I'm going to be honest, I'm not happy with the way this chapter came out.
Thanks for the reviews! Keep them coming, please, they motivate me.
Paul fell back against the car seat, panting softly as he grinned, caressing Sidney's hips as she sat astride him, her chest heaving beneath her thin black camisole. "Feel better?"
Sidney shrugged, raising her hips and letting her denim skirt fall over her hips as she clambered into the passenger seat, grabbing her thong from the floorboard. "Don't I usually?"
"That's not an answer, Sid." He reached over, gripping her wrist gently as she avoided looking at him, staring down at the lace in her hands instead. "What's going on? You've been acting funny all week."
"I'm fine. God, what's with the third degree all of a sudden?" She asked in frustration, slipping her panties on and pulling her arm away from his grasp. "I just needed to get laid is all."
"Sidney, you've never needed it this often before." He watched his best friend, frowning as he reached out to smooth her hair away from her eyes. "Is Clark bothering you again?"
"He's not came in from Seattle for months." Sidney whispered, bringing her legs up onto the seat and wrapping her arms around them. "I've just…You wouldn't understand."
"Try me. I've been understanding you for ten years at least." Paul murmured, pulling a cigarette from the visor and lighting it as they watched a few seniors returning from lunch.
Sidney stayed quiet for a moment, peering out the window and letting the summer breeze cool her flushed skin. "People think I'm wild."
"That's never bothered you before." His brows furrow before he realizes what's going on. "Clearwater say something to you? I'll kick his ass."
"No! Jesus, Paul, can you think with something besides your fists or your dick once in a while?" Sidney sighs, shaking her head as she rests her chin on her knees. "I've just been thinking a lot lately."
"You love me for my fists and my dick though." Paul jokes, then reaches out to pull her closer across the bench seat of his truck. "Come on, Sid. What's really bothering you?"
Sidney laid her head against his shoulder, taking a deep breath of his spicy cologne and ignoring his sweat slickened skin. "Do you think there's something wrong with me?"
"There's nothing wrong with you. You're in a shitty situation and you found what makes you happy. Don't worry about what other people think of you." He says softly, his fingertips running down her bicep as they relax together.
"But what if I don't want to just be the easy fuck at school anymore?" She whispers, remembering the way that Seth had looked at her. He hadn't acted like she was a quick piece of ass. He had talked to her, kissed her, held her. But she wasn't good enough for that.
"You're not easy. Do you know how hard it is to keep up with you? It's like running a marathon with one leg while your partner has a motorcycle." Paul laughed, kissing her tussled hair then gently pushing her away so he could fix his jeans.
"Gee, thanks. I'm glad sex with me brings such a sexy image to mind." Sidney smiles, reaching into the floor to grab her bag as Paul laughed, watching her fondly.
"You know what I mean. You deserve the world, Sid. Don't let them tell you any less." Paul spoke quietly, watching as she pulled her big black hoodie over her shoulders again. "Don't you ever take that thing off? Pretty soon it'll start stinking."
"Look who's talking; this whole truck smells like pussy and Mcdonald's fries." She laughed, zipping the hoodie up to just under her breasts before she got out of the truck.
"And whose fault is that?" Paul laughed, watching her walk back into the school as he finished his cigarette alone.
Sidney mulled over his words as she reentered the school, feeling the cool AC on her skin and relaxing as she moseyed her way down the hallway mindlessly. 'He's right. I've never let anyone make me this upset before. I don't care what Sue Clearwater thinks of me!' Her shoulders slumped as she remembered how Seth shuffled after his mom that day. 'But what if Seth thinks like that too?'
As she paused in front of the sophomore lockers, she saw him leaning against his, his head bowed and earbuds in as he flipped through a textbook. Somehow, she didn't think he did. But still, he was here studying, and she had just slept with her best friend in the parking lot on their lunch hour.
Two different worlds.
She turned, intending to walk away but he happened to look up, catching her eyes with his own. A warm smile spread over his lips as he shut his book and slipped through the crowd to meet up with her. "Sidney!"
She waited for him, smiling softly as she smoothed her hair and tried to ignore the ache Paul had left between her thighs.
He finally made it across the hall and bounded up to her side, grinning down at her. "I thought you were mad at me. I swear, I didn't know-"
"Wanna get out of here?" She cut him off, giving him a soft smile as she looked up into his eyes.
He glanced up at his friends, seeing Collin's disapproving glare and Brady's shit-eating grin. He looked back down into Sidney's dark eyes and nodded, shoving his Biology book into his bag. "Let's go."
