Mercedes sat in her bedroom typing away on her laptop. Once in awhile, she would stop to eat a chocolate chip cookie from the plate on the table beside her. She had a ten paged English paper due the next day and she had only managed to finish half of it. It wasn't as if Mercedes didn't enjoy school, because she did, she just found it very difficult to sit down and do homework, when she could be catching up with her favourite shows, or even hanging out with Quinn or Jay. She let out an annoyed sigh as she tried to figure out why she felt that Danielle Steel was by far the most revolutionary author of the twentieth century. Dragging her hand through her long locks, she tried to determine an appropriate way of saying Her stories make you crave a rich older man and give you feelings in your no no place. But the no no place really should have been called the yes yes place, since that is what most women yell out during good sex. She rolled her eyes at her own stupidity, shook her head, placed her laptop on her purple bed sheets, and closed her eyes. It was going to be an extremely long night. As she laid on her bed, Mercedes could hear the branches creaking outside her window and a slight smirk pulled at her lips at the familiar light thud on her carpeted floor.
"Hey Jay." She said without even bothering to look over at her best friend. After all the years they had known each other, she didn't even need to look at him to know that his hair was tousled, his pants were ripped, and he probably had a cigarette behind his ear depending on which day it was. When she finally looked over at him and realised she had been right about everything, she smiled. He paced back and forth, while pulling at his hair and her smile faltered. She realised that his eyes were red and his hands were clenched. Something was extremely wrong and she needed to fix it fast. "Jay?..." His name trailed off of her lips as an open question. She swung her legs over the side of the bed and the taller man walked towards her, fell to his knees, and placed his head in her lap. Her hands immediately raked through the soft silky curls piled high on his head and she could see his body shake with tears.
"They won't throw a party for Carrie." He wrapped his arms around her calves and held her tightly. "They won't listen to me...they hate us." He whispered so quietly, Mercedes was almost unable to hear him. "I just want her to feel loved...but they ignore it, they ignore her Mercedes!" His voice rose and Mercedes quietly shushed him. She always knew that he was really upset when he used her full name. But her parent's would kill her if they knew Jay was there that late at night, so she tried her best to defuse the situation.
"Jay, you have to b-be quiet." She lifted his head and looked into his wet blue eyes. Her thumb gently brushed away the stray tears that fell to his cheeks. "We can throw a p-party for Carrie here...how ab-bout that?" He stared into her eyes for a few moments before she watched them crinkle up at the corners. "Yea, we can have b-balloons and cake! I think she'd like that."
"That's a good plan." He quickly stood up and hugged her. She closed her eyes as she took in the familiar smell of his cologne and shampoo. "She's going to love it M!" He exclaimed in hushed tones. His eyes travelled to her laptop and he laughed. "You're not done the assignment yet?" Mercedes sighed and then rolled her eyes. Jay wasn't one to dwell on bad feelings or pain, so she wasn't surprised when he suddenly changed the subject.
"Nope." She scooted over on the bed and placed the laptop back on her lap. Jay immediately sat beside her and stared at it. Mercedes could almost hear the gears turning in his head.
"I finished mine the day he gave it to us." He smiled at her with a smug expression. Luckily for Jay, it had been one of the rare occasions where he had actually endured a class and it had paid off because now he was done. "And I didn't even have to go to school to finish it." He laughed and rubbed his eyes. He could feel a headache coming on. This whole Carrie thing had bugged him immensely, it had been to the point where he hadn't gone out for a few days to have sex and he was starting to crave the feel of a woman's flesh against his own. Mercedes watched as the familiar expression crossed Jay's face. It was a mixture of excitement and lust. It was the look he had before he went on the prowl.
Ever since his grandfather died, Jay had been replacing his hurt with sex. His grandfather had been the most caring and loving father figure that Jay had ever known and Mercedes had ever met. Whenever he saw her, he had made it his mission to make her feel warm and welcomed. Unlike the other Costellas, he had shown Jay what it was like to have family and be loved. Now Jay was determined to teach his little sister the very same thing. Noticing that she was staring at him, he slowly turned his head and his blue eyes raked over her face.
"Jay...d-don't go." Mercedes pleaded quietly. He smiled at the fact that his best friend knew exactly what he was going to go and do.
