The purr of the motorcycle engine died down as Jace pulled up to the curb. As he took the keys out, Haley climbed off the back and tossed him his helmet. The front of Haley's shirt was splattered with red paint, giving off the strange of appearance that she had been shot. Flecks still speckled her skin and she was ready to be rid of them. She was halfway to her house when she paused.
"I don't know if I'm going to go swimming, should I even wear a bathing suit?" she asked, Jace.
"Yes, or else you'll be really mad when I throw you in the pool."
Haley placed her hands on her hips. "You wouldn't."
"I'm surprised you're even thinking I wouldn't."
Before Haley could snap back a comment, Jace gave her a cheeky grin and vanished inside. Knowing there was no point in yelling at empty space, Haley went inside and rushed up the stairs. For once the quiet of the house didn't bother her, her mind already trying to decide what to wear.
After a shower, she stared at her reflection and the simple navy blue bathing suit she was wearing. Damp hair left droplets on her shoulders and slipped down her skin. The image she presented wasn't a bad one but it wasn't a great one either. Her stomach felt too exposed and though she was thin it wasn't healthy looking thinness with defined curves and toned muscles. Not able to do anything to change it, she walked away from her doppelgänger and into her closet.
When she walked back out, she was wearing shorts and a loose tank top pulled over her bathing suit, making her feel better about her appearance. Cutting through the maze of discarded books, she stepped out onto her balcony. Across the way, Jace was just walking out of his bathroom in a pair of swim shorts. He bent down and picked up a shirt off the floor. After a sniff, he tugged it on.
"Jace," Haley said, snagging his attention.
He opened his door and rested one arm on the frame.
"What's up?"
Haley held her hands out, giving him the full scope of her outfit.
"What do you think?"
He surveyed her with a critical eye.
"Shorts and a shirt. You're good."
Frowning, Haley cocked her head to the side.
"That was not what I meant."
"You wanted me to say something else?"
She tossed her hands up. "Yes!"
With an annoyed sigh, Jace shook his head like he couldn't believe this was his life.
"Fine, the shirt works well with your skin tone. The shorts are cute without even trying or showing too much. That better?"
She grinned appreciatively at him. "Yes, thank you."
"You need a girl friend cause I'm not doing that again. Now come on. Let's go."
Finding her phone, Haley tossed it into her bag along with her house keys and dashed down the stairs. The sun was still baking the world and scattered in the sky were clusters of puffy clouds like someone had knocked over a basket of white towels. The drive to Rachel's was a contrast of a hot day and a strong wind. The result was it left the uncovered bits of Haley's hair tangled and her skin tingling.
Along Rachel's driveway were already a row of cars. Jace parked at the front of the house and Haley tried to unknot the now dry ends of her hair. They walked in together and she couldn't help feeling how different it was from last time. The uneasy ball of nervous energy wasn't with her. The uncertainty of the people who were there wasn't something she even thought of. She might not have become friends with all of them, but she knew they weren't from another world as she had imagined before.
Noise built as they headed down the hallway towards the kitchen. Neatly laid out along the kitchen were bowls of chips, snacks, and drinks along with paper plates, napkins and plastic cups. Only a few people were gathered there, the rest were already taking advantage of the heat and the pool outside.
Not hungry at the moment, Haley followed Jace through the back door, past the patio decorated with a fire pit, cushioned metal chairs, and couches to the back yard. A wide, disappearing edge pool took up most of the space with cut emerald lawn surrounding it. The air held the scent of grass and chlorine. Lounge chairs created little semi-circles on either end of the pool. When Jace was yanked into a group of guys, Haley glanced around.
Isaac wasn't there but she spotted Ty and Josie at one end of the pool, stretched out in lounge chairs. As she made her way to them, she realized what she had assumed were just their outfits were actually bathing suits. Ty wore a navy blue tankinis with a zipper up the front and a pair of black swim shorts, while Josie was wearing a modest one piece with a design at the top also with a pair of board shorts over the bottom. The girls noticed her approach and waved her over. The chairs beside them were taken, but Josie curled up her legs. Dropping her bag onto the ground, Haley settled at the bottom.
"I like your bathing suits," she said.
Both girls gave light chuckles.
"What you're saying," Josie said. "Is you didn't expect us to be wearing these types of bathing suits."
Flushing with embarrassment, Haley crossed her legs and held onto her ankles.
