First Love Page 5

  I leaned back against my closed locker waiting for Sam and Angie to show up, as I heard Sam’s laughter come around the corner.

  “Hey guys, what’s so funny?” I asked.

  “Janice is telling everyone that she wants to rip that jersey right off your back,” She laughed, “It’s so ridiculous. She’s crazy.”

  I just looked at the floor, I was so mad that I knew I was going to say something horrible if I opened my mouth.

  “It’s ok, Emily, don’t worry about it, how many times has Eric said he doesn’t like her.”

  “I know.”

  “So, don’t worry about it,” She reached over and gave me a big hug, “Angie and I will beat her up if she comes anywhere near you.”

  I laughed softly.

  “That’s better,” Angie said as she hugged me next, “I have a question though.”

  “What’s that?” I asked her.

  “What’s it like to kiss him?”

  “Get a grip, Angie, that’s her boyfriend,” Sam laughed.

  I blushed at the question thinking back to this morning in his car, “It’s amazing, awesome, wonderful all rolled into one.”

  Sam smiled at me, “I’m so happy for you, I guess this means you have a date to Homecoming, huh? And may I add a shot at Homecoming Queen, considering you are dating the quarterback,” She laughed.

  “I didn’t even think about it, oh my God. First, I can’t dance. Second, I’ve never gotten all dressed up before. Third, he hasn’t asked me yet.”

  Angie smirked, “You are kidding right? I think it’s implied at this point. You guys are dating.”

  Sam quickly jumped in, “I foresee another girl’s day at the mall. We will all need dresses.”

  “Wait, did I miss something? Who are you guys going with?”

  Sam pouted, “No one yet, but I have plans. I’m just sorting out of my options.”

  I smiled at her, “And you?”

  Angie grinned, “Mike just asked me about an hour ago.”

  Sam and I both hugged her, “That’s great, Angie!”

  “So, when is it anyways?” I asked, being totally clueless about this stuff.

  “Two weeks from Saturday night,” Sam said.

  “Ok, well, as soon as you figure out what lucky guy is taking you, we will go dress shopping,” I said laughing at her, “Come on, let’s go outside.”

  We walked out the back doors heading towards the field. The stands were already filling in with fans from both schools. We walked towards the fence and I saw Eric talking to the coach on the field, it looked like he was being yelled at, but I didn’t know for sure. I also saw Janice practicing with her squad as I quickly turned and headed up the bleachers to catch up with Sam and Angie.

  The game was fun but we ended up losing 37-17. Eric looked so mad after the game, he tossed his helmet against the fence and walked into the locker room. I looked at my friends for advice.

  “It happens, you can’t win them all. I’m sure he will be ok when he sees you.”

  “Yeah, go down and wait for him,” Angie said standing up, “We will talk to you this weekend.”

  I nodded and walked down the bleachers, sat on my concrete wall and waited for him to come out of the locker room. No cheerleaders were around this time, they probably knew to leave him alone.

  He came out about twenty minutes later and definitely had a different look on his face as he walked over to me and sat next to me.

  “You ok?” I asked him as I put my hand on his back.

  “You can’t win them all right? That team was unbelievable. It was a challenge to get the ball down the field tonight.”

  “You looked good,” I said biting my lip, not sure what I was going to say to him.

  “Not really, but thanks anyways,” He said smiling at me.

  “Did you want me to walk home tonight? If you aren’t in the mood for company that is fine, it’s only a few blocks.”

  “No, I’m not letting you walk home at night, are you crazy? Come on.” He said as he grabbed my hand and we headed to his car.

  He opened the door for me and walked around to get into the drivers side. He didn’t start the car right away, he just sat there.

  “Are you sure you are ok?” I asked him, reaching for his hand.

  He smiled again at me, “Yeah, I am now.” He leaned over to me and kissed me softly.

  I smiled as I pulled away from him, “You can talk to me, you know? I’m a good listener.”

