A Dirty Game - Chapter Eighteen

ARGH!!!
You guys ROCK!
Thank you SO MUCH for those AMAZING comments!
I was literally grinning at my phone/screen and doing a little jiggle =]
Really, you boosted my confidence in this story by 100 percent!!

Ren - Yeahhh I'm back lool, and it makes me excited that YOU'RE excited!
Justine. A - I have no idea where I'm going with TRC, but I ALWAYS finish what I start, even if it is many months later, and I LOVE that you commented twice.
SapphireAngel - Keep reading, your addiction is fueling me!
CocoaChannel - I didn't mean for the bike to be part of the story but I have an idea, it's going to become a BIG part.
Setsuna - Braiden such a sweetheart isn't he?
Faithz - I won't ever stop writing, it's a big part of me.
Reaven - HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY! I'm glad it made you smile hehehe!

I want more comments, but then I'm a very greedy person so never mind! I REALLY think I died when I was writing this chapter. It's like I'm writing the meaning of life, and I become really excited and hysterical, and it's almost as if I'M Ruby and I can't BREATHE! Whoo, I'm dramatic, but then I read over it and think; It seems amazing to you, but to other people who don't know your characters as intimately as you do, it won't seem that good, that breath - taking. But if your comments are anything to go by, you will ALL like this one a lot, or maybe the next one =]

Also, do you think I should do an interview/talk show type Q&A with some of the characters, so that you can get to know them better? Lemme know, and it will be (should be) humorous, not boring or anything.

Enjoy!
~*~*~*
For the next few days, Braiden and Ruby settled into a cozy little routine. He knocked on her door in the morning, they walked to Costa together and ordered nice, awakening Styrofoam cups of coffee, trying different flavors every time, sometimes buying something to eat as well. She grew appreciative of the nice start to her mornings, walking along quiet roads and sipping on heaven, lazily bumping shoulders with him. They even timed their walk so that by the time they reached the bike, they'd finished, at least, the coffee. She called it their 'Geek Routine'.

After that first day of experiencing the thrill of riding a motorbike, Ruby had dragged Braiden along with her to go helmet shopping, and ignoring his protests, she bought not only herself a helmet, but one for him too. Her sly way of getting around the flash of her cash was saying that the helmet he'd originally bought was hideous and a crime against fashion. And no one could beat Ruby in a debate about fashion, not even Braiden, who assumed he knew everything. On the way to school, arms wrapped tightly around Braiden's waist as he rode, she admired her helmet in various reflective surfaces. It was black, a color that couldn't clash with anything she wore, and the subtle silver streaks were the feminine touch it needed.

It was simple, even for her, and looked good next to Braiden's yellow one, matching the bike perfectly. Braiden stopped the bike inside the school lot, kicked down the bike stand, and helped her off. She could really get used to this; she suited being the girlfriend of the 'biker dude'. She found that, even though the bike wasn't even hers, many guys began paying more interest in her and calling her 'Biker Chick'. There wasn't a single joke involving blondes and leather that she hadn't yet heard by the time Friday came around, and she was used to the extra attention. Braiden managed to get over his jealousy and took their comments in his stride, often twisting their jokes around and making Ruby laugh with his criticism.

They were in English when out of the corner of his eye, Braiden saw a guy he vaguely knew from his PE class lean forward and whisper in Ruby's ear. She rolled her eyes and turned away, not even bothering to respond. She caught Braiden's glare and bit her lip playfully, moving her chair closer.
"Braiden, you look so angry now" she laughed, encircling his body with her arms and resting her chin on his shoulder from behind. He covered his face with his hands and tipped his head back.

"I am not" he scoffed, his voice muffled.
"He was just being an idiot" she smirked, pulling his hands away, wanting to see his eyes. She'd become strangely addicted to the green of his expressive gaze. He resisted, his arms tensing and chuckled at her weak attempts.
"Rube, as pretty are you are, your strength is no match for mine" he told her, finally allowing her to pull his hands away, revealing his amused gaze. She took in his comment, remembering the sight of his sculpted abs, and tried hard not to grin. He was so right.

