Yay! For once I managed to update within a month! I know it's still been a while but hey, I'm working on it. Anyway, thank you guys for reading and I hope you enjoy the next chapter. Unless I get some serious inspiration soon, I think this story is going to start winding down but I do have quite a bit of story left to tell so we'll see.
Also, I want to thank DisneyLover16 because she/he (sorry, I don't know) has given me quite a bit of inspiration as for what is going to happen as well as all the other people who always review because it makes my day about 1,000 times better. Thank you!
I'm not sure why I let it happen. It probably had something to do with the fact that it was two in the morning, or maybe it had to do with the fact that every time she spoke it was like a drug, but one way or the other we woke up the next morning wrapped in each others arms with nothing on but the covers to the sound of an unwanted familiar voice in my living room.
"Mr. Moon? Hello. I'm Owen - Ally's fiancé." The voice drifted up the stairs and through the walls like a ghost.
"Of course, we met quite a while ago," my dad answered.
"Have you seen Ally? She's been gone since last night," the unwanted voice said as slowly, as if it were distracted in some way.
"No, I don't believe I have," my dad answered in a somewhat skeptical way, as if he were already in the house or looking for something, obviously not paying attention to their conversation.
I shook Ally before I realized that she was awake too, listening intently. She seemed kind of frozen where she was, not wanting to get up but not wanting to stay where she was, like a dear in headlights.
"C'mon, Ally. Put your clothes on. He doesn't have to know you were ever here." It was painful to say anything that could lead to a reunion between the Ally and Owen, but I was trying desperately to do the right thing, or at least what I thought was the right thing.
"Is Austin here?" the voice asked from downstairs.
"Yeah," my dad answered again. "He's in his room. Second door on the right, Knock first." He seemed as if he didn't want Owen in the house, but Owen had already forced himself in and was halfway up the stairs - I could hear his footsteps coming up. I tugged Ally's arm and she looked at me slowly, then shook her head. Suddenly I realized why she hadn't rushed to get up - she wanted to get caught.
"Ally, come on. Get up!" I pushed her again but she was rooted to her spot among the mess of blankets.
"I'm not moving. He's an ass. I'm not going to marry him, so why not give him a taste of his own medicine?" I could hear Owen's footsteps as he climbed the stairs, stopping outside my door and waiting. "Austin," she muttered, wrapping her arm around my neck as I sat staring at the door, "don't move." She tilted my head back until she was almost touching my lips with hers, then waited. The moment seemed as if it were suspended in time, unconnected to the previous or the following. Then I heard a knock. Ally looked me in the eyes and pulled me face close to her, connecting our lips as I heard the doorknob turn. To say I was torn would be a complete understatement, but I leaned into the kiss and wrapped my hand around Ally's waist, eyes still wide open, waiting, not breathing, and not moving my lips (nor was Ally) as the door creaked open and I turned to see Owen standing in the doorway, red-faced and nonplussed at the sight of Ally and me, lips locked, bodies unclothed, lying among the sheets.
"What the hell do you think you're doing!" Owen wasn't talking to Ally. he was moving across the room rather quickly until he was right at the side of the bed where I was lying. I was suddenly extremely aware of my lack of clothing as he yanked my arm and pulled me mostly out of the bed and I had to grab the comforter to cover myself.
"Wait, Ow-." It was very sudden. My vision was blurry and I was aware of a very acute pain on my left cheek. Owen was gripping his right hand and staring angrily at me.
Now, I'd been punched before, but never like this. Never with so much blind fury behind it. Also, only once without a boxing glove on the other guy's hand. I held my cheek tight and stumbled back so my knees hit the bed and it took a moment until I was standing steadily.
I heard Ally pull a sheet around herself and get out of the bed, all the while screaming at Owen.
"What the fuck, Owen. Get the hell out of here. Now! Austin, are you okay. Owen! NOW!"
His footsteps echoed as he pounded toward the doorway, slamming it behind him. I listened as his car revved in the driveway and sped down the road toward the highway.
Ally's hand moved my own away from my bruised cheek while her other hand held the bunched up sheet at her chest. She inspected my cheek and then turned me to face her. Her eyes were red and pained. She was trying extremely hard not to cry.
"I'm so sorry, Austin. I never meant for that to happen. I just wanted to show him what it feels like to-"
I placed my lips against hers, then pulled away, holding both her wrists and her gaze. "I don't care. If I only had to take a punch to protect you, then I should consider myself lucky. Ally, I'd take a hundred punches if it meant protecting you. Hell, I'd run in front of a bullet just to save your pet bird. I'd do anything to protect you." She smiled.
"Now there's just one small problem," she whispered, her voice hoarse from her attempted stoicism. She shifted her gaze around my room, looking anywhere but in my eyes.
"And that is," I prompted, moving my face so her eyes found mine again.
"I'm supposed to marry that jackass in two days." Clearly, last night's decision was not final, and the fact that she was supposed to marry Owen carried weight in her decision-making.
"And are you," I asked, feeling my throat start to close up at the thoughts swirling back into my head. After everything that's happened in the past few hours, could she possibly be thinking about marrying him.
"No," she murmured, leaning close to me, her breathe on my face. Why was she acting sexy at a time like this?
"Come on. We really should get dressed and... and...," I started, searching for what kind of activity should fill in the rest of that sentence.
"Well, I was thinking we go tell Owen what a dick he actually is, then, maybe, ice cream?" I smiled at her. She'd always been quite levelheaded, even in an extreme situation, and now she was making jokes, I was suddenly remembering why I liked her so much back when we were teenagers.
"Yeah. I'd like to talk to him about what just happened. You know, man to fist."
She grinned back at me. I couldn't help but feel like this was another facade, more stoicism like she'd used back when her mom left again for Africa after the first time we started dating. I didn't have too long to think, though, before she tugged me out the door and into my car, still pulling my shirt over my head. As we sat in my truck, she turned to me and nodded, just a little, and I saw her eyes burning - with what, I'll never know.
Thank you guys for reading and reviewing. I know it's only a couple days before a month but hey, progress :)
The story's winding down now, but the best is yet to come. The more inspiration you guys give me the longer and better the story is going to be, though, so keep that in mind. Thank you so much!
