A Thousand Paper Cranes 2
By Delilah Anne Marie
2009, March 15
Author's Note: This chapter has a slight M rating, although I honestly don't find it too sexual. Either that or I'm just a freak. Hahahaha! I joke, I joke. Writing it was a lot more unbearable for me, as I found myself blushing all over the place. XD Anyway, just so that we have an understanding, this chapter is slightly M rated! M rated! M rated! M rated! M rated! Don't say I didn't warn you.
PS: I edited TPC 1 and crunched chapters together. I also made VIDEOS! Yay! It was fun. Check out my homepage for links to those videos.
Summary: Benny leads a life of happiness. He's popular with his friends, talented in baseball, and has the adoration and support of the love of his life. All of that changes, however, after he rescues an unhappy and naive girl whose intentions may not be as innocent as Benny thinks.
Chapter 6: Three Year Anniversary
Benny was fuming when he left Coach Rose's office. His initial instinct about Mr. Green was right. On the outside, the man was as friendly as Ward Cleaver from Leave it to Beaver. But in reality, he was a complete phony with two faces and a black heart. You'd think a rich man could buy himself some manners, Benny mused as he stalked to the parking lot.
"Hey, stud," Janie greeted from the passenger side of his truck. "You still up for tonight?"
"Of course!" Benny said, glad that he had someone who knew how to instantly take his mind off his problems. "As if I'd pass up the chance to be spoiled."
"That's right, because we all know the strong and macho Benny 'The Jet' loves to be babied and pampered."
"Definitely," Benny said sarcastically as he got into the truck and planted a brief kiss on Janie's forehead. "He just loves to be cuddled. He loves to be kissed. He loves to have his hair played with and his belly rubbed. Isn't he just cute?"
Janie scrunched her nose. "I hate how you talk to yourself in third person."
"Benny doesn't do that!"
The two of them drove in comfortable silence to Benny's house. Their third year anniversary was on a school day, much to their dissatisfaction, and so the best they could do was to celebrate at home—or so Janie thought.
After Benny had dropped off Janie, he went home to shower and made a quick call to Mr. Reynolds, reminding him that he was planning on taking Janie out for dinner.
"I know you'll bring her home safe," Mr. Reynolds had said over the phone. "I trust you." Benny hung up knowing Mr. Reynolds had a double meaning to his words. I trust you'll bring my daughter home safe…and a virgin.
Benny dressed himself in clean khaki slacks and a black and white striped polo over his undershirt. He folded his long sleeves to his elbows and snapped his silver watch to his wrist, noticing it was time to pick up Janie. He hurriedly grabbed his wallet and keys before saying goodbye to his parents and walking next door to the Reynolds' house.
Benny knocked on the door and waited before hearing squeals and commotions from inside the house.
"He's here! He's here!" Benny heard Marie screaming down the hall. She opened the door wide open and flashed him a smile, exposing the gap where her front two teeth should have been.
"Hiya, Benny!"
"Hi, Marie. You look excited. Is there a special occasion I should know about?"
Marie giggled. "Duh! Just because I'm seven doesn't mean I don't know what's going on."
"Oh really? And what do you think is going to happen today?"
Marie cupped her hands around her mouth as she tried to whisper. "I heard Lexi telling mama that you're going to ask Janie to marry you?"
Benny grinned. He had thought about proposing to Janie tonight, but the idea seemed too predictable.
"Mama and Papa think you're both too young," Marie continued to whisper. "But don't worry. I think eighteen is the best age to get married. Cause then you know the person forever by then."
The comment caused Benny to laugh loudly. "Did you ask Lexi what she thought?"
"Yep. She said it doesn't matter what age you get married, cause only a fool would do something like that."
"That sounds like something Lexi would say."
Benny continued to smile at the little girl as she took his hand and dragged him into the house. His steps faltered, however, when he found himself facing the most beautiful vision he had ever seen.
"Hello, Benny," Janie said gently as she stepped onto the landing of the stair case. He looked at the top of the stairs where Lexi and Sue Reynolds stood making giggling and snickering noises. They had obviously come to tease him and Janie, who continued to stand shyly at the base of the stairs.
"I'm not too dressed up, am I?" Janie asked as she tugged on the short, white lacy fabric of her dollie dress. With matching bow pumps on her feet, pearl earrings, and her long dark locks left to hang down, she was a little more than dressed up. She made Benny feel completely underdressed, but that was the last thing on his mind as he tried to find the right words to say.
