Note: Thanks for all of the likes and recent comments on this story. I wasn't sure how it would be received but you all seem to like it. Enjoy.
Secrets never last. They only break apart and ruin whatever the original truth was in the first place. I was never good at keeping secrets. But in the off chance that I did need to keep one, I would guard it with my life. But when someone comes along who knows all your secrets, you end up looking like a fool. People founded in secrets never make good friends anyways.
Maya woke in the cool grey of Saturday morning. The wide windows were swathed with light curtains, but the light of the morning still crept into the room. A light rain sounded and Maya knew that it was very early.
The natural coolness of the room was nothing compared to the immense warmth Maya felt wrapped around her. Her eyes focused on the sleeping figure before her. She slept on his extended right arm and his left draped easily over her exposed waist where her tank top had ridden up. Her right leg had threaded itself between his in the night. Maya took a moment to look at him clearly, in this calm, softened state. He was beautiful, through and through. The soft lips lightly parted, the line of his jaw curved up to his high cheekbones. His thick brow framed those warm eyelids set with a swath of long lashes. Maya reached her hand out and gently stroked the softened jaw and a quiet sound emanated from him. She smiled, happy to be able to pull such sounds from him. Her hand cupped his jaw and she chanced a feel across his lips with her thumb.
His grip around her waist tightened then and he pulled her to him, their bodies pressed flush against one another. Maya made a little squeak of surprise and felt the soft exhale of his breath rush across her face. Her skin against his thrummed a feeling between her legs and she sucked in a quick breath. She watched his face, so close to hers now that they shared the same pillow. His face was serene and his breath even as if he was still asleep, but his hand drifted absently up and down the length of her spine, gently grazing the skin with his fingertips. Maya tucked her hand into the crook of his neck and readjusted her body ever so slightly that it pushed herself up against him. He grunted gently and barely opened his eyes.
"Don't do that," he said gruffly. The sound of it sent a thrill through Maya and she tilted her face up toward his instinctually, "I don't want to wake up yet." He admitted wrapping the arm that cradled her upper body around her, gripping her shoulder.
Maya let out a little laugh. Paul let the hand that wandered up and down her back rub on her hip gently. The wide length of his hand spanned it completely and his pinky finger slipped under the waistband of her shorts. Maya felt brand new—she didn't recognize this person wrapped up so well in his arms. Just for now, Maya was willing to entertain this strange version of herself if it meant she could spend just a little more time this close to him.
As she drifted back to sleep in his arms, she felt those warm soft lips her thumb had traced press firmly to her forehead. Maya lost herself in that feeling as she let the pulsing warmth of Paul's body lull her back to sleep.
"I have a plan!" Keye slapped her tray down at the lunch table. Jeremy sat next to Maya but was leaning his head into Becks in animated conversation before Keye interrupted them.
"Oh good," Maya said. "What is it this time? Are we going to go streaking on Second beach in front of a gaggle of tourists? It's a little cold."
"No! Paul said you could go to the clubs in Port Angeles right?" Keye said mischievously.
"Uhhhh, yes technically but I just got back onto his good side from the last club we went to," Maya said carefully.
"You were never not on his good side," Keye shot back quickly, "And anyway, we'll have chaperones like real proper LADIES this time. Right, Jeremy?" Jeremy snapped his head up and gave a laugh.
"If I'm considered a qualified chaperone, then absolutely. What club?"
"The Brothers Gemini," Keye said decidedly. "It's just divey enough that we could absolutely skirt in."
"Can I pitch it to Paul first?" Maya said quietly.
"Pitch it?!" Keye said, annoyed. One look at Maya and she rolled her eyes, "Ugh, fine but you're going no matter what."
"Bossy," Maya muttered under her breath.
Later that day, Maya broached the subject with Paul who was working out his workshop.
"Paul?" she shouted over his table saw. He paused and looked up at her and turned off the saw. "Can I ask you something?"
"Sure." He took off his gloves and goggles and waited.
"You remember when you said I could go to clubs in Port Angeles with you or someone you trusted?"
"Yes?" he said uncertainly, raising his eyebrows at her.
"Well, Keye wants to go to this nightclub called The Brothers Gemini. Would you want to go with me?" Maya didn't know why she was so nervous all of the sudden. He stared at her for a bit and then said,
"When?"
"Uhh," Maya did not really ask when Keye had planned this little event for them. "Like this weekend or maybe next weekend. I'm not sure."
"Well, find out and let me know. I'm out in Seattle again next weekend for a couple of days so that won't work." He picked up his sander and donned his goggles again.
