Alissa and I have been together for two months. And while it may not seem like much time to some people, it’s the longest relationship I’ve ever been in. It’s also the longest I’ve gone without getting laid.

It’s Friday, and I can’t wait for school to be over, because it’s my birthday weekend. Saturday is my seventeenth birthday, and I plan on partying all weekend long.

When I pull into the school parking lot, Mason pushes his way out of the car. “Hey, don’t forget to find a ride home,” I tell him.

“Lindsey will take me,” he replies before walking away. I’m really starting to worry about those two. They’ve been seeing each other since school started, and I’ve caught them a couple of times getting a little too close.

When I step out of the car, I wait, watching as Alissa slowly walks up to me. She stands directly in front of me and presses her soft lips to mine. The kiss doesn’t last long, but that doesn’t keep her cheeks from flushing when she pulls away.

“I have to get to class early. I have a fucking presentation to do, so I have to set up.” She pushes her long, blonde hair behind her ear. When she moves to the front of the car, she places her foot on the bumper to tie her shoe. The action causes her breasts to press together, and I throw my head back and groan. “Did you have to do that right here where I can see you?”

She looks up at me completely confused. “What?”

I shake the dirty thoughts from my mind and say, “Never mind.” I don’t want her to think I’m getting impatient.

She comes back around the car and plants a firm kiss to my lips before offering up a grin and turning to walk away. I stay there and watch her go.

“I managed to get a keg for your party later,” Sean says, coming up to stand beside me.

My eyes are still on Alissa, who’s getting further and further away from me. “How’d you manage that?”

“My sister’s boyfriend just got a job at the liquor store.”

“Is your sister going to let us have the party?” Alissa has slipped through the doors of the school, so I finally look at Sean for the first time.

“She doesn’t care. She’s going to be staying with her boyfriend anyway since our parents are out of town.” He stands up straight. “Is your dad going to let you out of the house?”

I shrug. “I’ll come up with something.” We both start heading in the direction of the building.

“Dane!” someone yells my name.

I turn around to see Ashley Williams running up to me. Rolling my eyes, I tell Sean, “I’ll catch you later.”

“What’s up?” I say to Ashley.

“Hey, I heard you’re having your birthday party at Sean’s tonight,” she says with a big smile.

I slide my hands into my pockets. “Yeah.”

“Will Mason be there?”

I laugh. “Probably not. My little brother doesn’t really do parties.”

“Oh.” She pushes her blonde hair behind her ear and looks at her feet. “Well, do you care if me and a few friends show up?”

Shrugging, I say, “It’s an open party. Show up if you want.” I turn and walk away from her growing smile.

* * *

After school, Alissa jumps in my car, and I drive over to the shop. I park in the parking lot and watch the construction crew as they build the new bar and grill.

“What are you waiting for?” Alissa asks.

“Nothing. Let’s go.”

When she meets me around the front of the car, I take her hand and lead her over to my dad who’s standing at the edge of the parking lot, watching the guys work.

“Anything you need me to do around here today?”

He tears his eyes away from the new building and turns to look at me. Then his eyes land on Alissa. He looks her up and down, stopping at our conjoined hands. “What is it that you’re planning?”

“I have a gig tonight. I need to go pack up and get ready, but I wanted to make sure I didn’t have work to do here first.”

He studies me for a long moment, but I don’t falter. “Everything’s taken care of. Go on and get out of here.”

I smile, happy he bought my line. “Alright. I’ll probably just stay at Sean’s tonight, if that’s okay.”

“Where’s this gig?” He places his hands on his hips and turns his body to face me.

“It’s at Sean’s.” No point in lying to him about that. All he’d have to do is drive through town and see the party raging on.

“Dane, if I catch you doing something you’re not supposed to…”

“I know, Dad.” I turn to walk away, pulling Alissa behind me.

“Hey!” he shouts, stopping me.

I turn around.

“Who’s the pretty girl you’re pulling around?” He smiles, actually smiles. He never smiles.

“This is Alissa, my girlfriend.”

She releases my hand and takes the few steps back to my dad, holding out her hand to shake.

He smiles wider and shakes her hand. “Do me a favor and make sure he stays out of trouble.”

She laughs. “I’ll do my best, sir.”

