The next morning, Seth was up and in and out of the shower before his alarm even went off; the thought of seeing Sydney again was better than any form of caffeine. The FDA should figure out how to market her, they'd make millions. He stood in front of his closet, a towel wrapped around his slim hips as small water droplets ran down his shoulders and dripped to the carpet.

'What do I wear?' He thumbed his way through the shirts hanging in the closet, cringing at all the graphic tees and polo shirts that suddenly felt too junior high. He couldn't, at least in good conscience, meet all 5'5" of Sydney's golden sexiness wearing an old t-shirt with Mario and Luigi grinning on the front. 'What if she thinks I'm a dork?' Sadly, it was either dork or naked because he had never taken much care in what he wore.

Finally, hearing Leah up and moving and knowing that it was probably getting late, he settled on his favorite 'Got Skooma?' Skyrim t-shirt and a pair of jeans, figuring he'd just wear his hoodie over it anyway. As he let his towel drop to the floor, he couldn't help but shriek and jump to hide himself as Leah barged into the room without warning.

"Stay away from Sydney, Seth." Leah glowered at him, seemingly oblivious to her little brother's embarrassment as he held his t-shirt over his lower body, hiding halfway behind the door to his closet. "She's trouble."

"She just gave me a ride, Lee, it was pouring yesterday." He grumbled, pulling on his underwear and jeans haphazardly as he tried to stay hidden behind the small door.

Leah made no move to leave, crossing her arms as she narrowed her eyes at her brother through the door. "Oh please. I know a lot more about her than you, Seth. Sydney is a whore, she lives for parties, drugs, and sex. She's just going to drag you into it too, and I'm not letting you get involved in it."

Seth felt a bit of anger flare up, surprising him as he shut the closet door and walked over to his dresser to finish getting ready. He still held the Skyrim shirt balled up in his fist as he ran a comb through his dampened hair. "Sydney was nice enough to give me a ride, Leah. Whatever she does in her own life doesn't just cancel out the fact that she was nice to me."

"She's already manipulating you," Leah scoffed, shaking her head as she realized she wasn't going to get through to her brother this time. She turned to leave, calling over her shoulder sarcastically, "Keep it up and maybe she'll ride you next time."

Seth rolled his eyes, dismissing his sister, but the thought sent a wave of excitement straight to his belly as he let himself wonder what Sydney had planned to do before they were interrupted last night. He had never felt desire that strong before. It made his head swim and his legs feel weak, as though he was barely in control of his own body when she was near him. It was thrilling, but he knew that Leah did have a point. He wasn't the first person to fall for Sydney like this, nor would he be the last. Even Brady was panting for her, something both he and Collin had teased him mercilessly about for months.

That didn't stop him from spraying a little bit extra of his body spray and taking a couple minutes extra to make sure he didn't have any eye crusties or zits, just in case.

-/-

"She did what?!" Brady yelled, his voice reaching a pitch that rivaled any horror movie heroine's scream as he stared at his best friend in disbelief.

"She gave me a ride." Seth repeated, leaning against the lockers as they waited for Collin outside of the boys' bathroom. "In her car." He clarified, remembering Leah's comments this morning and feeling a light blush heating up around his collar.

"Sneaky fucker, what did she do to you? Did you get to see her naked? Draw me a diagram!" Brady thrust his notebook at Seth, his eyes gleaming as he interrogated him. If this was the closest that he would ever get to Sydney, he could handle living vicariously through Seth.

Seth shoved the paper away, rolling his eyes as he shook his head. "Nothing happened, Brady. Just because she was nice to me doesn't mean she's my sex slave now."

Brady rolled his eyes, slamming his locker shut as he turned to look out at the students walking past, pouting and crossing his arms as he tried to look imposing to the passersby. "Dumbass. If you don't take advantage of what she's offering, you may as well hand in your man-card now."

"What's that supposed to-" Seth's indignation was cut off as Brady elbowed him in the ribs, abruptly over his pouting spell. "What the…"

He trailed off when he saw her walking down the hallway, her head bowed. She wore dark, round sunglasses that covered her eyes, but he could still barely make out the swelling behind the metal frames. She was alone this time, without her friends flanking her, and it seemed as though she was trying to hide away, lost in the sea of other students.