"No," he said a little breathlessly. "You look gorgeous. You look perfect." The comment got Lexi to start making gagging noises in the background.
"I guess that's our cue to leave," Benny said as he took Janie's hand and led her out the door. He made sure to wave at Mrs. Reynolds before patting Marie on the head and taking Janie out.
"Benny? Why's your car parked in front of the house?" Janie asked, a bit confused as to why he was opening the passenger side door. "I thought we were going to watch a movie at your house?"
Benny scoffed as he helped Janie into the truck. "As if! I'm going to treat my lovely girlfriend out to dinner on our anniversary. Not a lame movie night."
Benny got into the truck and started the engine, making sure to hold Janie's hand throughout the whole ride. He had kept the destination of their date a secret, hoping Janie wouldn't recognize the road he was taking.
After driving for about half-an-hour, Benny parked the car in an empty lot and turned off the engine.
"Where are we?" Janie asked as she looked out the window. They were in a quaint part of town. The streets were empty, and every shop looked as if they were already closing.
"It's a surprise," Benny repeated before flashing her a crooked grin. "I know it bugs you when you're not on top of things or when you're not on schedule or whatever, so I'll give you a vague outline of tonight. First, I'm going to take you to a fancy dinner where you won't have to pay a cent. No, no, don't argue with me on that one. I'm paying for you like a real man. Then, if we have time, I'm going to take you back to my place so we can watch a movie. How does that sound, love?"
Janie clasped her hands together and smiled. "That sounds great! Oh, Benny, I could kiss you for actually planning something like this."
"No one's stopping you."
Janie giggled lightly at his mischievousness before wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him softly. She began to pull away when Benny deepened the kiss, tugging her body closer to his as he ran his hand down her back. He grasped her bottom briefly before releasing her lips, ending their short but heated kiss.
"A promise of what's to come, baby," Benny teased after he saw Janie's look of reluctance. "Just enjoy the night, okay?"
Janie nodded her head and jumped out of the car before Benny could open the door for her, and the two of them walked across the street towards a white-painted restaurant draped with roses and ivy. The sign at the top read "Pomodoro Trattoria."
"Italian?"
"Yep. It's a popular pizzeria."
"But it looks like it's closed," Janie said as she pointed at the "closed" sign in front of the window.
Benny continued to lead Janie up the steps and inside the restaurant. "Don't worry," he said as he tapped the bell in the front desk. "I pulled some strings."
"Of course you did."
Suddenly, a man dressed in black trousers, a clean white dress shirt, and a bow tie entered the lobby. Janie recognized him as…
"Zee? Zee Witherspoon?"
"That's my name, little lady. And a lucky little lady, I might add." Janie gave him a knowing look as she put two and two together. Benny had obviously gotten Zee to help him prepare dinner. She made a mental note to properly thank Zee herself.
"So, now that we all know each other, I'll be your waiter tonight. Please, let me show you to your seats." Benny held Janie's hand as they followed Zee to the other room. All the chairs had already been stacked upside down on the tables. All except for a small table for two in front of the stage.
Soft music suddenly began playing as Zee offered a chair for Janie. She took it gratefully and watched as he lit the two candle sticks in front of her and Benny before returning to the lobby. He came back in a few minutes with a large round tray and served them soup, followed by chicken fettuccini and stuffed pizza. Being the extreme food lovers that Benny and Janie were, however, they managed to scarf down all the food in record time, much to Zee's satisfaction.
At the moment, Benny and Janie stood intimately close together as they danced along to the soft, classical music being played in the background.
"So, a candle-lit dinner for two? It sounds like something out of a chick flick."
Benny continued to grin. He hadn't been able to stop since they got there. "Are you going to deduct points for unoriginality?"
"Au contraire. I ought to give you more just for being able to plan this all out when you're so notorious for procrastinating."
"Yeah, well, I'll admit that I had to get some help. Smalls came up with the idea, of course. And Ham and Squints were the one who told me Zee was working here."
"Ham. Smalls. Squints." Janie sighed heavily and sulked a bit. "I don't see much of them anymore. School's so hectic for me. How are they?"
"Busy. Squints can't even leave Wendy alone for a second. I can't even begin to mention how nauseating they are in public. I predict they'll have about seven kids one day."
"I say nine."
"Smalls, on the other hand, doesn't really take care of Johnnie. Rather, Johnnie's the one taking care of him."
"Ah, I know. I saw little Johnnie seeing Smalls off to school last week. What about Ham?"
