Open mind for a different View

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Amelia kept her promise and went to see Anthony after school. She rode the bus and then walked the last mile to his building.

“I didn’t think you’d show.” Anthony admitted as he let her in. “After last night I wouldn’t blame you for staying away.”

“Why would I do that?” She realized he didn’t see it; the fact she wanted to see him that he was the only person she could truly breathe around.

“Everyone is giving you such a hard time and telling you I’m this jerk and----”

“I don’t care Anthony. I decide for myself if I stay or go. I…” she sighed; she didn’t know how to tell him what she felt without it seeming too soon or weird.

“What?” he stepped closer and laid his hand along her jaw line and cheek. “Tell me.”

“I want to help you with your art and right now you’re the only person in this world I don’t feel like running or hiding from.” He was all she could think about but she still couldn’t find the courage to look into his eyes and stay there. “I hope that doesn’t freak you out.”

“I like spending time with you too. I don’t invite every girl I meet into my life especially my art.” There was s light edge to his voice as he defended himself.

“Don’t let what Eric and Lena have been saying get to you.”

“You’re going to have to stick around and remind me not to.” He leaned forward and planted a kiss against the pulsing point of her neck. “When do you turn eighteen?” she laughed, surprised he stood straight and met her eyes. “A laugh, a real laugh? Now you must really like me.”

“Yeah,” she shrugged. “You’re ok.”

He rested his hands over her hips and teased his fingers under the hem of her t-shirt, his warm fingers gently going back and forth. It was a simple touch that had her mind turning into mush. “So? You didn’t answer my question.” He asked, his voice clearing up some of the haze.

“My birthday’s in six months.” She almost laughed again when his face fell. “You want to wait until I’m legal for….? What do you want to do?” Mel teased.

Anthony laughed and lowered his mouth back to her neck. “You’re killing me but that’s ok, I’m willing to wait because one; if we do they can’t say anything anymore about me trying to use you and second; I know you’re not ready.” He was right about that. As much as she liked his touch she couldn’t see herself going all the way. “We need to get to know each other.” He added and Mel knew he was trying to show that he was serious about whatever was happening between them because of the doubts their family kept voicing.

“What do you want to know?” she asked.

“Everything and anything. I know what type of music you like and I’m assuming you like art.” He said as they walked over to the couch and sat.

Mel nodded. “Zander was a big art lover of all the greats and some small timers. His love for it rubbed off on me.” She grew silent as she realized how easily she mentioned Zander. That had never happened before.

“Tell me about him.” Anthony whispered, putting his arm around her waist and bringing her to sit against his chest.

After a minute of consideration she agreed to answer. “We were eight when we met; he was the new kid and didn’t know I was the resident dork. Being new he was an outcast and drifted to me at lunch, he sat and everyday after that we were together. We were inseparable; he gave me my first kiss when I was thirteen, not sooner because he didn’t think I was ready. Zander was always trying to protect me.” She smiled softly at the memory while tears ran down her cheeks. “He died when we were fifteen….there had been a fire.”

Anthony ran his hands up and down her arms. “It’s ok.” He murmured against her neck. She turned around and hugged him as her sobs increased. The tightness of his arms was comforting; it was nice to have someone there when the memories flooded back and shattered every bit of her heart.

~*~

Anthony would hold her as long as it took for her to feel better; nothing else seemed to matter anymore when she cried. Her sobs stopped and her breathing slowed sometime later, maybe fifteen minutes if he had to guess. A quick glance down confirmed his suspicion; she fell asleep. He smiled, this girl was something else and stealing his heart in the process. He looped his other arm under her legs and lifted her from the sofa.

He carried her the short distance to the bedroom area and laid her down. He stood back and looked at her, admiring what he saw. She was beautiful traditionally with piercing eyes, a full pouty mouth, and a body he was dying to touch but her untraditional beauty was just as appealing. He liked her flat humor and ability to say whatever was on her mind. He loved that she wasn’t like most girls; she didn’t waste time on the little things they liked to fuss over. There was a raw realness you didn’t see often and it was pulling him in deeper and deeper.

Anthony sat at the nearby easel and picked up his favorite pencil, he kept his eyes on her more then the paper and decided to use the detail that was right in front of him. The curve of her legs and waist, the roundness of her breasts, length of her arms, the small arch in her eyebrows even with her face relaxed, and copied them down to the drawing paper. With the initial body outline done he started focusing on the smaller details like the wrinkles in her jeans and the eyelashes fanned along her cheeks.

~*~

Mel heard the swooshing of the pencil before opening her eyes.  Anthony was sitting on a wood stool leaning close to the easel he sketched on. What she noticed more then anything else was the tight, white, tank top he now wore instead of the loose fitting cotton blue t-shirt from earlier. Wow, she thought while staring at his arms, he was in damn great shape, her stomach tightened with desire. Now she knew what ‘drool-worthy’ meant.  “Are you vain and visit the gym everyday or is there a reason you’re so….ripped?”  She knew you didn’t look that good by just eating right.

“First I’m glad you approve and while art is my true passion it doesn’t pay the bills yet.”

“What do you do?” Mel asked and sat up, crossing her legs under her.

“I fight; every one I win it’s a couple hundred in prizes and that keeps me situated for a little bit.” He kept working on the sketch while he spoke, the easel was angled and she couldn’t see what he was working on so intently.

Mel hadn’t been expecting him to say he fought professionally, he was loaded with surprises. “Is that how you got that scar above your left eye?” there was a white scar line following his eyebrow.

“Yeah. What good fighter hasn’t been elbowed in the face?” he joked then laid the pencil down and covered the easel. “Are you hungry?”

Mel wanted to say yes and stay longer but she didn’t want to ruin the day by having her family trash it. “If I don’t go home mom is going to send Lena out to find me.” It didn’t help that she never told her mother she wouldn’t be home after school.

He walked over to the bed and sat close. “I understand, I don’t want her to find this place either and ruin it as our getaway. But it’s late and I don’t want you taking the bus alone. I’ll drive you.”

Even sleeveless she couldn’t see the whole tattoo; parts disappeared around his back and chest. She wanted to see the whole thing but not when she was rushing home, no it was something she wanted to see when she could really appreciate the detail. “Ok,” she agreed and gave him her address.