FicWad

I dial the number with shaking fingers. I can't believe how easy this is. They still live in the same house. With an unlisted number of course, but it had been programed into my brain from my childhood. I shake my head at the luck I was having today.

"Hello?"

"Um, hi. Is this Mrs Smith?" I inhale deeply and desperately try to keep the shaking from my voice.

"Yes, speaking."

"Hello Mrs Smith, you probably don't remember me but I grew up on your block with your son, Spencer? It's Samantha."

"Samantha ... Sammy? Sammy ... Cooper wasn't it?"

"Actually it's Bennett now ..."

"Sammy Cooper! Oh my goodness! Of course I remember you! How have you been? Married now are you?"

"No no, I just ... changed my name that's all. I've been - well actually at the moment I'm not doing too well. See, my ... father passed away recently." It took a lot of effort to say that word.

"Oh honey that's terrible, I'm so sorry to hear."

"It's ok, we weren't very close. But He did leave me the old house just around the corner from you and a little bit of money to renovate it."

"Oh! Oh wow that's fantastic!"

"Yeah it is. See, I need to come back to Summerlin to sign ownership papers and legal documents. And I'd like to look at the house, maybe see if I can get it inhabitable. The letter I have says no one's been living in it for quite a while. Anyway, while I was in town I was thinking of catching up with some of my old friends, sort of like a reunion. So I was wondering if you could help me get in touch with Spencer at all?" I had to focus on every word I uttered to make them sound sincere.

"Oh honey that's a lovely idea! I'm sure Spencer would love to hear from you. It's just that he doesn't live here anymore. And he's asked me not to give out his contact details to anybody. He's in a band now."

"Yeah I heard about that, I understand completely. I was just remembering all the fun we used to have, visiting each other and playing games, remembering the good old days. I've aways felt so guilty about not saying a proper goodbye to him, that's all. It would have been great to catch up with him." I let my disappointment ring clear.

"I'm sorry love. He'll be back home for Thanksgiving though. Will you be in Summerlin for Thanksgiving? Oh you'll probably be spending it with your fam-"

"No, no, my Mom lives in Paris now with my stepdad. I was going to visit but then this happened, so I thought I'd spend it fixing up the house."

"Oh that's terrible I'm sorry. You know you're always welcome to come around for Thanksgiving dinner at our place. I'd hate to think of you spending it alone."

"Thank you Mrs Smith -"

"Victoria dear."

I smile, "Thank you. I've spent the last three alone so another one really isn't a problem."

"Well you must pop around when you arrive dear, I can give you any advice you need on renovating."

"I will. You're still at the same address?"

I exchange contact details with her and promise to come over for coffee as soon as I get home. I hang up and exhale loudly. With any luck, Spencer will already be home when I come over for that coffee.



I look longingly out the window at the darkened house. It has been nearly two months since I've seen George. Dad forbade me from going over to see him, and at school he would just look at me and not speak to me. Which suited me fine because if Dad ever found out that I was talking to him at school I'm not too sure what He would have done. I miss him. I remember how the last thing he said to me was that I was yuck, right before he kissed me. It didn't make sense to me, to call someone a name and then kiss them. I didn't know if he was angry at me or if he liked me.

I hear yelling. Even through the walls of both our houses I can still hear his dad yelling at him. I'd always noticed bruises on George, but I'd always assumed he was clumsy and fell down a lot. Now I knew better. I'd caught a glimpse of George 'falling down' through the opened curtains a few weeks ago.

The yelling subsides and I watch as the backdoor opens and a skinny frame sneaks across the yard to The Cubby. This is it. This is my chance. I couldn't take not being friends with him anymore. I mirror his moves and sneak silently up the tree. He yelps when I drop softly onto the ground.

"Sam!" he hisses at me, "What do you think you're doing?!"

I shrug. "I heard him yelling."

"Oh."

"I always hear him yelling ..." I say softly and sit on the bench opposite him. The Cubby is a lot smaller now. George is very tall for thirteen and his knees are almost touching mine.

"Well, maybe you should mind your own beeswax." He wipes his face angrily and I can see he's been crying. We sit in silence for a long time. "Do you hate me?"

"What?"

"For ... what happened at Spencer's?" he mumbles.

"No." I answer quietly.

"How come you don't talk to us anymore?" I can hear his voice is strained with emotion.

"Dad doesn't want me to." My voice fades into the darkness with every new answer.

"My Dad doesn't want me hanging out with you either."

The silence eats at us and George drops his head, looking at his knees. I see three drops fall and darken the leg of his pajamas. I shift to sit next to him and without thinking, grab his hand and hold it in mine. He wipes his face quickly and stares at it.

The moonlight filters through the window and I can see two pink spots forming high on his cheeks. He looks at me and I smile, and when I see his lips make a slight smile back I move my face closer to his and press our lips together. They are soft and sweet, just how I'd remembered, and when I pull away he is blushing profusely. The smile he gives this time is genuine and he keeps a hold of my hand. The happiness swells in me, knowing that I'm not doing anything wrong, that he likes kissing me as much as I like kissing him. He cups my face gently in his hands and leans his face in toward mine, licking his lips before I close the gap. He tastes like toothpaste, clean and nice, and his lips move with mine tentatively. As he shuffles closer to me, a strange feeling twists in my belly and I start to feel warm all over. He lets go of my face but keeps his lips moving on mine, moving his hands onto my shoulders then down into my lap to hold my hands.

