After we said good night to the guys, Nick and I headed back home.
"I'm sorry about Acton," Nick apologized to me as we neared the house. "I didn't think he would be that fucking rude."
"It's fine," I murmured absentmindedly, though it most certainly wasn't. I made a rule for myself to never go near Acton again unless absolutely necessary. The only thing that held me back from picking a fight with him to defend myself was the fact that he was the lead singer. He held a lot of weight in the band, and getting into an argument wouldn't have helped my case to come along on tour with them. So, I kept my mouth shut and tried to ignore him.
I didn't know if I could restrain myself if he came at me and attacked me like that again. I might not be able to stop myself from throwing a punch. Even though throwing a punch would be stupid even under normal circumstances.
Acton towered over my body when we were standing next to one another. I was only 5"2, and Acton had to be at least 6"1, making me a midget in comparison with him. We were unalike in every possible way. I was short, he was tall. I had bright blue eyes, and he had dark emerald ones. I had long, dirty blonde hair. Acton owned the rights to the effortlessly sexy hairdo that consisted of dark, mussed up hair that was just long enough for you to run your fingers through and grab on to. The difference between us was like night and day, and it was no wonder we clashed.
But I couldn't understand why he had looked at me with such disgust when we first met. I was a lot like the bimbo he had with him, and he didn't seem to mind my small frame when we were dancing.
Not that I would have wanted to keep going with him. If it were almost anyone other than Acton Black, I probably would have taken my girlfriends' advice and had the one night stand.
And another thing I was confused about was why he had treated me so harshly after we danced and kissed. I knew for a fact that if he had been in the room when the rest of the band was voting, he would have definitely put up a fight in opposition.
When we got inside the house, I was still musing over why he had disliked me so much. I walked around the house in a trance, trying to think of what I did to piss him off. I didn't bother to tell Nick, though. There was no telling what he might do.
All I could do was try to avoid Acton as much as possible when we got on that bus. I could try to distance myself. Even given my new resolution, I doubted that Acton and I were on the same page. I was fully ready to try our relationship as "you leave me alone, and I'll leave you alone". But given his manipulative behavior, I couldn't help but feel as though he was the predator, and I was his prey. He was a cat with a mouse between its paws. The cat won't let the mouse die, because then it wouldn't have anything to play with.
Though, I realized with a laugh, my metaphor was ridiculous. There was no way someone would be narcissistic enough to do something so cruel. Deep down, I realized I didn't know what to expect with Acton. It was best to proceed with caution. I had to make sure I wasn't his mouse.
***
Five days after meeting the band, Nick and I drove back to the hotel the rest of the band was staying at for this tour stop. The guys all broke up for a week and a half, so they could go and visit relatives nearby, and now it was time to get back on the tour. And I was coming on the road with them.
"Don't let Acton get to you," Nick warned me, for like the hundreth time that morning. "He's harmless."
I rolled my eyes at that. "He's not completely harmless," I corrected, thinking about the way he had roughly pushed me up against the wall in the club and kissed the breath out of me. Then, I shivered, thinking about how many other women he has done that to.
"Whatever," Nick finished the conversation dismissively, turning his attention back to the road. "I'm glad you're coming along, sis. But remember what I said. Stay away from Acton."
"Oh, for fuck's sake!" I exclaimed, having heard enough about Acton and his slimy ways. I had already decided to stay away from him for as long as possible, and avoid him at every cost. "Shut up about Acton! I don't want to even be in the same room as Acton fucking Black!" I sighed when I finished, pinching the bridge of my nose. Even when he wasn't in the same room as me, the lead singer of the Lady Killer's infuriated me.
I bit my lip, fighting back a groan as I remembered that I had packed the stupid ass vest that Acton was wearing the night that we kissed in one of my duffel bags. I didn't know why I brought it. I sure as hell wasn't looking to get it signed.
He's an infuriating asshole who doesn't even deserve to be in my brain... but he is. And I have no clue why.