"Ms Snow and co.! Do you forget that you're in school?" the supply teacher called from the front of the class. Everyone, of course, turned in their seats to watch Ruby and Braiden curiously. Rachel had a smug look on her plastic face that Ruby just itched to slap off. Instead she rolled her eyes and sat back, separating herself from Braiden dramatically.

"Sir, Tristan just told me, in very explicit terms, that he wanted to have my children. Why are you calling on me?" she replied, putting on a very convincing act of being shocked and hurt. The class all laughed as Tristan went red and shrank down into his chair, and Braiden had to cover his mouth to stop from snorting.

"Well, urm...good point" the teacher stammered, embarrassed at her bluntness. He glanced back and forth between Ruby and Tristan, almost comically, before turning back to the board, muttering to himself. She raised an eyebrow at the looks of curiosity towards her and Braiden, smiling broadly when she out-stared them. The school couldn't seem to understand the concept of her and Braiden being an item. To be honest, it had surprised her too, but she got over it eventually...they on the other hand, hadn't even tried. Braiden interrupted her glaring game by burying his nose into the hair resting against her neck. She resisted a shiver.
"Well, you've still got the teachers wrapped around your little Tiffany encrusted pinkie" he chuckled, balancing on the two front legs of his chair.

"You know how I do!" she replied, putting on an accent and flipping her hair. He laughed and narrowly avoided falling over, desperately grasping for the table.

"Shit! That was clo-"

Thud!

Ruby giggled at him, bending over so that she could grin at him from where he lay, sprawled on the floor.

"Very close. To think you almost made it" she shrugged, her eyes twinkling mischievously. He covered his mouth with a hand, only his right eye showing what with his hair sweeping to hide the left one. It was a strange image and she almost wished that she could draw. If she could, she'd have drawn that expression, the position of his hand. She'd have loved to capture how the sun brought out the honey flecks in his eyes and the natural chestnut in his hair. It was thoughts like that, pure unadulterated thoughts, where she let her imagination run wild, and that worried her. Thoughts like that did not get a girl anything but trouble.

"Mr. Ashton, unless you're dead, please return to your seat" the teacher called out once again, interrupting Ruby's daydream. She was getting sick of his droning voice.

"Sanka, ya dead?" she cried out in a Jamaican accent, earning an amused look from Justin who was from the country himself, and knew that she was quoting Cool Runnings.

"Yeah man!" Braiden and Justin replied in unison, laughing hard at their answer. The teacher shook his head, but couldn't help a sly smile. He knew the film too.
~*~*~*
"I don't want to go home" Ruby mused, leaning against the bike and watching people stream past. Braiden had a brainwave, and suddenly grinned. He chucked her helmet towards her and climbed onto the motorbike.
"C'mon, I've got an idea," he waited for her to grab onto his waist before starting up the bike.

About twenty minutes later they pulled up in front of a moderately big house. He kicked down the bike stand and helped Ruby off.
She looked around, nodding in appreciation.
"It's nice. Where are we?" she asked. He smirked and took hold of her hand, helmet swinging from the other. She waited for an answer and when she didn't receive one, she sighed.

"I get it. It's a secret" she boomed in a theatrical voice. He pulled her along, reaching for the door. Before he could even reach the doorbell, the door swung open and a pretty, young woman in her early forties stood there.

"Oh my, she IS beautiful!" the woman gushed, her cheeks rosy as she looked Ruby over. By then, Ruby was deeply confused and turned to nudge Braiden. He was grinning broadly and squeezed her hand.

"Hey mum" he said. Ruby's eyes widened and she froze. That woman was his mother? Looking closely, she realized there were a lot of similarities between the two; such as the eyes, and the lips, and the hair! Braiden and his mother had exactly the same color hair, and it was the same texture too.

"You must be Ruby, I'm Mary Jane, Braiden's mum. You can call me MJ, everyone does!" the woman buzzed, pulling Ruby into a hug that was soft and warm. She smiled when Mary Jane let her go.

"It's nice to meet you," she peered over at Braiden who then put his hand on the small of her back and gently pushed her into the house. Mary Jane turned and closed the door behind them as they came in.