"Kinda," she admitted.
Ty sank deeper into her chair, stretching one arm above her head.
"Haley," she said, "you should know by now that I am not just a body to be admired but a mind to be feared."
Unable to argue with that statement, Haley looked to Josie, wondering if her response would be the same. Without being asked, Josie offered up her answer.
"I have a love of ice cream, didn't work out this week because of the stress of the senior project and didn't feel like hating myself. This way I still look cute without trying."
"I guess that makes sense," Haley said, now wishing she had thought of that.
A roar of voices came from the inside of the house and all three girls looked over. A jostling crowd of boys was pouring out of the back door, Isaac in their midst. They all seemed determined to get each other close to the water's edge without putting themselves at risk. What ensued was a pandemonium of shouts and shoving that eventually resulted in four different guys all falling into the water. One of them was Isaac.
Good natured as always, he hauled himself out of the pool, his shirt soaking and his glasses dripping with water. Setting his glasses down on a nearby table, he ran a hand through his hair then he took off his shirt, wringing it out. His hair was a mess and Haley was made all too aware of how good he looked with it shorter and well...shirtless.
"I was not expecting that," Ty said, eyeing Isaac, who was laughing at a comment one of the guys made.
"Didn't you just say something about being more than a body to be admired?" Haley said, arching one eyebrow at Ty, though she had been guilty of the same offense.
"Yes, but the male species has thousands of years of objectifying women to make up for." She gave a careless shrug. "I'm simply balancing the scales."
Haley laughed along with Josie before turning back to the gang of boys. Isaac had decided to leave his shirt off and was trying to drag someone else to the pool.
"I think I'll help," Josie said, resting her chin in her hand, eyes trained on the now shirtless Jace.
Haley wasn't sure she could blame her, though she was used to the sight, it was still an impressive one: all dark skin and toned muscles.
"Will you join our noble cause, Haley?" Ty asked.
Before the direction and object of Haley's gaze could give away her feelings, she decided to change the subject.
"You both have Henley for English, right?"
If either girl thought the random question was strange, they didn't show it.
"Yeah," Josie said, tilting her head back and closing her eyes.
"What author did you pick?"
Haley hugged her legs, putting her back to the scene of bare-chested guys. Even though some of them were on the perimeters of toned, they didn't seem to notice it, locked in the strange moment of camaraderie.
"I chose Jane Austin," Ty said. "The woman was ahead of her time, writing about the psychology of a character before even men thought of it."
Haley bobbed her head back an forth. "Well, that makes sense. Josie?"
"Elliot McKenzie."
Haley's brows shot up in surprise. "Really? She's a romance writer."
Josie fixed Haley with a serious gaze. "The girl published her first book when she was sixteen, skipped college and made a career out of her writing." She pointed to Haley as if driving home a point. "That is what I call a strong woman. Also, her books are more about the growth of a character than the romance. Who did you choose?"
Haley found she was curious to read Elliot's books now that it had Josie's stamp of approval.
"I went with her husband, Beck. I figured he made the most sense being the Steinbeck of our time and all that."
"Not a bad choice," Josie said.
Ty let out a long breath. "I still need to write that last essay, the one about how perspective changes opinions and whatnot." She rubbed her eyes. "I'll probably have to do it Sunday since tomorrow we'll be busy all day with the setup and the whole event."
Haley chewed on her bottom lip realizing she still had to finish that deadline as well. She was snapped from her thoughts as a pair of arms wrapped around her waist. A shriek escaped her mouth and she struggled as Jace picked her up.
"Jace! Don't you dare!"
Jace only laughed as he walked to the pool. As he was about to let go, Haley grabbed hold of his arm and used her momentum to drag him down with her. They crashed into the water and sharp coldness rushed forward to enclose Haley. She pushed herself up to the surface and coughed up the bit of water she had swallowed. Jace's head popped up beside her and she charged him, using her body weight to force him under again. Despite this, he still came up laughing.
"You're an idiot," she said.
Jace merely shrugged. "I did warn you."
"Haley."
At the call of her name, she twisted around. Isaac stood at the edge, one hand lowered in help. Smiling, she swam to him and accepted the offered hand. But instead of letting him lift her out, she tugged against him, making him fall once more into the pool. This time it was Haley's turn to laugh as he came up spitting water.
