chapter eleven
-Molly-

It was night four in the old place.

I stared and tried to keep my eyes away from his. His warm arms were still around me and he was sitting on the ground next to me calmly. The arm around my shoulders was still cautious. The light was escaping the real world and we would soon have to suffer and use candles alone. His head rested on my shoulder eventually and he ran one of his hands through my hair carefully and my eyes shot open.

His blue set of eyes were staring back at me concerned and held me. “What did that bastard do to you?”

I bit my lip so it wouldn’t quiver. I was going to crack, break, start crying at any given second. Instead I opted to look at the setting sun through the closed balcony doors. His hand moved and I felt it touch my cheek softly. His fingertips were slightly calloused as they brushed against my cheek. “What did he do to you?” he asked softly.

In all likelihood I had no emotion on my face as usual, except for the tears threatening to fall down my face. Why couldn’t I tell him?! Come on, the guy just kicked Will’s ass for hurting me. That was something, wasn’t it? He shifted in positions and gathered my nearly limp body against his. My forehead wound up being slightly pressed up by his neck. He drew in a deep breath and swallowed. I could feel his Adam’s apple move against my forehead. His warm arms were enwrapping me. On hand ran through my hair comfortingly.

I sighed. There was warmth all around. He pulled the quilt up over both our bodies and I relaxed. “What did he do to you?” his voice was a whisper.

Finally, I allowed a tear to slip down my face. “He slept with me, left me, tossed me to the side like I was nothing…”

“I’m sorry, Molly. I really am. This was last night?”

“After you came in. He did. He started yelling about you. How could I have been so stupid? So trusting?”

”He was jealous?”

”I suppose. That’s what Sincerity would say.”

“Jealous of … me?” He drew out each word slowly.

I flinched. “I don’t know exactly why he’s jealous of you…"

As my head remained resting on his firm chest I could hear the steady beating of his heart. Maybe it was something that just plain got to me. Listening to Will’s heart always got to me, but look what his heart did to me. It took a while for Taylor to reply, so I listened to his breathing patterns and his heart. “I don’t think he liked the fact that someone else wanted you. You should take it from me, I’m a guy and I know these things. To him, you were always something that was his that would never slip away. He figured that no one would try and take you away from him. And then I came along and he became possessive, started to pay more attention to you. He didn’t like how close we were becoming,” Taylor began.

He was right. Had Taylor and I been getting closer?

That morning it was Taylor who had begun to massage my shoulders and not Will. It was Will who came up from behind him and told him exactly where I was always tense at. And it was Taylor who stuck there; still massaging my shoulder even after Will appeared out of nowhere.

The room was pitch black as he continued. “He didn’t like the idea of protecting what he once had, he slept with you, thinking that you wouldn’t go near me afterwards. Made the assumption that you would think he was so amazing that you’d never want to leave, even if he treated you like shit. And what you did, was turn on him when he expected it the least and lost your temper. You had every right in the world to–"

“Taylor…” I interrupted, prepared to say something.

He didn’t stop. “– and I am glad you know how to stand up for yourself but I know it’s not just this. Something had to build up over time and it isn’t about Will.”

The basement. I felt my blood chill over as the memories came rushing over, alone in the basement with him. I pushed the thoughts away, became nauseas.

“You are right,” I said softly. “But…”

“You don’t want to talk about it yet,” he finished for me.

He felt me nod on his chest. I wrapped one of my arms around his waist and curled into him. He continued to stroke my hair carefully. “How bad is it?”

“Bad. Very bad. Sincerity doesn’t even know. But I constantly wonder if it happened to her too…”

”A relative?”

A single tear streamed down my cheek. “Yes.”

I thought he knew that I didn’t want to talk about it! But it wasn’t him that was pushing me. He was subtly nudging me toward the topic but not forcing me in the least bit to talk about it. He was making me come to terms with it myself.

“How old were you?”

Sobs overcame me and I began breathing heavily as I cried into his shirt. He didn’t move his body but he wiped away the tears with a warm thumb as they fell and rubbed my back softly. One hand on my lower back, rubbing softly in circles and carefully. If possible I curled into him even more as I sobbed. “Eleven.”

“God…” he muttered under his breath with anger. He stopped rubbing my back, looked at me for the longest time.

Did he pity me? Did he feel sick by even being in my presence?

“Will was the only other person to be with you?”

