Page 87 of Fervency Love

“Do your parents accept me, Ve?” I ask, breaking the kisses he’s planting on every inch of my bare shoulder.

“You kidding?” He looks at me with an unidentifiable expression. “They love you. Don’t you feel it?”

“I haven’t really thought about it before. But yeah, I can see they have no negative feelings towards me.”

I’m sitting on the bed and watching the endless blue sky. Lucius and my parents went to see my aunt. Nothing beautiful lasts forever. A call from Ivy suddenly sours my fantastic mood.

“I don’t want to rattle your cage, but Shawna’s been telling everybody what a great massage Ve gave her. I just thought you should know, so you can talk it over with you know who.”

I can feel a wave of anger rising in me.

“That little bitch! I’ll give her a massage! And I’ll talk it out with Ve. Thanks, Ivy.”

I need to drop something off at my cousin’s and check what time school starts on my way. When I’m done with that, I come right back home. I can see Ve out the window of the bus. He’s so beautiful in that polo shirt and baggy trousers. He’s leaning on a low wall, smoking.Now we’ll chat, darling,I think, though the sight of him dulls my determination for a moment.

I step out of the bus and pass him by, pretending not to see him.

“Hey! What’s wrong, babe?” he calls.

I pause, turn my head, and ask, “Have something to tell me?”

“Not sure… why?” He seems totally disoriented.

“Maybe you can explain to me why the fuck that little shit keeps talking about the great massage you gave her?!”

“What? Who said that?”

“Shawna!” She’s a girl from my brother’s class, but she tends to keep older boys company.

“I can explain.”

“I’m waiting.”

“Nothing of the sort happened. We were at Kellan’s yesterday, and she was running on about some shit. I grabbed her by the shoulders and gave her a shake. She got it in her head that this was supposed to mean something.”

What can I do but believe him? Maybe I’m naive, but maybe he is telling the truth. Guess I’ll never know. Sadly, it’s a fact that I’m just madly in love with this boy. He’s become something of a drug to me. I need him to live. It’s a bit worrying, to be honest. He might hurt me any time. I don’t think I could survive that.

“What exactly were you doing there, Ve? At Kellan’s?”

“I told you. We were watching movies. He has a great projector, and we sometimes go there to watch flicks. It feels like going to a cinema.”

The thought that she’s been there too makes me see red.

“What was she doing there? Why didn’t you take me?”

“I didn’t think of that. I had no idea there were going to be chicks. Usually, it’s just the guys. Sometimes Kellan’s sister drops by too.”

“So what was Shawna doing there?” I keep prodding.

“I think she’s fooling around with Kellan. Or at least trying to. Don’t know. I didn’t pay attention.”

He takes my hand and sets off. When he’s at my side, and we’re strolling among rustling trees, the warm sun caressing my skin, I forget about my anger. Ve is the antidote to all the evil of this world. Even that which he’s the source of. A paradox if ever there was one. We sit down on the hill, basking in the rays of the setting sun.

“It’s so fucked up,” I confess. “It’s great, but there’s always something that makes us fight.”

“Why is that?” he asks.

“I’d like to know the answer…”

---