"I need to M...I need to feel good right now." He got up from the bed and laughed. "Send me your paper. I can finish it for you when I get back home." He knew that she hated his cockiness about being smart, but the truth of the matter was, Jay was highly intelligent. Even if he never acted like it, he knew the school material like the back of his hand. It was how he stayed out of trouble. Jay pinched her cheeks and grinned. "Seeya M." He turned to walk away when she blurted out what was on her mind.
"Why d-don't you ever sleep with me?" He turned to see her staring at the wall instead of him. He felt as if someone had just punched him in the stomach. Jay sat back down on the bed and quietly stared at her. All of his life he had wondered why neither of them had wanted to date each other, but he just figured that their lives were just too different. He tried looking at her to see if he could see her sexually and he surprised himself to see that he could. If he wasn't careful, especially in the state he was in, something could go wrong. Really, really wrong.
Jay took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He tried not to let the panic he felt to be conveyed through his voice. "M...you're special." He took her small hand in his larger ones. "You mean a lot to me...that's why I don't want to sleep with you." He shook his head and the brown curls bounced. "These other women, mean nothing to me...I never call them back." Mercedes rolled her eyes and glared at him. "I'm serious, you and Carrie mean everything to me, you're all I have M...I don't want to talk about this okay?"
Mercedes quickly removed her hand from his own and glared at him. "You just think I'm ugly or something. I thought that you could b-be honest with me since we've known each other forever...b-but I guess not." She pushed past him and got off the bed. "I think you should go now, you're tree is waiting." She walked over to her computer chair and sat down facing away from him. As much as she didn't want him touching her right now, the feeling of his arms wrapped around her upper chest and his head resting on her shoulder was comforting. "Is it b-because of my stutter?" She asked quietly as she hung her head. "B-because I'm getting b-better." A trail of hot tears began to fall down her face. If the person she had known all of her life didn't even want her, then who the hell ever would? She bit down on her lip and tried to control her body from shaking from the intensity of her sobs. All she wanted was to find someone who could look past something that she thought made her more unique. Jay spun her around and tilted her head up.
"You know that's not why" Anger crept into his voice. "Never ever say that again Mercedes." He shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Sex...sex changes everything and I don't want anything to change between us ever. I want it to always just be you, me, and Carrie...we don't need anybody else. We just need each other...and if we have sex..." He sighed. "The magic will be ruined and we won't be the same MJ. Do you get it?" Mercedes was tired of arguing with someone who didn't want to be with her so she simply nodded her head. Although he didn't want anything to change, his rejection of her advances had hurt her enough to feel awkward and uncomfortable. Jay smiled and squeezed her shoulder. "That's my M." He grinned. "I have to go and get Care Bear something to eat." Mercedes let out a deep breath and wiped her eyes.
"Wait, can you just d-do me one favour?" She looked up at him and stared into his eyes. Jay nervously shifted where he stood and ran his hand through his curls. "Can you...can you come with me to Quinn's p-party this weekend?" She bit her lip and played with the cuticle on her thumb. "It's my first p-party and I d-don't want to go alone." Jay ran a hand down his face and sighed. He hated parties and he hated big crowds, he wasn't exactly claustrophobic, he just didn't like people. "I know they're not your thing, b-but if you came, I'd feel b-better." He closed his eyes for a moment and thought about his options. He could not go and make things worse between them now that they had had this talk about sex, or he could go and try to fix this in the best way that he could.
"I hate parties." He stated rather bluntly. "But for you...I'll be there." He gave her a small smile and pulled her off her seat and into a tight hug. "You're my life M." He said quietly against her hair. "Just remember that." He pulled away from her and headed to the window. He placed one foot on the windowsill and looked back at her before heading into the tree. "You'll always be my life." With that he slid out into the dark night and left Mercedes sitting there by herself. Her eyes wandered over to her laptop. For some reason, writing about an author of love stories no longer appealed to her. She decided to change everything up and write about Stephen King instead.
Mercedes stood in Quinn's living room and helped her get everything set up for the party. She was quietly placing cups on the table and laying out snacks when Quinn walked up behind her and gave her a side hug. "Cedes, I don't know what I would've done without you." She kissed the girl on the cheek and Mercedes smiled. "I'm so nervous I'm sweatin like a sinner in church...who we called Miss Sarah back in Kentucky." She shook her head. "I swear that woman had more crabs than a seafood restaurant." Mercedes burst out laughing.
