< Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Josh felt sick, physically ill and he fought not to run from the room. He nodded his head and with each word that came out of his girlfriend's mouth he swore he hated Natalie even more. Finally she was finished and she shrugged, clearly embarrassed for having to have relayed to him what had been spat angrily at her in the hall. There was a silence in the room, neither knew what to say next.

"Well?" Josh asked quietly. He was curious as to what Christina thought about what she’d been told and if that changed her opinion of him.

"Well what?"

"Did you believe her?" The thought that she might have believed Natalie made his stomach churn.

"Of course not. That night, in your car, you told me what you wanted your first time to be like. I trusted you that night and you’ve never made me doubt that since. You have never lied to me and until you do, I’m going to stand by you. Every time you touch me, you kiss me, I can feel how gentle you are. How you would never force anyone, especially not for sex."

"How... How can you be sure?" Josh needed to know that she honestly wasn’t afraid of him nor did she believe Natalie. Knowing that she was hurting, that he was the cause of that hurt was killing him.

"Because..." Christina blushed. She couldn’t look at her boyfriend when she said what was on her mind. "Because you always stop. Whenever we’re kissing and making out, you stop us when we get too far."

"But..."

"Josh," Christina said honestly. "Even though I’m not ready, I still probably would if you wanted. You have to know that if you kept asking, if you keep asking and instigate it, I would probably go all the way with you."

"But you’re not ready," Josh protested. His face felt hot and his whole body was on fire. "You keep saying you don’t want to until..."

"Exactly, I don’t want to right now. But I would if it meant that much to you. I love you," Christina stopped immediately, shocked that she said it. Looking at Josh, he was just as shocked.

"I do. I love you Josh, and if you wanted to do it, I would for you. But even knowing this, you haven’t pressured me. You’ve always been a gentleman and respect me. You don’t want me doing something I'm not ready for. She’s trying to hurt us, and she can’t. Because she doesn’t know you like I do."

Josh wasn’t sure if he wanted to cry or scream, both in extreme relief and joy. "Baby," he whispered as he pulled her close. "I thought you hated me."

"I could never hate you Josh," Christina admitted with a kiss to his jaw. She allowed herself to be pulled down and tucked comfortably against Josh’s body. "I love you," she whispered again, just as much for herself as for him.

"Say it again," Josh pleaded against her throat.

"I love you." Christina grinned as she felt Josh’s smile against her skin.

"Thank you so much."

They both knew they still had a lot to talk about.

Downstairs, the mood was still slightly awkward. Kyle and Emily walked into the kitchen where AJ, Lance, Britney, Justin and Nick were sitting. "Where’s Billy?"

The five teens all shrugged.

Emily went into the other room, returning a few moments later with Billy in tow. It was just before eleven o’clock and now that Natalie was gone, the party in the living room had resumed.

"What’s up?" Billy took the seat that was directly next to Britney. They smiled at each other before focusing on Kyle.

"I just wanted to apologize. I’m going to talk to Josh tomorrow when everything’s calmed down, but I honestly didn’t think she would show up here."

No one moved and Kyle shifted uncomfortably.

"I forgot that she even knew we were having the party, and from what I had been led to believe, she was supposed to be in Aspen skiing over the holiday. From what she said, she came back early to ...well obviously stir up trouble for Josh."

"She’s horrible," Britney said with a scowl. She hated the thought of anyone hurting her best friend. Kyle, Billy and Emily all nodded.

"She didn’t used to be that bad, but she’s changed. A lot."

"Well, I'm glad she’s gone." Nick commented. "How’s Josh?"

Emily frowned. "Not good, but he just needs to talk to Christina. They have a bit of stuff to sort out between them and ...well just stuff we need to talk to him about."

"But everything’s fine?"

Emily nodded. "Yeah."

"Well, I’m going to go up and check on them."

Britney headed up the back stairs off of the kitchen towards the bedrooms upstairs. She didn’t realize that Billy was behind her until she stumbled on one stair and he caught her.

