dressed and downing a few shots in anticipation. Taryn's insides buzzed, and she suddenly couldn't wait to lose herself that night.

Back at Parker's house, the seven friends set out more alcohol and turned up the music in the basement, taking a last group shot as the doorbell rang. The first of Parker's friends arrived, bringing even more. It wasn't long before the basement was packed. Taryn could barely move around to find her friends. Someone had shown up with a keg of that "magic juice" from her first few weekends, and by midnight, Taryn was on her....third....fourth?...cup.

She had given up any hope of finding her friends. She had seen Maggie...or was it Audrey?...disappearing upstairs with a cute boy from one of her classes. She herself had found a few insanely hot guys to dance with, and the latest one seemed pretty captivated with her. She grinded on him against the wall as he wrapped his arms around her waist and nibbled at her ear. She turned around, pressing her lips to his as the bass from the stereo thumped through her body. It was hot, too hot, in that basement, and she put her cup down as he pulled her closer to him. He tasted like stale beer, but it didn't bother her too much. His name was Dan...or Don...something along those lines. His hands traveled up her hips and to her chest, squeezing her breasts as he shoved his tongue in her mouth. She backed away, stepping back and straightening her short skirt. No, thank you. She left him standing against the wall, out of breath and confused. Oh, well. On to the next one.

She squeezed through the crowd of people, her vision shifting slightly as she moved. She found Shane, Danielle, and Shae in the back, Danielle's arms snaked around Shae's shoulders. As Taryn approached, she pulled away from him. "Taryn," she greeted, hiccuping. "Th-this isn't what it l-looks like. S-Shae and I aren't f-fucking or anything, I s-swear."

Taryn smiled, winking at her. "Of course not!" She poured herself another cup of magic juice, taking a pungent sip as she pushed Danielle and Shae from her mind, filing the information away for later.

"Did you get my text?!" Danielle exclaimed, taking a sip from her own cup. Taryn saw Shane's eyebrows perk up in curiosity as well.

"I lost my phone," Taryn giggled as she put her cup down on the table. Which was partly true. It was probably up in Parker's room somewhere, but it wasn't like she cared. Suddenly, she was body-checked from behind, stumbling into Shane's chest. He grabbed her waist, stabilizing her but letting his hands linger for just a bit longer than they should have.

She pushed his hands away, taking another large drink. "What's wrong, New Girl?" he joked.

"You're not my boyfriend," she whispered in his ear. Danielle and Shae resumed their canoodling, Shae glancing at Taryn every once in a while out of the corners of his eyes.

"I'm better than any guy you've danced with tonight, and you know it," he said all-knowingly.

"Fuck you," Taryn said, pushing away from him and moving through the crowd. She saw him try to follow but was cut off by a chain of girls trying to find their way to the front of the room. Having thought she lost him for good, she ran into Jocelyn and started dancing again. It wasn't long before she was approached by an attractive boy with brown hair that framed his face and a strong, chiseled jawline. He held out a plastic cup to her, offering her a drink. She accepted it, dancing with him for a while. He backed against the wall as she grinded against him, just like she had done with the two others guys earlier. To be honest, she was getting bored with the whole routine.

She downed the rest of her drink, dropping it on the floor as she turned around to face him. He leaned down and whispered in her ear that his name was Kyle. She shivered at his breath on her ear, and it was then that she noticed Shane emerge from the crowd near her. He smirked at her, and she marveled in the attention as she kissed Kyle, pulling him into her and kissing him with as much passion as she could muster. His lips trailed down her neck, nibbling at her collarbone. She glanced over at Shane. He had found a girl to dance with, but occasionally would look over at Taryn as if challenging her.

She turned her attention back to Kyle as she kissed him again, their tongues intertwining as she deepened the kiss. She pressed her body against his urgently, and he turned her around so that she was against the wall now. He leaned down, gripping her legs as he lifted her up. She wrapped her legs around his waist and he held her, feverishly kissing him and running her hands through his hair. He was deceptively strong, and she quickly lost track of time. By the time he lowered her to the ground, her lips were sore and her heart was racing. Shane had disappeared. So had the girl he had been dancing with. She kissed Kyle once more, squeezing his hand as she put her number in his phone and said goodbye.