"Quinn, you are too much." She went back to setting up the food and the alcohol. "Where are your folks anyways?" Mercedes was terrified that they would get into trouble for getting the booze. Technically her brother had connections and had managed to get them a ton as long as he was allowed to drink as much as he wanted. She still hadn't met this interesting man named Sam and wondered if she ever would at this rate. Quinn shoved some chips in her mouth before answering.
"I guess I should stop eating like this now that I'm going to be a cheerleader..." She drifted off in thought. "Oh they went back to Kentucky for the weekend to deal with some house things." She rolled her eyes. "So now Sam's in charge and he keeps saying stuff like...Quinny take out the garbage, Quinny brush my teeth, Quinny cut my toenails." Mercedes laughed and Quinn smiled. Even though Quinn had joined the dark side and had become a cheerleader, she still stayed by Mercedes side. At first she had been scared that she had not only blown it with Jay, but that now she would be without her new friend. "Your folks are out of town for the weekend too right?" Mercedes nodded and poured herself a cup of punch, she wasn't in the mood to drink and she wasn't very good with holding her liquor.
"Yea, they went to go visit my dad's p-parents with my uncle Kev." She took a sip of the sweet fruit punch and nervously tapped her foot. Quinn laughed.
"I love your uncle Kev, he's a hoot and a half." She tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear and stared at Mercedes. "What's wrong?"
The shorter girl stopped tapping her foot and sighed. "Oh...nothing. It's just that Jay said he'd b-be here by now." Quinn put her arm over Mercedes shoulder. She didn't particularly like Jay, simply because he seemed abnormally possessive over Mercedes and whenever she saw him, she could see the anger and jealousy brewing in his eyes. But when Mercedes asked if he could come, she couldn't deny her good friend her request. But a deep part inside of her hoped he wouldn't show up so that Mercedes could actually spread out and have a good time. Quinn thought she was too amazing of a girl to not have more than two friends.
"Well, I'm sure he'll be here at some point. Let's go look through the music again." Quinn moved her arm from her friend's shoulder and walked over to her laptop. She was going to do her best to distract Mercedes from thinking about the curly haired blue eyed man. There was a knock on the door and a look of panic passed between the two friends. "Can we just pretend that we're not here and not do this anymore?" She whispered. Mercedes shook her head, puffed out her chest, and walked over to the door to let fifteen or so people come in. They all walked past her without saying anything and headed straight over to Quinn. Feeling rejected and seeing that Quinn was already starting the party and having a good time, Mercedes slipped out of the house and headed to the backyard. She heard the doorbell ring again and saw about twenty more people from school come in and greet Quinn who was laughing and having an amazing time. Mercedes leaned against a tree and heard rustling above her. At first she began to panic and then she laughed as she looked up to see Jay.
"What are you d-doing?" The boy smiled at her and then jumped down beside her.
"I told you I was coming," He smirked. "Never said I'd come inside." Mercedes laughed and pulled him into her arms and gave him a tight hug. "You okay M?...why are you out here anyways?" Mercedes sighed against his chest and shook her head.
"Quinn's too b-busy to talk with me, so I just came outside to get some fresh air." Jay hugged her back just as tightly.
"Okay, let's go then." He said quickly. Mercedes pulled back from his hold and shook her head. Jay gave her a look of annoyance. "What? I knew she'd bail on you M, just look at her." Mercedes turned around and stared at the blonde socialite who was dancing with a football player in the corner of the room. She didn't want to think of Quinn like that. It was her party and she was allowed to have as much fun as she wanted to. "She's not like us, she doesn't understand what it's like to be different." He glared into the house and tugged at her hand. "Let's go." Mercedes yanked her arm away and shook her head.
"I'm not leaving her Jay. And you p-promised to stay and p-party with me!" She yelled. Mercedes wanted a life, she wanted more friends than Jay and she wasn't going to abandon the only other one she had because her best friend hated people. "We need to get out more and make friends Jay." He rolled his eyes and started to walk away.