"Oh," Britney gasped. "What...?"

"I wanted to come with you," Billy blushed. "I didn’t get a chance to talk to Josh." Britney smiled at him and so Billy slid his hand around Britney’s, threading their fingers together. They didn’t move, their eyes were locked on one another. Britney held her breath as Billy moved in closer. It was as if he was going to kiss her, but he stopped.

"I can’t believe you’re only fourteen," Billy breathed against Britney’s jaw. He nuzzled the side of her face, obviously hesitant.

"I’m gonna be fifteen next year," Britney said softly. "Plus, Josh is the same age as you are and Christina’s only fourteen."

"I know," Billy whispered. "But I shouldn’t ...I’m going to be seventeen. I never thought I’d ever want to be with someone so ..."

"Young?" Britney’s face fell and she dropped his hand. "I’m too young for you." Billy’s eyes were apologetic and Britney felt her heart break in two. She dropped his hand and pushed him away. "You wanted to see Josh? Give me a second." And before he could argue, she turned around and headed towards the bedroom, fighting off tears every step of the way. When she reached the room that she knew her best friend was staying in, she first listened to make sure that there were no noises coming from inside. When she was certain the coast was clear, she knocked softly. Again, no noises came forth so she pushed the door open and stopped at the sight of Christina and Josh curled around each other, both asleep. They looked beautiful together, peaceful and quiet and it only hurt Britney even more to see her best friend so happy while she was miserable.

"They’re asleep," Britney said, voice flat as she passed where Billy was standing in the hall. He hadn’t moved and had been cursing himself since she’d walked away from him. "You can talk to him later."

"I want to talk to you right now," Billy pleaded. He didn’t know what to say to her, but knew he couldn’t let her walk away so obviously hurt by his words. Britney only shook her head.

"No."

"Please?"

"I’m a little young, I probably won’t understand what you’re trying to say." Before he could have a chance to speak, Britney walked away without looking back. She knew that if she looked into his eyes, her resolve would crumble and she knew she had to stay strong. When Britney joined the others, Justin could see that she was upset.

"Hey, you want to talk about it?"

Britney shook her head. The person she wanted to talk about it with, was asleep upstairs, with her boyfriend. "Not yet. Hurts too much still."

Justin nodded and left it alone. He didn’t want to further upset Britney and could tell that she was close to breaking down. "Okay. Whenever you’re ready."

"Is anyone hungry?" Nick asked, rubbing his stomach. Judging from how much they all ate that night, it didn’t seem likely that they should be hungry again, but he was. Surprisingly, a few people raised their hands.

"Lets make brownie sundaes."

"I’m in!" Britney said. What she needed was some ice cream therapy. Lance, AJ and Emily were in too. Billy, on the other hand, had snagged Kyle, needing to talk to him.

"So, what did you say when she said she was too young?" Kyle asked. They were sitting on the front porch, thankful that it wasn’t too cold out that night.

"I didn’t say anything."

"Why?" It was obvious how much Billy liked Britney, and it seemed as though he had a direct opportunity to start something with her and he threw it away.

"Because she is. She’s fourteen Kyle."

"So?"

"She’s so young."

"Just two years."


"Two years is a big deal. She probably hasn’t even been kissed, ever. And..."

Kyle’s face scrunched up and he frowned. "So it’s about sex. She’s not experienced enough for you?"

Billy wanted to say no, that it wasn’t just that, but it was part of it. That and a lot of other different things all wrapped up into one. "It’s sort of that but more. We go to different schools. How is it going to be when we’re back in school?"

"You wouldn’t have classes with her even if she was sixteen and going to Lincoln. Right?"

Billy growled, knowing that Kyle was right.

"What’s the real problem?"

"Just ...what are people going to think?"

Kyle shook his head. "Who cares? You think Em cares that she’s older than me? You think I care what people say? If you like her as much as you told me you do, then all that should matter is you and her. But if you’re too embarrassed then maybe you’re right, maybe you shouldn’t be together."