"Low blow," he said.
She held up her hands.
"What do you expect from a convict?"
Isaac laughed and Haley grinned, liking the way his eyes crinkled at the edges. A shout came from the patio and Nick raced forward, Rachel slung over his shoulder.
"Nick!-"
The rest of Rachel's protest was drowned as they hit the water. Chaos exploded as every guy reached for the closest girl. Haley watched as Ty and Josie teamed up and managed to push one of Jace's baseball teammates in. The party fell apart from there, games of Mark Polo followed by diving contests. The end of the pool antics came with the arrival of pizza.
Haley clambered out of the pool and walked to where she had laid her clothes out to dry. With an annoyed sigh, she found they were still mostly damp. She spun around, searching for Jace.
"Jace!" she yelled and he looked up. "Because of you, my clothes are still soaking."
Shrugging, he tossed her his shirt.
"There you go," he said, walking into the house, rubbing a towel over his hair.
As Haley tugged the shirt over her head, she heard a voice.
"I would have loaned you mine," Isaac said. "But it's still not dry either."
Haley yanked the shirt down and twisted her hair, wringing out the water onto the grass.
"Thanks anyway," she said.
She gathered up her clothes and walked with Isaac to the house. At the door, Rachel was waiting.
"Give me those," she said, holding out arms that were already full of other people's damp clothes. "I'm going to toss all of these into the drier. You should be able to have them back soon."
"Do you need help?" Isaac asked.
Rachel smiled but shook her head, taking both their items of clothing. Inside the volume of the crowd had doubled, not having the open air to escape into. The counter was packed as people fought to get pizza and fill cups. The smell of melted cheese, toasted crusts and meat swam through the room. Not wanting to get into the chaos of the counter, Haley hung back, leaning against the wall. Isaac opted to stay with her, sinking his hands into his swim short pockets.
"It seems everyone is really eager to eat prison food," Isaac joked.
"Well, you have to admit, the warden did go all out."
Haley smiled up at him, but regretted it, realizing how very close he was, and how still very shirtless he remained. Turning away, she tried not to be aware of the flush creeping up into her cheeks. Right then, she had the strongest desire to simply stare at him as well as crawl under the counter and hide.
Before her embarrassment could be noticed, a break in the mass of bodies appeared. Isaac waved his hand out and Haley stepped forward, not wanting to have a strong view of his bare back. He wasn't as fit as some of the other guys but that didn't seem to matter to Haley.
"How about I get the pizza and you get drinks," Isaac said.
"Sounds like a plan."
With requests exchanged, they parted ways. They reconnected and found spots on the floor of the living room. The couches were piled with people all wanting to be comfortable but not willing to sacrifice their spot for space. The result was most people were sitting half on each other, taking away the comfort aspect completely.
As they ate, jokes and stories flew around between bites. The effect of it was that there were no dividing lines anymore. Science club kids were smashed between student council members. Baseball team players were crammed with students they hadn't even acknowledged four weeks ago.
When half the food had been demolished, Rachel disappeared and returned with a stack of clothes. All the kids who were still wrapped in towels scrambled up and retrieved their outfits. Finding a less visible spot, Haley took off Jace's shirt and slipped back into her shorts and shirt. They were still warm and it sent goose bumps down her arms.
Back in the living room, she realized that more than half of the group had slowly been pulled away and the sky had finally given up it's light to the night. Settling down between Ty and Josie, she wondered if she should call it a night and head home as well. Before she could decide, Jace stood up, his shirt back on.
"All right there's only about sixteen of us left, I say we play a game," he said. "Since there is no alcohol allowed-"
"And there still will never be," Rachel put in.
She was tucked into Nick's arms and her hand tightened around his. Jace pointed to her as if acknowledging her rule and wisdom.
"That still doesn't mean we can't have fun. I propose a game of Seven Minutes in Heaven."
"Way to be cliché," Josie said.
Jace raised a single eyebrow. "Are you scared, JoJo?"
"Just pointing out the obvious."
"So you're not declining, good. Rachel mind getting a bowl and pieces of paper. Before she could respond, Nick offered to do it and got up. "Now everyone knows how this works. We pick two names, they are escorted into a closet and get to spend seven minutes together doing whatever they want." He raised a finger. "You can always say no and if the guy, or girl, does something the other doesn't like, scream and we'll beat the offender to a pulp. Everyone in?"
