Page 44 of Loved By The Bad Boy

“About what?”

“Saturday.”

“We don’t have to talk about anything on Saturday,” I say, stepping out of his embrace. “Really.”

“Are you sure?” I offer him a weak shrug. The fact that it shakes him up so much is more reason for me to find out. He cups my face, his thumb caressing my cheek. “Always and forever, right?”

The smile trying to break out on my lips fades when I note his nervousness. I am nervous too.

“Benny.”

“You didn’t answer.”

“Yes. Always and forever. I’ll always love you.”

The next hug happens so fast. I can’t breathe, but I let my boyfriend hold me tight in silent comfort. “Good. Sometimes, I feel broken. It used to feel like I was alone. That she broke me.”

Who is she? Tessa? I swear I’ll kill her.

Ignoring his protest, I pull away from the hug. I want to hear his story, but I am worried about him and our relationship. Ben looks everywhere but at me. I cup his face, forcing him to look at me.

“Hey. You’re not broken, Benny. Even if you are, I will complete you,” I tell him. His eyes close, and my heart twists painfully. I place his hand over my stomach. My vitiligo was and still is my biggest insecurity sometimes, the biggest source of my doubts, yet I am standing here in a crop top because his words about being different never left me. Though it’s nothing compared to his pain, it shows I am not perfect either, and I don’t want to be. “I am broken too. I think we all are. But it’s okay. I’ll just complete you.”

Ben laughs. “What if you lose pieces of yourself trying to complete me?” he says with a pout.

His tone is lighter, but his grip on my wrist tightens. “I don’t know, Benny. Then it will be your turn to complete me, I guess.” He grins. “You’re not alone, okay? You have me, and I have you.”

“We have each other,” he murmurs.

“Correct.”

Someone clears their throat behind us. I cling to Ben because I know he will have my back in all storms. Calum’s eyes narrow slightly, and out of respect for our friendship, I step away from Ben, keeping enough distance to let him know I am with him. Shouldn’t Calum be in class? Wait, that question also applies to me.

“I wanted to apologize for earlier.” Not once does he glance at Ben. Rude much? I will wait for him to come around, but if he puts me in the position to pick, I will pick Ben. “Sorry about that.”

Too defeated to speak, I offer him a small nod. Silence follows his departure. Ben pulls me in for a side hug. We need to get to class, but knowing Calum will also be there kills the desire to go in.

“You know, if anyone should apologize to you, it’s me. It’s my fault.” That’s not true, and I tell him that. Calum brought this on himself. We start down the hallway. “It feels like it, Gracie.”

“It’s not.”

We continue to our class in silence. Ben opens the door and waits for me to enter first. Our class is big, but it seems to shrink in size as everyone gawks at us. Calum doesn’t look up from his notepad, and I almost run out. The one good thing is that the teacher isn’t here. I nudge Ben with my elbow, and he smiles at me with a strange gleam in his eyes. What is he thinking? Settling into my seat, I tear a sheet from my note, scribble something on it, and pass it to him.

“Little Miss I hate Monday now likes Mondays because Benny is there to make it better,” Ben reads aloud. It’s a slight variation of the first note he sent me when we hadn’t defined our relationship. His head falls back with laughter, and warmth floods my chest. We will be okay.

Calm falls over the class as soon as Mrs. Miller walks in with a frown. She’s late but doesn’t apologize. If her frown is any indication, she is about to pop a quiz. Sadist. I am ready for one, but I don’t know about Ben. He didn’t resume early. She heads straight to the front and writes the word: Project on the board, underlining the word so much I am certain it would leave a dent.

Dumping a pile of notes on the table, she picks out one and waves it at the class. Ben stretches his hand to me, and I take it without looking at him. “For this project, you will do it in pairs.”

I picture everyone rolling their eyes. She hasn’t told us about the project, and she’s talking about partners. Calum lifts his head briefly and resumes writing on his notepad. He’s probably writing a heartbreak song. A pang of guilt flickers through me, and Ben gives my hand a small squeeze.

“Raise your hand once you hear your name.” I sit up as she begins. Grumbles and murmurs fill the air as she pairs people with partners they hate. I better be paired with Ben. “Theresa Mower.” My spine goes rigid. Ben has to nudge me before I remember to raise my hand. “Calum Dissick.”

This time, Calum raises his head, and our eyes lock. His usually expressive face is blank. My inside knots with guilt, but I’m unable to look away. I don’t think our friendship will recover.

The class rolls on. Mrs. Miller ends her lectures fifteen minutes earlier so we can meet up with our partners to discuss our projects. Ben stares mournfully at me as Mrs. Miller claps to get everyone’s attention. He doesn’t want to leave because it means some alone time with Calum.

“We don’t have all day,” Mrs. Miller chants from the front.

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