Met a Boy at Seventeen (Kellic)

Chapter 9

Chapter 9 - Vic - Warning Sign

When I wake up, I notice a few key differences.

The first thing I notice is that this mattress is not as soft as it usually is.

The second thing I notice is that I can hear someone in the shower, singing "Eye of the Tiger".

The third thing I notice is that this person is Kellin, who isn't supposed to be in my house.

The fourth thing I notice is that this is not my house.

Shit shit shit shit shit.

I was supposed to go back home with Mike when the game was over. But I slept over here instead. I completely fucking forgot. I'm not even allowed to be with Kellin anymore. Did Mike cover for me? Or am I going to come home to my parents screaming at me again? Fuck my life. Fuck everything.

I rub my eyes and push myself up into a sitting position. When I get a better look at the bed I'm sleeping in, I remember something else.

I remember me and Kellin, on this bed, Kellin kissing the fuck out of me and me trying not to show that I wanted him with everything in me. I remember him telling me not to be afraid...and then running away from me with nothing but unexplained fear in his eyes. I remember Justin coming in and locking the door "because Kellin told me to". And it hurts.

It hurts that Kellin has no problem kissing me until we reach a certain point, and then he seems to realize or decide something and breaks it off. It hurts that he, for whatever reason, doesn't even want to be in the same room with me. It hurts that he told me not to be afraid, when there's obviously something about me that terrifies him.

I sigh and hop out of the bed, unlocking the door and heading out into the living room. I'll talk to him after he gets out of the shower.

Justin is sitting at the kitchen table, finishing up what looks like a pancake. He raises his free hand. "Hey. Vic. I want to talk to you about something."

This is only the second time I've ever heard him sound even remotely serious, so I know I should probably listen to what he has to say. (The first time was last night.) I sit down in a lounge chair, and a few seconds later, he joins me on the couch.

"Okay, I'm game," I say. "What do you want to talk to me about?"

Justin glances over his shoulder. Kellin is still in the shower, though now he has switched to "We Will Rock You". "Kellin takes forever in the shower," Justin says, "so I think we're safe for at least another five minutes. I wanted to talk to you about, well, him."

"Oh no," I reply. "Is this going to be like one of those speeches the parents make to a guy when he starts dating their precious daughter?"

Justin laughs a little. "Luckily, no. I just wanted to...warn you, I guess."

"Warn me?" I repeat. "About what? Kellin?"

"Well...yeah. Basically." He shrugs, seeming almost apologetic. "I probably shouldn't be doing this to him, talking to you about him behind his back, but after that stunt he pulled last night...I just kind of realized I should probably let you know at least a little bit about what you're getting into, dating him. If he hasn't already filled you in on a few things."

"Yeah, do you think you could explain that stunt to me?" I ask, aware that he's right—this probably is rude. "And what things?"

"Well, I won't go into detail—like I said last night, you'll have to ask him about it yourself—but he's a bit...erratic. And paranoid. When he first told me that he, y'know, felt this way, I thought he was just being melodramatic. Like, I didn't realize it was such a big deal to him."