"Mum, is James in?" he asked.
She gave him a disapproving look before answering.
"No, he's still out at your gram's love. Anyway, Ruby it was lovely to meet the girl my son talks nonstop about, and I'm terribly sorry but I've got work to attend to" she turned to Ruby and apologized.

"Oh no, it's fine MJ" Ruby soothed, putting a hand on Braiden's mum's arm. Braiden started laughing as his mum hurried off to her office.

"She was kidding when she said that I...talk about you all the time" he blurted, his cheeks reddening. Ruby didn't believe him one bit, but she let it go. He led her through an impressive living room, just big enough to rival hers.

"Who's James? A cousin?" she asked, running a hand along the leather settees. Braiden shook his head, gesturing for her to follow him up the stairs.

"Nah, step dad."

She raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised.

"You call your step dad James?"

"Yeah. I feel uncomfortable calling him Dad. You know..." he trailed off, referring to the actions of his real dad. Ruby understood completely.

"Ah, I see. I love this house by the way. I thought you didn't consider yourself as a 'rich' person?" she said, using air quotes. She was interested in his answer because the house was pretty frickin' amazing. He was leading her down a landing and there was another floor above them, from what she could see. He turned around and walked backwards, slowly, smirking at her.

"I'm not rich at ALL! We're just renting this house from, well...from Kim's mum, until the couple down the road, who are moving, finish signing all the papers over to us and stuff."

Ruby heard him say Kim and stopped walking. She cocked her head to the side.

"Kim? Romeo's girlfriend? Well, that's news" she laughed. She was actually seeing inside the mind of the girl who she used to consider her arch-enemy. Braiden remembered that time and was suddenly glad that she was over Romeo...or so he hoped. He felt all nervous inside for bringing Ruby here. It was important that she met his mum, she was such a nice, bubbly person, and he wanted his two favorite women to get along. Which they did. It'd been a split second decision to bring Ruby to his house, and now he was glad that he'd done it. They got to his room and he turned to Ruby.

"Now bear in mind that we're only renting this house, and I got Kim's room. Upstairs is kind of out-of-bounds for us" he grimaced and swung the door open. Ruby stepped in and gasped. The walls were covered in amazing drawings, sketches and paintings, beautifully scrawled quotes and lyrics. She liked it instantly, but she did notice, like Braiden had pointed out, that it was definitely, and so obviously, a girl's room. She skipped forward and collapsed onto the bed, dropping her bag and sinking into the amazing silk of the duvet. Braiden followed suit, his leg bouncing up and falling across hers.

"This is such an amazing room" she murmured, eyes trailing over the ceiling.

"She's a fantastic artist. If parts of this room weren't girly and covered in posters of JLS and Twilight, I'd be proud to claim it as mine for the time being" he chuckled. Ruby laughed and turned onto her side to face him.

"Thank you for bringing me here. It was so nice meeting your mum, you two are so alike!"

"Well, I figured seeing as I've met your mum and Taylor, it was only fair for you to meet the important people in my life" he shrugged. She smiled and kissed him, wrapping her legs around his.
A cough from the door interrupted them and they sprang apart, red and shocked. Mary Jane stood, arms folded but a grin on her face.

"I, uh, just wanted to let you two lovebirds know that dinner won't be a while, and Ruby, I hope you're staying" she offered, trying to keep in her laughter. Ruby ran a hand through her hair, nodding at the invitation.

"Of course, thank you," she managed a strained smile.

"No problem. Well, I'll call you two down when it's done. Have fun!" Mary Jane chirped and turned on her heel. Just as Braiden got up to close the door, she popped back.

"Oh, and Braiden, keep that door open" she laughed, ruffling his hair before ducking out. Ruby was howling with laughter at the devastated look on his face.

"...so embarrassing!" he mumbled as he sank back onto the bed.

"So what do we do now?" Ruby asked, genuinely interested. He shrugged, looking around the room. Suddenly his eyes lit up.

"This house is MASSIVE! Let's play Hide and Seek!"

Hours later, MJ found Braiden standing by the empty pool, arguing with Ruby who was crouched in the corner under the blue cover sheet.

"It doesn't count if you count to ten in four seconds!" Ruby shouted.

