Abigail

I drop to my knees, all sense of power and control I felt before completely wiped away. I open my arms for Cora.

“Cora,” I whisper, “I’m so sorry, baby. Please come here. He’s not hurt, see?”

My flame didn’t touch my step-father, but damage had been done. For the first time in her life, Cora is afraid of me. She is frozen in place.

“I promise, Cora, I’ll never do it again,” I cry, tears streaming down my face.

She can’t be afraid of me. She’s all I have. I’m all she has.

“I’m so sorry,” I whisper.

And then I am on the ground, sobbing. My entire body shivers and aches. I whisper “I’m sorry” over and over again until I feel small arms wrap around my neck. I scoop Cora into my arms and cry into her hair while she cries into mine.

Quinn

It took little convincing to get Jamie over to my house - a simple text with a flirty smiley face. It was once again raining, and I was bitterly reminded of our last encounter. I tried telling myself it was a one-time thing. I prayed that it was a one-time thing. Jamie was easy, Jamie was simple. I needed Jamie.

I was surprised to see that Jamie had actually put a bit of effort into his appearance. His normal baggy band t-shirt was replaced with a black button down. I looked him up and down, raising my eyebrows in confusion.

Jamie shrugged, “Thought I’d clean up a bit.”

I suppressed a laugh and told him, “You look nice.”

He rolled his eyes and flopped down on my couch. He folded his arms over his chest and looked around the room as though it had been years since he was here last. I rolled my eyes.

“Listen, about last time-” I started, but he cut me off.

“Ahh, god Quinn, can we just - not talk about it,” he cringed, “I’m sorry okay? I was just really into it… really into you.”

Jamie stood up, offering me a half-smile. I smiled back and tried to blush at his compliment.

“So we’re good?” I whispered.

He nodded, “Yeah, deff.”

Ew - deff. I internally cringed at his slang.

“So…” he began, taking another step towards me. He put his small hand on my shoulder and pulled me closer. I let myself move less than an inch away.

He smelled like weed, reeked of it actually. I tried to put the thought out of my mind as he leaned down to kiss me. His lips were loose and sloppy. I put my hand on the back of his head, ran my fingers through his long, curly hair, and stood on my toes to be closer.

With one hand on my waist and his lips still on mine, he led me to the couch. Gently, he pushed me back until I was horizontal and climbed on top of me. I wrapped my legs around him, kissing harder. I heard him groan with pleasure. So quiet I barely noticed, but he didn’t stop kissing me. I smiled under the kiss - thank gosh.

Jamie broke the kiss for just a moment so he could unbutton his shirt until it was loose enough to pull over his head, revealing his thin body.

I waited for the anticipation I usually felt when things got heavy - the rugged breathing, the sweaty palms. But I felt nothing. It was like I had died inside. What the hell?

I ground my hips against him as he threaded his fingers through my hair and began kissing my neck.

Where was the excitement?

There was a pounding on the door that made both of us jump. I rolled my eyes.

“Just ignore it,” I whispered, pulling Jamie’s face back to mine.

There was a beat of silence, and then the knocking sounded again, even louder than before.

“Let me in, Quinn,” Atlas yelled from the other side. Jamie quickly backed away from me, his eyes wide.

“Just ignore him,” I said to Jamie. “Come on, let’s-”

“Come on, I just want to talk!” Atlas yelled, cutting me off.

Annoyance flashed through Jamie’s eyes when he realized who was on the other side of the door. He pushed off the couch.

“No, Jamie don’t,” I warned too late.

“Bro what the hell!?” Jamie yelled, flinging the front door open. Atlas moved inside instantly, forcing Jamie to take a step backwards. It was almost comical to compare the two, especially with Jamie being shirtless. Atlas towered over Jamie. Where Jamie’s arms were lanky and boyish, Atlas had filled out - his skin taught over his muscles.

Atlas froze, taking in the scene. I was on the couch, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand. Jamie was shirtless.

I huffed in annoyance and shouted “I told you to go aw-”

Atlas swung his arm back, and then punched Jamie square in the face. Jame collapsed to the ground, clutching his cheek. I stood up from the couch, not sure what to do.

“Dude!” Jamie shouted. He quickly got back to his feet and took a step towards Atlas. Atlas remained where he was, fists trembling.

“Get out,” Atlas growled. “Now.”

Jamie stared at Atlas clutching the left side of his face. His cheeks - well the visible cheek - flushed with anger. But Atlas stared him down. Even Jamie wasn’t dumb enough to pick a fight with him. Jamie grabbed his shirt from the floor without looking at me. He shot one more enraged look at Jamie before scooting around him and out of the house. The door slammed behind him.

“Are you kidding me?” I asked Atlas, exasperated.

Atlas turned his attention towards me. His eyes were dark. There was no humor on his face. I’d never seen him so serious.