"Jay!" she yelled and ran after him. When she caught up to him she grabbed him by the arm. "Stop, p-please d-don't go."
"Mercedes, let go of me!" He yelled loudly at her. She had never heard him yell at her like that before, so she immediately let go. Jay's eyes widened and he rubbed his head. "M...I'm sorry. I just..." Before he could even finish his sentence, Mercedes had shaken her head and turned to walk away. She didn't need this right now. Her best friend of how many years had just let her down twice and on top of that yelled at her. At this point she'd rather just be ignored and invisible than yelled at by people she loved.
She paused for a moment to look at him. "Just go." With that she turned back around and slipped back inside the house. Jay stood outside and bit his lip. He never yelled at Mercedes, but he just couldn't believe she was choosing that Barbie over him. There was never a time where he ever felt more threatened that he'd lose Mercedes from his life. Having already lost his grandfather, he didn't plan on losing anyone else without a fight. He pulled a cigarette out from behind his ear and lit it up before quickly walking away to see if he could find someone to distract him from his hurt.
Mercedes walked over to the snack table and grabbed three cans of beer before walking over to a corner of the room. She sat down on the floor and opened one. Someone suddenly tapped her shoulder and she looked up to see Quinn. "Cedes, I've been looking all over for you hun, are you okay?" Mercedes mustered up enough energy to smile.
"Yea, just going to have a little drink." Quinn's eyes roamed down at the three cans and she winked at her.
"Alright just be careful." She smiled and disappeared back into the crowd. Mercedes didn't live very far from the Evans, so after she planned to get herself extremely wasted she was going to take a cab home. After four beers and a lot of chips, a very giggly Mercedes stood up slowly and walked over to the kitchen. Unfortunately for her, she had only managed to make herself tipsy but not drunk. Sighing, she grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and turned around to walk right into someone.
"Gah, get outta ma way." She hiccupped and tried to move past the stranger. But whoever they were stood firmly in front of her. She looked up and stared into very beautiful green eyes. Her own eyes travelled down to his full pink lips and landed on his broad chest. The taller man smirked at her.
"Well aren't you Miss polite!" He laughed and walked around her to grab a bottle of beer. He put two cans in the recycling and smiled. "This is my fifth one tonight bebe." He smiled as he poured the cold bitter liquid down his throat. Mercedes' jaw dropped as she realised she had finally encountered sex in human form. She continued to open her mouth and close it like a fish as she stared. He raised one eyebrow as he stared back at her and Mercedes realised she was going to have sex with this man right now on the floor. "Are you goin into shock or something, are ya sick darlin'?" She listened to his thick country accent and for the life of her she couldn't remember why it sounded so familiar. It wasn't that she was drunk out of her mind, it was the shock that he was talking to her that was throwing her off.
"I...what...you...d-damn." She spat out and then cursed herself for stuttering. She bit her lip and quickly walked out of the kitchen. What was the point of staying in close proximity with someone who'd never talk to her in real life outside from the booze? She walked over to the refreshment table and drowned her sorrows with punch mixed with vodka. When her buzz returned, she turned around to stare at the same broad chest and her eyes slowly scaled up.
"Pretty lady, why'd ya run so fast?" Mercedes shook her head and burped.
"I d-dunno." She laughed at herself. A part of her hoped that he would think the stutter was the result of her drinking. "Why you walk so slow?" She winked at the man and moved back towards her corner with him following behind her.
"What's ya name pretty young thang?" Mercedes giggled and tried to think about a name that would sound more interesting.
"Lois...Lane." She whispered. "I'm undercover, shh." She put her finger to her lips and laughed her head off. The green eyed man smiled at her with amusement in his eyes.
"Oh really then, well..." he stuck out his hand for her to shake it. "I'm Steve Rogers. I'm a captain." Mercedes eyed the man before she squealed in delight. She wasn't sure why she was acting so idiotic, but she knew it worked for other girls, so it might as well work for her.
"Wow, that's p-pretty awesome." She smiled. "What are you a captain of?" The green eyed man laughed before answering her.
"Um...America." He thought she knew he was fooling around. He didn't realise that the girl in front of him had no idea who the Avengers were, or had never picked up a comic book in her life.
