"I just wanted to stop by and extend a personal invitation to the rodeo tomorrow!" Junior told Kris. He just pulled up in his old Mustang next to her sitting on Wildfire out in the fields of Raintree near the road.
"Of course," she said with a slight smile.
"I have to re-qualify since I missed Billings, but once it's done I should be joining the rodeo circuit for a while," he explained.
"Oh. I'm sure you'll do fine Junior. How long will you be away this time?" she asked.
"Six months," he said, watching her closely.
"That's awesome Junior. I'm sure you'll do really great," she seemed sincere but distracted.
"Are you okay Kris?" he asked.
"Yes, it's just that…" there was a slight pause, "good luck."
"Thanks," he said. He felt disappointed.
"Kris, c'mon. Get down from that horse. I feel weird talking to you from down here while you're all the way up there," he smiled.
Great, she thought, I'm trying to use the horse to stay away from you darn it. Why can't you just leave now? She had grown more and more uncomfortable around him ever since she had been with Matt. Sighing deeply, she dismounted.
He walks over and gives her a big hug.
"Nice to be on the same level as you," he said.
"Err, yeah," she muttered and gave a half smile.
"Kris?" he asked.
"Hmm?" she responded.
He grew really quiet, staring into her eyes. She wanted to look away, but she didn't.
"Why couldn't you ask me to stay? When you told me you were leaving for two years I asked you to stay. I love you Kris. Don't you love me? Don't you want to be with me?" his eyes were so luminous, filled with so much love.
Her insides twisted and the guilt came with a vengeance. She had to make him see reason without telling him the truth.
"It's too late Junior," she said.
Still, he held on to hope for them.
"No it's not. It's never too late for us. I'd stay—if you asked me to." With those words, he leaned forward and caught her lips in a mind blowing kiss. He moaned as he settled into the kiss, showing her his love and passion. His tongue swept against her lips, begging for entrance.
She snapped back to reality and pulled away quickly. He tried to pull her back into his embrace.
"Junior!" she shouts, backing away.
He stops and stares at her questioning, waiting for her to calm down. He can't understand why she is so upset.
She takes a deep breath. I guess I'm going to have to say it. Oh man, this is going to hurt.
"Gillian left this morning," the words came out a little shaky.
"Uh, what?" He's completely confused now. That has nothing to do with their conversation.
"She packed everything and moved back to Kentucky. She and Matt broke up." Her voice came out a little firmer now.
"Well, uh, that sucks but I don't know why—" He stopped talking as he realized what she said. He remembered all the strange looks he's seen her and Matt exchange. He remembers Gillian's remark about them being in bed together. He remembers Matt dropping the wrench when he was joking with him about making out with Kris.
He looked down and then back up at her. She stared him straight in the eye. She wouldn't look away, not now. "No," he said slowly. "No, Kris, No!" He was getting louder. Shock was starting to filter into his expression.
"I'm so sorry," she moaned.
Junior turned his head to look into the meadow before growling out the words, "Why did she leave Kris?" When she didn't immediately respond he looked back at her. "Tell me why!" he said angrily.
"Because…because…," she really didn't want to stutter over this. "Because Matt told her what happened between me and him…" she took a deep breath, "I slept with Matt."
He froze.
He opened his mouth to try and say something but no words were coming out. He can't breathe.
All he could feel was his heart swelling inside of him and exploding. It felt like his heart had been ripped from his chest. He wasn't usually this dramatic, but it was the only way to describe how he was feeling.
He stared at the only woman he had ever loved in absolute horror. She continued to look at him, but tears were tracing down her cheeks. The last words she said kept replaying over and over in his mind. I slept with Matt I slept with Matt I slept with Matt. It was like a horrible new hip hop beat slamming around in his head.
He finally manages to close his mouth. He finally manages to start breathing again. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his keys. He clenches them tightly in his palm.
"You were right," he said slow and whisper like—almost choking on the words. "It is too late."
With those words, he turned and walked swiftly to his car.
"Wait, Junior, wait!" she cried, running after him," let me—"
"Let you what!?" he turned to her. "Say something? What could you possibly say?"
"I'm sorry," she whispered as more tears slipped slowly down her face.
"You're sorry," he said it like a statement, almost calm-like. Anger, hot and fierce, rose up inside of him. "You're sorry?" he shouts. "What difference does sorry make? You fucked my best friend!"