"Ham's growing an afro."
Janie laughed a little before sobering up instantly. "Are you scared that we're all growing away from each other?"
Benny shook his head. "No. I like to think that we've already engraved a special part in each other's hearts. And I know I'll always have you, right?"
"That's true. You'll always have me, and I'll always have you. But what about after high school, Benny? You know there's a possibility that I'll be going to Berkeley. It's miles away from home."
"But there's a chance you might be going to the University of Southern California. That's only thirty-three minutes away from my college."
Janie looked at him sympathetically before moving her eyes to his shoulder. "I got my acceptance letter from Juilliard this morning."
"Juilliard? For ballet?" Benny asked as his face fell. "In New York?"
"Mmhmm. They're even offering me a scholarship, Benny. It's the only school that's willing to give me a full ride."
Benny nodded his head in understanding. Her parents had paid an extravagant amount of money sending their eldest daughter, Diane, to school out of state. He knew it wouldn't be a problem for them to pay Janie's tuition as well, but it would seriously put a dent in their wallets if they had to put all their daughters through college. And knowing the Reynolds', they were willing to go bankrupt just to make sure all four of their daughters became successful.
"You know I wouldn't leave so far from home unless I really had to, Benny. I just don't want my parents paying a cent for me to go to school. Especially when I don't want to go."
Then stay, Benny wanted to tell her. But he couldn't bring himself to do that. Even if he wanted her with him, he knew she deserved more than community college and a part-time job.
"Don't get me wrong," Janie continued. "I love ballet. I love writing for the school newspaper, too. But I just don't see myself having an occupation that deals with either of those hobbies. If anything, I feel reluctant about going to a university. I really don't know what I want to do, Benny."
Which is why you should just marry me, Benny wanted to tell her, too. He hoped that by proposing to her, she would have more options to play with. But mainly, he hoped it would make her happy rather than just adding another bothersome piece to her plate.
"Benny? Now would be a good time to say something." Benny looked at Janie again and noticed they had already stopped dancing. He tried to muster a smile, but found it hard to hide his gloom. He hated talking about post graduation plans. Especially when Janie talked about the distances that would soon be separating them.
"Let's go home," Benny said before gently kissing her forehead. "I kept you here longer than I should have. You're dad's probably camping out on the doorstep waiting for you." Benny took Janie's hand and led her to the lobby where Zee had fallen asleep. They woke him up and thanked him kindly before leaving the restaurant and going back to the truck.
It was a silent ride home. Benny knew it struck a chord in him when they got around to talking about college. It was one of the real reasons why he sometimes couldn't bring himself to propose. Yes, they were young. Everyone always made that point. But it's not as if he would get Janie to marry him right away. He wanted her to go to college first. Heck, even community college with him was enough. He just wanted to give her some kind of reassurance that he was always going to be hers, and that he was always going to try and be there for her, whether they still live next door to each other, or across the expanse of the United States. But mainly, he knew he wanted reassurance from her as well—that she was going to be his, and that she was always going to try and be there for him.
It had started raining, and lightning was sporadically illuminating the sky as Benny dropped off Janie at home. They kissed each other briefly before parting ways, knowing the night had been somewhat ruined by their post-graduation talk. Benny mentally beat himself up for letting his emotions wreck his anniversary with Janie. He tried not to let his dour mood get in the way, but the more he thought about colleges and universities and separations, the more he drowned himself in worry.
Unwilling to greet his parents tonight, Benny ran loudly up the stairs, hoping it was enough to let them know he was home. But judging by their shut bedroom door and the lack of sound in the house, Benny suspected they must have fallen asleep. He stepped into his dark room and locked the door behind him before unbuttoning his polo and collapsing on his bed, not even bothering to turn on the lights. He was exhausted, both mentally and physically. The day had started out amazingly well, and he was sorry it had to end the way it did. How someone could have so much bad luck in one day was beyond him.
Suddenly, a knock from his balcony door caught Benny's attention. He hurried to the glass doors, knowing full well who it was, and let Janie inside his bedroom.
"What are you doing?" Benny whispered sternly as lightning illuminated Janie's soaked figure. "It's pouring rain outside, Janie. You know you could have slipped and fallen? What were you thinking?"
"I'm sorry," she whispered as she ran her fingers through her wet hair. "It's just—I feel awful. I know you don't like talking about college, Benny, but I wanted to let you know that if I did leave home, it wouldn't be because I want something more than you. My parents just want to see me well off, you know, and it would really make them feel at ease if it looked like I knew what I wanted in life and…Oh God, I'm talking about this again, aren't I?"