"Sydney?" Seth asked softly, though loud enough for her to hear.

She stopped, stepping aside, out of the way of the people behind her, and glanced around, playing nervously with the assortment of different bracelets she had stacked on her slim wrist. "Oh, hey, Seth."

"Is something wrong?" He kept his voice soft as he brought one hand up to gently smooth a lock of her hair away from her face. Even the tiny, feather-soft movement made her grimace as his fingers brushed against her forehead and he could barely make out the sickly blue tone that she had tried to cover with makeup. "Sorry…"

"I…uhm…" She cleared her throat quietly and opened her mouth to continue, but she couldn't find the words as her eyes flickered back and forth, trying to assess the quickest and most painless exit. "I should…"

Seth glanced back at Brady, who nodded and waved his hand as if to shoo them away. "Tell Mrs. Hemerson I wasn't feeling well."

"Sure thing." Brady watched them go curiously, none of his trademark humor to be found as Seth took Sydney's hand and led her across the hall to the door that led outside to the school courtyard. She made no move to pull away, holding the strap of her bag tightly with her other hand. When they stepped outside, the only sounds were the faint thuds of Seth's Converse and Sydney's worn out Doc Martens on the pavement as they got a seat at one of the stone tables.

"What…What are we doing?" Sydney asked quietly as she sat down beside him, letting her bag fall to her feet with a dull, heavy thud.

Seth gave her a soft half-smile as he shrugged. "You just looked like you needed a break. Maybe someone to talk to." He waited patiently as she laid her hands on the table, feeling the cool stone beneath her palms as she stared down at her dark purple nails, still peering through the dark sunglasses. From his angle beside her, Seth could see that her eye was swollen behind the glasses and he felt a rush of protectiveness pass over him; he wanted to see her smile again, he wanted her to be the confident, grinning Sydney she had been with him and he wanted whoever took that confidence from her to hurt.

"Thank you. I'm really sorry about last night." She spoke quietly and a moment passed before she finally reached up to take the sunglasses off. "I had to go home and deal with something." She didn't look at him as she sat them on the table, as though she were afraid of what he would say about her face but waiting for his reaction.

"I understand. Is everything alright? I mean, with whatever happened, are you okay?" He reached up again, smoothing her hair away from her bruised eye and being careful this time not to touch it in case it her hurt her.

"It got settled." She glanced up at him, giving him a soft smile as she finally started to seem more like the Sydney he had come to see as the usual Sydney. She was finally relaxing her guard with him. "You know, you're pretty good at this."

"At what?" He felt his cheeks turning hot and hoped he wasn't as red as he felt as he started to pull his hand away. She stopped him, grabbing his hand and lacing their fingers together, then resting their interlocked hands on her thigh as she sighed.

"Being sweet. That's good; not enough guys are sweet to girls." She laid her head against his shoulder and he carefully moved his other arm to wrap around her delicate shoulders, breathing in the scent of coconut that clung to her thick hair.

"I just didn't want you to be upset." He tried to sniff her hair without sounding like a weirdo, but he froze when he heard her giggling softly. "What's funny?"

"Are you sniffing my hair like a dog?" She raised her head, smiling at him playfully with one eyebrow arched in question.

"I uh…I mean…Uhm…." He stammered, the blush on his cheeks tripling as he started to move away, already sure he had blown it once again.

"I never said I wanted you to stop." She leaned up, her body sinking into his as her soft, fruit punch flavored lips pressed against his own parched ones. His body stiffened up as his hands automatically grasped at her hips and her tongue teasingly swept along his bottom lip as though inviting him to open up. He graciously obeyed, parting his lips and tentatively touching her tongue with his as she snaked her arms around his neck to pull him closer. He was determined to keep up with her, following her lead for a moment before he got the hang of it and started to explore her mouth on his own.