"Sure it does. I chose the game, so we follow my rules" Braiden responded, sticking his tongue out childishly. Ruby flipped him off before realizing his mum was behind him and flushing red. Damn.

"You two are such kids," she laughed, "Hide and Seek? C'mon, you couldn't make like teenagers and play Black Ops?"

Braiden grinned and hooked a thumb over his shoulder towards Ruby.

"Her dad makes frickin' games consoles mum, and she can't play to save her life!" he exclaimed, astonished at what she'd told him when he was at her house. Ruby growled and flung herself out of the pool, slapping her hand over his mouth.

"Don't listen to him MJ. He's high off pheromones, I CAN play...I just prefer not to" she rolled her eyes. Braiden counteracted this with a muffled grunt. Mary Jane shook her head but she was highly amused at their childish antics. She liked Ruby, and she could see that the two were very good for each other.

"C'mon my little four-year-olds, din dins!" she called, pulling them along, still bickering. The dining room was very nice, with dark burgundy walls and a long, frosted glass table in the center. There were four plates set out, and in the middle of the table there was a buffet of bowls worthy of a party of ten. Ruby's stomach grumbled at that very minute and she shrugged sheepishly at the two relatives. Braiden pulled out Ruby's chair and his mum restrained from saying "Awww!"
She'd long ago told him that she could pull her own chair out by herself, and so he let her sit by herself, winking at Ruby. Ruby smiled and thanked him, shuddering slightly when his fingers brushed across her neck delicately. She just knew he'd done it on purpose. Mary Jane sat in the chair beside her, and Braiden was in the chair directly opposite Ruby, beside the empty chair.

"Is James on his way?" Braiden asked, gesturing to it.
A voice cut through his from the sliding door of the dining room.

"James is already here" a man said, pleasantly enough. He walked around, into Ruby's vision and kissed Mary Jane lightly, and then noticed Ruby.

"Oh hello, you must be Ruby" he smiled, waving to Braiden at the same time.

"Nice to meet you" she returned his smile, shaking his hand and observing his appearance. He was very tall, just under 6 feet, with short brown hair and gray eyes. He had a sort of birthmark under his right cheekbone, shaped like a smudged star. He was good-looking but evidently not Braiden's biological father. He pulled out the chair besides Braiden and like an invisible signal had gone off, everyone reached for a bowl, ladling out their own helpings. Braiden caught her eye and gestured at the food meaningfully. "Eat" he mouthed. She tried not to groan. He was still hung up about her not eating, even though he'd watched over her like a very cute hawk every lunch time since. She kicked him under the table and he widened his eyes, letting out a hiss.

"Are you alright Braiden?" James asked, pausing in mid-air.

"Fine. Just accidentally sat the chair leg on my foot" he answered, shaking his fringe into his eyes and glaring at Ruby from under it. She smiled innocently at him and licked the edge of her fork, for what reason, she didn't know, but it got a reaction. He raised a finger.
"Just you wait" he mouthed cheekily.

Dinner was a pleasant experience for Ruby. She figured out that James and Braiden may not have been blood related but they shared the same kind of personality. The two kept Ruby and Mary Jane in fits of giggles all throughout. The food was amazing, and despite her stomach's protest, Ruby ate twice as much of her normal portions. That got her an approving grin from Braiden. She didn't really understand the tingles that ran up and down her spine when she looked up and saw him watching her. She'd never had tingles before, not even with - god forbid - Brody. They were a new experience, and she kind of liked them. She felt human, for a while, like she had emotions.

Although when she reached for the salad and brushed his hand by accident, her hand suddenly went all retard on her and she dropped the bowl. Braiden just smirked as Mary Jane told Ruby it was fine, and that she could calm down. From then, Braiden's hand had snaked across the table and he was stroking his thumb across her palm, rendering her incapable of eating anything more. Their hand holding was hidden by the plates, the bowls, the vase and the glasses, so Braiden's parents couldn't see. Ruby had a feeling that they knew though, it was something about the way Mary Jane kept glancing at James and smiling in amusement. Or maybe, Ruby thought, they're just in love. People can be in love, they do it all the time, she scolded herself. She looked away from the two, who were having their own little conversation and made eye contact with the boy sitting opposite her.