"Junior," she gasped out his name.
"No! Don't you dare say my name! I would have done anything for you! I would give up everything for you! I love you so much! And you do this? How could you? How could he?" He was really flipping out now. He felt his stomach start to roll. "I need to get out of here."
"Junior," she whispered, watching him run to his car and hop in. He started the car immediately and took off with a squeal of tires and a spray of dirt.
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Images. Horrible, terrible images. His mind couldn't get rid of them. As her words pounded through his head, images were forming.
I slept with Matt I slept with Matt I slept with Matt.
He couldn't make the images go away. He kept seeing flashes of Kris and Matt together. On a bed, in the barn, against the wall, in her trailer, in the shower.
I slept with Matt I slept with Matt I slept with Matt.
Every scene had them together. Kris and Matt—naked. Kris lying down with Matt between her thighs. Matt thrusting inside of her.
I slept with Matt I slept with Matt I slept with Matt.
Seeing her face, hearing the sound of her climax in his head. He imagined the grunting noises Matt would make. He could hear her begging Matt for more.
I slept with Matt I slept with Matt I slept with Matt.
Images of her on top of Matt, riding him. He began to hear her voice; hear the words she said to Matt. You're so big, Matt. So much bigger than Junior. Or Oh, yeah Matt. You're the best. Or I love you Matt.
His tires squealed again as he pulled to the side of the road. He quickly opened his car door and vomited. He was crying hard, sobbing as the pain enveloped him. His stomach hurt. He started hyperventilating.
He knew he needed to calm down. He tried to think of something, anything, else. Nothing was working. He decided to just focus on his breathing.
In, out. In out. His breathing started to get clearer. In, out. In, out.
Images. In and out, in and out—Matt was fucking her again in his head. He was shoving in and out, in and out. He was inside of her.
Oh God! He screamed in his head. Make them go away! Please! Make the images go away!
He crawled into the backseat of his car and laid down. His stomach was still upset. He had to think of good things… good things…Dani, yeah, Dani. She's a bitch, but she's my sister.
He started thinking of her when she was young. He remembers the time by the RV when dad let her eat three chili dogs and then she spent all night barfing. He remembers her playing "executive" instead of School like all the other kids. He remembers her making him serve tea to her and her dolls because she knew he was the one that let the frog loose in the housekeepers drawers (it didn't just get there accidentally). He remembers all the times they did things together. He remembers that his sister has always been there for him; she's been like his best friend.
His best friend. He shoves all Dani thoughts away and realizes that he has something very important that he can focus on. He has something very important that he needs to do.
He climbs back into the driver's seat and turns around squealing tires in the dirt again as he speeds to Raintree.
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She had returned to the house at a gallop. She quickly put Wildfire away and ran towards the house. Matt tried to catch up with her on the way, but she raced passed him with a shouted, "I want to be alone." She kept running into the house and went straight to her room.
What was that all about, Matt wondered. He needed to talk to her really badly. He knew she was worried about so many things, but he needed to make her understand that it would be okay if they were together. He loves her. He always has. All that should matter is what they wanted.
Matt turned when he heard a car zooming down the road, dust flying, swerving like crazy. After a second he recognized the old Mustang. He didn't understand why Junior was driving crazy like that. Then he got worried because the Mustang kept coming straight at him.
He jumped a step back as Junior braked right before hitting him with the car. What the—? He gulped when Junior got out of the car. The look on his face was pure anger. Junior had never been that upset. He had known him a long time and Junior was always laid back. He never let his emotions get the better of him. What would make him lose it like this?
Matt glanced towards the house and back to the quickly approaching Junior and realized that he knew about him and Kris. He opened his mouth to say something but before he could, Junior pulled back his right arm and threw a perfect punch that landed against the side of his mouth. With a curse, he felt the skin split.
He spit out some blood and looked at Junior. "I didn't steal her from you."
Junior stared at him. Hatred clouded his vision. "We're done here."
With those final words, he turned and stalked back to his car. He got in and squealed off for the last time from Raintree, spraying dust all over Matt.
Matt looked towards the house. I guess she told him. With a sigh, he walked to the house to get some ice for his lip and then headed up to see Kris. They had a lot to talk about.