The sounds of their breathing and their clothes rustling against each other filled the open courtyard and Sydney wound up in his lap, trapped between his body and the tabletop as they made out passionately. "Seth…" She said in a breathy whisper as she finally broke the kiss first, running her fingers through his soft hair as she slowly ground her hips against his. "Let me make up for last night."

His eyes popped open as her hand slid between their bodies, rubbing her palm against the growing bulge straining against his jeans. "H-here?"

Sydney laughed as she pressed a soft, open-mouthed kiss against his collarbone, nibbling softly at the skin. "No, not here. Do you want to?" He nodded wordlessly before he had even processed what she was asking, and he let out an embarrassing whine as she stood up from his lap. She laughed as she grabbed her school bag and offered him her hand. "Don't be sad, Seth, I'm about to do much better."

He stood up, taking her hand and allowing her to lead him as they entered the empty school hallway. First period was only half over at this point, so they had plenty of time for what Sydney had planned. She glanced around the hallway to make certain no one was watching who would rat them out, then she pulled Seth into the boys' bathroom and let the door swing shut behind them.

He went to step farther into the bland white room, and she stopped him, pushing him back against the door as she smirked. "Ready, Sethy?" Her long, purple stiletto nails toyed with the zipper on his jeans as he nodded hesitantly, shrugging his arms out of his hoodie as he felt his heartbeat picking up and sweat beading on his forehead. "Good."

He gulped, forcing himself to swallow past the nervous lump in his throat as she popped the button open on his jeans and slowly tugged the zipper down, teasing him. Her lips left soft, almost tender kisses down his throat as his breath came out in short pants and he found himself trying to recite the tribal legends in his head as he felt the heat in his belly flare out. "Sydney…What if…I've never…"

"I know. Don't worry about anything, Seth. I promise I'll take good care of you." She murmured, sucking gently on his Adam's apple as his jeans sagged around his thighs. His boxers could barely contain his rock-hard length and he was glad that she hadn't looked yet; her head was still tucked into his neck as she ran her palm over his cock a few times, rubbing and gently stroking it through his underwear. Fear made his body stiffen up as she slowly started to move down his body and he instinctively grabbed her biceps to stop her.

"Wait!" His teeth dug into his bottom lip slightly as she looked up at him, startled. "I uh…I know I won't be what you're used to…"

She stared at him emotionlessly for a long moment and he felt the dread building, replacing that fiery heat in his belly. He was positive he had ruined everything for real this time, and he was about to fix his pants when she shook her head with a small, bittersweet smile. "If I was happy with what I already had, why would I still be looking?" He couldn't answer that; out of all the things he had expected this morning, this wasn't one of them at all. All he could do was gape at her as her hand delved into his underwear and her soft, silky skin made its first contact with his aching cock.

"Oh, fu-" He cut himself off, his head falling back against the door with a thud as he tried to control himself. 'Tribal warriors descended from wolves, they were spirit wolves-' She continued stroking him slowly as she kissed her way down his chest over his shirt, pausing to smirk at the bold white lettering across his chest.

"Skooma?" She asked conversationally, her hand never stopping its slow, lazy motion in his boxers as he tried to remember how to form words that weren't curses and pleas.

"I-it's a S-S-S-Sky-" He gave up as she laughed, crouching in front of him as she pressed a soft kiss just under his belly button in the patch of soft hairs there.

"Skyrim potion." His eyes widened as he gaped down at her, seeing her smiling up at him as she pulled her hand away to push his boxers down the rest of the way. "Do you know what the effects of Skooma are? Why it's so addictive and illegal in Tamriel?"

"Uhm…I don't…Don't stop please." He whined as her hand left him, only to moan softly as she giggled, bringing her hand back to continue stroking him as she teasingly pressed her tongue to his glistening tip for the first time.

"Skooma causes bouts of euphoria and ecstasy." She smirked, twirling her tongue against his tip like he was her favorite flavor of popsicle and she was savoring him.

'Is this really happening?' He groaned softly as he grasped at the air, torn between holding the handle of the door and taking hold of her thick, dark hair; finally, he gripped the bottom of his t-shirt, struggling to keep control and not make a fool of himself as she slowly started to bob her head, taking his length deeper into her mouth. 'This is happening.'