In the parking lot of the hotel, was the two huge tour buses. One was to hold all of us, with bunks and one larger room with a real bed inside. I supposed that one was for when the guys had groupies on the bus. It was entirely black on the outside, with the logo for the Lady Killers inscribed in silver on the outside. Nick led me inside so I could put my bags down. As soon as you walked into the bus, there was a lounge, consisting of a TV and a long couch. Past that was a small kitchen area and a bar.
Leading me back farther inside, Nick showed me the bunks. As soon as you went through the little door in the kitchen area, the room expanded into a tall, narrow hallway, consisting of eight bunks stacked on either side of the hallway, one on top of the other. Nick led me back and showed me that there were two doors at the end of that hallway. The one on the right led to the bathroom, which was surprisingly large for a bathroom on the tour bus, and the furnished bedroom, which was for one night stands, according to Nick.
Glancing up at him and cocking my eyebrow, I folded my arms across my chest, giving him the Look.
"What?!" Nick exclaimed, throwing up his hands.
Sighing and giving in, I lowered my arms. "Never mind. I just realized that I really didn't want to know anyways."
"Oh," Nick chuckled a nervous laugh, confirming my suspicions. He had used that room. "There was only one bunk left," Nick continued, distracting me from the subject we were just on. "We used the other two for storage. And... Um, well," he tried to get out the words, wringing his hands nervously.
"I only needed one bunk, Nick. It's not a problem," I said, glancing up at the bunk. There was a weird kind of step ladder mounted into the wall, which I would use to get up into the bunk. I tossed my bags into the other bunks which were used to store our carry on bags. Each bag was labeled neatly with it's owners initials so we couldn't get mixed up when we needed something from inside. Once I was semi-settled in, I stuffed my hands in my worn short pockets, and looked at Nick. "It's great," I tried to assure him, wondering why he seemed so nervous.
"Well, there's another thing," Nick continued, looking at me cautiously. "That bunk is directly above Acton's."
I furrowed my eyebrows. Oh, great. The world's most famous man whore was going to be living underneath me. I bit my lip, considering asking Nick to switch with me, until I realized Acton and all the other guys would know we swapped. Acton would know he affected me, and would give him another thing to tease me about. "That's fine," I lied, using the most nonchalant tone possible. "I don't mind."
Nick cocked an eyebrow at me in suspicion. "Are you sure? You hate the man."
Now I glared at Nick. "Hate is a very strong word, Nick. You know I don't like to use that word unless it's used for someone worthy of the title."
"Like Sean?" Nick asked cautiously, almost as if he were worried I might burst into tears at the mention of my ex-lover's name.
"Exactly like Sean. He was a cheating bastard, and he deserves to be hated," I answered harshly, picking at my fingernails. "I don't know Acton well enough to hate him," I finished. It was true. I made sure that I knew the person deserved to be hated before I actually started hating them.
"But you will," Nick said seriously, looking at me with pity.
I shut my mouth, worry and dread immediately setting in at the tone of his voice.
***
"You sure you don't want to run away while you can?" Colton joked, lounging on the couch. We were still waiting on Ren and, of course, Acton, to get their asses on the bus so we could take off.
"Of course," I answered matter-of-factly. "Someone has to soothe the crying girls that emerge from your rooms." Feeling a low grumble in my belly, I emerged from my spot next to Colton and moved into the kitchen, opening the door to the small refridgerator. I could not muffle the shocked gasp that came out of my mouth.
"What is it?" Colton asked from the couch, as no one else was on the bus with us. Nick was helping other crew members to pack up our other bus with more supplies, and Vance was outside on his cell, calling Ren and Acton to get their asses out of bed and to the parking lot.
"What do you guys eat all day?" I said, half kidding, half in horror. One half of the fridge was filled with beer, while the other half was completely empty.
"If you're hungry, we can just order some chinese or something," Colton answered with a laugh, clearly not recognizing my shock.
"You guys have been eating junk food all this time?" I asked incredulously, standing up to glare at Colton, who was still sprawled out on the couch.