  He looked down again.

  “I saw the coach yell at you before the game, was there a reason?”

  He looked at me this time, “You saw that, huh?” He sighed and then hit his steering wheel. I was taken back a little.

  “He thinks that my social life is going to interfere with my head again. My father isn’t thrilled that I picked now to have a girlfriend now either and apparently talked to the coach about it. I love football, don’t get me wrong, but I need something else in my life too,” He said turning towards me, grabbing my hand in his, “And I finally found it. I have not stopped smiling since I saw you sitting in home room on the first day. I told myself that I was going to make you mine.”

  I smiled at him, “I feel the same way, I have never felt this way about a guy. In my old school, I went on one double date and never saw the guy again. There was no spark, nothing clicked. But, the minute you talked to me, I knew you were worth getting to know better.”

  He leaned over again and kissed me. This time it was deep right away, his tongue quickly found mine as he moaned softly. I responded as I put my hand on his chest, moving up to feel his neck and moving my fingers through his hair. His hand found my thigh I could feel the heat through my jeans. He moved his hand up my back to the back of my neck, reaching into my hair and pulling my clip out to release it. As it fell over my shoulders, he deepened the kiss more. This time I heard my moan escape my lips, never breaking the kiss, his fingers moved through my hair. I started to feel things that I never experienced before. I was so warm, my body felt like a million degrees. His hand moved again to my waist as I felt his fingers reach under my jersey until I felt them on my bare skin. I quickly broke the kiss.

  I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t speak.

  “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I lost it again,” He said moving back to his seat.

  “Don’t be sorry, I just know how you are feeling right now, I don’t want you to regret anything in the morning.”

  He smiled at me, “You really do get me already, Emily”

  “I really like you, Eric. I don’t want to mess this up. But, if you need to focus on football, I’m not going anywhere and I can try to stay out of the way until the season is over.”

  “No, that’s not going to happen. I have never felt like this before and I’m not going to ruin this.”

  I smiled at him, “Well, you know how I feel, so the ball is in your court.”

  He leaned back over and kissed me again, “Come on, let’s get you home.”

  We pulled into my driveway, I saw the living room light still on and I knew my mom was waiting up for me.

  “So, I have a question for you,” I asked him

  “Yes.”

  “Sam was telling me about Homecoming, I know we just started dating so I wasn’t sure if you wanted to go with me. I’m assuming you are forced to go because of the football team but I was just curious…” My thoughts trailed off as he grabbed my hand.

  “Have I not asked you yet, Emily?”

  “Ask me what,” I said as I looked into his eyes.

  “Emily Stone, would you do me the honor of being my date for Homecoming?”

  I smiled at him, “Yes.”

  He grinned as he leaned over again, kissing me again, a little harder this time. His hand found its way into my hair again as we started to lose control. That deep moan came from my throat again. He responded with his own moan. I broke away just enough, “You are going to kill me.”

  He laughed softly before putting his
lips back on mine. He moved down to kiss my neck softly, the sensation shot right through my body, I whispered softly, “Oh my God.” I could feel him smiling against my neck, as his lips moved up to my ear.

  “Your skin is so smooth and you taste so good,” He said, as I couldn’t respond. His lips moved back to mine as I felt his hand reach behind me and move over my ass.

  I moaned again, slowly breaking away again, breathing heavily, “I really have to get inside.”

  “Ok.” He said kissing me again softly.

  “That isn’t helping, Eric.”

  He smiled as he got out of the car and opened the door for me. He walked me to the door and whispered in my ear, “I will see you in my dreams tonight, Emily.” He winked at me as he walked away.

  HOMECOMING

  The next couple of weeks flew by. I was trying to break up my time by doing my school work, seeing Eric, going to all the games and trying to keep up with my home life that I barely had time to breathe. My mom was having trouble dealing with my father’s new baby. He kept calling to share new information with me and I knew my mother could overhear everything. I knew it upset her but I tried my best to keep things light around her. She didn’t deserve to be hurt like that.

