Chapter Seventeen:

The Monday after my mental breakdown was filled with a surprisingly happy buzz. It was the first day of spirit week, meaning everyone in the school followed a theme for that particular day. Today was Meme Monday, an instant hit as everyone dressed as their favorite meme.

It was, of course, a lot of fun. However, I found my thoughts drifting off to Michael more than a few times. More specifically to the fact that he wasn't in school all day.

It wasn't uncommon for him to miss school but I had thought he would be here. When he left my house Saturday, he promised I'd see him at school on Monday.

Or maybe he said he'd see me soon.

Whatever it was, I was worried. Which I shouldn't be as I was still technically nothing to him.

However Saturday begged to differ.

I blushed as I remembered how close I had gotten to losing my virginity. Michael was amazing, his lips so soft on my neck. The way his breath tickled my skin. And his tongue... oh god, his tongue.

Ray nudged me back into existence as the bell rang. I blushed even more as I realized I daydreamed through the last five minutes of class. Ray gave me a weird look before collecting his things and leading me out of the room.

"Alright, spill Gavin. You've been acting like one of those cliche anime girls all day," Ray confronted when we got to my locker. I rolled my eyes, thinking of a witty comeback.

"And of course, you'd know that. What with all the hentai you watch," I said, giggling to myself. This time, Ray rolled his eyes.

"One time and you're automatically proclaimed a hentai addict."

"It was an hour long!"

"I wanted the full experience!"

I huffed at the conversation, only suppressing my smile for a second. When I had collected my things, I once more followed Ray. We began the route back to my house. Ray had asked to come over seeing as he had finished the homework we'd been given and I wasn't going to say no.

"So, now, tell me what's got you all happy. I didn't expect you to be so happy-go-lucky after what happened at the party," Ray said, concern shadowing across his eyes.

"It's really nothing. Just some stuff Michael and I-" I said before being cut off.

"You had sex! Haha, Gavvy's a man," Ray said, jumping around me. When he calmed down he gave me a side smirk before saying; "Looks like you can join the no virgins club."

"Please Ray. You're not even in that club," I retorted, smiling at our banter.

"Or am I? Maybe that's all a disguise," Ray responded, sending me a wink.

I didn't respond but rather smiled to myself at the conversation. I missed hanging out with Ray. Lately I hadn't been able to because of basketball but seeing as I wasn't playing like I used to anymore, I had a lot of time to do things that I used to do.

When we turned the corner to walk down my street, I saw Michael sitting in front of his house. His head was resting on his knees with his arms covering the rest of his face. Ray and I exchanged a look before approaching him.

"Mi-cool?" I asked, hoping he wouldn't snap at me like he was prone to do. Instead he slowly lifted his head to reveal a bruising black eye and slightly lopsided nose. Dried blood rested around his nose, making the whole scene gruesome.

"Oh my gosh! Mi-cool, what happened?" I asked, throwing my backpack off and crouching in front of him. When I tried to help him he immediately pulled away and stood up.

"Leave me alone," He rasped, his throat sounding raw. I then noticed the dried tear tracks on his face.

"Dude, it looks like your nose is broken. I think you should go to the hospital," Ray said, finally saying something to him.

"Yeah, Ray's right. Come on. My mum can probably take you," I offered, throwing my backpack on again. I was turning to walk away when Michael grabbed me and pulled me back.

"I don't need your mom's help. Just leave me alone," Michael growled, his voice turning deadly.

I was stung. Michael hadn't talked to me like that in so long. It was like daggers being plunged into my heart.

He took note of my hurt but didn't comment on it as he turned around and walked to his backyard. Ray and I watched him disappear. I sighed and turned towards my house, knowing there was nothing more I could really do to get Michael to let us help him. Ray trailed behind me, staying silent for the first time in his life.

...

When Ray had left, I made a point to watch Michael's house, just in case he left. I wasn't going to let this go. He needed help. And not just physical help. He needed a friend there for him.

When I finally got fed up with waiting, I snuck out of the house, following the same path Michael took to his backyard. The path was littered with overgrown plants. Obviously no one had done any garden work in a long time.

Once I had passed the fence, I scanned the darkness for Michael. I was going to pull my phone out for a light when I suddenly saw movement a little farther into the yard.

"Mi-cool?" I whisper called to him. His head immediately turned towards me.

"Christ, Gavin. Get out of here before my parents see you," Michael said, getting up and approaching me.

I looked past him at what he was crouching over. A patch of overgrown grass sat before Michael. I stared for a long time, even shaking myself free from Michael's grip when he tried to pull me away.

"What's this?" I asked, staring down at the grass. At first, I thought it was a pets grave but I quickly realized the oval shaped grass patch was much too large to be any pet I knew of.

"It's better if you don't know, Gavin. Knowledge can get you killed," Michael said ominously.

"Tell me, Michael. What did you do?" I asked, my voice shaking as I started to put two and two together.

"Me? I didn't do anything. I was simply a witness to it," Michael said, staring at the grass as well.

"Michael... please tell me you didn't kill someone," I choked out, hardly believing what I was saying to be true.

"I didn't kill someone. My dad did," Michael whispered.

"What?" I asked, bewildered.

"If I tell you, you cannot tell anyone. Understand?" Michael told me.

"No, Michael, I don't understand. If your dad killed someone he should be put in jail! What the hell do you me-," I cried, my voice becoming shrill. Michael slapped his hand over my mouth before I could say much more. He looked towards his house before removing his hand.

