A/N: Special thanks to fanfar3 for the review!
"And as he, who with laboring breath has escaped from the deep to the shore, turns to the perilous waters and gazes." - Dante Alighieri
The next morning when they woke Tish was wrapped around Priestly half on top of him, their legs tangled together. "Good morning," she whispered to him when she realized he was already awake and just gazing down at her.
He had woken about an hour ago and laid still, content in his current position. This definitely had been his best morning in a very long time. "Hey, how'd you sleep?" he asked softly.
"Really, really good. What about you?"
"Same here."
Tish leaned down and kissed him gently, unable to resist his adorably sleepy face. She meant for it to be a short and simple peck but once she started kissing him she didn't want to stop. Soon she was on top of him again kissing him furiously, her hands tracing the hard outlines of his chest and shoulders as he began kissing down her neck and shoulders. She could feel his hardening length through his boxers and groaned into his mouth.
He gripped her hips tightly and pulled her down against him, unable to resist grinding into her. His hands soon began to wander up her back again exploring her body. When his hands reached the top of her back he slid his hands around the front of her and groped her gently. She groaned again, which he took as a sign to continue. He began playing with her breasts and soon she gasped loudly and her body tensed up before relaxing on top of him. The two lay panting heavily, grins on both their faces.
Priestly smiled into her hair, "Did you just get there?"
She didn't look at him and mumbled into his smooth chest, "Yeah, sorry."
He slipped his hand into her hair and began playing with the silky strands. "Don't apologize it's fine. I've just never gotten someday there by touch alone. My male pride is feeling pretty good right now."
She felt her cheeks heat up. "Well that was my first…"
Priestly's eyes widened, "No way. Seriously? Tish are you a virgin?"
She looked up at him fearfully, "Does that bother you?"
His eyes were bright, "Hell no, that's awesome."
She blushed deeper, crimson painting her skin. "I take it you have some experience."
Now it was Priestly's turn to blush, "You could say that I've uh… covered all the bases if you know what I mean. What about you?"
"Covered first and second, third only once and never a homerun."
"Well if you've been to third base and I'm the first one that got you there he obviously wasn't doing it right," Priestly sad with a grin.
The two lay in silence in the large overstuffed bed until Tish spoke. "Well I guess we should start our day, do you want to shower first?"
"You can if you want to, I can wait." He was trying to be polite but he didn't really want to wait. He had a very painful problem that needed to be taken care of quickly.
She shook her head, "No it's fine i'm not ready to get out of bed yet."
"Ok then." Priestly sat up and turned to get off the bed pausing when his body screamed in protest. He grimaced and blew out a slow breath trying to push away the throbbing ache across his midsection.
Tish sat up in the bed. "Are you ok?" she asked worriedly.
Priestly stood slowly and nodded, "Yeah, just have to be careful how I move." He slid on his pants that were on the floor and grabbed his backpack and shirt before disappearing into the bathroom.
Once the water was the right temperature he stepped into the oversized shower and released a groan at the feel of the hot water on his tight muscles and abused body. Knowing this was his only chance to save himself from an uncomfortable day he dropped his hand and quickly took care of himself. After he was done he rested his forehead on the cool tile and got a hold of himself before finishing his shower.
He emerged a short time later dressed for the day in black shorts, a red shirt that read 'Stranger Danger', and three rows of bright red spikes. He jerked a thumb towards the bathroom, "That shower is awesome."
Tish laughed and walked past him to ready herself for the day. When she came out dressed but with wet hair he was nowhere to be seen. She grew alarmed and looked all over but he was gone from her room. She finally walked to the window and looked out as a last resort, hoping he hadn't just bailed on her. To her relief he was seated a few feet downwind from the window leaning against the house casually smoking, his head leaned back and his eyes closed.
"You should quit."
Priestly raised his eyebrows and looked up to see her serious expression. "I don't want to."
She pursed her lips together in dislike, "But it's going to kill you one day, not to mention they stink."
He sucked in another breath of nicotine before pulling the stick away and staring at it nonchalantly, "Something will kill me one day no matter what and I highly doubt it'll be these. I need them, just trust me on it."
She felt disturbed by his answer but nodded, knowing she couldn't force him to quit and ducked back inside. He eventually climbed back in the window and sat on the couch next to Tish who was idly flipping through the channels on the tv. "What do you want for breakfast? I'll go grab it."
He shrugged noncommittally after taking the remote from her. "I don't care, foods food."