"Uh, yeah. None of us can cook worth a shit," Colton answered with a shrug, still not understanding my anger.
"Please tell me you're kidding," I said, my face contorting into a look of disgust. I didn't know what I would do if he confirmed my fears.
"Uh... no?" Colton asked, and I could see the fear spread across his face as I curled my hands into fists.
"Take me to the grocery store. Now." I said threateningly, grabbing my purse off of a chair and slinging it over my shoulders. "Move," I said, ushering him to his feet to go out the door. I grabbed the keys to a car and practically shoved Colton inside.
"W-what are you doing, An?" Colton asked nervously, looking at me in shock. I was angry. No, I was fuming. I absolutely had to go to the grocery and grab something that could at least create a semi-decent meal for these guys.
"I'm surprised you guys haven't fallen over from your malnutrition," I growled, starting up the engine. "You guys haven't been getting near enough vitamins to carry on with a healthy lifestyle. All of that beer and shit," I swallowed, wrinkling my nose in disgust. "No wonder you guys are so pale and have such fucking pasty skin."
As I drove down the road, Colton immediately flipped down the mirror in the passenger side of the car. "I don't have pasty skin," he said in his defense, his fingers poking and prodding his face to make sure.
"But you will," I answered with a low growl. I told Nick to watch what he ate on the tour, and sure enough, he was living on a diet of alcohol and fat. He knew how much I hated that, especially after Dad's heart attack.
"Whatever," Colton groaned, rolling his eyes and leaning back in his seat. "You know, Acton will be pissed by the time we get back," he warned me.
"Like I care," I lied, focusing on the road. "He'll probably still be in bed with that slut," I snarled, taking a fast, sharp turn, not slowing down like I was taught to.
"Whoa!" Colton yelled, grabbing the dash. "Please calm down. I'd like to stay alive to see another day," he groaned sarcastically, his grip on the dashboard becoming white as I sped up in response.
I took a deep breath, trying to calm down. I was going to get in an accident if I didn't get a hold of myself. Luckily, it was early enough that there weren't too many cars.
"Listen, I think I know what's your problem," Colton started, and I glanced at him, honestly wondering what he thought of my situation. "Seeing Acton use women reminds you of how Sean used you," he murmured cautiously, gripping his seatbelt for dear life.
I shook my head and chuckled. "Sean didn't use me. He just," I said, furrowing my eyebrows when I couldn't come up with a good answer. "He loved me. He made a mistake," I tried to say, but the words left a bad taste on my tongue. "Unforgiveable mistake, but he didn't use me," I scoffed, gripping the steering wheel tighter.
"You're in denial," Colton said gently, reaching out to grasp my shoulder. "You're grieving."
"I'm not grieving!" I exclaimed, pulling in to the grocery store parking lot. Thankfully. "And I'm not in denial. I'm just fine." There was no reason to grieve over Sean. He was a bastard who didn't realize what he had lost until he lost it.
"Whatever," Colton said, raising his hands in surrender, giving up. "Let's just go... get whatever you need."
Twenty minutes later, we were carrying out bags by the armful. "Couldn't you have bought less stuff?" Colton whined, practically tossing the food in the trunk of the car.
"Hey!" I exclaimed. "That's bread!"
Colton turned to me and cocked an eyebrow in confusion.
"Fine." I said, crossing my arms and marching back to the driver's side. "You can eat squished bread, then."
"I honestly don't care," Colton shrugged, climbing into the passenger seat for the ride back. "It's just food."
"Nutritious food," I corrected, starting up the engine to take us back to the hotel parking lot where the buses were.
"It's just food," Colton insisted with a bored look on his face. "There's nothing special about it."
"We'll see," I winked at him as I drove back. Somehow, buying something relieved the stress I had built up, and I was more relaxed now. In the store, I had apologized numerous times to Colton for the way I had acted, but he just shrugged them off. He seemed indifferent today. "Is something wrong?" I asked, glancing over at him as we drove into the hotel lot.