"Jeremy would be going with us too, and Collin, I think," Maya confirmed. Paul just nodded and turned on his sander, not responding. She watched him for a minute, her arms crossed in front of her before she said impulsively, "You're going to Seattle again?"
He looked up at her confused and stopped the sander. "What?"
"You didn't tell me you were going to Seattle again…" The echo of ache Maya had felt for those days he was away before coupled with the woman, Rachel, flashing up on his phone afterward filled her with dread.
"I go to Seattle a lot. You know that," he said almost dismissively. Maya stung a little at that. She and Paul hadn't talked about sleeping in bed together since it had happened the other week. Since then, Paul had been giving her a wide berth and would barely touch her.
"Well, do you have, like, a calendar or something?"
"A calendar?" he said a little dumbstruck.
"Yeah, of when you'll be in Seattle." she said, tucking her hands behind her back now. Paul watched her skeptically.
"Maya what's going on?" he said a little suspicious.
"Oh my god, forget it!" she groaned, turning on her heel and heading back into the house.
"My!" he called after her, but she shut the door a little too hard behind her.
"Alright. What's wrong with you?" Jeremy said as he leaned against the lockers next to hers.
"Shouldn't you be making out with your girlfriend in a secluded hallway or something?" Maya muttered dropping her books into her locker with a little too much force.
"I absolutely would if my fake girlfriend wasn't acting like this. What's up? You and Paul in a fight or something?" he said.
"Fuck off, Jeremy," Maya responded in a long sigh. She slammed her locker door and turned away from him making her way up the hallway.
"Nah see, that doesn't work on me anymore. Tell your best friend/fake boyfriend what's wrong, maybe I can help. I'm great at helping," He came up behind her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.
"Jer, please, I need to get to calc." Maya said, shrugging his arm off her. She'd been moody and down and all around pissed off recently. It's like getting to be close with Paul had opened a box in Maya that she could no longer close. And now she couldn't figure out what to do.
"Come here," he said, dragging her under the stairwell and blocking her in. "What's going on? You're driving Paul crazy and I have to take the brunt of that. Not to mention Becks won't shut up about you, so I'm getting it from both ends here."
Maya's eyes went wide. She hadn't exactly been hiding her feelings but still, "Why is Paul driving you crazy?! He's driving me fucking crazy. He's leaving for Seattle again and now it's all...ugh I'm just frustrated."
"Sexually?" Jeremy raised his eyebrows at her suggestively and Maya shot him a death glare.
"No! I haven't gotten my letters back from my top two schools and Paul is being weird after the bonfire and finals are coming up and things are just getting…..complicated." she said in an exhale of relief. Jeremy watched her as she unloaded. They looked incredibly intimate under the stairwell to outside eyes. "This imprint is just fucking with my head." Maya admitted.
"Did you tell him that?" Jeremy asked as if it was the easiest thing in the world. Maya let out a sound of frustration and looked everywhere but Jeremy.
"And what do I say? 'Hey Paul, sleeping in bed with you confused me and now not being with you like that is actually painful?'" Maya's eyes went wide at her admission. The bell rang and Maya started at the sound. "Fuck, I'm gonna be late." She tried moving around Jeremy but he caught her by the arm.
"Just try talking to him. You'll feel better, I promise." Jeremy said swiftly. Maya gave him a hard stare and then nodded.
At lunch, Keye was ecstatic. "So did you 'pitch it' to Paul?" she teased.
"Yeah, when are we wanting to go?" Maya said between bites.
"Next weekend!" Keye said delighted. Maya's face fell.
"Paul's in Seattle that weekend," she grumbled.
"So?! Jeremy is coming and Collin confirmed, too. So it won't be like last time. You're coming." Keye said definitively.
"Mmmm," Maya said. She wanted to go but after the last clubbing incident she wasn't sure if Paul would be too keen on the idea. She looked to Jeremy for some insight but he just shrugged.
Maya's phone buzzed on the table and she turned it over quickly to see a number she didn't recognize. Curious, she answered.
"Hi! Is this Miss Maya Sunriviere?" the cheerful male voice trilled on the line.
"Uh, yeah. Hold on a second," Maya said as she looked at the confused faces around the table. She got up and made her way outside. "Sorry who is this?"
"Michael Che. Look, I'm sending you an email invite to share Mr. Lahote's calendar and I just wanted to confirm that this was the correct email for you. Are you 2001 ?"
"Uh, yeah that's me. Wait. What are you doing again, I'm sorry." Maya was completely lost.