She nodded and left the room, returning a short time later with bacon, eggs, and toast. Priestly ate them quickly, even licking his fingers when finished. He never ate home cooked meals anymore, not since his mom died. He used to try but his dad would just eat everything then yell at him for making a mess.
Tish watched him with a small smile on her lips. "You eat a lot, don't you? How do you stay so fit?"
Priestly just shrugged, "Good genes? I don't know, I walk a lot."
She sat down on the couch next to him. "What do you want to do today?"
Priestly looked thoughtful before turning to her with an eager expression, "You haven't been to the beach yet have you?"
Tish shook her head. "That's what we'll do today then," he said excitedly, he loved the beach.
"Do you have a suit?"
He scoffed, "What kind of California boy would I be if I didn't?" She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I don't go anywhere without one but I'm not swimming today."
"Why?" she asked innocently.
"Because I don't want everyone to see my ribs," he said quietly.
Tish felt horrible for bringing it up. "I won't swim either, we'll just go hang out in the sand ok?"
"Sounds good." The pair got to the beach and walked down to almost to the waters edge before sitting down, Tish on a towel and Priestly directly on the sand.
"Do you come here a lot? Is that why you're so tan?" she asked from behind her huge sunglasses.
Priestly adjusted his aviators and nodded, "Yeah I love the beach. When I was little my mom would bring me here almost everyday, she loved the waves."
Tish grabbed his hand and squeezed it in silent support. The pair sat in silence breathing in the salty air and watching the surfers.
She looked at her boyfriend and took in his longing expression as he watched the surfers. "Why don't you surf?"
He let out a depreciative laugh, "I'm not the most coordinated person in the world. I mean you've seen me in action. I'm the only person I know who literally trips on their own feet all the time. It's like I hit the awkward stage and never outgrew it."
She giggled and slapped his arm. "You're not that uncoordinated, what about skateboarding?"
He shrugged, "I had a board for a while but my dad broke it a few months ago." He grimaced at the memory, his dad had thrown it at him and by some miracle it had missed his head by inches.
"That sucks," Tish offered with an apologetic expression.
Priestly nodded, "Tell me about it, I have to fucking walk everywhere. It gets old fast."
The two continued watching the surfers for a while before Tish noticed just how long they had been there. "Come on let's go back to my house."
Priestly looked at his watch and felt his stomach tighten, the day was almost over and he would have to return home soon. He dreaded walking in his front door, he hated his life and often wondered why he had to be the one suffering. At least he had Tish now. He felt himself smile, Tish was the bright light in his dark world, the angel in his personal hell, the only thing that kept his head above water.
"What are you smiling at?"
Priestly snapped out of his musings and stared at his beautiful girlfriend. Her hair was blowing gently in the ocean breeze and the sun was setting behind her back casting a soft light around her frame, she looked ethereal. He slipped his hand around hers and squeezed gently, "Just you."
After arriving back at her house the pair ate the pizza they had picked up on the way home in her room. "That was so good," Priestly moaned as he leaned back on the couch, a content smile on his face.
Tish watched him with lust filled eyed and climbed on top of his lap, sucking on his neck just below his ear. She had never been this forward with anyone before but with Priestly it was different. Priestly made her feel happy and safe.
Priestly tilted his head to give her better access and groaned. "Tish you gotta stop," he said weakly.
She pulled back and looked at him curiously, "Why?" His words said no but his actions were screaming yes.
"Because I have to go home now and if you continue I might never leave," he said sadly.
She looked at him apprehensively, "Why do you have to go? Just stay here." She wanted him to stay so badly she couldn't stand it, she wanted here where he was safe from harm.
He smiled sadly and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear before placing a soft kiss on her forehead. "You know I can't."
She climbed off of him and walked over to the window, waiting for him to grab his backpack and leave. "I can't take you home, I'm sorry."
He shook his head, "Don't apologize. You gave me a nice weekend and a safe place to sleep. That's more than I could ask for." He dipped his head and kissed her deeply, nipping playfully at her bottom lip. "Bye Tish, I'll see you tomorrow."
The morning couldn't come fast enough for her, she was scared to death of what shape Priestly would be in when she got to school. She groaned as she looked at the clock in her car, she was running late which meant she wouldn't see Priestly until lunch. After pulling into a parking spot she dashed for the school and barely slipped into her seat before the bell rang.