"Having fun?" he asked, rubbing warm patterns onto her skin. God, what was it about his hands, and her skin? It sent her crazy! She fought against closing her eyes and just sinking into the good feeling.

"Loads of fun" she smiled, biting her lip. He cocked his head to the side, and admired her. She was the most beautiful sight to him, sitting there in the soft glow of the candles Mary Jane had lit a little earlier, when outside had gotten dark. Her hair was escaping its messy bun and was curling around her face, and her eyes were more alive then he'd ever seen. He wished they were the only two in the room. And then, as if Mary Jane could read her son's mind, she pushed back her chair and stood up, gesturing to James to follow. Ruby's heart jumped into her throat and started beating at an unhealthy pace as Braiden began to smile.

"We're gonna go watch a movie in the living room if you want to join us?" she asked Braiden and Ruby. They exchanged a glance and both answered at the same time.

"No thanks."
"Nope."

James laughed, "Of course not," and closed the door behind him.

Braiden's gaze snapped back to Ruby as soon as it closed. She was still chewing on her lips, but her eyes were cast down, like she was nervous or something...
She felt a touch on her chin and looked up to see Braiden standing by her chair, with more affection in his eyes than she could take. It seared her ribs, and forced her whole body to relax. He took hold of her hands and pulled her up, leading her out to the garden through the sliding doors. She took time to stop and close them behind her: she didn't know why but she felt it gave her security.

Really and truly, she was just delaying. In presence of Braiden she became someone else, and that was definitely new to her. They moved in silence through the warm night air, overstepping upturned stones and making their way down a winding path. The moon blazed and weaved a spell on the flowers, and they seemed to represent Ruby's confusion: bless her heart but Mary Jane was a hopeless gardener. Roses and dandelions, tulips and herbs, bushes and apple trees, all dotted around. The weeds at least had been pulled up, and the concrete was warm beneath her bare feet. A garden swing came into view and they sat down on it, Ruby instantly drawing her knees up and leaning into Braiden's chest. He wrapped his arms around her, sliding his hands along her arms, teasing her skin, until his fingers interlocked with hers.

"This is perfect" she murmured, looking up into the night sky, dotted with stars. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt this happy, this at peace with the world, with herself. She felt she could just sit back, revel in his embrace, and breathe.

"You're perfect" he whispered, kissing the back of her neck, causing her to bite back a gasp. Braiden had magic running through his fingers as they danced across her skin. He was enchanting her, commanding her heart to move to the beat of his breathing. He was bewitching her. She didn't know when she'd stopped minding, but she did know that she couldn't continue to pretend it didn't affect her. It sent shocks down her spine, and heat to her cheeks. It parted her lips and stole her sense. It made her everything she despised in life, and everything she desired. Everything she was. Everything they were together. She turned and framed his face with her hands, goosebumps raised all along her body even though she wasn't cold. She looked down at them and then smiled gently at him.

"Look what you do to me" she told him. He took one of her hands and placed it on his chest, over his heart. It beat hard and fast against her hand and her breath caught in her throat.
"Look what you do to me" he repeated her words softly. It was a moment so perfect, so brilliant, not even angels could fault it.
He didn't let go of her for one second, in fact his grip tightened, unconscious as he was of it.

Their eyes were locked together, breath twisting with each other's, hearts racing. Like two stars, hung in suspense, they shone, connected, as one. And when that kiss came, it hit them both like the sun had exploded around them. Something inside Ruby broke away and just... drifted. Whatever had held her back was gone, and she was laid open now, bare to him. All her strings had been cut and she was no longer grounded to this superficial world. She was something beyond that. Kissing Braiden, under the stars, she was heaven itself. If he wanted it, her soul was his. She wasn't scared anymore. If she could have given herself to him without words, she would have done it in that every second. But she knew he wanted those words, and she had them. Words that pierced, hot and hard and heavy, straight into the heart. And she wanted his heart for herself. She wanted him all. Every last shred of him.

She pulled away, lips parted, body trembling.

"I think I love you."