He seems taken aback by her politeness, but he nods us on with his smile still in place.

We load up in the car and drive back to my house to waste some time before the party starts.

“Are you hungry or want something to drink?” I ask as I walk to the kitchen.

She follows behind me and takes the soda I offer her.

“Are you guys in the middle of remodeling?” She looks around at the unfinished cabinets and the plastic lining the floor.

Opening the freezer, I take out a frozen pizza and open the box. I chuckle. “We’re always remodeling. My dad bought this house for my mom before she passed away. He promised her he’d remodel the whole thing one day. He hasn’t stopped even though she’s gone.” I move to the stove and put the pizza in. “Or, I guess I should say, we haven’t stopped.”

“You help?”

Shrugging, I lean against the counter and cross my arms over my chest. “Well, I try. Mason is just like my dad. He knows how to work on boats and building all this stuff.” I wave my hands around encompassing the work. “I usually just get in the way.” I laugh.

She slowly starts walking closer to me. “So, what are your talents?”

I shrug again. “Nothing, really.” The closer she walks to me the higher my nerves go. “I mean, I can play guitar. And I’m really good at partying.”

She laughs before draping her arms on my shoulders. “I bet there’s more to you than that.”

I place my hands on her hips and move my lips to hers. After I pull away, I say, “Well, I am a pretty good kisser.”

She smiles and nods before moving back in for more.

* * *

The party is crazy, and everyone has a drink in their hands. Bodies sway to the music all over the yard. The fire glows brightly, lighting up the darkness. And the keg is set up with people doing keg stands and playing drinking games around it. A joint gets passed around. Alissa and I both take a hit before I lead her off into the forest surrounding the property. When the darkness swallows us up, I spin her around and gently push her back against the trunk of a tree. I move in slowly, settling my lips on hers. Her arms snake around my neck, pulling me closer.

My hands seem to have a mind of their own as they travel around her hard body. I press myself against her, needing some kind of attention in that area.

She pulls back slightly. “Dane, I haven’t ever…” Her voice drips with fear and nervousness.

My hands stop on their journey. “Never?” I whisper.

She shakes her head and bites her lower lip while her eyes fall to the ground.

I tilt her head back to look at me. “It’s okay. I’ll wait as long as you want. We don’t have to do this tonight.” I start to pull away, but she stops me.

“No, I want to. I just wanted you to know first.” She shrugs, sheepishly.

My heart slams against my chest. “You want to?”

She grins and nods her head before pulling me back in.

* * *

An hour later, we’re both standing by the raging fire. I have her back pulled against my chest with my arms around hers. Neither of us are drinking or talking. We’re just watching everyone else have a good time at the party.

Something catches my eye, and I turn my head to see Mason walking toward the trees, hand in hand with Lindsey.

“I’ll be right back,” I say, pulling away from Alissa.

I run after the two, yelling at Mason the whole time. Finally, he hears me, and they stop walking. He looks at the ground like a kid who’s been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

“Where are you two going?” I ask, coming to a stop in front of them.

He shrugs and nods in the direction of the trees. “Just going to get a little alone time.”

“Yeah, I bet. Does Dad know you’re here?”

His head pops up and his eyes land on mine, shooting daggers at me. “Does Dad know that you’re here?” he repeats the question.

“He knows I’m here. But something tells me he doesn’t know you’re here and about to lose your V-card to some skank.”

“Hey!” she shouts from behind him.

I hold up my hands. “No offense. I didn’t mean for it to come out like that. I’m sorry.”

“What do you want, Dane? You can’t honestly tell me you care this much.”

“I do care, Mason. I don’t want to see you ruin your life”

He turns around to face her. “Lindsey, I’ll meet you by the fire in a minute.”

She nods and trains her dark eyes on the ground in front of her before walking away, leaving us alone.

“I wish you’d stop acting like my father, Dane.” His chest is puffed out as he starts back for the fire.

I grab ahold of his shirt and spin him back around. “You don’t even know what you’re saying. I know you’re excited about your first time — trust me, I was too, but now’s not the time. You need to think with your upstairs brain, okay?” I tap my temple with my finger.