She watched the clock and counted down the seconds until the lunch bell finally rang, freeing her from the classroom. She grabbed her backpack and quickly walked into the hall moving around students to get to the spot she always met Priestly for lunch. She looked around anxiously but there were so many students she could barely see who was walking down the halls.
"Boo."
She jumped at the voice that appeared next to her ear and turned to see a green haired Priestly grinning at her. "I'm assuming you're looking for me and not your other boyfriend."
She smiled up at him and pulled his head down for a kiss. "I was worried about you."
He frowned, "Why would you worry about me?"
Her look was deadly serious, "You know why."
A smile crept up on him, it amazed him how much she cared. "You don't have to worry about me i've survived this long." He grabbed her hand and the pair walked slowly down the hallway towards the lunch room. "How was your morning?"
She leaned into his side and he threw an arm over her shoulder. "It was ok, typical Monday." She waited for him to respond but he never did. Looking up at his face she saw he was glaring hard at something or someone. Turning she saw it was Jeremy, who was glaring back at Priestly just as hard.
Priestly knew Jeremy was pissed at him for being with Tish. Hell he knew every guy in the school was pissed at him for that reason. He wasn't oblivious, he heard the whispers and saw the jealous looks that were thrown at them.
As they passed by Jeremy Priestly couldn't help but goad him. "Something to say Jeremy?"
The other boy clenched his fists but kept his mouth shut. When they were past him Tish whacked Priestly in the chest.
He looked down at her in shock, "What was that for?"
She fixed him with a stern look. "You know what. Don't go looking for a fight, I don't want you to get expelled."
He leaned down and kissed her, "You worry too much, you need to relax." He waggled his eyebrows. "I can help with that."
She threw her head back and groaned he was going to be the death of her.
The rest of the day came and went, as did Tuesday and eventually Wednesday.
It was Thursday morning and Tish was putting on her mascara when her phone rang. She glanced at the clock and frowned, it was way too early for phone calls. She read the display and smiled brightly.
"Hey," she greeted happily.
"Good morning beautiful, how's your morning going?"
She swiped on a pale purple over her eyelids. "Good so far, what's up?"
She heard him clear his throat, "I was hoping for a ride this morning if it's not too much trouble."
A frown appeared on her face. "Why, what's wrong?"
There was a very pregnant pause. "Nothing, just could use a ride today."
Now she knew something was wrong. His voice always seemed to rise a little when he was lying and he was definitely lying right now.
"What happened?"
She heard a sigh, "Tish, please?"
She let out a breath; she'd figure it out when she got to his house. "Yeah, I'll be there in 20 minutes, be ready."
"Thanks Tish." She stared at the phone before slipping it in her pocket. She had the horrible suspicion that his dad had done something to him. She finished her makeup and drove to Priestly's house finding him sitting on the curb smoking. When he saw her car he put out the butt on the sidewalk and stood waiting for her to pull up. When she finally stopped he limped to her car and climbed inside.
"Why are you limping?" she asked immediately.
He buckled his seatbelt and turned to her, "I fell."
She fixed him with a hard stare, "Want to try that again for me?"
He looked out the window at his house, the house that held his best and worst memories. "My dad shoved me last night. I hit a chair and fell over it, sprained my ankle."
Her heart was pounding in fear and rage. She was petrified that one day Priestly's dad would seriously injure him, or maybe even kill him. The thought made her feel sick. "Are you ok?"
He looked at her and nodded, "I'm fine, it just gets old sometimes. Constantly having to hide everything, coming up with excuses all the time. Thank God most of the staff and students are too stupid to notice anything."
"Maybe it would be a good thing if someone noticed," Tish said quietly as she drove towards the school.
He snapped his gaze towards her, "No it wouldn't. Don't you get it Tish? If somebody says something it's going to start a fucking shit storm. I'm 18, it'll be assault and I'll be homeless."
He saw tears prick at her eyes and sighed. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap. I just get scared. Even though it sucks I know how to deal with my dad but being homeless? I don't know how to do that and it scares the hell out of me."
She blinked quickly trying to force the tears away. "I get scared too. What if he seriously hurts you one day?"
Priestly shook his head, "He won't. It's gotten worse over the years but he's never screwed me up too bad."
Tish wanted to argue and tell him he was being naïve but could tell by his posture and expression he didn't want to talk about it anymore. The rest of the ride was made in silence, Tish focusing on the road and Priestly staring blankly out the window.