“Why,” he asked, stalking towards me, his voice deep and quiet, “do you play with little boys when you have a man at your beck and call?”

My face was in his palms again, and although his eyes looked dangerous, his hands were gentle. His eyes bore into mine. I was lost in the stare, my lips frozen and my mind blank.

The anticipation I’d been looking for ignited inside my stomach like a flame.

But I pushed away from him, and he dropped his hands.

“Are you delusional?” I asked him, “You rejected me la-”

“I didn’t reject you,” he cut me off.

“Well you made it clear how you felt,” I spat at him, and then turned away, crossing my arms.

“You were trashed,” he growled from behind me, and I suddenly felt his warmth as he took a step closer. “You think I was going to do it like- like that?”

“What, was it too easy for you?”

“Easy!?” he reeled. “You are the most difficult human I have ever encountered in 300 years!”

In a strange way, I was flattered by the insult.

“I didn’t touch you last night,” he growled from behind me, lowering his voice again, “because you wouldn’t have remembered.”

Suddenly, he was in front of me - looking down at me again with those eyes.

“I always remember,” I whispered angrily.

“No… not like that,” he said, “I wanted you to remember the feeling. Every touch every… every caress.”

His hands were on me, one cupping the back of my neck, the other on the small of my back, pulling me towards him.

“You would take this for granted if you were drunk,” he whispered breathlessly in my ear, sending shivers down my spine. My arms were around his neck without my commanding them to do so. I couldn’t break eye contact with him, couldn’t look away from that deep blue.

His hands were in my hair, pulling my head back until my neck was exposed. He brought his lips to my ear, his breath causing chills down my entire body this time. My eyes rolled into the back of my head on their own accord.

I waited breathlessly in anticipation, waited for his lips to meet my skin - my neck, my ear, my face, anything.

“Yes or no?” he breathed in my ear.

I was slow to answer, trying to find my own lips, “what?”

“Is this what you want?” he said, his voice low.

I pressed myself closer to him in a silent response - yes. And I could feel on my lower stomach that this was definitely what he wanted.

But that wasn’t enough for him. He put a half an inch of space between us. He began to unthread his fingers from my hair.

“Atlas,” I breathed in frustration.

He paused, eyes boring into mine. He was asking me again. He wanted me to speak.

“Tell me what you want,” he pressed.

“You know,” I whispered. I couldn’t find the words for what I wanted. I didn’t know the words. This was all new in some strange way.

“Tell me.”

I thought for a moment, and then unclasped my hands from around his neck. My left one landed on his chest. I brought it lower, lower. His breath hitched as he watched it slide down his shirt. His eyes snapped back to mine when I landed on the hardness under his pants.

“Quinn,” he whispered, and then his hands were back in my hair. His lips met my neck and I melted in his grasp. He trailed kisses down my neck and shoulder, his smooth lips surrounded by rough stubbled skin leaving tingles in their wake. I bit down on my lip to stop from moaning.

Atlas led me gently to the couch without breaking contact. He pushed me down onto the cushions and then kneeled in front of me. I let him unbutton my pants, helping him pull them down and off my legs when I became frustrated with his unhurried pace.

My shaky fingers found the buttons on his pants, and I fumbled for a moment to get them off. His hands met mine and he pushed them away, back onto the couch.

“What are you-”

Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!

“Slow,” he whispered simply. I didn’t understand what he meant, but I let him take the lead - suddenly wondering if he really did have more experience with this stuff. With Jamie it was messy and quick and… almost robotic?

I pushed Jamie out of my mind as Atlas leaned forward and began kissing the inside of my thigh. I knew I should feel self conscious - I barely knew this person. Jamie and I hadn’t really ever done this. It’s not like we didn’t experiment, but I just wasn’t a fan of-

“Oh!” I gasped as Atlas’s finger slid inside of me, guided by my wetness.

My head fell backwards as pleasure coursed through me. I could feel his eyes on my face as he began bringing his finger in and out, in and out, still kissing the inside of my thighs.

I clamped my hand over my mouth to suppress my moans and arched my back towards his fingers.

“Fuck,” Atlas muttered against my thigh.

He began moving his hand faster and faster inside of me until my toes curled. An unfamiliar burst of sensation flooded through me and I let go of everything.

****

Atlas and I lay face to face, cramped on the small couch. His fingers trailed lightly up and down my bare arm, leaving goosebumps in their wake. He watched my face, a soft smile gracing his lips. The ravenous, commanding man was replaced with a gentler version.

“Are you still upset with me?” he whispered, breaking the silence that had filled the room for the past 15 minutes.

“No,” I told him softly.

“Even though I punched your friend?” he teased.

I bit my lip, “Oh yeah… I sort of forgot about that.”