"Oh my God, you're like...the p-president...b-but white." She stated bluntly and yawned. She was tired, booze always seemed to make her that way. "Gotta go Steve." She pushed past him and headed to the door, only to realise she had forgotten her wallet at home. She rolled her eyes and decided to walk. The cool autumn air slowly sobered her up as she began to walk the four blocks home. She could hear someone yelling behind her, but chose to ignore it. She only stopped when the blonde man with green eyes ran in front of her.
"What are you doin" He folded his muscular arms over his chest and Mercedes fought the urge to lick him. "You can't walk home this late at night darlin', it ain't safe." Mercedes puffed out her chest and continued to walk.
"I'm fine." She stopped again when he ran in front of her. "If you keep stopping me, I'll never make it home." 'Steve' laughed and shook his head.
"Fine, if you're gonna be stubborn, I'm just gonna have to walk with ya." Mercedes grinned as she looked at him. She shrugged and the pair walked in silence. However, it was a comfortable silence. She continued to cast quick glances at him and wondered what he looked like underneath the shirt and without the pants. She bit her lip. Mercedes had never thought about sex or being intimate with anyone until recently. She craved the need to feel loved and wanted and since Jay wasn't going to give it to her, she'd have to find someone else. They walked up to her front door and he smiled.
"Okay Lois...be safe now, ya hear." He winked and turned to walk away. Mercedes bit her lip as she watched her opportunity slowly walk away.
"Wait!" She yelled out. "Want to come in?" She knew he was going to say no, but she could at least say she tried. The taller man laughed and nodded.
"Uh, yea, that'd be cool." Mercedes stared at him for a few seconds as she processed the fact that he had agreed to come inside. She quickly turned around and unlocked the door. He walked past her and she got a whiff of his cologne and felt her panties disintegrate. She watched as he looked around and closed the door behind them. He turned around and smiled. "This is a nice..." His words were cut off by her mouth on top of his. The blonde man slightly reeled back from the surprise and then wrapped his arms around her body, pulling her more tightly to him. This was her first kiss and she had no idea if she was doing a good job or not, but she was going to try her damn best. She sucked and bit his bottom lip, which caused him to moan. So far so good! She thought to herself as she pushed him towards the living room. His hands slipped down to her ass and he firmly held the bountiful cheeks. He moved his lips down her chin and to her neck where he sucked and licked the flesh there. She moaned and moved her head back to give him more access. Suddenly he pulled away and stared at her. "You sure you wanna do this?" Mercedes nodded vigorously and kissed him roughly again. She liked the feel of his hands and lips on her body too much for him to stop.
His hands slid down her thigh and moved between her legs to cup her heat. She moaned and spread her legs a little more apart. Feeling exposed just standing in the living room, she decided to break the kiss and dragged him up the stairs to her bedroom. He smirked as he looked around her room and his eyes landed on a pile of stuffed animals in the corner. "Well those are cute." He laughed.
"Less talk, more sexy," She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. She stood on her tip toes and brought his lips back to hers. He moved back and pulled off his shirt and pants, revealing his Iron Man boxers. Mercedes raised an eyebrow as she wondered if it was normal for a man to wear underwear with another man's face on them. Trying to just enjoy him before her liquid courage evaporated, she pulled off her top. He looped his hands in her belt loops and pulled her to him.
"I'm definitely okay with that darlin'" He smiled and bent his head and sucked on her peak through the cloth of her bra. She tangled her hands in his hair as he moved over to the other chocolate kiss under her bra. He pulled off the red bra and sucked on her breasts like the answer to life was hidden somewhere inside her boobs, her back arched to give him more access. He stood up to his full height, gave her a peck on the mouth, and then pointed to the bed. Mercedes eagerly jumped in and watched as he crawled on the bed and between her legs. He unzipped her pants and pulled them off of her legs, before inching closer to her covered wet entrance. 'Steve' licked his lips and began to lick her in places that she never knew existed. He moved the wet fabric aside and slowly began to circle her bundle of nerves with the tip of his tongue. Mercedes had to cover her mouth from moaning too loudly at the feel of his tongue exploring her. She could now see why Jay liked sex so much, it made you feel insanely good and on the brink. He pulled her boy shorts down and flung them on top of her jeans. She could feel her face get hot as he stared at her half naked body, a part of her wondered if his buzz had worn off and he was regretting his decision. He suddenly smiled and stared into her eyes. "You are fuckin beautiful." He whispered as slid up her body and gently kissed her lips. Mercedes felt electricity shoot through her body at his words. She smiled and flipped him over so that he was lying beside her and she pulled off his boxers and stared at his erection. The thing was huge. She had never seen one outside of physical education class and wondered if they were allowed to get that big. Nervously she stared at him and bit her lip.