  I even managed to apply to a few colleges. The guidance counselors at school were on my case about not being proactive, so I applied to a few local colleges and even tried my luck with Syracuse.

  I also managed to go shopping for Homecoming. Sam, Angie and I went dress shopping after Sam decided to go with Todd. I found a strapless red gown, nothing too fancy and something I thought Eric would like.

  Eric. We haven’t been able to stay apart from each other. We have been out on several dates; I visit practices, go to the games and enjoy every second I get with him. He had managed to figure out a way to balance football with our relationship so his father hasn’t been harassing him too much lately.

  I finally met Eric’s parents during the week when he invited me to dinner. The entire dinner was very uncomfortable for me. His father kept talking about Eric’s future football career. He had a plan for him and nothing was going to stand in his way. I couldn’t help but feel guilty that I was monopolizing all his time but Eric kept reassuring me that he had everything under control.

  ******************************************

  I woke up the morning of Homecoming with a smile on my face. It’s the first dance that I actually wanted to go to. I jumped out of bed and took my shower, did all the girl stuff and headed back into my bedroom. I looked at the dress hanging in my closet and smiled. He was going to love it.

  Sam called about ten times during the course of the day, making sure I was getting ready and wanted to know if I needed help. She was really turning into my best friend.

  My mom helped me do my hair, curling it and pulling it back with a fancy clip. I needed to leave some of it down because I knew Eric liked it that way. I slipped on my homecoming dress and called my mom to help me zip up. We both looked in the mirror and smiled.

  “You are beautiful, Emily.”

  “Thanks, Mom. I feel beautiful in this dress.”

  The dress fell perfectly along my body. The silk red material came down to my knees showing off my legs with the matching high heels.

  “Let me get the camera, I know your father would like to see a picture,” She tried to smile.

  I headed downstairs as I heard Eric pull up the driveway. My heart started to flutter. I wondered if he was really going to like the dress.

  My mom looked at me, “Stop shaking, Emily. You are gorgeous.” She said as she headed to open the door for Eric.

  “Hey Eric, come on in, she’s all ready.”

  “Thanks, Mrs. Stone.”

  Eric entered the living room and stopped in his tracks, “Just breathtaking.”

  My mom smiled at him, “Come on kids, stand together, I need pictures.”

  “Mom, just one.”

  “Yeah right.”

  Eric put his arm around me as she took the pictures, he leaned down to whisper in my ear; “You are beautiful.”

  I blushed softly, “You aren’t too bad yourself, Handsome.”

  We arrived at the high school as he pulled around to the front doors to let me out. He opened the door for me, “I will be right back, Gorgeous,” He said as he kissed my cheek and went to park his car.

  I headed into the school, hearing the loud music coming from the gym. I saw Sam and Angie inside the gym and they were dancing with the guys. I just smiled at them, glancing over my shoulder for Eric. I waved at Sam and saw Janice starring daggers at me already.

  I felt lips on my bare shoulder, as I turned around and saw Eric behind me, “Hey, you ready to have some fun?”

  He smiled, “Yep, come on.”

  We entered the gym hand in hand. His football team quickly gathered around him. I felt his hand slip away from mine as he got mobbed. I looked for Sam and headed over to her. She threw her arms around me and hugged me, “You look fantastic, Emily.”

  “Thanks, you look great yourself.”

  “I know, don’t I?” She laughed, “I see that you were already left in the wings.”

  “It’s ok, his friends wanted to say hi.”

  The music changed to a slow song, my friends quickly moved to their dates as the dance floor quickly filled in. I moved until I was on the side of the dance floor. I looked around for Eric but couldn’t see him anymore. My eyes adjusted to the dark as I started walking along the bleachers. I finally saw him and stopped in my tracks. He was talking to Janice. She had her hands all over him. I felt the rage build up inside of me, as I saw her look my way. She put her arms around his neck, smiling at me as she continued to talk to him.

