Two #2
I raise my head to glare at him. “I don’t have anywhere else to go.
If I had a father in my life and that father lived in Corvallis, I would have another option, I suppose.
But he’s not here. He’s busy being a dad to his son somewhere else, and there’s no room in his life for me.
My income from the Marsy is barely enough to pay rent on a run-down one-bedroom on the outskirts of town, not to mention the fact that I have no idea how I’ll pay for school expenses now.
So yeah, I don’t intend to do anything. I’m just going to sit here and do absolutely nothing.
” I put my chin back on my knees again, exhausted by the whole situation.
Thomas lets me vent without saying anything, and after finishing his cigarette in total silence, he stands up, holds out his hand, and tells me, “C’mon, I’ll take you somewhere.”
I give him a bewildered look. “Now?”
He nods. “Right now. Night’s still young, and it doesn’t make any sense to stay here.”
I peer uncertainly at his extended hand, and for a moment, I feel a sense of déjà vu.
I remember that evening almost two months ago when he invited me to the frat house with him.
I had only known him for a week, yet it had taken me less than five seconds to accept.
And clearly nothing has changed between then and now, because, despite everything, I would still follow him wherever he wanted to lead me.
“Okay,” I say with a faint smile. “Where are you taking me?”
He smiles in that familiar arrogant way that makes him so irresistible. “You’ll find out.”
Then he takes me by the hand, grabs my bag from off the ground, and walks me to his motorcycle.
***
We hurtle down the dark, wet streets of Corvallis, my arms wrapped around Thomas’s waist, before arriving on campus.
Thomas turns off the engine, kicks out the stand, and, with one foot on the ground, peers around as though looking for someone.
Who does he think he’s going to find on campus at this time, other than a security guard?
I slacken my arms around his middle. After we take off our helmets, he asks me to grab his phone out of the pocket of the leather jacket I’m still wearing.
I hand it to him and watch him type out a text.
We get off the motorcycle, and Thomas puts the phone back in his jeans pocket.
Before I can ask him what we’re doing here, I see he’s rolled up the sleeve of his sweatshirt far enough to expose his wrist. He unties the black bandanna he always wears there and hands it to me. “Put it on.”
I stare at him, dumbfounded. “I’m sorry, what’s this for?”
“Blindfold,” he answers decisively, smirking at me.
I cock an eyebrow. “What the heck are you up to, Collins?”
He gives me an amused grin before a whistle draws our attention, making us turn around. A tall blond boy with a lean athletic frame emerges from the men’s dorm. “I’ve gotta get something; then you’ll see,” Thomas explains, before heading for the other guy.
At first, I don’t recognize him, but after getting a closer look at him, I think he’s the same guy I’ve seen with Thomas in the cafeteria a few times.
They give each other shoulder bumps, and I can see them laughing together.
Eventually, his friend looks over at me and gives me a very telling smile.
I can practically hear the “ Niiiice ” from here.
I cross my arms over my chest and watch as the stranger hands Thomas a key.
They exchange a few more jokes before saying goodbye.
I can’t restrain my curiosity when he gets back to me.
“What was that?” I ask cautiously, unrolling the bandanna.
“He plays on the hockey team.”
“And why did he give you that key?”
Thomas sighs theatrically as he loops the two helmets over his right forearm and grabs the key out of bike’s ignition. “You ask too many questions, Ness. Too many questions. Just tie that bandanna over your eyes and trust me.”
I snort loudly, unable to hold back a grin. “Hey, you’re not taking me to some freaky playroom now, are you? Because, if that is the case, I should let you know that I don’t do S and M, and I am not letting you smack me with a riding crop,” I say as I blindfold myself.
He bursts into laughter so spontaneously that it makes my chest vibrate, and I forget all about the crap that happened last night.
He wraps his arms around my waist and brings his mouth to my ear.
His warm breath tickles my skin. “Fuck, guess I’ll have to stick to the Italian kiss.
” I feel him laugh into my neck and then immediately give it a nip.
“The fact that I have no idea what this ‘Italian kiss’ is makes me kind of a loser, huh?”
“But you do know what it is. You know it very well.” I can feel him grinning again.
“Oh…” I fall silent, embarrassment heating my cheeks.
“But don’t worry, I don’t want to do any of that right now.”
“So what do you want to do, Thomas?” I ask him in a playful singsong tone.
