EDIT: (8/13/2020) Took out a word I know now has racist/ableist origins
Okay so yeah this chapter is, hm, but!
Also, the band Bones & Bridges is so good but they disappeared off the face of the damn earth in 2018 and only released two songs.
-rabid
***
"Shhh," I reach over and brush some hair out of August's face.
"Come here," she giggles, tossing her arms up around my neck. "When's Jills back?"
"She's sleeping over at Belle's again," I kiss August's neck and enjoy the way a breath slips from her. "We've got all night to ourselves."
"So we do."
"So we do." She reaches up and kisses my mouth. It's soft and angelic like the Maine sea breeze on a warm day. Refreshing and relaxing. But not calming. Nope. This kiss makes me desperate. Makes both of us desperate. Desperate and turned on and really really breathy.
Which explains why I've got her in my room before I've had time to count my sins. August's arms are up my shirt and feeling all over my back and chest. My hands have failed to stay within the holy range of her body, and as I push her down into my sheets, they're drifting everywhere I'm desperate to know.
There's a ringing in the back of my head, but I ignore it, kissing down August's miraculously now-bare chest. I take my vibrating phone from my pocket and set it on the side cabinet in my room, my hands sliding up her back and into her hair.
"Steph," she lets out a whisper and I kiss her lips again.
"Mhmm?"
"Should you get that?"
"No, I-" I pause. That ring is familiar.
"It's Jilly." August is out of breath and so am I. I sit up, half undressed, and look at my phone.
"Why's she calling?" I mumble.
"It's the third time." August sits up and hugs me from behind, setting her head on my bare back.
"I have to take it, I'm sorry." She nods.
"I get it, it's okay," I take a deep breath and answer the call. Instantly I know something is wrong, there's music blaring in the background and I hear voices, too many voices.
"Steph, can you come get me?" She sounds like she's crying. I flip immediately from young-guy-falling-in-love to single-father-scared-for-his-kid and at the same time older-brother-about-to-beat-the-shit-out-of-someone.
"Jilly? Where are you?" I stiffen a bit and August sits up to listen in.
"I'm, not, I'm at Ben's house, you know, Logan's friend? There's, I want to go home." She's sobbing. I turn to August.
"What's going on?"
"There was a party, Belle wanted to go, Steph please can you just come." I grab my discarded shirt and toss August hers. I take my free hand through my hair.
"I need the address," I say.
"I'll send you my location, please just be fast." She sniffles and sneezes.
"Where are you in the house?"
"I'm in the upstairs bathroom."
"Stay there. Wait until I get there, be safe." I panic. August is struggling with her shirt.
"I'll try, there's, just please." She sneezes again.
"I'll be right there, just, stay where you are, I gotta go."
"Steph, I don't want to get in trouble."
"Jilly, you're not in trouble, and August is going to be with me, don't freak out, just, stay put."
"Okay," She whispers. I hang up the phone and slam it into my jean pocket. August is dressed and has pulled up her hair.
"What's going on?" I get a ping and Jilly has sent me her location. "Is she okay?"
"I don't know, really." I open my bedroom door and grab my keys and a jacket. August takes hers off the hook too. "There's a party, can you GPS me to this address?" I hand her my phone. We're in the elevator immediately, and before I've processed anything, we're in my car and on the street.
Then dread starts to seep into me.
"Turn left onto Blanchard street in one hundred meters." The map gives me instructions and August rubs my shoulders with her free hand.
"I'm going to kill Logan," she mumbles. "I will, I swear."
"Not if I do it before you can," I growl.
"Piece of garbage kid is no good for her. Belle too." August looks over at me as I take another turn into suburban Regina.
"That's what I told her but she insisted," I let out a little scoff, "hockey guys are never good."
"Exactly." She responds. I shake my head and stop the car in front of the right house. There are cars everywhere and light pouring from all the windows. Music thunders through the house and I can see several hundred half-drunk high schoolers milling about.
"This is familiar," I grunt a bit. August unbuckles. "No, you stay here, she'll throw a fit if we both end up in there."
"You're right," August sighs. I unbuckle my seatbelt and stand up.