"Is...is it going to hurt?" She asked quietly. 'Steve' chuckled and then stared at her terrified expression. A look of worry crossed his face.
"Wait...are you..." His voice trailed off and he muttered. "Shit." He sat up and stared at her. "How old are you?" She sighed and covered her breasts and crossed her legs in embarrassment.
"Seventeen." She whispered quietly and looked at him from the corner of her eyes. 'Steve' shook his head and ran his hand down his face, mumbling something about jail. "I'll b-be eighteen soon." He nodded and looked around the room. "Are you mad...?"
'Steve' slowly shook his head. "Are you a virgin?" He blurted out and Mercedes could feel the heat creep from her neck to her face. She took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay, then I'm mad." Mercedes tried to fight back the tears she could feel threatening to make an appearance. He watched as her body slowly began to shake and groaned. "I'm mad that you'd throw away somethin like that on a guy you hardly know darlin'." He turned her face to look at him. "You're my little sister's age and I'd kill her if she just up and slept with some guy she didn't know. Especially if it was the first time. You see what I'm sayin." Mercedes nodded and he pulled her down to lay by his side. She rested her head on his firm chest.
"D-do you want to leave?" She said it so quietly she wasn't even sure he heard her.
"No, I'll stay." He slowly rubbed her back and held her even tighter. "Just gotta go to the bathroom first." He chuckled and moved from underneath her. "Is anyone home?" Mercedes shook her head.
"It's the second d-door on the left." He nodded and quickly left the room. She waited for a few moments before she heard screaming and yelling. Grabbing the blanket and wrapping it around herself, she ran out in the hallway to see her naked older sister, with a towel pooled around her feet, brandishing a tennis racket over a terrified 'Steve'. Her sister turned around and stared at Mercedes.
"CALL THE POLICE!" she yelled. "TELL THEM WE ARE BEING ROBBED BY MACAULAY CULKIN!" She glared down at the terrified man who was on the ground with his arm trying to protect his face. "Times are hard man, but you cannot be coming up in here trying to rob black people."
"Gabby!" Mercedes finally found her voice and yelled. "He's with me, he came home with me." She looked over his sisters puzzled expression. "Why are you naked?!"
Gabby lowered her arms and stared at her sister in shock. "I was about to shower when I heard someone wash their hands...and...Mercedes why are you trying to sleep with Macaulay Culkin?! He don't have money anymore! He doesn't have a home to be alone in Cedes." 'Steve' tried to stand up and Gabby glared at him. "Listen here Kevin, your mama and John Candy are not coming home to save you, so keep your ass sitting down."
"Gabby, he's not Macaulay Culkin, his name's Steve Rogers. He's a captain." Gabby slowly gave 'Steve' the death glare.
"I was kidding with her! I thought she knew who Steve Rogers was!" He panicked and almost started to cry. "She told me she was Lois Lane, we were just making jokes."
"Listen here Captain Home Alone. Who the fuck are you?"
"My name's Sam, Sam Evans." He held his hands up, palms out in the air. Mercedes felt like the wind was knocked out of her.
"YOU'RE QUINN'S B-BROTHER?!" She yelled. Sam looked at her and then squinted his eyes. A look of horror formed on his face. He closed his eyes and shook his head.
"Shit...you're Mercedes."
"You can just call me your worst nightmare. And I'm about to whoop both of your asses if you don't tell me what's going on. I did not fly four hours on a plane next to a woman who kept farting for this fuckery right now." Gabby put the racket down and stared at the other two naked people in the bathroom. Mercedes knew that this was going to be a long night.
A/N: Thank you so much for reading, sorry this took forever! Let me know what you guys think. Thanks to J.G. and G.T. for your help and support.