They slipped out the school doors as Collin and Brady watched in shock. "His mom's going to kill him." Collin muttered, shaking his head.
"But it'll be worth it." Brady laughed, shutting his own locker and heading to their next class as Collin trailed behind.
"So where are we going?" Seth asked, walking by her side as she led him down the road from the school, their sneakers thumping on the concrete in unison.
"I just needed some air." She sighed softly as she gazed out into the pale blue sky, her eyes following the shapes of the swirling clouds as Seth watched her.
"Is everything okay?" He asked softly as she smiled, laughing humorlessly.
"Nothing has ever been okay for me, Seth." She played with the small amethyst pendant that hung above her cleavage, shrugging. "What do you think of me?"
"What?" He frowned, neither of them noticing as the pavement turned to the sand and grass and stones of First Beach.
"What do you think of me? As a person, I mean. Beyond the fact that I suck you off and piss your mom off." She asked quietly, but clearly. Seth stopped walking as she bent down, kicking her sneakers off and picking them up, continuing down the sand barefoot.
"I think…I don't know you. You're beautiful and you've been nice to me and I don't think that you would ever be mean to me, or anyone else without reason. But I don't know much about you." Seth answered honestly, stepping up behind her and feeling her body mold against his as they looked out at the calm waters. "I want to, though."
"What about your mom? She thinks I'm a threat to your future." Sidney let out a soft, shuddering breath as Seth unzipped his hoodie and his hands slipped under, caressing her stomach and holding her closer to him.
"Mom doesn't get to control me, Sidney. You make me happy, and I want to make you as happy as I've been with you." His lips pressed gently against her pounding pulse point, just below her ear. She smelled like coconuts and something deeper, almost spicy like cinnamon.
"You don't know me though. I'm a lot to handle." Her head slowly tilted, giving him more access to her neck as her eyes slipped shut and her body sunk against him. He was supporting her fully now; if he moved, she would fall into the sand.
His arms wrapped around her waist, holding her tightly as the breeze picked up, making her hair flutter and carrying her scent to him in a strong wave. "Then teach me."
They fell back into the sand together, Seth landing on his school bag as Sidney landed on top, her skirt riding up on her hips as she turned to straddle him. He wriggled his bag off his shoulders, tossing it away from them and bringing his hands to her hips, holding her firmly against him as she stared into his eyes, his hoodie falling down her shoulders like a shrug. "Think you can keep up?"
He answered her by tangling his fingers in her thick hair and pressing his lips against hers in a searing kiss that made her toes curl in the sand.
"We aren't dating." She murmured, tracing small circles on his chest with her nails, enjoying the way it made him shiver beneath her fingertips.
"I know." He acknowledged, gently caressing her ass as she cuddled up to his side. Her head was resting on his chest and her leg thrown over his hip, her foot tucked behind his knee.
"When's your birthday again?" She raised her head, turning onto her stomach slightly to look up into his eyes. They were always so warm and inviting, like he was an open book that would love anyone. She didn't get a lot of that.
He smiled, gently cupping her cheek. His smile turned into a grin as she pressed her face into his touch, turning her head to kiss his palm lightly. "A week and 3 days."
"Good." She smiled, trailing her kisses down his wrist as they stared into each other's eyes. "Think you can wait that long?"
"Can you?" He whispered, his other hand resting on her ass. His long fingers grazed the edge of her thong and she bit her lip softly, already feeling the need starting to come back. 'Paul was right. I've never been this bad before.'
Instead of answering, she sat up and gently disentangled herself from his embrace. She couldn't promise that, she knew she couldn't. "We should head back. I have to pick Juno up at Nona's before 4."
He nodded, sighing softly in disappointment as he felt her rebuilding her walls with each piece of clothing she put on. He reached for his discarded t-shirt and stood up, stretching as he put it back on. His neck ached and, hearing him hiss softly in pain, Sidney smiled ruefully. "Guess I got a little carried away. Sorry 'bout that."
"Don't be." He grinned as he reached out, tracing a finger along the faint red mark peeking out from the edge of her top. "I got you back pretty good."
Sidney smiled as she felt herself blushing, a rare occurrence. "You might wanna hide those before your mom gives you another STD test."
Seth laughed, wrapping his arms around Sidney's hips and pulling her closer as he savored the feeling of having her close to him, their bare feet in the sand, and the water rolling quietly in the background. "If she does, it's worth it. I'd take a q-tip to the mouth any day if it meant I get to hold you again."
"You're so romantic, Seth." Sidney smiled, leaning up to press her lips against his once more before they had to part ways.