"If I'm not back in ten minutes, I've been killed by these kids." I sigh. She smiles a bit.
"Go, quickly," She shushes me. I close the door and stare up at the house. This is too familiar to be comfortable. That's because I'm a garbage hockey boy. I know them because I was them.
I walk around the side of the car and pull my jacket closer to me. This is no good at all. I walk into the house and draw attention immediately, considering my size difference with the normal high school guy. I'm not taller, no, but I have a lot easier time getting around, shouldering my way through the crowd. That's just because I'm Steph Sagamore and half these kids know exactly who I am.
Well, all but this one. "Who are you?" A senior-age girl wanders over to me, putting her hand on my arm.
"Nobody." I snort. She bats her caked eyelashes as I find my way to the stairs.
"Where are you going?" She's drunkenly trying to sweet-talk me.
"To find my sister," I respond.
"You're her brother?" This strikes fear into my chest.
"Uh," I shrug and then run up the stairs. The bathroom door is locked once I find it.
"Jilly?"
"Steph!" I hear her shuffle around on the other side.
"Are you okay?"
"No." She unlocks the door and flings herself into me. I'm taken totally by surprise. I stumble a bit but hold tight to her.
"We have to go, Jills, hey,"
"I don't want to go back down there." She sobs into my chest.
"We have to," I mumble.
"I don't want to."
"Jills, chin up, just for the next few minutes, then straight home, okay?" She wipes her eyes and smears some makeup that Belle must've given her. I reach out my shirt and wipe the excess off so she doesn't look like a raccoon.
"I don't," she drops her head, "you must be disappointed."
"In you? Going to a party? Please," I laugh lightly, "I went to so many of these. But never was I brave enough to call home to get a ride, but now we have to leave." I've seen parties, and no way is this thing not going to get busted. And me here? An old guy with a whole bunch of teens? No good.
"Let's go," she whispers. I grab her hand and lead her down the stairs. She didn't need to say it twice. People stand back and watch us walk through the crowd. She keeps her head down and I wish I had given her my hoodie, keep her out of their eyes.
"Always relying on hockey boy to get you out of things, huh." I ignore this and keep walking. Jilly drops her head.
"Can't do anything without big brother." I hear another voice.
"Twinkle toes needs her guardian." Someone else yells. I back up to the door, looking across the room, oh these high schoolers are so not worth my time.
"Saggy, you got something to say?" That ticks me off, only the guys and Nico are allowed to call me that. It's Logan, he struts up to me like a fool. I heave a big sigh, looking down at him.
"I shouldn't say anything to you, but," Logan leans forward with a smirk that mirrors my own. This kid must be dumb as shit. I clear my throat. "I can make sure that you never make it past college hockey, never."
"Like I need college hockey, I'm being scouted by the CHL, I don't care." He wiggles his eyebrows at me, and I have to laugh at him.
"Look me up, kid. I'm well versed in the CHL."
"What team, huh?" Logan challenges me. He's wearing a backward ball cap over hair that's too long and curls out the sides. Me and him would've been great friends in high school. Not now.
"I'm a Storm kid," I mention my second team because he would give me shit for being a Firebird.
"I bet you can't do anything to me," Logan is getting in my face.
"Listen, kid, please." I shake my head. "You need to stop acting like the biggest guy in the room, because there's always someone that could drag your ass, in this case, it's me."
"When have you ever won a fucking fight?" Logan, unfortunately, is a good three inches taller than me.
"Who the fuck do you think you're talking to."
"Yeah, back off Logan," someone takes him by the shoulders and pulls him back. "You've humiliated yourself enough."
"I could take him," Logan squirms back toward me, he's drunk, probably too drunk to be here anymore.
"Get him some water." I take Jilly by the shoulders, she's been hiding behind me the whole time.
"Do you have your jacket?" I mumble.
"No, no," She's clinging to me like a little kid. I grab her and lift her up, carrying her outside and down the walk. It's easy, Jilly is only 5'4. She sobs into my neck and I walk down to the car. August is sitting in the passenger seat and I wave at her.
"That was so cool." She mumbles. I grin.