"But it’s different with you and Em, it’s just one year."

"So if Britney was fifteen?"

Billy sighed. He was so confused, and the only thing he knew was that he really did like Britney and might have screwed up any chance he had to be with her. "I don’t know." Kyle shrugged, clearly unable to help him.

"I don’t know what to tell you dude."

"I don’t know what I want to hear!"

The two friends smiled at each other, this was definitely not the new years eve they had been anticipating.

"Guys, it’s ten to midnight. Someone should wake up Christina and Josh." AJ poked his head out of the door to alert Kyle and Billy it was almost midnight.

"Let ‘em sleep. They’ve had a rough night," Kyle suggested as he stood up. He pulled his best friend to his feet and they followed AJ back into the kitchen.

Someone turned on the TV and Dick Clark was currently talking from New York City, showing different parties in LA and New York. There were celebrities performing and people waiting to celebrate the start of a new year. Nick and Justin were standing next to each other at the back of the room, softly talking to one another. Britney was in the kitchen by herself, refusing to cry in her ice cream and brownie sundae. Lance and AJ had curled up in a chair together and were cuddling while Kyle and Emily were standing next to the window, watching the TV. Billy looked around and noticed that Britney wasn’t in the living room. He poked his head into the kitchen and swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat. He waited for her to put her spoon down before he grabbed onto her hand and tugged her into the living room.

"I don’t want..." Britney started to say. She was cut off by Billy’s finger over her lips.

TEN

"You sure you want to kiss me, Nicky?" Justin asked.

NINE

"Totally." Nick winked at his best friend, causing them both to burst into laughter.

EIGHT

"You think Josh and Christina will be okay?" Lance asked, concerned about their friends.

SEVEN

"They have to be. He loves her too much for them not to be," AJ assured his boyfriend with a kiss to his nose.

SIX

"Leave me alone," Britney struggled to make Billy drop her arm. She wanted to wallow alone and he was preventing it. Especially since it was him she was wallowing about.

FIVE

"No. I don’t want to leave you alone. It’s hard for me to kiss you when we’re in two different rooms." Billy held her arms over her head, pinning them against the wall. She wasn’t held very firmly, so if she wanted, she could get away. Thankfully, she didn’t fight and they both stood motionless, staring deep into each others’ eyes.

FOUR


"You want to kiss me?" Britney was genuinely surprised. She had assumed that his display earlier meant he wasn’t interested and had been turning her down.

THREE

"All night," Billy leaned in, waiting for the magic words. "For weeks."

TWO

"So, this party will definitely be one to remember, don’t you think Em?" Kyle asked as he pulled his girlfriend close and nuzzled her neck. As much as he wanted to look around at their friends, he couldn’t take his eyes off of his beautiful girlfriend.

ONE

"HAPPY NEW YEAR"

The feel of Billy’s lips on Britney’s elicited a soft whimper and a moan. She melted against his body and the second he released his hold on her hands, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. She felt him lift her up slightly as he wrapped his own arms around her waist and they both were lost in the kiss. The whimper caused for her lips to part, which immediately gave way for his tongue to delicately push through and lap at her teeth.

When the kiss finally broke, Britney was breathless. "Wow."

"Happy New Year," Billy whispered into her ear before placing a line of kisses down her jaw and towards her lips, which were swollen and ruby red.

"Yeah," Britney sighed as Billy’s arms tightened around her waist. She leaned in to softly kiss him, nibbling on his lower lip seductively. She had no idea if she was kissing him right, as she’d never been properly kissed before, but judging by the way he moaned as she was licking at his lip, she had a vague sense that he was enjoying himself. "Is ...am I doing okay?" Britney was embarrassed that she had to ask, but really wanted to know.