The day thankfully passed quickly and Priestly couldn't wait to just go home and pass out, hopefully without seeing his father. His limp slowed him down so much that the halls were mostly empty by the time he was only half way down the hall. He wondered if Tish would still be waiting for him by the time he got out there.
He was almost to the end of the hall when two hands touched his back and shoved him forward. He landed hard, his wrists screaming as they bent to catch him before his face hit the dirty carpet. He quickly rolled onto his back and was met with the sight of Jeremy's foot flying towards him. He reacted on instinct, his hands flying out to grab the foot before it struck him. He jerked it and Jeremy fell hard onto his back. The two lay on the ground glaring, locked in a stale mate.
"What the fuck asshole?" snapped Priestly as he started scooting back away from the other boy. He wanted to stand but knew he couldn't on his ankle.
"Payback. Saw you were out of commission, thought I'd get in a few hits while I could. You know she's too good for you right?"
Priestly scoffed, "You fucking pussy, have to hit me while I'm down? You're pathetic."
Jeremy opened his mouth to retort but stopped when he saw the office secretary walking towards him swiftly. Priestly turned to see what Jeremy was looking at and sighed in relief at the sight of Gladys walking towards them.
"What is this? Were you two fighting?" she asked as she looked down at the two boys.
Jeremy adopted an innocent expression, "Of course not. We accidently ran into each other, I was just about to help him up."
Gladys raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms; "Forgive me for finding that hard to believe. You better get to practice, coach won't be happy you're late."
Jeremy's eyes widened and he jumped up and ran down the hall towards the locker rooms. Priestly scooted over to the lockers and tried to get up but his ankle wouldn't let him.
"Oh honey, let me help you." Gladys walked over and gently pulled on his arm while he stood using her for support. She stepped back and smiled warmly at him, "There, that's better." She watched as he tried to stand on his own, his weight on one foot instead of two. Her eyes lit up with anger, "Did that boy hurt you?"
Priestly smiled at her, Gladys was awesome. "No, I tripped at home and sprained my ankle last night."
She shook her head affectionately before adopting a stern expression. "I know you two were fighting and you're lucky I'm the one that caught you. One more time and you're going to be expelled."
He looked embarrassed, "I know. I don't do it on purpose."
"I know honey. Just be careful though, you're so close to graduating. It'd be a shame for you to have to repeat another year."
Priestly smiled at her, "But then you'd get to see me a whole 'nother year."
She rolled her eyes affectionately, "I don't like you that much."
He grinned at her, "You're a terrible liar Gladys."
She started to walk down the hallway towards the front of the school, Priestly beside her. "How are things with the new girl? I hear you two are an item now."
Priestly arched an eyebrow, "Gossiping Gladys?"
She huffed, "Well what else am I supposed to do all day? Plus all you kids are better than any gossip magazine. Now stop deflecting."
He laughed. "Yeah, we're together."
"Good for you honey, she's beautiful." They reached the office and Gladys turned to face him. "Now you go home and don't get into anymore trouble."
Priestly nodded, "Yes ma'am."
He walked out the front doors to find an agitated Tish waiting by her car. "Where have you been? School's been out for like 20 minutes."
He gave her a sheepish look, "Sorry. I had a run in with Jeremy then a scolding from Gladys."
Tish couldn't help but smile, "So typical day huh?"
He grinned; glad she wasn't angry, "Pretty much."
"I have homework tonight so we need to get going. Do you need to smoke or not?"
He shook his head, "I'm fine." Priestly watched the scenery fly by the window and looked confused when they drove past the street to his house. "Where are we going?"
"To my house, I don't want you at your house and you need to help me with my literature homework."
His eyebrows rose, "Demanding. I love it." She didn't respond but Priestly saw the smile playing on her lips. Thankfully her parents weren't home so Priestly could use the door, he didn't think he would be able to climb in the window. He limped to her room and positioned himself on her couch thankful to rest his throbbing ankle. "So what do you need help with?"
She pulled her backpack onto her lap and slid out a notebook and book. "I had to write an essay and I need you to proofread it. Are you any good at that?"
Priestly took the notebook from her, "Writing's actually my strong point." He held out a hand, "Pen." She dug in her bag and pulled out a pen, handing it to him. She watched in silence as he carefully read her paper, sometimes circling things or adding punctuation marks. When he finished he handed it back to her and smiled, "That's a good essay. Your punctuation sucks but you write pretty well."
