Beanie Boy
“What have you got first?” I ask Alec conversationally as we walk into school together, clutching my folder to my chest. My hair is thrown up into a braided bun, and a few loose strands tickle my ear. Since when have I made an effort? Since my mom decided she wanted to make me look pretty for Alec. She has turned into a hardcore supporter of our “relationship” since I told her what happened on the anniversary of Kaitlin’s death. It’s been about a week now, and I came back into school a couple of days ago. Nobody’s asked me why I was gone, which I will forever be grateful for. Things are looking up again.
“I have Media,” Alec replies smoothly, adjusting his backpack.
A beanie rests on his curls, and honestly? This boy is like the freaking surface of the sun hot wearing that thing. It’s making it very hard to concentrate. I love guys in beanies, but I don’t think anyone could pull one off like Alec does. Since Kaitlin’s death date . . . my feelings for Alec have grown a hell of a lot stronger. So much so that I’m beginning to get very worried. If I were to ever tell him the whole truth, there’d be no chance he could ever feel the same. There are some things in the world that can deem you unlovable. In my eyes, what I did to Kaitlin is one of those things.
I nod, humming a little under my breath as we join the crowd entering the front doors. I got a ride in with Alec today, but I had the common sense not to question him while I was sitting on the back of his bike this time. If he doesn’t mind obliterating his reputation for me, then I’m going to take full advantage of that fact. I breathe a sigh of relief as we escape the crowd, and automatically we begin heading to my locker.
Clearly I spend too much time with this guy – he knows my daily schedule better than I do.
As we enter the corridor, Alec suddenly comes to a halt beside me and grabs my forearm in a deathly tight grip. It takes me a few seconds to realise why. Standing by my locker is Toby Charlton, his radiant blonde hair shining above all others in the corridor. I frown. Joe is standing nearby, suspiciously eyeing the figure by my locker.
“C’mon, Riley. Let’s sort this once and for all – he can’t keep trying to intimidate you,” Alec growls under his breath, tugging me forward towards my locker.
I don’t want a confrontation, it’s too risky, but Alec is seething so it’s pretty obvious I’m going to get one.
“Excuse me,” I say politely, dodging between the two boys to reach my locker. I’m acting calmly as I get my books for the day, but in all honesty my hands are shaking. I wish Violet were here – she’d have all three guys put in their place and out of my way within the minute.
“Alec Wilde,” Toby says. “Nice to meet the subject of all the rumours.”
What is he doing? Does he have a death wish? Anybody who knows anything about Alec knows that they shouldn’t taunt him when he’s angry, which he so obviously is.
“Toby Charlton,” Alec replies, voice laced with venom. “I’d say it was nice to meet you too, but that would be a lie. So, just moved here from Chicago, huh? Was the Windy City the escape you needed?”
Toby’s eyes snap to mine, and I stare defiantly back at him. A flicker of anger crosses his features. He has no right to be angry, though. It was my choice to tell Alec what happened. Toby doesn’t deserve a say in what I get to tell my friends about Kaitlin.
“Riley,” Toby mutters in a low voice, “please can I talk to you for a second? Alone?” He sounds angry, but I’m not going to react to it. I don’t care what he thinks.
“Sorry, but I’m not interested, Toby,” I say through gritted teeth. “Get away from me.”
“Riley, please. I’m trying, okay? I can’t believe you told him!”
He grabs my arm harshly and yanks me towards him, making me stumble. What the hell does he think he’s doing? Before I’ve even had time to blink, Alec rips Toby’s hand back from my skin, and the two boys step forward to glare each other in the eye. Their shoulders move in sync as they square up to each other.
“She said to get away from her,” Alec hisses. His eyes are stormy and deep now, the angriest I’ve ever seen, and the muscles prominent in his arms are as taut as live wires. Toby is holding a similar position. One wrong move, and the whole minefield blows up.