"I just have a really bad feeling," Colton answered uneasily, glancing at the buses.
I slowly pulled in next to the buses, so we could easily carry the bags inside the bus. I had to slam on the breaks as Acton suddenly stormed out of the bus, stopping right in front of us with with a murderous glare in his dark emerald eyes. Colton and I immediately jumped out of the car as Acton started bitching at us. My eyes widened as I saw that he had my bags in his hands, and he tossed them to the side on the ground unceremoniously. "Where the fuck have you two been? We've been waiting for over an hour," He shifted his glare to me, focusing all of his hatred and anger on me.
I furrowed my eyebrows, wanting to shout right back at him. I really wanted to give him a piece of my mind. But I was a coward, to be honest.
"We went grocery shopping," Colton explained in my defense, unloading the bags from the trunk. "Anya plans to cook for us."
"Well," Acton sneered, "Her plans have failed. She's not welcome on the tour." As if to make his statement final, he kicked on of my bags, hard, sending it tumbling across the blacktop.
Calmly, I marched over to pick up my bags, and walked back over to the bus. Acton immediately saw what I was doing and he moved to block the door. "No way," he growled, standing firmly in the doorway leading up to the bus. "You can't come."
"Let me in, Acton, or I swear to God," I warned, gripping my bags with a tight, white grip. I was one second away from losing my cool and smashing his face in.
"Or what?" Acton dared, leaning in closer to me. It sent flashbacks to that night five days ago, when our bodies were pressed up against each other, with no space in between.
Shaking it off, I tilted my head up to glare at him. "You are the only one who doesn't approve of me, Acton. Why is that?" I asked earnestly, genuinely wanting to know the truth. He obviously hated me, and I wanted to know why.
"We don't need a slut on tour," Acton sneered, and that was all it took for Colton to step in. He gently pushed me back, out of his way, and sucker punched Acton's face. A startling crack rang through the air, as Acton stumbled back, clutching his nose with his hand.
"God dammit, Colt. What was that for?" Acton snarled, momentarily forgetting me for a moment.
"What was that for? What the fuck has gotten into you, Acton?" Colton furrowed his eyebrows and shot him a look of disgust. "How dare you call her that? What the fuck made you think that was okay?" Colton asked incredulously, reaching towards me to shuffle me behind him.
Though Colton was a little bit shorter and a little lankier than Acton, they looked like it would be an even match if they got into a physical fight. Thankfully, it was obvious that Colt preferred to use words over fists. "You don't even know the whole story. And it wasn't as if you were up and ready to greet the sun when we left. It wasn't that bad that you had to wait a fucking hour, Act. Stop acting like a hormonal woman and get over it," Colt said harshly, reaching down to take my bags from me. "She's Nick's sister, Acton. She's coming with us whether you like it or not."
Once he saw it was safe enough to leave me alone with the beast, Colton brought my bags back inside of the bus, putting them where I had them before. Moving past Acton, who had stepped aside on the bus, I tried to get away as quickly as possible without looking intimidated. Though intimidating was his middle name. Before I could get away, he gripped my upper arm.
Surprisingly, it wasn't a harsh, threatening grip. "I'll make your life hell," Acton warned, his green eyes shooting daggers into me.
"I've dealt with bullies before," I retorted, returning his glare with my own. I straightened my back to look him in the eyes. "Game on."
***
About an hour later, as I started preparing a lunch for five hungry men, one anorexic blonde, and myself, I felt like slapping myself on the forehead for my simple words. Game on. How stupid of me. He was going to swat me down like a fly and shove me into the dirt beneath his feet. There was no way I could win against the King of players himself.
After that encounter, Acton had left me alone. But I had a sinking feeling that was only because he was entertaining Blondie in the back room of the bus. It's hard to make someone's life hell when you're taking someone else to sexual heaven at the same time. But for Acton, it was easy.