"Only for you." He responded, echoing her teasing words from last week. She smiled and stepped back, leaning down to grab her bag as he got his shoes on and they headed back up the beach together. "Can I ask something?"
"As long as you don't expect an answer." She smirked, carrying his hoodie over her arm as they walked leisurely towards the school.
Seth laughed, but looked over at her thoughtfully. "What parts of the rumors are true?"
Sidney stayed quiet as they walked, and he had just about given up on getting an answer when she finally responded. "I have a lot of sex, but I don't sleep around as much as I used to. I drink and I smoke, and I occasionally do more, but I'm nowhere near the drug pushing lush people make me out to be." She managed a small, sad smile as she looked back at him. "I had a rough time a couple years ago, around the time Juno was born. That's when the rumors got really bad and I guess I never lived it down."
They reached her car just as the last few stragglers left the school and she smiled as she unlocked the doors. "Need a ride this time?"
"No, I think I'll walk. Tell Juno I said hi." He smiled, kissing her gently on the forehead and making her heart flutter.
"Will do. See you tomorrow." She tossed her stuff behind the seat and got in, starting the car as Seth started to walk away.
He paused as she was flicking through radio stations and called out, "Hey, Sidney?" She poked her head out the window to hear and he smiled brightly at her. "You know I don't care, right?"
"About what?" She frowned softly, leaning against the door to watch him.
"About your past. You're you, you aren't your past and you aren't what any of those rumors say you are." He watched her smile before he turned, walking down the road towards his house as he listened to her car's low rumble.
'That boy is the sweetest person I've ever met.' She thought to herself as she watched him disappear from the rearview mirror before she drove off in the other direction.
It was much later than usual when he finally crept into his house, shutting the door quietly behind him and hoping his mother hadn't made it home from work yet. He waited a moment and heard nothing, so he figured no one was home yet. He had a silly grin on his face as he headed upstairs, tossing his bag down by his door and diving into bed with a pleased sigh. 'Sidney is amazing.'
He closed his eyes, reimagining the afternoon as they cuddled and kissed in the sand for hours. She was content just to lay in his arms and listen to the waves. Her skin still felt like silk against his and a few times he had caught himself caressing her body without notice. She had laughed it off each time, rewarding him with a kiss that always led to them getting carried away again.
Her lips tasted like the finest fruit punch money could buy and she smelled like a tropical vacation, and she was always willing to let him touch her.
All he had to do was wait another week.
Sidney hummed quietly to herself as she walked into her house with Juno on her hip and her bag hanging over her other shoulder. "What did you and Nona do today, little bit?"
She let Juno chatter about her day at the Lahote's as she sat her school bag down on the island. 'I could…study? But study what? I don't even know what's going on in half my classes…Maybe Seth could help.' The thought brought a grin to her lips as she imagined Seth leaning over her shoulder, tutoring her as she teased him… 'That's a library activity for sure.'
She wanted to try to be better this year. Seth was right; her past shouldn't define her forever. With a kiss on Juno's forehead, she sat the little girl down on the carpet and turned to take a seat at the island.
A smirking, pale face with cold grey eyes stared at her from across the island. She bit her tongue, swallowing the scream that instinctively tried to come out as she gripped one of the island seats, keeping it between them as though to shield herself. "C-Clark. I didn't think you'd be- Grace isn't here!"
'Oh, good going. That'll keep you safe.'
He chuckled, a quiet, low sound that chilled her. "I didn't come to see Grace." He stepped around the counter, grabbing Sidney's wrist easily as she tried to move and pulling her closer to him. She could feel the expensive cashmere of his sweater against her skin and smell the fresh, crisp scent of his aftershave as his eyes roamed her body. His nostrils flared and his jaw clenched as he saw the small red hickeys littering her neck and chest. "I came to see my daughter."
"You don't give a shit about Juno." She whispered, cringing away from his hand as he brought his fingers up to caress her cheek. His fingers felt like ice, stealing all the warmth Seth's touch had left her with.
"Of course, I do. I just want to be sure that my daughter isn't going to turn out as much of a whore as her mother. Wouldn't you agree, darling?" He pulled away, smiling once more at his stepdaughter before he moved away, stepping into the living room where Juno sat, watching the exchange with wide eyes.
Sidney turned away, not wanting Juno to see as the quiet, shuddering sobs wracked her body and she tried to stay quiet, refusing to give him the satisfaction of hearing her cry again.
"How's my little girl?" His voice rang out as he picked Juno up, smirking at Sidney as he saw her leaning against the counter, trembling ever so slightly. "I hope your big sister has been taking good care of you."