“Guys, take a chill pill, okay?” Joe grimaces, attempting to separate the pair. But even his strength makes no difference to the two jerkwads facing each other off right now. Until now, Joe has just been watching the scene, confused, but the testosterone and violence thick in the air must have brought him to his senses. I step up behind Joe, leaning over to pat Alec’s arm. His gaze flickers to mine, but he ignores my pleading expression, focusing back on Toby again. Jerk.
“You know nothing about me,” Toby spits at Alec, placing his hands on Alec’s shoulders and shoving him hard. “You know nothing about her either. Get out of my way.”
Alec is back up in his face in an instant.
“I know a hell of a lot more than you think,” he growls, shoving back. “I know every little thing you’ve done to her. Why are you even trying, man? You don’t deserve her!”
With that, Toby lunges at him, and Alec is pushed back a few feet with the force of his hands. Their arms scramble and they trip as their feet lock, landing on the floor. They don’t stay down even for a second. Toby is on top of Alec swiftly, lifting his fist high before plunging it down onto his chest. Alec punches back; a painful crack on the jaw. Managing to gain stability, he flips to kneel above Toby, yet another hand plummeting into Toby’s face.
A crowd begins to form, chanting “fight” at the top of their lungs. I watch in horror as it escalates. Their eyes are focused, their teeth bared in anger. They look like animals. Toby, grabbing Alec by the neck, shoves him back into the lockers. The sound of metal meeting metal echoes down the corridor. I cringe at the sound, my heartbeat escalating.
This cannot be happening. I don’t know what to do, how to stop it.
Toby is up on his feet and ready in an instant. Lips curled back and nose bleeding, he kicks forward into Alec’s stomach, only to have his foot pulled out from underneath him. Alec pulls Toby harshly off balance, and the boy crashes down onto the floor beside him, landing hard on his arm.
The crowd now begins to look more concerned than entertained, and random cries to break it up emerge. Joe, taking his opportunity, is behind Toby in a second. Pulling his arms behind his back, he jerks the boy up and thrusts him away from Alec. A couple of other boys begin to help restraining him. Alec stands up from the floor, shaking his head as others attempt to grab his arms too. He’s calmer already. I release a breath I didn’t realise I was holding.
“You made the first hit,” Alec sneers. The boys struggle to hold Toby back. The principal’s voice shouts in the distance, and teachers begin to clear the crowd as they emerge into the centre of the mass of bodies. Alec is going to get into so much trouble for this. In a surge of anxiety, I rush over and attack him into a hug. His body is warm, and slowly I feel his arms respond to wrap round my back. My whole body is quivering, and my breathing is off. This all happened because of me. Why is it always me?
“I’m okay,” he says. His nose presses the top of my hairline, and my arms tighten round his back.
“Clear the way!” Mr Boston, the principal, bellows loudly as he emerges. Most of the crowd has disappeared now, terrified by the presence of authority. I watch from Alec’s chest as people disperse left, right and centre to escape his wrath. Toby, Alec and the boys holding Toby back are all that is left. Plus me, of course. Mr Boston’s four chins are ruddy, his face scrunched in anger as he examines the scene. He looks like a bullfrog.
“Get to lessons, all of you!” he barks, grabbing Alec and Toby by the arms. His eyes narrow on me. “You three, come with me. I need to have a talk with all of you.” Once the hallway has cleared and everybody has gone to lessons, Alec, Toby and I follow Mr Boston to his office. Joe looks after me with a concerned expression, and I nod to confirm that I’ll be okay. I’m calming down already. My head is starting to hurt.
Toby looks humiliated, a deep red colour staining his cheeks as he clutches his jaw. He won’t meet my eye, but that’s a good thing. Maybe he’ll finally back off now.
“Take a seat in my office,” Mr Boston orders, as we march through reception. He swings his office door open. “Hurry up!”