"I'm Mr. Lahote's assistant. He asked me to share his personal calendar with you?"
"Oh!" Maya said, surprised. What the fuck, he had a personal assistant?
"So, I'll just shoot the invite over that gives you permissions. You just click on the access link and it should sync it with your calendar. Sound good?"
"Uhhh, y-yes. Thank you!" Maya was floored and trying to throw together a coherent sentence.
"Of course Miss Sunriviere. Have a great day!" The line disconnected and Maya stared at her phone dumbstruck. An email immediately popped up on her phone and she opened it quickly, accepting the permissions. She scrolled through her calendar, packed with her school reminders, exam dates, and acceptances she'd noted that she received. Nestled amongst her things now were Paul's dark glowing blue reminders—dates he was in Seattle, reminders to pick supplies up, delivery deadlines, and….Maya's graduation...Maya's birthday...The breath caught in her throat.
Maya quickly navigated to Paul's phone number and called it. Two rings and then:
"My?"
"Hey."
"You alright?"
"Yeah! Yeah of course. Your assistant Michael just called me…" She trailed off.
"You asked if I had a calendar."
"I know… thank you. That was really unexpected and..sweet. So, thank you." Maya cringed at her awkwardness.
"No problem. Was there something else?" He asked, a little distracted.
"Oh, umm," Maya didn't want to let him go just yet. "Keye said we're going to that club next weekend, but I think you're out of town? Jeremy and Collin are going though so it should be okay, right?"
"Mmm. I don't know, My. I'd feel better if I was there."
"You said I could go with someone you trusted. And I'm going with two people you trust, so what's the big deal?" Maya was trying to keep her tone even.
"Look, My. I gotta go. We'll talk about it later, but I don't think it's a good idea. So I'm saying no for now." She heard him shouting out at someone.
"Wait! Paul?!" She said as he disconnected the line suddenly. When she walked back into the lunchroom, Keye perked up.
"All good?" she asked.
"Oh yeah, we're green to go for next weekend," Maya said confidently.
After about two hours of begging, convincing, and Paul conferring with Jeremy and Collin, he finally agreed that Maya could go to Port Angeles with Keye and Becks. Jeremy was required to run interference at the club and Maya had promised to come back to Paul's that night so that she would be there in the morning when he got back from Seattle.
That next Saturday, Maya was at Keye's again getting ready. Collin and Jeremy were sitting on her bed and the fluffy chair that sat under her window patiently. Well, sort of.
"Gah come on, Keye! At this rate we're not going to get there until well past midnight." Collin complained. Maya laughed and finished her hair, giving herself another look in the mirror. She'd opted for a black miniskirt and cropped pink halter top with poofy sleeves. She paired it with some white keds and wore her hair half up. She went heavy on the pink blush giving her a rosy, young look. With Jeremy and Collin attending, she didn't think they would question the age of the women since they looked well over 18 with their height alone.
"Fucking. Chill." Keye said as she straightened the tight blue strappy dress and brushed out the curls in her hair so that it billowed out around her. Maya casually snapped a full length picture of herself in the mirror and texted it to Paul. Risky, she thought. She followed it up with a text that read.
M: About to head out for the night. Wish my white Keds luck.
Paul read it immediately and the three little dots made Maya's heart skip.
Paul: You're killing me.🔥
P:
Maya let out a squeak of excitement and opened the picture he sent her. He was sitting in a black t-shirt, with what looked like a highball glass of whiskey in his hand in a darkened lounge. The small smirk on his face made Maya clench her legs together reflexively and she quickly texted back.
M: This could be us, but you're playing in Seattle.
"Jer, come here," she called him over. He hopped out of the bed and came up behind her as she raised her phone for a picture. He wrapped his arms around her waist and set his head next to hers making a goofy face. Maya laughed as she clicked the capture button and sent it to Paul.
"You're gonna get me murdered," Jeremy said when he realized she sent it to Paul.
"Oh please," Maya muttered.
"Let's gooooo!" Collin said, grabbing a squealing Keye from the mirror. Becks came out from her walk in closet now donned in a dark ripped jeans and lacey black bodysuit top. Jeremy's jaw dropped at the sight of her.
P: Nothing reckless tonight. Promise me.
M: Imprint's honor.
She imagined him laughing at that and as they climbed into Jeremy's jeep to head to Port Angeles, she ached for him again.
