Chapter 11

Skye raises his hand, "Right here."

Mary navigates around the door with her four inch heels, "Wow...what were you two up to? No wait, let me guess...sex up against the door! Kinky...very Fifty Shades-"

"Could you maybe get the door off of him before speculating?!" I bark from below.

She rolls her eyes, before grabbing the door with one hand and shoving it off of Skye's back, letting it slide to the floor.

But instead of getting off of me to check if his spine is still intact, Skye keeps me pinned to the ground, his arms coiled firmly around me. He leans his head in and nuzzles his nose against my cheek.

"Look...I really appreciate the save, really, that was amazing. But, at the same time, that doesn't mean that boundaries have suddenly been lifted," I inform him.

He looks down at me, frowning, "Oh...yeah, sorry, I kind of got carried away."

"Wait...you were just having sex with Marilyn Manson here, and now you won't even let him give you a hickey? Wow...if you were anymore of a tease, you'd be a J.J. Abrams trailer," Mary comments, crossing her arms.

"We weren't having sex," I pause between every word, emphasizing each one.

"What? No, that can't be," Mary checks her diamond encrusted watch, "you two have known each other for over twenty-four hours! You should be saying your vows by now."

"Uhm...can we come in now?" Sue asks from the unhinged doorway.

"Yikes, I'll bet this place looked like a dump even before Mary knocked the door in," Eric clenches his teeth, standing over Sue.

Getting up, Skye slams his head with a facepalm, "See, Tando? This is what I meant, we're always going to have school, friends, work...all of that interrupting our time together."

"Well, unless you actually become my boyfriend, which seems kind of unlikely at this point, you have no right to demand mandatory time with me," I snap, before marching to the door.

Someone grabs the back of my shirt collar, hoisting me up. I turn around to find it's Mary, holding me just slightly off of the ground.

"Oh no, no, no, you're not getting off that easy. You're not like me or Sue, this Bad Boy right here, might be your one and only shot at romance," she argues.

And now it's my turn to roll my eyes, "'My one and only shot'? That's a middle schooler's excuse to hang on to some douchebag boyfriend."

"You should...at least give him a chance," Sue chimes in, smiling from behind the folds of her sweatshirt.

Eric remains quiet, staring Skye in the eye. Despite the fact that Eric towers over Skye, there's still a sense of intimidation. But, considering Skye's reading material, I don't blame him.

Eric leans over Skye's shoulder, "Hey, sweet guitar rack. You play?"

Skye turns around to the guitar rack stashed behind the television, "Yeah, a little. You?"

"Of course I do. Two instruments that will always woo a girl: the guitar and the piano. Girls never go for the violin or trombone playing types," Eric shrugs.

Skye looks down at me, "Well, I mean, I only play a little…"

I catch his glance. Is he...waiting for my approval? That seems arrogant to assume, but, from the expression on his face, it appears to be what he's implying.

"Well, if you know how to play, why not play something for us? If not, I think Eric's probably dying to steal your thunder," I smirk.

And like that, Skye's expression snaps from shy and insecure to much more confident, "O-of course. I'll get out the acoustic."

Mary folds her arms and shakes her head, "Bad Boys...so eager to please."

Did I just...influence Skye to play the guitar? It was so direct, almost controlling, and I don't know if I like the feeling.

He sits down on the floor along with everyone else, and starts strumming the opening to a familiar song.

"If we take this bird in, with its broken leg. We could nurse it, she said."

He keeps his eyes focused on the strings of his guitar, quickly strumming them with a pick, "Come inside for, a little lie down with me. If you fall asleep, it wouldn't be the worst thing. But when I wake up, and your makeup's on my shoulder. Would you stay now, and let me hold you-"

Eric snatches the guitar from Skye, "Huh...that's weird. Ed Sheeran's awfully mainstream for a goth kid, don't you think?"

Skye narrows his eyes, "Well, Suicide Silence is kind of hard to play on the guitar."

"Yeah, that's true, but at the same time, maybe you could've chosen a song that isn't from 2011?" Mary laughs, taking Eric's side.

Eric grabs Skye's pick, before positioning the guitar to play it, "We're only getting older baby, and I've been thinking about it lately. Does it ever drive you crazy, just how fast the night changes?"

Sue claps her hands, "Oh, I love this song! And you skipped right to the chorus, nice!"

"What is this song?" I ask.

Mary rolls her eyes, "Night Changes by One Direction. God, you're so out of touch."

