Time-Lapse by J.B. Heller
Chapter Sixteen
I tookmy final exam on Friday afternoon, and it was a cakewalk. Eliza’s study technique obviously worked wonders. Just thinking about it makes me smile, and I know the memory of her will never leave me.
A part of me hoped the exams would be more challenging. Maybe then I’d have a reason to stay a little longer if I had to retake them.
But I knew I’d aced everything before Principal Robson even opened his mouth when he had called me into his office this morning. He smiled at me and reached across his desk to shake my hand, telling me how impressed he was with my dedication to my education.
I’d held back my snort, but only just. My dedication had nothing to do with education and everything to do with getting the hell out of here.
And now I was regretting just how committed I’d been to that endeavor.
Because tomorrow, I’m leaving.
I bought the shitty run-around truck off Johnno after I finished work yesterday. It’s good on fuel, and I figure I can camp in the bed until I decide on a place to settle. Walking off the job site was bittersweet.
I’ve packed all my shit—not that I have much. I’m only taking my clothes, my pictures, my laptop, and my camera. Nothing else here holds any value to me except Eliza. And I can’t take her.
The idea of bringing her with me did enter my mind last week when she told me she’d come if I asked. But I can’t do that to her. She has the makings of a great life here. She has friends, and more importantly, she has a family that loves her. I would never take her away from that.
And since I can’t have her by my side, I’ve taken a shit-ton of photos of her. They are the only thing of her I’ll be taking with me. I’ve backed up every single one of them onto USB drives as well as my crappy laptop—even the ones that are out of focus. I can’t bring myself to delete a single one of them.
On my way home from work, I’d stopped in at the mall to pick something up for her. A keepsake of some sort. I had no idea what I was looking for until I saw it.
Her words from last weekend echoed in my head: ‘You’ve turned into this amazing human being who takes my breath away with your appreciation of the little, seemingly inconsequential things in life’. I knew she was talking about my photos and my obsession with finding beauty in the most unlikely of places.
I picked out a mint-green mini Polaroid camera and a case to keep it in. I knew she would get my reference to her mint-colored underwear that I’m so fond of.
An hour later, as I’m sitting on the edge of my bed in my now empty room, a wave of apprehension washes over me. Am I doing the right thing?
Then, I think of my dad, and I know that I have no other choice. For both our sakes, I need to leave. He deserves peace, and for once in my miserable life, so do I.
With my confidence back in place, I stand, taking one last look around at the bare walls. And when I turn back to the doorway, he’s standing there, his eyes flicking around the vacated space then coming to land on me.
“Going somewhere?” he asks.
Sliding my hands to rest on my hips, I stand at my full height, which brings me to his level. He raises a brow, and I clear my throat. “Yeah, I’m leaving. You won’t have to look at me ever again.”
His brows scrunch together. “You’re still in school.”
I shake my head. “I took my final exam earlier today. I’m done.”
For the first time ever, I see my father look at me with something akin to concern in his eyes. “Where you going to go, boy?”
Shrugging my shoulder, I glance out the window. “I’m not sure. Just away.”
When I turn my attention back to him, he’s nodding. “You need money or anything?”
I frown. Is he? No. “What?”
“You heard me,” he says gruffly.
I can’t believe I’m actually hearing this. “Are you kidding me? You’ve done absolutely everything you could to make sure I knew just how much you despise me, and now, now, you’re offering me money. What the fuck?”
A sneer I’m more than familiar with lifts his top lip. “If it gets you out of my life, then it’s money well spent.”
And there he is. “I don’t need anything from you. I’ll be taking more than enough emotional baggage with me, so I’m good. Thanks,” I say as I push past him, walk down the hallway, and out of the only place I’ve ever lived but was never my home.
I’m supposed to be meeting El at the stream, but as I pull up on the side of the road, I hear thunder roll overhead. She’s already here, and I park behind her Rover then make my way through the trees to the clearing.
My jaw drops as I take in the sight before me. “What? What is all this?” I ask as I look around at what is normally just a small patch of grass by the stream.
El turns around and smiles at me. “You like it? I wanted to make it … I don’t know. It sounds cliché to say special, but yeah, I guess that’s what I was going for.”
It’s incredible. She’s set up a teepee-style tent. In front of it, a blanket is laid out with a pizza box and a cooler filled with God knows what, but I don’t even care. The trees surrounding the clearing are filled with little lights, and she’s put out solar lanterns around the blanket.
I have no words. I stand there, dumbfounded for a moment, before I reach into my pack and pull out my camera. I snap one shot: Eliza waiting for me in the middle of the blanket surrounded by the twinkling lights in the trees around her. And the look on her face speaks louder than her words ever could.
I put my camera away then close the distance between us, lightly tossing my pack inside the tent as I reach her. When my hands are free, I cup her face in my palms and look down into her eyes. “I …” I try to speak, but I can’t find the right words. So, I kiss her instead.
She pushes up on her tiptoes and grips my shoulders as I slowly run my tongue along the line of her pouty bottom lip then slide it inside her wet mouth and revel in the taste of her one last time.
It doesn’t take long before I need more of her. So, I grip her hips, lifting her until she wraps her legs around my waist, then I drop to my knees on the blanket she’s laid out. I lower her to the ground, and my body follows hers like a magnet.
“Hux,” she whispers, “I’m going to miss you every damn day.”
Another piece of my soul splinters off, deciding to stay with her rather than me. I haven’t been whole for a long time, but I’d rather be broken because of her than my father. So, I smile down at her, knowing she will always have a piece of me. “I love you,” I tell her, and she rewards my confession with one of her brilliant smiles.
I have no desire to rush with her tonight—not on our last night together. I plan on taking my time, slowly devouring every succulent inch of her delectable body.
Apparently, El isn’t as down with taking it slow, and she shoves at my chest until I sit up on my haunches.
“I need you inside me now. We can do slow later, but right now … right now I need you.”
Her words spur me into action, and my shirt is up and over my head in a flash. By the time I go for my belt buckle, Eliza has already shucked her little white dress and is lying back, watching me. And goddamn, she’s wearing my favorite mint-green lace set. I lick my lips, remembering the first time I saw her just like this. I abandon my efforts with my belt and drop between her thighs.
She squeals out. “No! Pants off fir …” But her words trail off as my tongue laps at her sweet pussy over her lace underwear.
Her back arches, lifting her hips farther into my face, and I fucking love it. How she melts for me at the slightest touch. I love that only I get to see her like this. That the look on her face right now belongs to me.
As my tongue laves at her folds over the lace, I slide two fingers beneath it and inside her tightness. Her pussy clamps around them, and my cock twitches, wishing it was where my fingers were right now.
Sitting back on my haunches again, I keep my fingers inside her, pumping and grazing against that spot that drives her wild while I finish unbuckling my belt, pop the button, and slide the zipper down to release myself.
El’s shuddering and biting down on her bottom lip, her eyes closed tight as she barrels toward orgasm. I grip my dick and start pumping my fist in time with my fingers inside her pussy. Pleasure sparks in my balls as I watch her squirm.
When her eyes flash open, landing on my fist wrapped tightly around my cock while I’m jacking myself off, she comes on a husky moan. “Hux!”
I follow her right over the edge, spilling into my hand.
I love watching her like this. I could literally watch her come all day long—as long as I’m the one making her do it, that is. I frown at that thought. It’s a reality I’ve always been aware of but distinctly blocked from my mind.
Come tomorrow morning, I won’t have any claim to her. A rock settles in the pit of my stomach, and I close my eyes to block out the train of my thoughts before I ruin this for both of us. Because fuck, if I don’t want the clichéd special one last time with her.