"You’re doing fine," Billy replied as he leaned in to kiss her again. Their mouths were locked tightly and he tilted her head so he could deepen the kiss as much as possible. He knew that he should go slow, but she was clutching at him and would whimper every time he moved away, so stopping was the last thing he wanted. "Is ...is this too much? Do you want me to stop?"

Britney shook her head and licked her lips. "Not too much ...do you want to stop?"

It was Billy’s turn to shake his head. "No."

"You don’t ...still think I’m too young? Is this just for tonight, because you don’t have anyone better to kiss?"

Billy pulled away entirely this time, putting distance between them. He looked around the room to see that everyone was hugging each other, welcoming in the new year. With a gentle tug on her arm, he pulled Britney into the kitchen. "I don’t have anyone I’d like to kiss more than you Brit."

"But upstairs..."

"Upstairs ..." Billy sighed. "I just... I don’t know how to explain it. You’re two years younger than me.."

"Josh doesn’t have a problem with it? With Christina. Maybe it’s not the age thing, maybe it’s me."

Billy’s eyes widened and he shook his head vigorously. "It’s not you. God, it’s not you. You’re so amazing and beautiful." Billy leaned down to kiss her softly, running his fingers through her hair at the same time.

"Then what? Is it that you think people will talk because I’m young?" Britney held her breath as Billy nodded his head.

"Something like that." When he saw her starting to close off, he pulled her close and wouldn’t let her go. "But ...when I just kissed you, that didn’t matter. I don’t care what anyone says, it’s none of their business."

Britney weighed out what she wanted to say. On one hand she didn’t care what happened, she’d do anything as long as he kissed her again the way he had out in the living room, but on the other hand she didn’t feel it was fair that he was embarrassed by her, and didn’t want to be with someone who was ashamed of her. "You’re not going to expect me to pretend we’re not together when we’re out in public, right?"

Nothing Britney could have said would have surprised him more in that moment. He didn’t even know how to respond.

"Because if you are, you’re mistaken. It doesn’t matter how gorgeous you are, how much you make my whole body tingle when you kiss me, or how badly I want to be your girlfriend, I won’t be with you if you’re going to be ashamed of me."

Billy beamed at the compliments she was paying him. She had no clue as to how good they made him feel and he felt his own stomach flipping excitedly. He knew she had a lot to get off of her mind, but he couldn’t help himself. He had to kiss her again. As her tongue played with his, he vaguely heard someone enter the room, clear their throat and walk back out. He didn’t care who it was, all that mattered was that Britney was in his arms and wanted to be his girlfriend.

"I’m not. I really don’t care what anyone says. I just care about you and me."

Britney’s lips curled into a dreamy grin. "Happy new year Billy." She hugged him tightly and rest her head on his chest as she allowed herself to relax against his body.

"Happy new year, baby." Billy replied.

~*~

The ball dropped and both Nick and Justin held their breath. They turned to look at one another. "Happy new year," Nick said nervously. He had no idea why he was so nervous, he’d slept in the same bed with Justin before, known him since they were practically born and had gone through numerous of good and bad times with him. But now, with the prospect of having to kiss him, he was feeling slightly awkward. Thankfully, as he looked his best friend in the eye, he could see a nervousness etched there as well.

"Happy new year," Justin replied. They hugged each other before slowly moving in closer to one another to place feather soft, kisses on each other’s lips. Justin pulled back just slightly as he saw Nick’s cheeks redden. He knew that if he looked into a mirror in that exact moment, his cheeks would be as red as his best friend’s. Justin grinned.

Nick grinned back and leaned in once again, pressing his mouth even harder against Justin’s. He remembered their promise of no tongue and so kept his lips together tightly. They shared that one last kiss before pulling away and grinning.

"First new year’s kiss ever," Justin said as they high fived one another. Nick grinned and they started to play fight.

"So, did you wish I was Chris?" Nick asked with a snort. He yelped when Justin attacked him with tickles.

"Uh, duh. Of course not. If I did that, I would have thrown you on the couch and started tearing off your clothes. Did you wish I was Kevin?"