I nodded and looked him directly in the eyes. “Yes. The only person I’ve personally allowed is him and that one time.”

What was he going to do? I searched his face for a sign of emotion but his face was a clean slate. Was Sincerity right? Did Taylor really feel the way that she claimed him to? I’d never really noticed the way he looked at me over his shoulder, as she had put it or he supposedly catered to me. Well, she was right on the catering bit. He did whatever he thought would make me comfortable at any given chance and he had sung to me after all. I closed my eyes.

Wordlessly he wiped away the last tears and then let his thumb trail down to my jaw line. Next thing I knew his lips were centimeters away. His lips remained close to mine; his warm breath touched my lips alone. The world was spinning.

His forehead pressed against mine and I opened my eyes hesitantly to make sure that I wasn’t imagining things. I knew I wasn’t when his vibrant blue eyes were staring into mine in the dark. The moonlight was the only reason why I could see them so clearly. I felt his lips form into a smile as I began to laugh. His lips did move from mine and he started to laugh also. He laughed and rested his head by my neck.

I didn’t even know why we were laughing. And I don’t think he knew why either. It was just a complete mystery. His arm looped again around my waist comfortably. “Are you going to let him be right and never come near me again?” he inquired in a whisper.

He moved slightly and looked at me seriously.

“You mean…”

He just nodded.

He wanted to…

Ooh, um. Back at home nothing like this ever happened. I was lucky enough to get a date! Most boys found me to be too timid after a few dates and tossed me to the side. It wasn’t that I wasn’t pretty. Sincerity told me on a constant basis that I was beautiful and there was something wrong with them. I was just thin enough, had long hair and green eyes. Didn’t guys generally like that?

“I’ll be careful,” his face was back by my neck again and he whispered. “I promise. Soft, careful, but I will do whatever you want."

Was he…saying…what I think he was? My jaw dropped. As if on cue, his lips were tentatively kissing my neck carefully. He nipped softly and kissed and...

-----

I rested my head on his chest and listened to his accelerated heartbeat as we laid wrapped up in a world of sheets and quilts.

The night before had scared me. For the first bit, I enjoyed and then things had just soured. And then Will wasn't there in the morning. He had left immediately after.

On the other hand Taylor remained. "What time is it?"

He pushed the night light on his watch and held it up to his face. "Midnight."

"Exactly?"

"Mm-hmm."

His other hand rested on my bare lower back and I curled into him for warmth. I wrapped one leg around his comfortably. "Are you feeling okay?"

I sighed.

I wish he knew what I was thinking and that I didn't have to express it verbally. Well I didn't. I moved from my comfortable spot and placed my lips upon his. It began again with the making out, his hands on my back and in my hair.

The door swung open. And a light filled the room. Candlelight, that is.

We both withdrew and a very angry looking Will stood in the doorway. His nose was bruised and he appeared to be limping. "What the hell are you doing with that Hanson, girl?"

My face fell. What happened to the Will I used to know?

Silently Taylor took his boxers and slipped them on. I pulled the sheets and quilts up higher. Will laughed. "It's not like I've never seen you that way before, Moll. You don't have to be modest with me."

I looked down in pure shame.

Will had set down the candle on the nightstand and was about a foot away from me. But Taylor appeared in between us with a glare in his eyes. "How about you just leave, Hanson?"

"I'm not going anywhere. Do you expect me to, after the way you've been treating her? Did you think you could just treat her like one of your many whores? Well, she's not a whore, for starters, and she doesn't personally belong to you. You act like she's your fucking possession, but she's not. She belongs to no one but herself and I think that it's time you got your facts straight." Taylor's voice was low and dangerous.

Unconsciously a smile slipped across my lips as the man I'd only known for four days defended me as if he'd been with me forever. It had only been four days, but it seemed like forever to me. How could Will come back like that after Taylor had hit him countless times already?

He frowned at Taylor, devoid of words, but full of emotion. Somehow, he got past Taylor and yanked my upper arm hard. I struggled to hang on to the sheets to keep covered as he nearly dragged me out of my own bed. I hit the ground in a pile of sheets with his hand tightened around my arm painfully.

"Stop it!" I cried out.

"But you're mine, Molly. You'll always be mine." he said into my ear in a nasty tone.

Next thing I knew, Taylor pried his hand off of me and helped me up from the ground, trying to keep the sheets around me.

"I hate you." I said in an acidy tone to Will. "I really hate you."

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