I peek through my lashes at him to see his brow furrowed in concentration. I quickly shut them and hesitantly place my hands on his shoulders as his move to lock around my waist. He pulls his lips back from mine, smiling at me so happily. He is more than cute, or pretty, or beautiful. There is something about him that makes me want to giggle, something that flutters in my stomach every time he looks at me. He seems to radiate happiness and warmth, then his eyes grow wide and he lets go of me. I hadn't even realized I'd started to cry.

"What's wrong?" he whispers. I can't speak, and just cry silently for a while.

"Something bad happened."

"What?" I sob for a bit longer.

"My Dad ..." I whisper shakily.

"Is he mean to you?" His whisper is as scared as mine. I nod. "But he never yells at you."

"He's not mean like your Dad's mean to you. He does ... other things." I'm shaking even though it is a warm night. Ryan stops patting my back. "He makes me do things ..." Tears and snot form rivers down my face.

"Does he touch you? In a bad way?" His voice is barely a croak. I nod. "Go to the police!" I shake my head violently over and over.

"No no no I can't he'll kill me if I tell anyone."

"Run away!" George's voice is harsh. I know he's not angry, just really scared. Maybe as scared as me. "Run to the cops! I'll come with you." I shake my head and keep crying.

He hugs me and pats my back until I calm down. We keep hugging for a long time. His shirt is saturate in my tears. I sit up and wipe my face on my sleeve.

"Gross, now I have snot everywhere."

"You're still pretty though." He blushes and I look at my hands.

"I thought you said I was yuck."

"I lied." I look up him and he presses his lips to mine softly. After a few moments he wraps his arms around me and I move my lips slightly on his. We stay there, glued to each other, our lips moving on their own, and for a long time the World outside fades and George and I create our own World, a world where we can forget everything together. Eventually a dog barks close by and startles me, making me pull away.

"Wow," I whisper. He grins at me goofily. I blush fiercely and whisper quieter still, "it feels so nice."

"Yeah. Nothing at all like I thought it would be." We both laugh nervously and I shoot him a quick glance.

"I should get home, in case He wakes up." George nods quickly and we get out of The Cubby. We stand there side by side before the stump I use to lever myself over the fence, I didn't want to go home. "Tomorrow night ... when He's asleep, I'll come down again if you want?" I couldn't look at his face in case he said no.

"Ok. Leave your window open and I'll let you know when my Dad's asleep too." I glance up to see him smiling down at me. He must have had a growth spurt recently, he was always taller than me but now I barely reached his shoulders. I stand on the tree stump and climb over the fence.

"See you tomorrow." I whisper once I am on the other side of the fence.

"Bye."


The next night is the same. Dad is drinking again, He doesn't pay any special attention to me tonight. I wait for his snores to roll through the house before I open my curtains and shine a torch into George's window. He signals back and we both sneak out. For some reason I can't stop smiling. We sit together, holding hands. I kiss his cheek quickly and he smiles.

"So are you going to go to the cops?" I shake my head. "You have to."

"I don't have anywhere else to go."

"You could stay in The Cubby?"

"What if your Dad found me?" That stumps him. We both look at each other frightened, and glance out the window to make sure he isn't there.

"Ok, well, what about your Mom? Where's she?"

"Florida."

"Oh."

"I have her phone number and her address though. I could call her ..." He nods. "I don't want to leave. What if I never see you again? Or Spence?" I add as an afterthought.

"You'll come back for visits on the holidays and I'll send you emails and call you. And I'll make sure Spencer does as well. We'll all spend summer together." He made it sound simple. I fidget with my fingers, still unsure.

"What about you?"

"Huh?"

"Where will you go?"

He looks at me quizzically. "What do you mean where will I go? I'll stay here."

"What about your Dad?" He drops his gaze.

"He's not really that bad. It's not like he ... beats me up or anything. It's just when he drinks a lot and I ... do something stupid, or ask him something, or get angry at him for drinking so much."

"That doesn't mean it's your fault."

"I know it's not my fault," he says hurriedly, "but if I keep out of the way then everything is fine. If I just stay out of his way ..." He looks back at me then at the opposite wall that I stare at glumly. I take his hand again. There is something so nice about holding hands with a boy. Why is that? Why does it feel so nice to hold his hand? And make me feel like I can't sit still? I blush.

We kiss again. It feels so nice. So soft and gentle, not at all like-

But I think this feels a thousand times better. It's nicer. And when he wraps his arms around my waist and hugs me close to him my heart starts to beat really hard and everything gets warm. His lips suck on mine and I open my mouth a little and touch my tongue experimentally to his lips. He draws in a startled breath and I giggle.

"Sorry," he whispers, "it tickles." I smile again and kiss him more slowly, and this time he doesn't flinch away from my tongue. I let it touch his lips, then feel his mouth open a little and the hesitant touch of his tongue on mine. It made me want to giggle uncontrollable but it felt so weird and nice at the same time. It was hard to know which feeling to go with. I push my giggles right down and scold myself, remember, you are kissing George, this is what you've been dreaming of for years. His tongue rolled around on mine as I turn my head sideways a little so our teeth don't hit.

Time has no meaning as we escape into our own World, sitting in the tiny house and exploring each others mouths. The blood pounds hard in my ears and I really need to pee. I pulled my mouth away slowly, not wanting him to think I didn't like it. He smiles at me, blushing.

"Wow." he whispers. I smile, quickly checking the time. My heart thumps hard when I count back the hour and half it had been since I left my room.

"I have to get home." He jumps.

"Shit! Me too. Come back tomorrow night ok?" I smile and nod.




Not the best start but I do like this chapter. Hope you guy like it. Let me know what you think so far! =D