Page 95 of Set the Moment
Kissing her one last time, my tongue finding its way home in her mouth, I savor her. The feeling of our cold flesh pressed together and her mouth on mine has my brain short circuiting as we pull apart.
“Come on, let’s go get you cleaned up.”
thirty-three
Jace
Anotherlineherewouldmake this pop…
My pencil glides across my sketchbook effortlessly, tracing and outlining a small piece that’s always plagued my mind but has never been finished. Before Sienna and I reconnected, I hadn’t picked up my sketchbook in almost seven months, but now that we have, I’m sketching more than I have in my almost twenty years of life.
“And another one here—” I’m about to add some more detailing when a girl pops into my line of view, pausing me momentarily in my craft.
She smiles at me and I reciprocate the action skeptically as she plants a seat next to me, pulling a sketchbook identical to my own out of her canvas bag. My nose scrunches as the pungent scent of her perfume intoxicates the air, reeking of an old cotton candy smell.
“Is this seat taken?” the blonde questions, turning to face me as I erase a minor mistake on my page.
Mumbling, “All yours…” my mind flashes with thoughts of Sienna and her upcoming birthday. She turns twenty-one on New Years Eve, and though her birthday is two months after mine, I’d rather plan her birthday first seeing as I have a good idea on what to do for my twentieth already.
“Wow! Your line work is gorgeous,” the woman next to me gasps, leaning in to get a better look atmysketchbook. I tense as her breasts rub against my arm and her pervasive smell suffocates me.
“Oh…Thanks.” I awkwardly rub the back of my neck, looking down at the unfinished dancer that I always sketch just as she turns to look up at me, her face mere inches from mine.
My nose itches.
I scrunch it, my eyes watering as I try to place where I know this girl from, but I can’t.
“Oh! I’m so sorry…I’m so nosey.” The woman giggles shyly, pulling back abruptly as I try to shake away my sneeze.
Rubbing my nose discreetly, I wave her off. “You’re fine…”
“I’m Amber, by the way.” She smiles hard, holding out her hand for me to shake before turning back to my sketchbook and previous thoughts.
My heart aches as my mind wanders back to how excited Sienna had been after her mom told her she’d be coming home for her birthday.
The hope in her eyes, the pure happiness that radiated off of her…I fucking hate her parents for putting that look on her face, because in the end, I don’t trust them.
They weren’t there at that recital all those years ago. They didn’t see that angel lose her wings for the very first time or how hard I worked over the years to put them back in their rightful spot. They didn’t see how dim the light in her eyes were at the beginning of every summer and winter fucking break.
Idid.
For years,Iwas the one watching over her even when I had no idea what I was doing.Iwas the one who held her when she cried on the porch.Iwas the one always there for Sienna because at that age, I knew that when you love someone, you fight for them. And when you love someone, you show up for them.
They didn’t, but I damn sure did.
Heaving a sigh, I shake off the little tiffs of anger settling in my bones as Amber leans in to say something only to be interrupted by our professor.
“Again everyone, there isn’t any homework due for this week. I need you all to be rested and focused for the upcoming midterm.”
Thank God.
This course has been a walk in the park so far with my professor assigning little to no work and only discussion boards. I’m gathering my things and walking out, thoughts of Sienna’s birthday still raging through my head, as someone grabs a hold of my bicep.
“Do you think we’ll have homework?” the girl from earlier asks.
Was she not paying—
My phone vibrates Sienna’s custom alert. Giving the girl a tightlipped smile, I open our text thread.