I sit down on one of the cracked leather seats in the small room, not wanting to get into even more trouble. Alec and Toby sit either side of me, and Mr Boston strolls behind his desk, looking each of us in the eye in turn.
“One of you,” he says quietly, “explain exactly what happened.” He sits down.
Alec’s and Toby’s voices instantly begin to clamber over each other in the fight for Mr Boston’s attention. I release a breath and focus on the principal, punching both of the boys lightly in the arms to shut them up. We aren’t going to get anywhere if they do that.
“Toby grabbed my arm because he was frustrated about something,” I explain, and the boys’ voices die. “Alec got angry, and one thing led to another. They started fighting. I believe Toby initiated it.” I glance down at my lap. I tried to swing that at least a little into Alec’s favour, but I’m not sure how much help it’ll be.
“And you weren’t involved at all other than that?” Mr Boston questions.
“She wasn’t,” Alec confirms.
Mr Boston stares disapprovingly between us. “Do you understand that fighting on school grounds is completely unacceptable?”
Begrudgingly, both boys nod.
“Both of you are new again here” – Mr Boston’s eyes narrow as he lowers himself into his chair – “so I will go over the rules once more so that they are crystal clear.” He glances at Alec. “This kind of behaviour is absolutely not tolerated. If you have a problem, you deal with it reasonably in a verbal manner, or you consult the guidance counsellor. You do not brawl like a couple of feral children. Do you understand what I am saying?”
Toby and Alec nod again.
“Right, well.” Mr Boston leans forward in his chair. “There will be consequences to your actions. A month’s detention and school service – you will stay after school for an hour each day to help the maintenance staff with their duties. This is your first and last warning. Do not let this kind of thing happen again. Both of your parents will be notified, and we shall have to see if they want to take any further action, but as far as I’m concerned you’re both as guilty – and as stupid – as each other.” He grumbles under his breath, sitting back and dismissing us with one hand. I notice Toby wince a little at the last line. His parents always have been especially strict.
I stand up from my seat meekly, with Alec following suit. Next to me, Toby is shaking, still sitting down with his hands gripping the arms of the chair.
“You don’t understand, sir!” he protests. “Alec has stuck his nose in where it doesn’t belong!”
What does he think he’s going to achieve by arguing, other than more detention?
“Cool story, bro,” Alec snarls. “Wanna hear mine? Once upon a time, nobody gave a fu–”
“Alec Wilde, please exit the office! I will deal with Toby!”
I nod in apology to Mr Boston and grab Alec’s arm, tugging him out of the office before he can get himself in even more trouble. A month’s school service is enough to be getting on with. I march out of there quickly, hearing Alec chuckle behind me.
“Whoa, easy there. I mean, I know you can’t wait to get me alone but calm down.”
“You wish.” I let go of his arm and turn round to face him. “Are you okay?” I say, not knowing whether I feel relieved or angry with him. His fingers run over his torso and he grimaces.
“Bit uncomfortable but nothing horrific, don’t worry.”
“You’re a jerk,” I sigh. “You shouldn’t have fought him.”
“A sexy, charming, debonair jerk,” Alec says. “And yes I should have – the guy had it coming, Riley.”
The beanie, the dimple . . . it’s just too much. Too much. Then I glance to the side, feeling a gaze on my face.
Tiana stands outside of reception, a cold and icy glare focused on me. She’s angry that I didn’t follow her orders, no doubt. Well, you know what?
She can kiss my grass.
I speak from experience – nothing can cheer you up like a trip to the beach straight after school. Alec starts his service tomorrow, so we figured we’d celebrate his last afternoon of freedom for a while.
As part of Alec’s mission to cheer me up, he claimed that there is a milkshake stand on Lindale beach that I just had to get a milkshake from. Seeing as the beach is only a short distance from the school, we decided to go on a spontaneous trip. No swimming costumes or anything; we’re just going for the milkshakes. I’m not going to lie, with the sun slowly heading towards the horizon and the temperature not too hot, I am pretty content.