Now, as I prepared nutritious sandwiches for the men, the moans were floating through the entire bus like someone was watching porn stars at maximum volume. The other four men were settled around the TV in the lounge, trying to focus on the program. Each of them looked uncomfortable, as Blondie was yelling for Acton to "suck it harder". Didn't have to use much imagination to know what that meant.
"When is Phil coming?" Ren groaned, covering his face with a pillow as if to block out the sounds of pleasure wafting in from every direction. Apparently, we were waiting on one person. Unfortunately, it was one of the most important people, the bus driver, and we couldn't leave without him. Apparently, his wife had recently given birth to their first child, and so we all agreed to wait so he could be with them for a while longer. The people on tour sometimes couldn't see their loved ones for months, and that was a lot to ask of anybody.
It wasn't quite worth hearing Blondie's screams filter through the bus, though. We were all waiting for Phil to come back so we could hit the road. Then, at least, we could ditch Blondie and get going. We weren't going to allow her to come along with. If she did, we would all be in permanent Hell.
After an exceptionally loud moan, followed by a scream, the noises finally stopped. "Oh, thank God!" Colton threw his hands up in relief. "Hallelujah. Can we kick her off the bus now?" he asked, completely serious.
About ten minutes after that, Phil finally made his way onto the bus with an earnest grin on his face. "Ready to get a move on?" he winked at me with a teasing grin on his face. He was in his late thirties, balding, and I could immediately tell he was a kind person. Why else would he have a wife and newborn son? The band had filled him in on why I was tagging along.
Acton and Blondie emerged from their session, coming out shamless and scantily clad. Acton was wearing only a pair of jeans that he had quickly thrown on, without underwear, and the button on them was undone. They hung low on his hips, leaving me to swallow quickly and try to avert my eyes as the trail of hair leading down South was exposed. His chest was muscled and defined, and in the bright lights of the bus, I could see his tattoos clearly. He had a tribal design on his left bicep, and a skull on his right. He had some words inscribed on his ribs, but Blondie was pressed up against him so that I couldn't make out what they said. She was dressed in only a hot pink bra and panties, creating a matching set. I flinched as he wrapped an arm around her stick thin waist, pressing their bare skin together as they turned to face us.
"Are we ready to go?" Acton asked in a raw, rough voice. Surely cause by all the moaning and yelling his voicebox was inflicted with.
"Yeah," I piped up, surprising myself. Nobody seemed to mind.
"Are you packed up?" Vance spoke up, directing his words at Blondie. "You have to leave."
Blondie pawed at Acton's chest and looked up at him, ignoring Vance. "I thought you said I could stay," she whined, hooking her leg around his to stay stuck to him like glue. Behind the annoying whining, I heard the demand very clearly. No one else seemed to notice.
Acton ignored her blatant sexual advances and answered Vance, but his eyes were on me as Blondie played with the sparse black hair on his chest. "I thought Mikayla could stay, since she was staying with us."
I saw Nick furrow his eyebrows in anger on the other side of me. "Her name is Anya, you asshole. And we don't have any more room," he said protectively, and I placed a hand on his shoulders to stop him from saying anything else. I didn't want him to say anything else and get himself in trouble, or worse, lose his job.
"Well then," Acton retorted in a mocking tone, "Anya," he said in blatant disgust, "will just have to leave." He ended with a smug smile, as if he had won.
Vance stood up, this time in anger. "Enough, Acton. Mikayla will just have to leave. We already filled the last bed, and Anya will not be leaving."
"Mikayla can stay in the bedroom, then," Acton answered, "with me."
Vance took a step closer to Acton and motioned him closer with his hand. "Let's have a talk, shall we?" Vance actually growled at Acton, something that made my eyebrows shoot up. I had never seen Vance get angry. Vance led Acton to the back rooms, where they were holed up in a loud conversation for about five minutes.
Ren and Colton tried to make small talk with Mikayla, while Nick just ignored her, taking my side as always. I leaned back against the couch, half paying attention to the painful conversation the threesome was having, and half straining to hear what Vance and Acton were getting into a heated argument about.
