CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Lexi
"Wow, someone is up early. What’s up?" Lex asked as soon as I entered the kitchen.
He was cheerful, which meant he probably hadn’t heard about Axle and Mina. Lucky him.
In fact, I hadn’t even fully processed everything that happened yesterday. It was like a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from. I barely slept through the night, hence my early descent into civilization.
An unknown number had called me late last night. The caller hadn’t identified themselves, but I had a weird feeling it was Axle. There was no way to prove it, but something in my gut told me it was him.
Eric had told me there was something strange about Axle—something no one could understand. I’d spent all night thinking about it. I knew he was attracted to me. Maybe he even liked me. But for the life of me, I couldn’t understand why he didn’t want to be with me. Why he wanted Mina instead.
I’d seen Mina hanging around other guys—flirting, hugging, laughing—but Axle never seemed affected by it. But anytime I was around a guy, he would get so mad. Like he was about to explode.
Eric had been understanding about everything that happened. He even offered to keep playing the game I started. I didn’t know what was in it for him, but I guess he just liked making Axle mad. It seemed like a turn-on for him. He relished watching Axle lose his cool.
From what I gathered, the two of them had been at it since junior high. Eric was Axle’s regular punching bag. Even though he could match Axle’s strength, he never hit back. He just took the punches, the hits, the bruises—without retaliation.
Axle had hit him a lot, but never too far. A black eye, a swollen jaw. But never a broken bone. Never a hospital visit.
It had gone on long enough that people didn’t even bother to interfere anymore. They just watched.
I was scared at first. I thought Axle might be violent. But many people attested to the fact that he wasn’t. He barely touched anyone else in school. And more often than not, Eric was the one who instigated the fights.
And I thought my life was complicated.
"What’s wrong with you today?" Lex’s voice broke through my thoughts, and I realized the glass of milk I’d been filling was overflowing.
"Oh—my bad, my bad," I said, hurrying to wipe the spill with a paper towel.
"What’s bothering you?" Lex asked, and I sighed. I knew he wouldn’t drop it unless I gave him an answer.
"I saw Axle and Mina kissing yesterday," I said truthfully, squeezing my eyes shut to brace for his reaction.
"Yeah, I heard. I thought they were seriously perverse until I heard they weren’t blood relatives," he said casually.
I opened my eyes in shock. How was he so unaffected?
"Lex, I thought you liked Mina?" I asked, surprised. My brother was seriously stronger than me.
"Yeah, I mean I did. And for a second, I thought she was into me too. But then I heard that’s just how she flirts," he said, shrugging. "It’s all good now."
A smile touched his lips.
And then—a blonde girl walked out of his room.
What in the world was happening?
Lex wasn’t one to dally around with girls, let alone bring one home while our mother was sleeping barely three doors away.
The ride to school was awkward. We took one car, and the blonde—whose name I couldn’t even remember—rode with us. Ever since Mom started her new job, she’d been leaving for work extra early. We barely saw her in the mornings anymore. But at least she still made sure to leave us breakfast in the microwave every day.
Thank God for that. I could barely crack an egg into a bowl, let alone fry it. And Lex was even worse.
What could be worse than that? I didn’t know.
The shock I received at school was worse than the one I got at the beach.
Axle and Mina had announced their relationship to everyone.
They were the new topic of gossip.
My heart broke watching them together. They were always hugging, always making out at every opportunity. Axle didn’t make eye contact with me. He didn’t even seem to care that Eric and I were spending time together.
After school, I couldn’t take it anymore.
I needed answers.
I waited until Axle was heading to practice and yanked him into the supply closet.
Yeah. I did that.
It was impulsive. Reckless. But he was driving me too crazy to think straight.
"Where’s Eric?" he asked as soon as I pulled him into the dark closet. I wondered how he knew it was me, but I didn’t voice it.
"Did you pull me in by mistake? It’s Eric you wanted, right?" he sneered.
I didn’t respond with words.
I responded with action.
I pulled him closer and pressed my lips to his.
He stood stunned for a second. Then he smiled—and kissed me back.
His hands went around my waist, pulling me closer. My arms wrapped around his neck, and I angled my mouth to deepen the kiss.
His tongue invaded my mouth, and different sensations rubbed my brain of its thinking ability. I couldn’t think anymore. All I could do was feel.
I opened myself up to the foreign sensations invading my system and accepted them.
I felt warmer. The need to move impossibly closer overtook me. I pressed my hips against him. He took that as a signal and picked me up. My legs crossed behind him, and my most feminine heat opened up to him.
I felt my bottom against a hard surface. He moved swiftly, parting my thighs and positioning himself between my legs—without breaking the kiss.
My lips were beginning to feel raw, but it was a sweet, sweet torment. I couldn’t stop myself from wanting more. And the more I took, the more I wanted.
"Stop," he whispered suddenly, tearing his lips from mine.
Nothing could compare to the feeling of loss I felt.
"What?" I asked, confused. My voice was laced with lust.
"I need you to stop. We can’t do this," he said, moving away from me. He untangled our bodies and stepped back.
I felt like yelling. Like begging him to continue. To finish what he started.
But my self-respect wouldn’t let me beg.
"Why?" I asked.
The question surprised both him and me.
"Because you’re not mine to have. I can’t have you. And we can’t be together," he said.
And I was more confused than ever.