Nick shrugged. "Of course." He burst into laughter as Justin started to tickle him again. They stopped struggling and looked around the room to see Lance and AJ still kissing passionately on the chair in the corner. Their eyes remained locked on their friends for a few minutes. It was one of the only times they’d ever seen the two of them being physical with one another and it was amazing how comfortable they were with each other’s bodies. They shared a knowing look before Kyle and Emily caught Nick’s attention.

She was saying something into Kyle’s ear and he blushed red before they both broke into laughter, sharing a private joke.

"Where’s Brit?" Justin asked as he realized she wasn’t in the room.

"I don’t know," Nick said with a shrug. They shared a look before both heading towards the kitchen. "Maybe she wanted more ice cream," Nick said as they stepped into the kitchen.

Justin gasped at the sight of Britney and Billy, wrapped around each other against the counter. He cleared his throat and realized that they hadn’t even noticed. They were so caught up in, what looked like an extremely hot and passionate kiss, that they hadn’t realized they weren’t alone.

"Maybe we should..." Nick suggested, motioning towards the door they’d just come in through. Justin nodded and laughed silently. They had just heard Britney whimper Billy’s name, the sound causing for Billy to groan.

"Wanna go play the PS2 in the other room?" Justin asked. He barely had time to react as Nick sprinted through the hall.

"First one there gets to choose the game."

~*~*

When AJ first heard that people outside of their core group were going to be at Kyle’s New Year’s party, he was a little hesitant in agreeing to go. He wanted to spend the night with his friends, especially Lance, but at the same time wasn’t sure how other people would react to his relationship with Lance. It wasn’t something that was always well received, and knowing that he would have to restrain himself all night was weighing heavily on his mind.

Thankfully, Kyle had assured him that the people that would be there would have no problem with his and Lance’s relationship, nor would they object to bearing witness to displays of affection between the two of them. Kyle advised that going TOO far would not be suggested, as no one wanted to see that much of a happy couple. AJ didn’t plan on that much of a show, but mainly was concerned about being able to hold hands with his boyfriend, cuddle with him on the couch or in the chair and kissing him at midnight, which was what he was just getting ready to do.

The clock struck midnight, they could hear people on the television singing Auld Lang Syne and AJ turned to Lance, grinning at his boyfriend. "Happy New Year, baby!"

"Happy New Year Aje," Lance responded. He leaned in, practically inviting AJ to kiss him. He waited, happy when AJ did just that. Their mouths met and instantly Lance’s growl of pleasure was swallowed by AJ’s mouth. They were tangled together on the chair, both trying to get closer to the other. AJ held Lance by the back of his head, tilting their mouths so that he could penetrate his tongue deeper. Everything around the room disappeared except for the two of them. By the time they broke, Lance opened his eyes to see that it was already quarter after twelve. He’d spent the first fifteen minutes of that year, kissing his boyfriend. As he leaned in closer, crawling right onto AJ’s lap, Lance knew that this was definitely going to be the best year ever.

~*~*

So, the night was almost a disaster, huh?" Emily said as she leaned Kyle up against the wall next to the window. She smiled as her boyfriend blushed. The thing she loved about him was that he was so hot, but at the same time so adorable. His blonde hair was a little shaggy as he was growing it out and there were wavy curls at the nape of his neck. His baby blue eyes were always twinkling and his skin was the colour of honey, always tanned but never too dark. They had met in his first week of high school when he’d bumped into her at the guidance office. She’d shown him around to all of his classes and realized what a great guy he was.

She was a year older than him and despite being made fun of by all of her friends, Emily didn’t care what anyone said. She enjoyed talking to Kyle and his friends, had a good time when they’d all get together and finally, one night when they were studying for exams, she had asked him out. Since then, they’d not only been boyfriend and girlfriend, but best friends. He knew more about her than anyone else, and there wasn’t anything that she couldn’t tell him. The best part of their relationship was that she knew that he could say the same thing, that she was his best friend and that he didn’t feel self conscious telling her anything, even the most embarrassing things.