Sydney continued her slow, teasing pace for what felt like hours, but couldn't have been more than a few minutes as Seth felt the tell-tale signs that he was getting close. One hand, his nerves finally dashed, gained purchase in her thick, wavy hair and the other grasped the cool metal door handle by his hip as he instinctively rocked his hips, driving himself deeper into her mouth as she worked her tongue along his length.

"Sydney…God, don't stop. Please don't stop. I…" He babbled as his breath escaped him in short, harsh pants and his legs threatened to buckle. He knew he wasn't going to last much longer at all, and he hoped she wouldn't hold it against him.

Sydney smirked as she lifted her head, releasing him with a pop and stroking him much more easily now as his cock glistened with her saliva. "Gonna cum for me, Seth?" He nodded, watching her, enraptured as she brought her head down and gently sucked on his balls, stroking him steadily as her warm, brown eyes gazed into his.

Seth moaned, gripping her hair so tightly he wondered if she would get mad, but he couldn't control it, "Oh, my god…" As his release washed over him, his head fell back against the door with a resounding thump and he finally broke their eye contact as his eyes shut in pure bliss.

There were a few moments of silence as Sydney's head moved back up, sucking on his tip momentarily before she giggled. "See? I can do a lot better than making out." He forced himself to open his eyes, smiling at her lethargically before he saw the mess he had made on her face and he flushed crimson.

"Sorry…" He murmured, biting his bottom lip softly as he started to pull his jeans back up, tucking his now softening length back into his boxers. He wasn't sure what to do now; he had just shared the most thrilling and private moment of his short life with her, what did that call for? A firm handshake and a respectful salute?

Sydney frowned at his apology, staying crouched with her hands resting on her thighs as she tilted her head slightly in confusion. "For what?"

Seth gently moved a strand of her hair away from her face so it wouldn't fall into the sticky mess and managed a small smile as he gestured. "I'm sorry I kinda…messed up your face…"

She laughed, finally understanding as she stood up and shrugged. "Don't worry about it, cum washes off. If I minded, I would've moved." He watched as she walked over to the sinks and cleaned herself up, taking a quick glance at her ass as she bent over, then looking away respectfully as he finished doing up his jeans. As she washed her face, he could see the makeup washing off and the bruises stood out even more on her caramel colored skin. He wanted to ask about them, but he knew it would probably be crossing a line that Sydney didn't want crossed. He wouldn't push her; it wasn't his place.

The bathroom door started to open before Sydney could finish, and Seth quickly stepped back against it and grabbed the handle, barring anyone from entering. Sydney glanced up in the mirror, an expression Seth couldn't identify on her face as she finished washing his mess off her face and turned the water off.

"Come on, man, I have to go!" A voice called from behind the door, accompanied by a few loud knocks.

"Thank you." He murmured, looking at her reflection as she smiled, patting her face dry with a paper towel. Neither of them paid any attention to whoever was trying to get in, although he could've sworn that he saw a bit of fear in her eyes before she turned away and ducked her head.

"You don't have to thank me, Seth. If anything, that was me thanking you." She tossed the paper towel into the trash can tucked into the corner and came over, pressing against him gently. "No guy has ever just sat and talked to me without wanting something in return." Her lips pressed against his softly and his hands came to rest on her hips as they just stood together a moment in their afterglow.

"You didn't have to do this for me, though. You just looked like you needed someone." He spoke softly against her lips as she smiled, never breaking the chaste, tender kiss.

Another round of obnoxious banging at the door broke them apart and Sydney gave Seth a coy smile as she grabbed his black hoodie from where it had fallen to the floor at the beginning of their tryst. "How about you be what I need, and I'll be what you need then?"

He nodded, opening his mouth to reply, but before he could do anything else, Sydney draped his hoodie across her shoulders, pushed her sunglasses back over the heavy, purple bruises on her face, and strode out of the bathroom, past the dumbfounded boy who had been trying to get in, and down the hallway confidently with her head held high as people began to whisper.