Benny shook his head as he tried to chuckle. "It's alright, Janie. I really shouldn't have let it bother me. Especially tonight."
"No. I'm the one who shouldn't have brought it up to begin with. I'm really sorry, Benny."
"Again, it's okay, baby. You know I could never bring myself to really get mad at you. Now, is that what you almost broke your neck trying to come here for?" Janie nodded her head slowly as she kept her eyes on the floor. Another bold of lightning illuminated the room, letting Benny see Janie shiver from the damp coldness of her skin.
"Come on, Janie. I'll help you get across to your balcony so you can get into something warm. And then I'll help you go to sleep, okay?" Benny grabbed Janie's hand and stepped out into the balcony. The rain had soaked him in seconds, and he cringed thinking of how terrible it would have been had Janie slipped and fallen on her way to apologize. He kicked himself again in the head for letting his negative emotion ruin the night.
"Wait, Benny," Janie said as she remained rooted to the spot inside his room. Benny sighed and slipped back inside, shutting the glass door to keep the chill out. "There's something else I came here for. You promised me something."
Benny wracked his brain as he tried to think of what he had possibly said. There was nothing he could think of. And before he could ask her what promise he had made, she had lunged herself at him and pressed her mouth to his. At first, Benny was a bit too stunned to respond as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. She slowly pulled away before bringing her lips close to his ear and whispering.
"A promise of what's to come. Will you give it to me?"
The words sunk in as Benny recalled his brief moment with Janie in his truck. He had planned to take her back to his house for a movie, hoping to shower her with hugs and kisses before ending the night. But he didn't expect her to take his words as anything but playful, and at the moment, he knew she was offering more than just a few intimate minutes alone.
Benny remained quiet as he stared into Janie's eyes. His silent answer came when he wrapped his arms around her waist and slowly bent forward to kiss her. She returned it with equal gentleness and, within seconds, they were holding each other tightly as their kiss deepened to an intense degree.
Some might call them fools for being so emotionally close to a single person, intent on never letting them go when there were "plenty of other fishes in the sea." But that didn't matter to them. Not when their problems were in the future and they surely had today. There were things they were unsure about, but at least they knew they wanted each other. They knew what made them happy, and they were blessed by receiving it.
"Benny," Janie whispered as she pulled her lips away and began leaving kisses along Benny's jaw line. "I love you. You have no idea how much you mean to me." Benny sighed in contentedness, her words of affection coursing through him and driving his need for her.
"I love you too, baby. I love you so damn much." Unable to wait for the return of her lips to his, he hurriedly ran his hands down her thighs to grasp her bottom, pulling her up against his hard length. The action caused her to jump up and straddle his waist, overwhelming the heat that was already building up through the coldness of their moist skin. He let her find his mouth again and returned her kisses with equal fervor, loving the feel of her tongue as he rigorously explored her mouth.
He was losing his senses again, realizing more than once that his balance was trembling from the turbulence of their passions. He released her lips again and carried her to his empty bed, laying her down gently before hovering over her to shed his polo and pull off his undershirt. Almost immediately, he pushed her dress up to her waist, allowing him to spread her legs and to rest his weight where she wanted it most. He found great satisfaction in the way her body arched closer to his, her pelvis rising to grind against him. As much as he wanted to delve himself inside of her, he didn't want to rush the moment. He wanted to memorize every part of her body. He wanted to relish every moment of his time with her. But within only a matter of minutes, the dress had been pulled over Janie's head and discarded onto the floor, followed by their remaining articles of clothing, and the two of them became swept up in an urgent need for each other's love.
The rolls of lightning and thunder refused to desist as the rain continued to heavily fall. Benny collapsed on top of Janie, who continued to wrap her arms and legs around him, his hardness still buried inside of her. He held her in an embrace, waiting for his ragged breathing to slow down. At the moment, he knew separating from her would be harder than if nothing had happened to them that night. But he couldn't bring himself to regret it. It was much too beautiful of a memory to feel repentant.
Benny turned his head from the crook of Janie's neck and kissed her cheek again. She turned her face towards him and rested her forehead on his, giving him a butterfly kiss in the process. Janie smiled, feeling overwhelmed at the emotions that making love evoked.
"I love you," Janie whispered lovingly as he gathered her tighter in his arms and kissed her lips again. "Thank you for giving me so much, darling."