"Everything that you've ever dreamed of, disappearing when you wake up. But there's nothing to be afraid of, even when the night changes, it will never change, me and you," Eric strums the final chord, looking up at the rest of us and flashing his signature smile.

Mary and Sue applaud him, as he stands up and takes a bow. Skye scowls at the other boy in the room, before taking back his guitar, "Thank you very much, but you never let me finish."

The chords Skye starts to play are clearly meant for a piano, but I recognize them right away nonetheless.

"Woah, blast from the past Skye, you really are from 2004, aren't you?" I smile, as he starts to sing.

"This could be the start of something new, it feels so right, to be here with you. Oh..."

I join him, "And now, looking in your eyes, I feel in my heart...the start of something new."

Mary rolls her eyes, "Can it grandpa, you really think you could woo her with that?"

"Hey, gotta appreciate the classics. And I'd like to see you do better," Skye challenges, handing Mary the guitar.

She smirks, "Can I do better? I could blow both of you boys out of the water. I can strum a guitar without a pick and not even chip one of my professionally painted nails."

"On a scale from one to ten, I am perfect like I am. I don't need your number, we don't need your number," Mary sings out with a perfect voice that tops the original singer.

I sigh, "Goddammit, I actually like that song."

"And the stupid magazines, want me to change my everything. It don't even matter, they're not taking my power...I'll show you what a girl is. Cause all of me is perfect. Who cares about a dress size? It's all about what's inside. I'll stand up now, and won't back down. We're breaking through the surface, to show you what a girl is."

I get up from sitting on the floor, "Alright, I think I've heard enough of Mary's singing. Skye, do you want some help fixing your door before I leave?"

Eric's eyes widen, "Uhm...girls don't do manual labor. It's practically an unspoken rule-"

"I'd love the help, thanks," Skye smiles, getting up as well.

We walk over to the door, and with one of us on either side we hoist the door up, propping it back in its place.

"Hey Tando, could you run and grab me my screwdriver? It should be in my top nightstand drawer," Skye asks, holding the door steady.

"Sure," I make sure Skye has a hold on the door before running over to his nightstand and opening the top drawer.

The drawer is filled with various construction tools, hammers, nails, a drill...why would he have all of this stuff in a nightstand? I scan through the eclectic collection of construction equipment...hmph, no screwdriver. I guess it is a small item compared to the giant jack saw sitting in the corner, maybe it fell to the bottom. Trying not to cut myself, I dig through the warehouse of tools. I hit the wooden bottom, where I find a dark red screwdriver. There it is!

As I take out the screwdriver, I noticed it's been placed next to a large red button. Clearing away some more of the tools, I find a large label below the button, with yellow and black caution tape: CRAZY SEX DUNGEON.

Closing the drawer, I slowly start backing up. Is that some kind of joke?

I approach Skye, and hand him the screwdriver, my hand shaking. He examines my expression, before leaning over to look at the drawer. His face goes cold as he begins to piece together what I saw.

"Skye...what is that button in your drawer?" I ask, as he starts bolting the door back onto its hinges.

"It's...nothing."

I raise an eyebrow, and cross my arms, "Uhm, it's clearly something. It's a big red button labelled 'Crazy Sex Dungeon' sitting at the bottom of your nightstand drawer."

Mary, Sue, and Eric turn toward the two of us, and I come to the realization that I just said that aloud.

"You two...in there...now," Mary demands.

Skye grits his head, lowering his head as he starts to blush, "No, it's not ready yet-"

"So you admit to having a sex dungeon?" I push, raising my voice.

"No...no, it's just...foreshadowing…"

I sigh, "Look, Skye, you're really sweet, but you need help. Now could you finish up that door so I can get out of here?"

He screws on the last hinge, and opens up the door, stepping out of the way for me to leave the room. He immediately turns to Mary, Sue, and Eric, who've been watching all of this unfold with impressive silence.

"All of you, out," he points to the open doorway.

The three slowly start to get up, Mary putting down Skye's guitar, but this isn't fast enough for him, "Out now!"

"Okay, okay...god," Mary rolls her eyes as they hustle out the door.

Eric, the last one to leave, looks down at Skye, before spitting, "Freak."

Author's Note:

Songs used:

"Little Bird" by Ed Sheeran

"Night Changes" by One Direction

"Start of Something New" from "High School Musical"

"What a Girl Is" from "Liv and Maddie"