The club was overflowing with people and the bouncers hardly glanced at Maya and her friends as they walked in, seemingly distracted by the amount of trouble breaking out in and around the club. Maya stayed close to the group at first but as the night carried on, she found herself further and further away dancing with and around other people. Jeremy and Collin were swept up in Becks and Keye and Maya enjoyed watching them from the bar when she needed a break from the overwhelming amount of sweaty bodies pressing into her.
When she was on her fourth drink, she pulled out her phone and checked her texts.
2 new text messages
Maya smiled. They were from Paul. She knew they were even before she opened them.
Paul: Still thinking about how good you look tonight.
P: Text me when you get back home. I don't care how late it is.
Maya: No one in this club meets my height requirement. This is bullshit.
Her phone lit back up almost immediately.
P: I set the bar ridiculously high.
M: It doesn't help that you're also very good looking.
Maya hit send without rereading, the alcohol making her bolder. She also just wanted things to feel better between them since they'd felt so awkward after the bonfire night.
P: If you think I'm good looking, just imagine how good you look to me.
M: Change your flight so you can come home and sleep in bed with me.
P: Are you drunk?
M: I dare you.
P: You're drunk.
M: I double dog dare you.
P: Don't threaten me with a good time, Maya Sun.
"Vodka, soda, and lime," a voice said next to her. It was ridiculously smooth, almost alluring. Maya looked toward the voice and saw a handsome face, dark eyes, and incredibly pale skin. He was wearing a sleek black jacket and dark jeans, an interesting choice for a club. His dirty blonde hair was swooped up in a 90's heartthrob style and Maya was taken aback by him.
"Excuse me?" she said over the music.
"Your drink," he lifted a finger toward the bartender and pointed toward Maya's almost empty drink. The bartender refilled and set a fresh one before her. Maya glanced suspiciously at the mysterious man.
"Thanks," she took the drink and sipped tentatively. Thinking that the man would try and engage her further, she turned back toward the club. He nodded and turned back to a person next to him and Maya wrote it off. Something about him set her teeth on edge and the hairs on her neck to standing.
Maya lost herself in the crowd of people, swaying and vibing to the music. She was crossing the line from comfortably drunk to sway-on-your-feet-nearing-blackout drunk. The fifth drink really did her in. After a few songs of letting the sweaty collective body of the crowd move and sway her, she found her way toward the bathroom. Bathrooms filled with drunk women were always safe spaces for Maya. She took longer than was necessary to try and get her bearings, dipping her head under the dirty sink to try and sip some extra water.
When she stumbled out of the bathroom, the mysterious man caught her eye again as he walked past toward a door that she assumed led to the alley next to the club. Under his arm was a woman in a tight blue dress, barely able to stand on her own two feet.
Keye?!
Maya's mind was kicking into overdrive. She glanced around the club frantically looking for Collin or Jeremy. Was that really Keye? Her heart hammered in her chest as she felt a unique sense of dread pull over her. When she wasn't able to locate anyone from her group, she hurried after the mysterious man and Keye, bursting through the side door and into the alley. He had her up against the cold brick wall and she was making strange struggling noises.
"HEY!" Maya yelled. The mysterious man paused and turned to look at Maya. She could see now that it was Keye and he had his hand around her neck. "Let her the fuck go." Maya said. In the moonlight, the man looked ghoulish in palor. He dropped his hand from Keye's neck and she stumbled a few steps away up the alley.
"That's alright. I wanted you anyway," he said, flashing her a viscous grin. Maya's eyes went wide and before she could turn to yank the door open, the man had grabbed her by the neck, lifted her effortlessly off her feet and slammed her against the brick wall. Keye was terrified behind him and Maya, gripping the man's wrist with her two hands could only choke out two words:
"Keye. Run!" Keye got up and sprinted down the alley, hopefully to find help. Maya could only feel the crushing cold of the man's hand tight around her throat—she thought her neck might snap. Why was he so cold? His breath smelled like rotting flesh and his eyes flashed red under the dim lamplight. As Maya felt her vision fade, she heard a low grumbling noise down the alley. In a flash, she felt a white hot burn that spanned the length of her arm as she dropped to the cold ground in a heap. She begged her eyes to pull open, and through her dimming vision, she saw a roiling swath of fur viciously tearing over something in the alley. Snapping and snarling ensued and Maya felt a warm wet river flow down her arm. When she looked down, she was in a quickly spreading pool of blood coming from her arm.
"Oh fuck!" she thought she heard Collin's voice say. Someone's hand wrapped around the arm gushing blood and she let out a whimper.
"We need to get her to a hospital!" Becks' voice rang clear through her head. She had the distinct feeling of being lifted and with that, Maya's world went black.