Page 75 of Bullied By The Bad Boy

Acutely aware of our position, his hand on my lower back, the other on my knee, I try to stand, but his arm locks around my waist. Panic tightens my body, and I whisper, “Ben.” But the Ben staring at me now is the one from the weekend who was nice to me. The one who makes sitting on his legs feel okay. I try again, placing both hands on his chest to push him away. “Benjamin. Benny.”

His hand slides behind my neck to bring my head down. With our mouths inches away, he pins me with a gaze as if to seek consent. I try to remember his unnecessary harsh words from this morning, his cold attitude toward me, the punch, and the kiss with Olivia after I baked his cake.

We are not friends.

He does not care about me.

“Ben,” I whisper.

His eyes lift to mine. “Please,” he breathes out.

I don’t want to be anyone’s second option, but that’s all it takes for my head to jerk in a nod.

Ben captures my lips. For a brief moment, I forget how to respond. His fingers tangle in my hair, he massages my scalp, and I snap out of my confusion. Our lips move in synchrony. He is gentle, letting me lead the pace. I kiss him back like I have always seen in the movies. At one point, he pulls my legs on each side of him, so I am straddling him, and then he takes full charge of the kiss.

His chest vibrates with a growl when I nip his upper lip, and he kisses me harder. I tense as his hand slips inside my shirt. His fingers brush my boobs and circle one nipple, and a moan escapes me.

Tingles shoot to my toes and erupt all over my skin. We break one second for air. I grind against Ben, he moans my name, and I repeat it. A new but welcome sensation spreads through my chest. Without breaking our kiss, Ben cups my small breasts. I whimper, horny, nervous, and excited to see where this leads. The little voice of reasoning in my head manages to take over. I love this, but we are moving too fast. I don’t want to remember my first time in a place like this.

“Ben,” I say, pulling his hands out. He doesn’t protest, and I silently thank him for complying. If he so much as insists, I will give in. Our foreheads touch, he grins, and my heart flips. His hand dips into his pocket to retrieve the bracelet I rejected, and he tugs it over my wrist. “Thanks.”

“No, Juliet. Thank you.”

When his hands move to the hem of my shirt, I panic and blurt out, “I’m a virgin.”

Ten seconds pass without a reply. I want to chew the insides of my lips, but Ben doesn’t like it, so I resort to clenching my fists. His eyes are clouded as he inspects my face, possibly regretting the kiss. He has been with a lot of girls. Olivia must be a sex expert, not a nun like me who stops the hottest guy from kissing her or doing more. Pushing my hair behind my ears, he pecks my lips. I am less worried when our gazes lock. Smiling, he takes my hands and laces our fingers.

“Me too,” he replies. I heard wrong, right? Ben cannot be a freaking virgin. His face gives nothing away. “You confuse me, Juliet,” he says so low I strain my ears to pick out his words.

I press my lips against Ben’s in an innocent kiss. “You confuse me too, Romeo.”

Forty-Three

Unknown:Hey, sorry it took so long to text you. I have been so busy with AJ, who misplaced the phone, so I didn’t have time to read or reply your letters. I am not ignoring you, I swear. Just busy :( This week has been so hectic.

AJ? I know AJ, and only one person says AJ. I snatch the Sony Ericsson from the nightstand and begin typing. Since I gave Lett the number on the phone, I keep it close to me, so I don’t miss his texts.

Me: Hey stranger. You share a phone with AJ? What about now? Have you read them?

I sit at the edge of the bed, back hunched with my teeth between my lips. My feet drum into the floor as seconds roll by without his reply. The answer is easy. Yes or no. I toss the phone on my pillow and collapse on the bed. I spell vitiligo twice, then peek at my screen. No reply. I cup my face, glaring at the ceiling as I scream. I am dying to talk to someone about Ben. About our kiss.

What should I do? I need advice.

Maria is a no-no for now. She sure as hell wouldn’t want to hear about boys after getting her heart broken by one of them. Why do boys have to be so stupid and complicated sometimes? Mom is out of it. I can’t tell her about our second kiss, or she will force me to bring Ben home.

He kissed me again.

We almost went first base, and he admitted to having feelings for me. Does being confused count as having feelings for someone? Was that a confession? I play with the beads of my bracelet. I don’t have answers. That’s the thing when Ben is involved. I become a Jon Snow, a lost cause.

My phone pings. I sit up so fast that a wave of dizziness slams into me. It took Lett ten minutes to reply, and only to tell me he didn’t read them. I sent those letters earlier this week. What’s his problem? I move to the window and close the curtains to chase the light filtering through the cracks. Bouncing on my toes, I do everything and nothing to delay my reply to him. If he’s not so eager to text me, I shouldn’t be. My phone vibrates. By the time I return to it, only a minute has passed.

Unknown: I’m sorry.

Apologies can wait. What I need to say can’t. At this point, I will even talk to Daniel.

Me:No biggie, I’ll save you the stress. I kissed him. I got my first kiss after the party.

The three dots appear to show he’s typing. I fall back on the bed with the Sony tight in my grip. I love typing on it. The phone has a real keyboard. A minute passes without his reply. I text again.

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