“I’m glad it won’t have a lasting effect on our friendship,” he chuckled, resting his hand on my cheek. Interesting choice of the word friendship, considering what we’d just done. Well, what he’d just done to me.

“Maybe not on ours, but Jamie will never speak to me again. That was the final straw.”

“Is that really such a loss?” Atlas asked.

I smirked at him and said, “He’s a cool guy once you get to know him. And I’ve known him since I was a baby. Our um… moms were really good friends.”

Silence drifted between us again. Atlas remained quiet, thoughtful for a few moments.

“So why weren’t you talking to him before?” he asked.

I groaned, “Ugh, you remembered that?”

“Of course. The curiosity has been eating me alive.”

“I’m sure.”

“So what did you do to the poor kid?” he asked.

I scoffed, “Why do you assume it was me?”

Jamie raised an eyebrow. Of course it was me.

I sighed in frustration, not sure if I should be embarrassed by the last encounter we’d had before tonight. But Atlas had kept my secrets so far.

“Well, we hung out last week,” I admitted, looking down, “And he sort of… well we started like… doing stuff… and he um - ended it prematurely.”

Atlas looked at me in confusion. But as my words sunk in, understanding grew on his face. He burst into laughter that shook the whole couch.

“Ugh, stop - you can’t say anything to anyone,” I muttered, my cheeks turning red.

He kept laughing but said, “Of course I won’t, Quinn. I just… I mean it doesn’t surprise me if I’m being honest. But I promise not to punch him again - unless he actually deserves it. That boy has faced enough humiliation for the year.”

“Ever heard of toxic masculinity?” I asked rhetorically.

“Yes, actually. The changing ideologies over the years were quite fascinating to observe. In my day, men solved all their problems with their fists.”

“Good thing they weren’t given manipulation,” I joked.

He thought for a minute and then said, “That’s a very interesting theory. I never never actually considered that. Or perhaps that’s why we become violent - we didn’t have manipulation to defend ourselves.”

“Men are violent everywhere - it’s not just a West Side thing. I think my theory stands taller than yours.”

“Touche,” he agreed.

His phone chimed from his back pocket and he reached around to grab it. I watched him slide open the text. His expression turned annoyed and he rolled his eyes, sighing deeply.

“You need to go?” I asked, trying to hide the panic. I wasn’t sure I was ready to spend the night alone.

He shook his head, “No it’s just my mom.”

“Ah.”

“She’s having a party tomorrow - for me actually,” he told me.

“How fun,” I said flatly.

“She wants you to come,” he told me, quieter than before.

A deep frown formed on my lips.

“No thanks.”

“I thought you would say that,” he sighed.

“I’m not much of a partier,” I shrugged. He raised an eyebrow, challenging me. “Well… not that kind of party.”

“Quinn… I think the party would be good for you - for us.”

“Not a chance.”

“I figured. It was worth a shot,” he offered me a smile. He typed a response to his mother one handed and hit send.

“Sorry,” I muttered.

“Don’t be. I told you - no expectations.”

“Even now?” I asked.

He nodded.

“Good,” I said, smiling lightly, “Because I don’t love you.”

He chuckled at my dark humor, “I don’t love you, too.”

I readjusted myself and my hand grazed Atlas. I felt the same hardness beneath his pants, causing his entire body to stiffen. I smiled.

“Do you want-”

“No,” he said, catching my hand in his and holding it.

“But you-”

“Not tonight,” he told me softly, kissing my forehead.

Once again, Atlas was proving him to be nothing like Jamie, or any other guy I’d ever met. I wanted to repay him for his… services? But I wasn’t going to force anything.

“You’re a weirdo, you know that?” I muttered sleepily.

He just laughed lightly, pulling me closer to his chest.

It was I who drifted off first, comforted by the warmth of Atlas’s body and the safety of his arms. I slept dreamlessly, but the smell of him lingered in my mind. Neither of us appeared to mind the too-small couch, and we stayed smushed together, legs tangled through the night.

*****

A loud rapping on the door caused both of us to jump awake. I looked at the clock on the wall - it read 9 am. I was glad it was Saturday, or we had slept through first period.

Slowly, I pulled myself away from Atlas. He held my hand when I was fully off the couch, silently asking me to stay.

“I’ll be right back,” I whispered.

I pulled the door open, shivering at the cold air that flowed inside. I was instantly embarrassed by my oversized t-shirt and no pants ensemble.

Atlas’s mother, in her tall, blonde, pantsuited glory stood before me. I instinctively took a step back and she let herself in, scanning the living room for her son.

“Ah, good, you’re both here,” she smiled.

Atlas sat up quickly, his eyes widening. I tugged at the bottom of my shirt, willing it to cover up more of my thighs.

“Mom?” he asked incredulously.

“Good morning dearest,” she said.