I quickly lost interest as Ren tried to ask came from, and she, I'm not kidding, pointed to the back rooms and said, "the bedroom." I caught Colton's eye at this and we both rolled our eyes at her stupidity. Ren was clearly asking about where she grew up. It was obvious she had just come from the bedroom after fucking Acton.
For a moment, I tried to imagine if it could be better that Mikayla stayed on the bus with us, but I immediately decided against it. I couldn't exactly come to her for an escape from men when she couldn't understand a simple question.
Instead, I focused on the argument Vance and Acton were having. Yes, I knew I was eavesdropping, but nobody really cared. I could only make out words and phrases, not the entire conversation.
"Stop being... asshole," I heard Vance say angrily. "What's... problem?"
"She's... not... I can't..." I heard Acton fire back, though somewhat subdued at Vance's words. "... worth it... dangerous."
"Well... over it. And stop... childish..."
"Fine. Whatever," I heard Acton's voice clearly, as he stepped up to open the door, leading back inside to the lounge area where we were all sitting and staring at each other awkwardly. "Sorry, Blondie," Acton immediately told Mikayla, giving in to our nickname for her. "Pack up your shit and get out," he pointed to a corner, where her purse and jacket were strewn all over the place. "We gotta get going."
Blondie pushed herself off of the couch, or Ren's lap, if you'd rather, and opened her mouth to complain. "How dare you, just, like, leave me like this?" she demanded incredulously, curling her hands into fists at her side. Her tangerine colored skin became darker as a nasty looking blush flooded her features in embarrassment.
Acton ignored her and strutted over to the fridge, which was now half filled with grocery items. I didn't dare toss out the beer. He'd probably to into a psychotic rage without it. He easily pulls out an ice cold beer from the cooler as though he didn't have an ice cold bitch waiting to chew his ass out. "What did you fucking expect?" he asked, popping the top on his beer. "I told you not to expect some sappy serenade from me," he retorted with a bored tone. "That shit is only for lovesick idiots. And I could never love you," he finished harshly, making it obvious that he never cared about her one bit. He was just her toy.
Mikayla's mouth fell open in shock, and her eyes took the term 'death glare' to a whole new level. I actually shivered, seeing her baby blue eyes turn to ice within a matter of nanoseconds. "We've been dating, for, like, a month!" she exclaimed, furrowing her eyebrows in anger. At that moment, I almost felt bad for her. Almost. But everyone knew that Acton Black didn't date. She should have known what she was getting into the moment she first laid eyes on him.
I did, and I was wise enough to try and get as far away from him as possible. Until my minor flub up at the club last week.
"We are not dating. We never were," Acton bit out angrily, as though the rumor of him dating someone pissed him off. "If we were, then that would have meant that all we ever did was fuck on and off since the day you met me, like a hopeless groupie, and I've been cheating on you almost every night since then." He sighed exasperatedly and took a long swig of the alcohol in the bottle he held in his hands. "I told you before we got started that I don't do the dating shit. You shouldn't have expected anything more than what you got."
***
Wow. I think I have succeeded in making an asshole. Is this asshole, who also goes by the name Acton, redeemable? Wow. He's really, really arrogant and conceited. Even I don't like him right now, and he's a figment of my imagination. *shakes head irritably* I'm starting to worry if I can make him the guy I want him to be by the end of the story. He's so... dark. And untouchable.
Tell me who your favorite character is so far!
Read! Comment! Vote!
You guys are awesome! Oh, and I just remembered. After two weeks here, when I finish uploading my book, One Life To Live, I will 'upgrade' this book, so I will be updating it once every week. In my head, I only have enough time to upload a chapter for two books per week, and then if I have any other books to update, that book will get updated once every two weeks. Hopefully that makes sense. If not, it doesn't really matter all that mucy. Bottom line, it means you get to read more about Acton and his jackhole ways! Yay!
Thank you guys for all of your support!
~L.C.