"I am so sorry about her," Kyle apologized again. He blushed when Emily shook her head and kissed his chin sweetly.

"I know, sweetie. And I’m sorry for getting so mad at you."

"No, it’s okay." They looked up from their conversation to see the ball reach it’s destination and fireworks explode on the television screen. It was officially the start of a new year.

"Happy new years baby," Kyle whispered as he kissed his girlfriend. She kissed him back with equal enthusiasm.

"I love you Kyle," Emily responded as the kiss broke. They stared deeply into each other’s eyes and brought their mouths together in another kiss, this time deeper than the last.

~*~*~


The sound of screaming startled Josh awake and for a moment, he wasn’t sure where he was. He felt someone pressed tightly against his chest and he opened his eyes to see a mass of blonde hair in front of him. He leaned down and snuggled closer to her, enjoying the feel of having her in his arms. She turned over, obviously wakened by the noise as well as Josh’s movement, putting them face to face.


"What’s going on?" Christina said with a yawn. She didn’t open her eyes but curled closer into Josh’s warm embrace.

Josh took notice of the clock on the night stand and laughed, the sound and movement woke Christina up a little more.

"What’s so funny?"

"It’s ten after twelve."


Christina shrugged as if to say ‘so?’

"It’s January first. New year’s day."

It was Christina’s turn to laugh. "We fell asleep and missed it." Tilting her head up, she found herself looking into Josh’s sleepy eyes. She fell in love with him all over again and realized that she wouldn’t have rathered to entered the new year anywhere else. They could still hear people celebrating down stairs.

"Well, happy new year Chrissy," Josh said as he pressed his lips to her forehead. He placed random kisses over her face, her cheeks and her nose until he reached her mouth, which was already open and waiting for him. Their tongues battled back and forth and Christina trembled as Josh’s hand slid just barely under the back of her tee shirt. She loved the feel of his hands on her bare skin, especially when it was just the briefest of light touches, just designed to let her know he was there.

"Happy. New. Year. Josh." Christina said in between kisses. She gave a sultry laugh as she tried to roll them so that she was on top of her boyfriend. Instead, she found herself pinned down with Josh over top of her. "Hey," she giggled. "I was supposed to be on top of you, not the other way around."

Josh shrugged as he grinned down at her. "Too bad, I'm stronger."

Christina stuck her tongue out at Josh, which was quickly captured between his teeth, starting them off on another deep, soul searching kiss. Christina felt Josh’s hand on her hip and in a moment of pure adrenaline, she rolled them so that they were on their side, all without breaking the kiss. She reached down to grab onto Josh’s hand, tangling her fingers with his. She could feel how excited he was, his hardness was pressing against her leg. Feeling her own stomach churn with excitement, she knew that what she was about to do would probably only further his excitement. She took his hand and led it to her chest, moving it so that he was cupping one of her breasts in his hand. The move caused for him to break the kiss with a groan, his eyes opening quickly.

Josh hadn’t even been paying attention to what Christina was doing until he felt the small, fleshy globe of her breast in the palm of his hand. He whimpered at the realization of what she had done, but at the same time had to make sure that she was doing this for the right reasons. "What are you doing?"

"I wanted to feel you," Christina answered breathlessly. "Your hands on me."

"But.."

"Shhhh," Christina whispered. "Just enjoy."

It was only over the top of her tee shirt, and Josh’s hand didn’t stray too much further than where Christina had led it, but he felt a jolt of pleasure, of exhaultation that she trusted him enough to let him touch her the way he was. They kissed until they found themselves both once again falling asleep, bodies entwined, mouths locked at the lips. Just as he was about to fall off of the cliff into unconscious oblivion, he tightened his hold on Christina and Josh couldn’t help but whisper the words he’d been wanting to say all night. "I love you."

End Chapter 28


Chapter 29 >