  I turned quickly and ran out of the gym and entered the cafeteria. I grabbed the closest chair and sat down. I couldn’t breathe. I saw Angie and Sam come into the room, “What’s wrong?”

  I hated feeling like this, it was stupid, “Janice had her hands all over him and it didn’t look like he cared, you would think he would have wanted to dance at least the first slow dance with me, right? Why is this bugging me so much?”

  “It’s bugging you because you really like him. Emily, you know her games. Maybe there is a reason that you don’t know about.”

  “I can’t think of anything that would allow her to be all over him like that. I mean, I have barely spoken to him. First, his football friends steal him away then I see that. I think I just want to go home.”

  “No! You can’t,” Sam said, “If you are that upset just hang out with us the rest of the night. You look so awesome I bet another guy would dance with you.”

  I smiled at her, “I don’t want to dance with someone else, I want to dance with him.”

  Angie pouted, “Come on, hang out with Mike and me.”

  I grabbed her hand and they pulled me back into the gym.

  As we entered, I saw Eric talking to his friends again as he managed to get away from Janice. He quickly left them and grabbed my hand from Angie’s.

  “Where did you go? I wanted to dance with you, Gorgeous,” He said looking at me, his smile disappeared, “What’s wrong?”

  “I saw Janice all over you and don’t tell me it was nothing because you didn’t stop her.”

  He didn’t say anything at first. He just looked at me, “Emily, please don’t get upset. She was just being Janice. You are right though I should have stopped her the minute it happened. I’m sorry.”

  I just looked at him, getting lost his eyes, “Ok.”

  He grabbed my hand and walked me over to where my friends were. Sam looked at me and hugged me, whispering in my ear, “You ok?”

  I looked at her, “I don’t know, maybe.”

  She pouted, “Come on, this is supposed to be fun.”

  Angie’s date, Mike walked up to me, “Emily, did you want to dance?”

  I looked at him and then Eric, well, two could play this game, “Sure.”

  He reached for my hand and p
ulled me onto the dance floor, “Angie thought this would put Eric in his place,” He laughed.

  I smiled at him, “Thanks, it’s exactly what he needs.”

  “I don’t know what he problem is, you look beautiful tonight, I wouldn’t have left your side at any point.”

  “Thanks Mike. I appreciate that.”

  We swayed to the music and every time I moved around I was able to see Eric glaring at Mike. Good, let him be jealous, “Mike, I know this is a lot to ask, but I was wondering if you would mind helping me out a little bit before the song ends.”

  He smirked at me, “Sure, what’s up?”

  “I was wondering if you could move your hands a little further down my waist and maybe your head a little more nuzzled into my neck.”

  He smiled at me, “Oh sure, I will get my ass kicked but if it will make you feel better.”

  “I promise that he won’t touch you.”

  Mike smirked at me as I felt his hands move lower as he came into my ear and whispered, “How’s this?”

  My eyes moved across the room and saw Eric jump off the bleachers and move towards the dance floor.

  “Perfect.”

  I felt Mike stop moving, knowing that Eric was right behind me, I pulled slowly away from Mike and turned towards Eric, “Yes?” I asked.

  “Can I finish this dance?”

  “Sure. Thanks Emily, talk to you later,” He said winking at me as he left.

  Eric’s hands moved around my waist and he pulled me closer to his body, “That won’t happen again, I promise. I’m sorry.”

  I smiled at him, “Well, at least you know how it feels now, right?”

  “I thought I was going to lose my mind when I saw his hands move down your dress.”

  I smirked at him, “Well, I wanted to teach you a lesson. I don’t care that you want to be with your friends. I understand there is more to you than just our relationship,” I said moving my hands up around his neck and my fingertips moved into his hair, “But, I also don’t want you to forget about me.”

  “Never, Emily. I promise, I messed up and I apologize for that.”