The crowd looked around as if judging what everyone else's responses would be. Haley met Isaac's gaze and he shrugged as if saying, 'why not'.
"Sure," Ty said in a bored tone.
This got a chorus of agreement. Nick returned with a bowl, paper, and pens. Stripes were passed around and everyone scrolled their name down before putting it in the bowl. Haley dropped her name in and felt a queasy sense of nervousness trickle through her.
"Have you ever played this?" she asked, Josie.
Josie leaned forward and tossed her torn piece in. "Yeah, usually people just talk or kiss. I once had an interesting discussion with a guy about the girl he liked and how he was nervous to tell her. I gave him advice and he took it. They've been together ever since."
"Who was it?"
Instead of responding, Josie let her eyes drift to the one couple who was curled together.
"Really?" Haley asked, tearing her gaze away from Rachel and Nick.
"Yup, it was back in eighth grade, during Rachel's promotion party. He asked her out that summer and the rest is history. So you never know what will happen."
Haley smiled, watching the couple as they shared whispered words and small gestures of affection.
"Okay," Jace said, clapping his hands together, a mischievous grin taking over his face. "I shall do the honors." He reached into the bowl snatched two stripes. "Ty and Ian."
Ty glanced over to a blonde haired boy with glasses, a freckled face, and limbs he had yet to get accustomed to.
"Yeah, all right," she said.
She rose and Ian did as well, a look of fear and excitement battling it out in his expression. They crossed over to the linen closet and Jace held up his phone. As the door shut, he hit go on the timer.
"Prediction of what will happen?" Jace asked.
"Ian will piss himself from fear," one of the baseball players said.
The room filled with laughter and other suggestions were passed around, most of them highlighting Ty's ability to make everyone around her feel like an idiot. When the time was up, Jace went to the door and whipped it open. What was discovered on the other side made everyone freeze.
Ian had his hands in Ty's hair and his shirt was clenched in her fists as they kissed. A guy let out an appreciative whistle, making everyone laugh again. The pair broke apart, Ian looking all too pleased and bright red, while Ty remained unfazed.
"What?" she said, shrugging as they stepped out. "He made an excellent point about the effect of an enclosed space which acted as a forced sense of intimacy having either a positive or negative effect on a person's boundaries."
The game progressed and the results varied. Sometimes the oddest of pairings would result in positive outcomes. As it went on and Haley's name wasn't picked she felt a sense of relief followed by a renewed sense of nervousness. When Jace pulled out his own name, followed by Josie's, Haley momentarily forgot about her feelings. Josie shook her head as she stood, amused by the outcome. The timer was handed to Rachel and Jace closed themselves in.
"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Ty asked, Haley.
"You think Jace would do something?"
"No, I think Josie might. No one gets on her nerves quite like Jace does. I would hate to have to deal with his dead body."
Haley laughed. When they heard a heavy thud from the opposite side of the door, everyone looked around, eyebrows raised. The timer went off and since Haley was the closest, she did the honors. The second the door was open, Josie's voice spilled out.
"Seriously!" she said. "That's the side you're going to take! Come on, Jace you understand how peer pressure works. Half of the results of this game are made because people feel that denying to go along with it would result in being shunned from the group."
"I never heard complaints from the girls I played with before," he replied, lounging against the shelves, his arms crossed.
Josie made an emphatic gesture to him. "That's because-"
"Guys!" Ty shouted.
Only then did the pair seem aware that the door had been opened and they had an audience. Ty leaned on the coffee table, head in her hand.
"Were you arguing the entire time?" she asked.
"Yeah, why?" Josie asked, crossing her arms.
"We heard a thud."
Jace walked out and jerked his head back to Josie. "That's because JoJo here pushed me into one of the shelves because she didn't like my argument."
"It was flawed and poorly thought out," she said, passing him to take her original spot on the floor.
Waving away her annoyance, Jace returned to acting as master of ceremonies. There were only six people left who hadn't been called and Haley and Isaac were two of them. As Jace reached into the bowl again, her stomach did somersaults. Despite her determination not to, she glanced at Isaac. His eyes flickered to hers and they both diverted their attention, not wanting the other to see their apprehension and hope.
"Isaac. And," Jace said, holding up the two pieces of paper. Without being aware of it, Haley stopped breathing, her lower lip trapped between her teeth. "Haley."