Alec seems to be the only person who is able to distract me from Kaitlin, and that worries me a lot. I notice the sand on the concrete as we walk along the last string of sidewalk to the beach at the end. Being with Alec has become almost natural, which is no mean feat given how our relationship started out. I didn’t expect him to ever see me as anyone but the loser next door. Then again, I never expected to see him as anything but an arrogant attention-seeker. I guess things can change after all.
“Wait, Riley,” Alec interrupts my train of thought. “I’ve thought of another one.”
“Shoot.”
Alec has once again been hitting me with really bad pickup lines for the entire walk down here. I think I’m too amused by how terrible they are to actually get annoyed by his persistence. Despite his punishment earlier today, he’s in a surprisingly good mood.
“Okay, okay.” Alec grins. “Do you run track? Because I heard you relay want this di–”
“You’re disgusting,” I interrupt, laughing. “Seriously all of your pickup lines revolve around male and female genitalia.”
“Not all of them,” Alec argues. “Hey did you get those pants on sale?”
His voice is incredibly serious. I look at him to check if he’s joking, before glancing down at my jeans. “Um no, I don’t think –”
“Because they’re one hundred per cent off at my place,” Alec cuts me off, smirking.
As realisation dawns on me, I bite my lip to contain my laughter and just shake my head at him.
“You know, technically, that still revolves around sex, so you haven’t proved any point.”
Alec ignores my jibe. “What has one hundred and forty-two teeth and holds back the Incredible Hulk?”
“I don’t know.”
We’re right at the edge of the beach now. It looks empty enough – due to the lack of tourists, and the dying sun. This is probably my favourite time to visit the beach.
“My zipper.”
“Ew!” I shout as soon as I grasp the joke, before feigning a gag. “That was disgusting, and still about male genitalia.”
A large wooden hut sits on the sands in front of us. It’s a beach milkshake hut, which I have never actually bought anything from, despite seeing it all the time. It’s the sort of place that is normally buzzing with activity, judging by the expanded decking at the back and the rows of picnic tables. I assume it’s only quiet because we’re here at this time, so I guess we’re lucky. “This is the milkshake bar, isn’t it?” I check with Alec.
“Oh yes.” He nods. “Prepare yourself.” Alec grins, pulling me up to the counter where a lady waits, smiling at us. “We’ll have one large Nutella cookies-and-cream milkshake please.”
My eyes widen at the sound of it. This boy knows me way too well. There must be over one hundred flavour choices on the blackboards. There’s no way that Alec can have had them all, right? The woman nods and accepts Alec’s money, before heading over to one of the blenders that I can just about see over the counter.
I glimpse at Alec with an awed expression. “Nutella cookie dough? Best thing ever.”
“It’s orgasmic,” Alec agrees.
“Does everything you say revolve around sex?” I laugh. “Control yourself.”
Alec just gives me a cheeky grin.
I watch as the woman throws various ingredients and powders into the blender. It begins to buzz, and after half a minute she stops it. She grabs a tall plastic cup and straw and pours out the thick chocolate liquid. I’m looking forward to this. I’m practically frothing at the sight. Yep, my mouth is even frothier than imagining Alec in his swim shorts, after that day at the beach.
Not that I do that, obviously.
“Enjoy, sweethearts.” The woman, whose name tag reads Izzy, smiles at us as she hands over the milkshake. I clutch it firmly in my grasp, breathing in the tantalising scent. Holy macaroni, this smells good. “Y’all have a nice day now.”
“We will, thank you!” Alec says. I tighten my hold on the milkshake as we walk away from the café, watching my feet descend on the sand. I never realised . . . but Alec only bought one. Did he buy that for me or him? Or is it to share? My cheeks tinge pink at the thought, and Alec doesn’t fail to notice.