“What are you doing here?”

Mrs. Ellroy turned to me, smiling even wider than before.

“Well I came to invite Quinn to our party,” she said.

“I told you she couldn’t come,” Atlas said, rising from the couch to stand next to me. When he got close enough to touch me, I took a step away from him. I didn’t want his mother getting the wrong idea about us.

“I know, but I thought I would try to convince her otherwise,” Mrs. Ellroy told her son in a bittersweet tone.

“I’m sorry Mrs. Ellroy, I’m pretty busy,” I said, not making eye contact.

“Nonsense,” Mrs. Ellroy cooed, “Surely you’ll be able to clear your schedule. Especially after my son so kindly told you what was at stake.”

She read the confusion on my face. I looked at Atlas who was shooting his mom a look as if to say shut up.

“Oh? He didn’t?” she asked, pouting a bit.

“Mom, leave Quinn out of this. We can handle it on our own.”

“Oh, like we’ve been able to handle it so far?” she asked, clearly sarcastic.

“What stakes?” I asked before an argument between them could break out.

Mrs. Ellroy turned her attention back to me.

“The East Siders are growing… frustrated at the rate things are progressing,” she told me frankly, “We need to give them something.”

I was not following her. With every word, Atlas just looked more and more annoyed. He huffed loudly.

“Quinn doesn’t need to give-”

“Rate of what?” I cut him off, daring her to explain.

“You know what,” she sneered. “The immortal want their lives back. And if it were up to them, you two would be locked in a cell until you came out hopelessly in love with one another. Unfortunately, I think that tactic would have the opposite effect. And I care for my son too much to lock him up.”

This woman enraged me. I don’t know how Atlas stood her being his mother. Her sweetness so quickly turned to bitterness and disgust.

“And the party will do what? I hate to break it to you, lady,” I growled, “But I’m not in love with your son. And he isn’t in love with me either.”

Mrs. Ellroy looked at her son. He said nothing, shooting eye daggers at her instead. Her eyes then fell on me and my bare legs. She smirked and turned her attention back to her son.

“Be that as it may, we still need to give off the appearance that we’re trying,” she said.

“Why?” I asked harshly.

Mrs. Ellroy met my eyes “B-”

“Because my mother wants to maintain her high social status. She might not be a queen in a political sense, but the loyalty towards her from our side remains the same,” Atlas explained, cutting her off.

I shot her a look of annoyance. Of course this was all about her.

“This is not about my status,” she countered angrily, “You want the East Siders to leave her alone, don’t you? Because when I come up answerless for the hundredth time, whose door do you think they’re going to come knocking on next?”

“Is that a threat?” I asked.

“Not at all - it’s a fact.”

I looked at Atlas for clarification. He only looked down at me apologetically.

“So what, I’m supposed to come to this party or the townsfolk will come knocking? Pitchforks raised and ready to lock me up?”

“No, Quinn,” Atlas said, at the same time his mother said-

“More or less.”

Atlas scoffed at his mom and said, “Don’t be so dramatic!”

“Don’t be so lax,” his mom growled, “I know these people better than you.”

“I’m not so sure of that,” Atlas retorted, “Quinn is not going to the party. She doesn’t want to, she has plans, she’s sick - whatever excuse will convince you she isn’t going.”

His mom turned to me and took a step closer.

“Five thousand dollars,” she said simply.

“What?” Atlas shouted.

“Five. Thousand. Dollars.” she repeated, slower this time.

“You’re going to bribe her now?”

“What is that too low? Fine, ten thousand.”

“Are you ki-”

“Atlas, shut up,” I snapped at him.

Atlas closed his mouth in surprise. His mother smirked and looked at me.

“Keep your damn money,” I told her, not wanting to owe this woman anything, “I’ll go to your fucking party.”

Mrs. Ellroy’s lips formed a tight smile.

“Excellent,” she whispered.

I turned away from her.

“Atlas can see you out - I have to get ready for school,” I muttered rudely.

“On a Saturday?” she asked sweetly.

I rolled my eyes, not caring about being caught in a lie.

“I’ll see you later,” I said, turning away.

“Wait, Quinn,” she said, her voice going sweet again, “There’s just one more thing.”

I raised my eyebrows, frozen in place.

“What?”

“Well… please don’t take this the wrong way but… I wasn’t exactly sure what your clothing situation would be. I bought a dress for you to wear. It’s out in the car, I’ll just run and grab it.”

I watched Mrs. Ellroy leave the house quickly and then turned to Atlas for clarification.

“Dress?”

He shrugged his shoulders, still clearly angry at his mother. She returned a minute later, a long garment bag in her hands. She dumped it in Atlas’s arms.

“The car will pick you up at 7,” she said, more cheerful than before, “Ta-ta!”

And then we were alone.