She smiled cheekily, "My punctuation is allowed to suck, I have you to fix it."
He looked down, mock pouting. "Is that why you keep me around?"
"Duh, what other reason would I?"
His head snapped up, "Harsh! So do you have to type it now?"
She nodded as she grabbed her laptop off the table, "Yeah. You can watch tv or whatever you want while I do."
"Actually could you grab The Devine Comedy? I'd like to finish it."
She stood up and walked across the room grabbing it off her bookshelf and returning back to the couch. He flipped it open once she handed it to him and began to read. "You don't look like it but you're a nerd aren't you?"
He looked up from the book affronted, "I'm not a nerd! I just like reading, and I'm good at writing and math and…" he trailed off. "Oh God I am a nerd, when did this happen?"
Tish laughed at his crestfallen face. "It's ok, I still like you."
He let out a breath and placed a hand on his chest, "Oh good I was worried."
Tish rolled her eyes, "Dork, now let me get this done."
He leaned over and kissed her before turning to the book in his hands and starting to read. A little over an hour later he finished the book and watched as Tish typed the last few words of her essay.
"Done, finally!" She set down the laptop on the table and turned towards Priestly. "So now what?"
Priestly grinned mischievously and grabbed her, laying down and pulling her on top of him in one movement. He kissed her passionately, his tongue swirling inside her mouth. The two continued until Priestly flipped her underneath him. He nibbled on her ear and placed soft kisses down her neck as his hand worked up her flat stomach and underneath her bra. He squeezed her breasts gently, grinning when she gasped. Hoping she wouldn't stop him he grasped her shirt and began to lift it, eventually removing it. She looked at him with worried eyes but all he did was kiss her ear and softly whisper, "Trust me."
Her bra came next and he took a moment to admire her perfect body. "Beautiful," he murmured. She felt tense underneath him but her eyes didn't look scared so he continued kissing down her neck before going lower until he was peppering her perfect breasts with kisses. Priestly knew he should just stop here but he couldn't help himself, she was just so beautiful and all his. While he continued kissing her beautiful body he lifted his other hand and slid it into her shorts beneath her silky panties.
Tish was panting heavily, pleasure overwhelming her. Everything Priestly did felt like fire, like he was touching raw nerves. She gasped loudly when his she felt his hand underneath her underwear, she had no idea her body could feel this good. She whimpered and squirmed underneath him as he gently caressed her. She was so close and apparently he could tell because he kissed her harder and quickened his fingers' rhythm.
Priestly gritted his teeth when Tish achieved her release, barely stopping himself from finding his. She arched into him releasing a high pitched noise as her body tensed before she collapsed back on the couch panting heavily.
Priestly slid his hand out of her underwear and laid his head on her chest, listening to the sound of her beating heart. The pair laid silently, both enjoying the closeness and intimacy of the moment. "What about you?"
He didn't move his head from the soft pillow made of breasts. "What do you mean?"
She lifted a hand and rubbed the side of his head. "Don't you need to get there? Won't you get... uncomfortable?"
Priestly laughed, "Tish, I've had blue balls since I met you. I'm always uncomfortable."
He listened to her laugh through her chest, the vibrations comforting. "I want to return the favor."
Priestly lifted his head to look at her flushed face. "I'm fine, you don't have to do that."
"I want to."
Tish squirmed out from under him and rolled him over. "I've never done this so you might need to tell me what to do." Priestly watched amused and horny as hell as she unclasped his belt, unbuttoned his shorts and slid the zipper down. She looked up at his eyes, which were dark with lust before slipping a hand inside his boxers and freeing him. She clasped him gently hand moving up and down and smiled when Priestly groaned. "Fuck Tish."
She listened to his commands of 'tighter' and 'faster' and watched his blissful expression. "I'm almost there," he warned her, his breaths coming in short pants. "Fuck," he grunted as he finally felt blissful oblivion. He lifted his head and smiled lazily at her, "That was awesome."
She smiled and moved up to kiss him, "We should do that more often."
He grinned at her, his eyes twinkling, "Definitely." The pair cleaned up quickly knowing her parents would be home shortly and too soon for Tish's liking she was dropping Priestly off in front of his house. He leaned over the center consol and lazily kissed her, enjoying the feeling of her tongue in his mouth. "See you tomorrow beautiful."
Tish watched sadly as he carefully opened the front door of his house and softly clicked it shut; hopefully he wouldn't come to school tomorrow with a new injury.