He doesn’t even acknowledge I’ve said anything. He just walks away, and I let him. I know I can’t stop him every time he tries to make his move. But I stopped him this time, and for now, that’s good enough.

I go back to Alissa. But for the rest of the party, I’m distracted by keeping an eye on my little brother.

* * *

“I should go. Ed will be pissed if he catches me out this late.”

“Do you want a ride?” I pull her back by her hand.

“No, it’s only a few houses down.”

“Are you sure?”

She nods before giving me a soft kiss. When she pulls away, her eyes have darkened, and her cheeks are flushed. The look she’s giving me is enough to make me want to carry her back out to our tree, but I let her go. I don’t want her getting into trouble.

With Alissa gone, I keep a better eye on Mason. He looks way too comfortable with Lindsey on his lap. I grab a beer and watch them from across the fire. I have to find a way to get through to him.

“Where’d that hot ass girlfriend of yours go?” Sean asks, coming to stand beside me.

“She had to get home,” I answer, never taking my eyes off Mason.

“What are you looking at?”

I nod across the fire at him. “My little brother getting too comfortable with that girl.”

He laughs and shoves against my shoulder. “Why are you worried? He’s a freshman and the star of the soccer team. I’d be worried if he wasn’t trying to get laid.”

My eyes flash to him, and I offer up a dirty look. “He’s too young to be getting that serious with a girl.”

“I’m pretty sure we were both freshmen when we scored for the first time. You need to relax and take a shot.” Sean puts his arm around my shoulders and leads me over to a table set up in the yard. It’s covered with various bottles of liquor.

He pours us both a shot and hands one over.

I hold it up, looking at it.

“Come on, man. It’s your birthday. Have a little fun.”

I laugh at him trying to convince me. Then I tip the shot glass up, letting the warm liquid spill into my mouth. I chase it with a drink of beer, trying to ease the burn of the alcohol.

I cough and take another sip. “Man, that stuff is like gasoline. What is it?”

He smiles and answers, “Jack.”

I slam the shot glass down, and he pours another. Before I can decline, the glass is shoved back into my hand. The second shot hasn’t even settled in my stomach yet, but the first one is kicking in, and everything’s starting to blur together. I didn’t drink much with Alissa here, but now that she’s gone, I have nothing better to do than get wasted and enjoy my party.

* * *

When I wake in the morning, my head is pounding, and my stomach is churning. I roll to my back and suddenly, roll off the bed, landing hard on the floor.

I cough, trying to catch my breath after such a hard hit.

My head spins as I look around the room. Sean is passed out in the lounge chair in the corner.

After I push myself up to my feet, for a brief minute, it feels like my head is outrunning my body. Sinking back to the edge of the bed, I hold my head in my hands.

“I feel like shit,” Sean groans from the corner. I guess all the noise I made rolling out of bed woke him.

“Shhh, my head is killing me.” I rub my temples and forehead in an attempt to soothe away the pain. What a great way to spend my seventeenth birthday: hungover.

He stands quietly and walks out of the room. Within minutes he’s back handing me two Tylenols and a glass of water.

Quickly, I throw the pills back and wash them down. Falling back on the bed, I go back to sleep.

* * *

When I wake several hours later, my head doesn’t hurt as badly, but my stomach’s growling. I shove off the bed and journey through the house. Sean is in the kitchen with a sandwich in his hand. His hair is ruffled up in every direction, he has bags under his eyes, and his skin is pale, almost green.

“Thanks for the party, but I’m going to grab some food and head home.”

“No problem, man.” He gives me a high-five before and stuffs the rest of his sandwich into his mouth.

I spin toward the door but before I can reach for the knob, he shouts, “Hey, Dane!”

“What?” I ask, turning around to face him.

“Alissa called,” he says around a mouthful of food.

“What did she want?”

He shrugs. “I don’t know. She just said to have you call her when you woke up.”

“Alright, thanks.” I head outside and jump into my car. I start the engine and head toward the pizza joint Alissa and I always go to.

With their lunch special in hand, I head back out to my car. Slipping behind the wheel, I take a bite of the delicious pizza that’s been teasing me since I walked into the restaurant.

Leaning my head back against the seat, I close my eyes and savor the pizza by chewing slowly.

“Hey,” Alissa says, causing me to jump.