I feel his lips touch mine and his warm, raspy voicing whispering to me, “I just want to make you happy.” While my heart is caught up in a whirlwind of emotions, he puts his hands on my shoulders and pushes me forward, ready to guide me.
***
“Hold on, be quiet,” he says. “Now, let’s go right. No, the other right. Be careful, you’re going to hit the wall.”
“Hey, you’re the one guiding me; you should be the one making sure I don’t hit the wall,” I retort, trying to survive his dismal orienteering skills.
“You don’t listen to my directions.”
“You don’t know how to give directions,” I say with conviction. “Need I remind you that, just a minute ago, you guided me into a glass door that you ‘forgot’ to warn me about, despite it being right in front of me?”
“I told you it was there; you’re the one with the reflexes of a sloth.”
“You told me when it was an inch away from my nose! And don’t snort,” I scold him jokingly, lightly elbowing his stomach. “I can hear you.”
A feel a puff of air against my neck, which tells me he is smiling again.
“Okay, now lift your right foot; there’s a step.”
I do as he instructs, and we walk a few more feet until he stops me. “Are we here?” I ask, unable to stifle my excitement.
He doesn’t answer.
He lifts his hand from my shoulder, and the next moment, I hear the sound of a door opening. A burst of cold air hits me.
Why is it so cold all of a sudden?
Thomas makes me advance until he grabs my hands and puts them on what feels like a balustrade.
“Okay, I think we’re ready now?” The little undertone of sweetness in his voice as he asks me makes me melt. That’s new.
“Surprise me,” I urge him.
He pauses for just a moment before taking off my bandanna.
In front of me is an immense ice skating rink, completely deserted and illuminated only by one overhead light.
I am enchanted. It’s beautiful, and instantly, childhood memories bubble to the surface, brief glimpses of perfect moments shared with the one man I thought would never abandon me.
My father’s laughter echoes in my head. His large calloused hands holding mine, supporting me so I don’t fall.
His encouraging words: “Come on now, baby. I’m going to let go now so you can do it by yourself.
You can do it. I know you can.” His fingers slipping out of mine, his proud smile bolstering me…
I feel my eyes well up as I stare in wonder at the rink before me.
“You remembered?” My voice trembles with feeling. The night Thomas slept over at my house, I told him about how my father used to take me skating and how much I missed it.
Thomas steps up beside me and brushes my hair away from my face, tucking it tenderly behind my ear. With his thumb, he wipes away a tear I haven’t even realized I shed.
“I can’t give you a solution to your problems, but I can give you a little distraction that might help you forget about that reality for a while. I thought that this”—he looks out at the ice rink in front of us—“might be just the thing.”
I lean into him and give him a tight hug, as strong as the gratitude I feel. Thomas seems surprised, as though he wasn’t expecting this, but then he reciprocates, gathering me into his arms, and I take refuge there.
“You wanna get out there?” he asks, his voice muffled by my hair as he strokes the back of my neck.
I pull away and look at him uncertainly. “Can I?”
He looks around, shrugging. “Who’s gonna tell you no?”
“The security guard, for example. We aren’t supposed to be here,” I point out, lowering my voice as though someone might hear us at any moment.
“The guard’s probably sleeping at this time of night. We’re alone here. So if you wanna skate, you can skate.”
I bite my lip and rock back and forth on my feet, staring uncertainly out at the ice rink. “I want to do it.”
This seems to satisfy him.
“Come on, let’s go get your skates,” he says, pointing to the skate rental behind him. “First, though, promise me you won’t improvise a hoop jump or whatever the fuck it is; I don’t want that on my conscience,” he teases me, recalling the “minor” skating injury I told him about.
“Loop jump,” I correct him, exploding into laughter. Then, putting on my most angelic face, I add, “I’ll be good, I promise.”
Before I can walk past him, Thomas grabs my hips and pulls me back into him. “You’re good, right? I mean, other than your mother, you’re…are you okay?” he asks, suddenly serious and even worried. I feel his arms around my torso, and his body heat warms me instantly.
“I think so,” I answer automatically. “I mean, I’m still pretty shaken up, and I have a really bad headache but…I guess I’m okay.” His cryptic gaze is fixed on me, as though my answer doesn’t have him entirely convinced.
“Hey…” I touch his face with all the sweetness I can muster, ready to ask him what is going on in his head, but he doesn’t let me.