"Duh, I win the older brother game." I pull open the back door and flop inside, pulling the door shut with my feet.
"Aug, can you drive?" I hand her the keys.
"Yeah, totally." She switches sides and I reach forward to hit the save-seat-and-mirror position button, it was a pain trying to get them all in the right spot. August adjusts the car to her smaller size and I sit down in the back with Jilly.
"Let's go before this gets busted," I say. August drives carefully back toward the city.
"Jills, what happened?" I push her hair out of her face. Neither of us are buckled in, as she's still clinging to me. She shakes her head, and I see the city lights growing around us. Back to the apartment.
"I want to go back to Maine." She sobs. I nod.
"I know, I know you do, it's okay." I rub her back. August parks in the garage and I carry Jilly into the elevator. August stands near. We share a look that means a thousand words and Jilly's crying gets a little quieter.
Finally, after what feels like a year, August opens the door to the apartment, and I walk in, Jilly still clinging to me. I walk her into the living room and set her down on one of the couches. August stands back.
"Jills, are you okay?" I kneel down in front of her and try to get her to look at me.
"I just, I didn't want to say no because Belle was going to make fun of me, then we got there and Logan took her away and they were all drinking and I tried to say no to Belle but she called me a wimp for it, and I broke down and everyone was making fun of me-"
"Hey, it's alright, it's going to be alright."
"Steph I can't look at any of them on Monday, they got me breaking down on video, I can't go back."
"Jilly, it's okay, it's alright," I push her hair out of her eyes. I glance at the kitchen. August is making tea. "It's good that you said no, you know what I would've done?'
She shakes her head.
"I probably would've given in to it. I'll be honest, you're a lot stronger than I am. I would've rolled over."
"Really?"
"I rolled over for them at every single party I've ever been to. I've done some weird shit because people asked me to."
She doesn't respond, instead, she receives the cup of tea from August and takes a quiet sip.
"I give you full and total permission to punch anyone who makes fun of you, I'll talk to the headmaster, I don't care." her lip twitches a bit.
"I should've listened to you." She mumbles. I scoff.
"Well, yes, but," I sigh. "They're your friends, sometimes it takes a while to figure it out."
"I should've been stronger."
"You're strong enough, Jilly." I stand up. "Now, go get into pajamas, we can watch a movie, it is Friday after all." She nods and disappears.
"You handled that insanely well," August says. I walk over to her, avoiding the coffee table on the way.
"Hey, I'm sorry about that, it kind of ruined that moment, uh-" I kiss her forehead.
"Shush, Steph, that was fifteen times more important than what we were doing." She slips her arms around my chest. "You're the best older brother ever, I'm convinced of it."
"Thank you." I reach under her chin and kiss her softly.
"I can go home if you want." She mumbles.
"No, no I don't want that," I respond, "tomorrow morning we're going to Belle's house to get Jilly's stuff, then I want to take both of you to do something fun, keep her head off of Logan and Belle and at the same time be dating you."
"Sounds like a plan," She nuzzles her nose against mine. I kiss it, and then let her go right as Jilly reappears. She stole one of my hoodies.
"That looks like mine," I point out, trying to get her to notice it's a Wolves hoodie, sagamore is written in big letters across the back, my number stitched into the sleeve. It's one of the hoodies that only the players have. She gives me one short look and what are you going to do about it? Nothing, because that would be heavily incriminating.
"Yeah, but you're not using it, so, I commandeered it."
"Hoodie pirate," I grumble. "Alright, I'm in jeans, it's eleven at night, I'm changing, August, do you want pajamas too, or,"
"Yeah, I could use pajamas." She sighs.
"Alright, for you, since I'm like a foot taller than you, uh," She looks at the backpack she brought.
"I brought stuff, but, I'd gladly commandeer a hoodie as well." She pokes me in the stomach.
"Oh, you don't want this one, I sweat in it," she pulls her hand back, "I was nervous."
"Makes sense." She sits down on my bed and sorts through her bag. I can see her, sitting exactly there all those hours ago, no shirt, her jeans unbuttoned and hanging low. Me next to her dressed the same and freaking out over a phone call.