“Hey. Sean said you called just as I was walking out of the door. I was going to call you when I got home. Did you need something?”

She shrugs and walks around to get into the passenger seat. She has dark circles under her eyes, and her already thin frame looks even more frail. She places her hands onto her lap and looks out the windshield.

My eyes fall to her hands and travel up her arms, which are covered in bruises.

“What the hell happened to your arms?” I ask, setting the pizza aside and picking up her bruised forearm.

She pulls it away. “I told you Ed would have a fit if he caught me out late.”

“Your foster dad did this to you?”

She doesn’t look at me, but she nods her head, confirming what I said.

I toss the small pizza box onto the center console and start the car.

“What are you doing?” She leans forward in her seat, holding on to the dash.

Gravel flying, I peel out of the parking lot and head in the direction of her house. “I’m going to teach that son of a bitch a lesson.”

“No, don’t!”

I don’t listen, I can’t. I’m blinded by rage and hate.

“Dane, you’ll only make it worse. Please stop!”

I don’t stop, not until I’m in front of her house. Once there, I throw the car in park and swing open my door.

She rushes around the car and puts her hands on my chest, tying to hold me back.

Then, I make a mistake. I look into her blue eyes and see all the fear and pain she holds in them.

My anger simmers down, and I stop trying to get by her.

“Please stop. I know you’re angry, but this can’t happen. It’ll only be worse for me.”

I throw my hands up in the air. “What do you want me to do then? Just sit back and let him beat you?” Helplessness fills me.

Her arms wrap around herself in a protective manner, and her eyes fall to the ground. “Can you just take me away from here for a little while?” Her voice is soft, so quiet I barely hear it over my pounding heart and heavy breathing.

A long breath huffs out, releasing some of my rage. I put my arm around her shoulders and lead her back around the car. Like a gentleman, I open the door for her. After she climbs in, I close it and walk around to get in. As I’m rounding the car, I look at that house one more time, wishing I could go in there and beat the man who put his hands on her.

While I watch, he pulls back the thin, white lace curtain and looks at me. He’s a tall man with graying hair. He’s thin with a square jaw, and there’s no doubt in my seventeen-year-old mind that I can teach his old ass a lesson.

His eyes stay on me as I walk around the car and take my seat behind the wheel. I put the car in reverse but don’t hit the gas. Instead, I sit watching him while trying to talk myself into leaving, because all I really want to do is march in there and make sure he never lays another fucking finger on what’s mine.

* * *

Even though it’s Saturday, my dad and Mason are both at the shop. Mason is training to run the shop on the weekends, and my dad is busy with the bar and grill going up. That leaves Alissa and I all alone in the house.

We walk up the stairs and into my bedroom, where we curl up in bed. I pull her to my chest, and she lies with her ear against my heart. I’m still as pissed as can be about her foster dad, and I wish she’d let me do something about it.

“When did all this start?” I need to know how long she’s been living like this.

“When did what start?” she asks, not bothering to lift her head to look me in the eye.

“The beatings.”

“He doesn’t beat me, Dane. He just gets a little carried away.”

I pick up her wrist and hold up her bruised forearm. “What do you call this?”

She sits up and crosses her legs beneath her. “He’s never actually hit me. Yes, he grabs my arms and throws me into my room, but he’s never hit me.”

I place my hands under the back of my head, tilting it just enough to clearly see her. “Abuse is abuse, Alissa.”

She takes a long breath. “I know, but what am I supposed to do? I can’t let you go in there and beat him up.”

I roll my eyes. “Let’s move in together.”

She laughs, causing her lips to turn up in a smile. “Your dad will never allow that.”

I shrug with my hands still behind my head. “Not here, I’ll find us a place.”

Her blonde eyebrows lift in surprise. “Nobody’s going to rent to us. We’re not legal adults yet.”

“You let me worry about that.”

She takes her place at my side again. “It won’t work, Dane, but thank you for offering. I’ll be fine as long as I get home after school and before curfew.”

I let the subject drop for now, but I know what I have to do.

I’ve been saving my money from working at the shop and from my band gigs. Without much to spend it on, I’ve got a pretty good sum saved up. I’m going to find us a place to live, because I have to get her out of that house.