“Why are you blushing?” Alec immediately stops, as he pokes my rosy cheek. “Are you having naughty thoughts, Riley? Tell me!” I shake my head, laughing at the mere suggestion. “I bet you’re having bad thoughts!”
“Get off, grasshole.” I laugh, batting his grabbing hands away as he tries to look me in the eye. “Your ass must get jealous of all the crap that comes out of your mouth,” I say, putting the straw into my mouth as I take a sip of the drink. A small moan escapes my lips as I do, and I hear Alec snicker beside me. Damn, that is one amazing milkshake. Gosh, why did Alec only buy one of these? I could drink this constantly. I take another gulp of pure heaven, flipping off Alec and his knowing expression as I smile into the straw. “Shut up.”
“I didn’t say anything,” Alec says with another filthy chuckle.
“You looked at me weirdly,” I say, slipping my pumps off and holding them in one hand as we walk down the beach together towards the waves. The cold water laps onto my toes like icy velvet, and my feet sink into the damp sand. I love the beach; it’s by far my favourite place to go. It’s also a great place to think things through as well, and I’ve done my fair share of that in my time. I relax here.
I take a long slurp from the milkshake, and Alec glances over at me with a pout, reaching out to grab the cup. I step backwards, dodging his clutching fingers. No way.
“Can I have some now? I bought it.”
“Not a chance,” I sneer wickedly at him, backing away. “You bought this for me, and I’m not sharing. Plus, my mouth has been all over it. I am not swapping saliva with you, pretty boy.”
“Aw, is Riley scared of catching cooties from a pretty boy?” Alec teases, darting forward and instantly backing me up into the damp sand and away from the sea. No way is he getting a hold of this. I dance lightly away from him, but he continues to stride towards me with a mischievous spark in his eye. Like a predator stalking his prey. I gulp down some more of the milkshake as I jog away from him, and he darts then. In less than a second, he catapults into me as he grabs the cup, pulling the straw from my mouth to put it in between his own lips. My jaw slacks, and my fists begin to pummel his chest.
Oh no he didn’t.
“Thief! That’s my milkshake – give it back!” My eyes narrow onto Alec’s playful smirk, and I step closer menacingly. “Don’t you dare get your germy mouth on my straw, Wilde!”
“Germy? How old are you?” Alec’s mouth opens to protest, releasing the straw, and I take my opportunity wisely. With a small squeak, I launch myself into him and grab the milkshake in my hold, feeling victorious that I managed to catch him by surprise. Unfortunately, being my clumsy self, my foot hooks round his leg, which causes him to lose his balance. He slips out from in front of me, and because my leg is attached to his, it’s inevitable that I go down with him.
“Ah!” I squeak again as we both come crashing down. I land quite uncomfortably on top of him. Of course I’d somehow manage to do this. As soon as my mind registers the position, my cheeks flame red. Our legs are still wrapped together from my clumsy pounce, and my face is in line with his chin.
Don’t look him in the eye. Don’t, Riley, don’t.
Unfortunately, I can’t help it. My eyes meet his, and this suddenly gets a lot more awkward.
I’m lying on top of Alec Wilde. I hope the ground swallows me whole. Right. Now.
Not knowing how to eliminate the tension, I take another slurp of the milkshake and beam, hoping he’ll laugh it off and push me away from him. Instead Alec watches me with a perplexed expression on his face. It’s scaring me that he’s not saying anything. Why isn’t he saying anything? I should say something. “I should, um, just –” I clamber off him as quickly as I can. “Sorry about that. But hey – I won the milkshake.”
“Yeah.” Alec appears a bit dazed, and he shakes his head. His beanie fell off, and he pulls it firmly back on. “You did.”
“Come on.” I desperately try to act like things didn’t just get weird. “Let’s go home. You said yourself that you need to talk to your mom about what happened today.”
“Oh.” Alec’s eyes snap to mine, a swirling vortex of indescribable emotions. “Okay. Let’s go.”