She stumbled up the stairs, gripping the banister for support and looking around for her friends. The kitchen clock said it was...2:30...1:30....? She slowly made her way to the front porch, the cool night air hitting her sweaty face. The street was just as alive as it had been twelve hours ago, if not more so. She stumbled down the front steps, trying not to trip.

"I got ya," she heard a voice say as a strong hand gripped her upper arm. She turned, wrenching her arm away from Shane.

"I don't need you to save me," she said stubbornly.

"I'm not trying to."

"Where's your next conquest?" she said, referencing the girl he had been dancing with. She turned toward campus, trying to steady her walk.

"With some other guy by now," he said simply. "Despite what you may have heard, I don't try to sleep with just anyone."

"Just me, right?" Taryn said bitterly, turning sharply away from him as he tried to follow her. He, too, was clearly drunk. "How grateful I am for that. Thanks for gracing me with your dick. Asshole."

"Hey," he said, catching up to her again in a few short strides. "Why are you so angry with me?"

"I'm not." She said, haphazardly shoving his chest.

"You are."

"I'm not. You just won't leave me alone." She stopped, her head spinning as she forced herself to breathe.

"I don't think you actually want me to," he said boldly. She looked up at him, his blue eyes boring into hers. "That little charade back there was to make me jealous."

"My entire life doesn't revolve around you, you know."

"But I affect you. I know I do."

"Yeah, well, you're not the only one."

"Fine," he said, his voice lowering to a near whisper. "I'll leave you alone, then. Kyle's waiting, after all." She didn't bother to ask how she knew his name. He turned, strolling down the sidewalk towards his own house, leaving her on the sidewalk. She sat down on the curb, running her fingers through her hair and trying to catch her breath. She couldn't think straight. She couldn't even walk straight. God, he pissed her off. Who did he think he was?

She squeezed her eyes shut. She didn't know what she wanted.

***

She didn't know how she got there. Or why. But she ended up at his doorstep a few minutes later. She knocked forcefully.

He opened the door, that fucking smirk plastered on his face.

"New Girl," he said. She wrapped her arms around him, kissing him as he pushed her against the doorway. He shut the door, never letting his lips leave hers as he backed into the house. He smiled through the kiss, trailing his lips down her neck and to her collarbone. A soft moan escaped her lips, and he pulled back to look at her as best he could in the dark. She looked up at him, running her fingers through his hair and biting her lip. He pulled her entirely up against him, lifting her up exactly like Kyle had done. Her lips met his again, deepening the kiss as she held onto him. He carried her back through the house, towards his room. Lowering her onto the bed, he stripped off his button-down shirt and climbed over her, kissing her collarbone.

She held his toned waist, lifting her arms as he pulled her shirt over her head. He kissed her again, running his hands over her bare stomach and making her shiver. She couldn't deny how attracted to him she was; more so than any of the guys she had seen earlier. She reached for his belt buckle, undoing the clasp and sliding his jeans down. She moaned again as he slid her skirt down, kissing her all the way down to her belly button before moving back up to her lips. He pulled away for a second, and she heard the ripping of foil as he opened a condom and positioned himself over top of her. She gasped as she felt him inside of her, and he quieted her with another kiss. The sensation was one she had never felt before, and her eyes closed in delight as he nibbled at her neck. This was even better than the first time.

Their bodies moved in synchronicity, heartbeats racing. She held him to her chest, her mind numb in ecstasy. His breathing began to shorten after a while and as he finished, she pulled him closer, kissing his shoulder as he collapsed into her. He rolled over, pulling her on top of him. He kissed her softly, pushing her hair back from her face. She smirked down at him, completely satisfied for the first time in a while. She didn't know what was going to happen next. Or if she'd even remember this happening. But at least for right now, she could relax. Maybe Shane was exactly what she had needed after all.