"You can't say anything, Gavin. Do you understand," Michael growled, using yet another deadly tone. All I could do was nod my head.

"You remember how I had a brother, right?" Michael asked.

"Yeah. He went to the army or something, right?" I asked, hoping what I knew to be wrong was true.

"No. He never even thought about it once. My dad told everyone that to cover up the fact that he kil- he killed him, Gavin," Michael said, choking on his words.

I was in shock to say the least. Brandon Jones was a great guy. I had met him on a couple occasions and George had worked with him at one point. Brandon was known in our school as having been a great student and incredibly kind, despite his anger issues. He worked hard, loved Michael more than life, and tried his best to keep his anger at bay.

Hearing that he was dead, shocked me more than I had thought it would. I had always assumed he had been so honorable to have gone to the army to fight in the battles America found itself in. But seeing that he had never even thought about it, well it was a shock, for a lack of words.

Michael let me absorb the information. He crouched down towards the grass with his head bowed. His breathing became shaky and I figured he was crying.

"How... how did he kill him?" I asked, crouching next to Michael.

"Brandon... was trying to protect me. My dad was drunk and he was chasing me with a broken beer bottle. Brandon got between him and me and... my dad stabbed him. Brandon fell and he didn't get back up. I remember getting punched and blacking out, but when I woke again, Brandon was gone. My dad came to me shortly after I woke with the same bloody bottle he used to kill Brandon and told me if I ever spoke of it, he'd kill me too," Michael told me.

I shivered, whether it be from the cold or the idea of Michael's father killing Brandon in cold blood, I couldn't tell. All I knew is that I wasn't going to let Michael stay another night in his house with a murderous father. If I did, I'd basically be killing him myself.

I grabbed his wrist and dragged him out of the back garden. Taken by surprise, he followed me until he realized where I was headed. He shook free from my grasp, causing me to turn and try to grab him again.

"Michael, come on. I'm not letting you stay there another night," I encouraged, reaching out once more, only to have him flinch away.

"No. How do I know you aren't going to up and leave like everyone else?" Michael asked. It took me a moment to hear the heartbreak in his voice and I realized there wasn't something he was telling me.

So, to show him I meant business, I immediately stepped towards him and wrapped my arms around him. He didn't move for a moment, which caused me to grip tighter and tighter, until his arms involuntarily rose and wrapped around my waist. I rested my head on his shoulder, breathing in his scent and holding him as tightly as I could.

"Please Michael. I'm not letting go," I said, my voice cracking with emotion. That was apparently all Michael needed as he loosened his grip on me and started towards my house. A large smile spread across my face as I trotted after him, letting him in.

We immediately went up to my room, being silent as to not wake my mother and brother. Once inside, Michael awkwardly stood inside my room, seemingly unsure of what to do.

"Well... seeing as it's midnight on a school night, I'd recommend getting some sleep," I told him. Michael nodded in agreement and I immediately stripped down to boxers. I crawled into bed, moving over as to give Michael enough room. Michael looked at me for a second before his cheeks turned red and he looked away, pulling his shirt over his head. I smiled at that, loving the fact that I could make Michael blush.

Michael crawled into bed with me, laying stiff as a board on his back. I giggled quietly, sitting up and picking up his arm so I could rest my head on it and cuddle against him. He surprisingly allowed it, wrapping his arms tighter around my shoulders. I cuddled closer to him, my head resting on his shoulder.

Approximately ten minutes later, I sat up, causing Michael to sit up as well. We made eye contact before we started to laugh amongst ourselves.

"Leave it to a couple of teenagers to try and disprove the stereotype of immediately falling asleep," I commented, and proceeding to laugh with Michael.

"Are you even tired?" Michael asked.

"Not at all," I replied, crossing my legs and facing Michael completely. Michael faced me more as well, looking me up and down.

"Any ideas on what to do?" Michael asked, bluntly hinting at the same thing I was thinking.

"Well, I have a couple ideas, but both of us need to be up for it," I told him, a smirk spreading across my face. Michael blushed some more and nodded, seemingly agreeing with me.

Before he could prepare himself, I lurched forward, pressing my lips against his as hard as I could. Taken by surprise, Michael grabbed my waist for support, causing shivers to run up and down my sides. I deepened the kiss and stood up on my knees causing Michael to tilt his head up to keep our lips locked together. I grabbed his hands and dragged them up and down my sides, letting Michael feel every part of me.

I shivered at Michael's rough hands made their rounds, but I didn't let him stop. Instead I cupped his cheeks and pushed our lips together more, letting our tongues explore each other's mouths.

Eventually Michael's hands traveled to my lower regions. He squeezed my thighs, letting out a tiny moan when he felt how toned they were from basketball. I giggled into another kiss, letting his hands rest on the waistband of my boxers.

By now, it was obvious we were both turned on. Michael's fingers wrapped around my waistband before he pulled away from the kiss, looking at me for permission to pull them down.

A large smirk spread across my face and I leaned close to him, whispering seductively in his ear.

"Do it, Mi-cool. Make me your British bitch."

Michael shivered at the words and immediately pulled them down.
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This chapter was literally everywhere. I apologize for the typos. I'm too lazy to go back and check at the moment. Also, next chapter, would y'all like smut or nah?

(P.S. Make me your British Bitch 😂)