An odd fluttering occurred in her stomach and she got to her feet, trying not to show how shaky she felt. Jace gave her a wide, teasing smile and Haley felt her insides flop onto the floor.
When she stepped into the closet the first thing she noticed was how very small it was. From the outside, she hadn't thought about it, but it was barely big enough for them to stand facing each other without physically touching. This second factor was instantly found out as Isaac shut the door.
They stood with their backs pressed against opposite shelves. Isaac was staring at his feet, color climbing up his neck. Haley felt as if her heart were going to leap from her chest as she stared at him. Her pulse picked up speed and it was if the only sound in the closet was their collective breathes. It was because of this that Haley was aware that when Isaac looked at her, he stopped breathing.
"Have you done this before," she asked, feeling the time ticking away.
"Not really. I don't usually go to these types of parties. I usually go to video game parties. Not a lot of girls at those most of the time." Words kept racing from Isaac's lips like he couldn't stop or didn't know what else to do with lips, or had ideas in mind but couldn't make himself act. "I've never even had a girlfriend before. Well, there was one girl during freshman year, but it didn't last past the weekend and I don't know girls are...complicated."
Isaac tugged at a table cloth, his gazing having wandered away from Haley.
"Well, you talked to me," she said, feeling more comfortable knowing that he was as new to this territory as she was.
"You made a prison joke." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't know...you seemed...easier to talk to. Then you smiled and...I wanted to see you smile again."
The edge of his lips curled as if remembering the moment. That one gesture brought Haley' eyes to his mouth and heat rushed through her.
"Isaac."
He finally met her gaze. "Yeah?"
"Do you want to kiss me?"
In answer, his eyes jumped to her lips then back up. He swallowed hard.
"Yes."
Haley took herself off the support of the shelves, the little motion nearly closing the distance between them. Isaac did the same, swallowing again. She nodded, encouraging. When he brought his hands up to her face, they were shaky. But the second they settled warm on her skin, the nerves vanished. Haley's heart was banging against her chest, trying to make a jailbreak.
Isaac leaned in and kissed her.
His lips were soft and hesitant. As Haley reacted, kissing him back and taking hold of his shirt, he became more confident.
The kiss wasn't like anything Haley had read about. No fireworks went off. Her body didn't explode with passion and desire. The sudden need to tear off her clothes and kiss every inch of Isaac wasn't there.
All that she had imagined a kiss to be was wrong. And in all the right ways.
The kiss was like someone had stroked a fire inside her chest and that constant glow and warmth were spreading through her, making her feel beautiful. All the fears and doubts she held inside about who she was, how she looked and whether she mattered were quieted.
As Isaac kept kissing her, his hands finding their way into her hair, she felt truly seen.
When he pulled back, Haley felt something inside her wanting more.
"Haley," he said, grinning down at her.
It took her a second to gather the puddle that was her thoughts.
"Yeah?"
"Will you go to Prom with me?"
In answer, Haley smiled and brought his mouth back to hers, finding that fire once again.
**********************************************************************
OH! MY! GOSH! 😱
To my Isley shippers, go ahead and freak out cause...THEY KISSED!!! 🙈
To my Jaley shippers, you need to calm down! I'm serious put the weapons away! Stand down!
Now breathe. I'm serous! Take. A. Deep. Breath!
Okay, now I know you have a ton of thoughts banging around in your head, feel free to let them out here. Even if it's you yelling at me. I'll listen.
👉🕳👈
Are you okay now?
Good let's review the facts:
1. You said you would trust me.
2. I haven't ever hurt you.
3. The story isn't over.
4. Remember the promise I made to you in the very first chapter. (If you don't go back and read the author's note.)
5. What do you want more, Jaley? Or Haley healing? Just think about that.
Okay, Isaac got the first kiss and winds are changing, but as I have said and asked before: Please. Trust. Me. I don't plan on giving you an ending you will hate me for, so don't bail on me. 🙏
Now that everyone has taken a breath, the rest of us can celebrate! OH MY GOSH!!! THEY KISSED!!! What are we thinking!
This is my most different kiss I've written, I'm curious what you thought about it!
When you come back from freaking out (in a good or bad way) then make sure to vote, comment, follow. (Gosh that kinda sounds pushy. I just mean if you feel like it)
I know! Even she's shocked!!