PRES: a bay falls high novel Read online

  “Ti isn’t going anywhere, man,” I said.

  “Of course not,” Barr said. “That’s my point.”

  “She’s got you,” Kip said. “You don’t have her. That’s a twist.”

  “Fuck that,” I said. “I know what I have. I know what I want. I know what I get when I say so.”

  “Which is why she’s driving herself, right?” Barr asked. “That’s her way of making you chase her down still.”

  “And you’re doing it,” Kip said. “Look how close you’re driving.”

  I slammed on the brakes and cut the wheel to the right.

  Barr put his hand to the dashboard and almost lost his cigarette.

  Kip barreled forward between the front seats and screamed.

  My SUV was turned a little sideways.

  I sat there and watched Tinsley’s SUV drive away.

  I swallowed hard.

  “I’m protecting her,” I said. “That’s all. Everything she’s been through. The truth she had to face with Claire. And what happened with Kelvin. She doesn’t know about that yet. I want her to feel safe and not look over her shoulder. I want her to just live and move forward. Because she’s not living in your guesthouse forever, Kip.”

  “Jealous?” Kip asked with a sly grin.

  “Not even close,” I said.

  There was a thudding knock-knock knuckle sound on my window.

  I turned my head and Officer Nerrings stood there, one eyebrow lifted high into the air.

  “Ah, shit,” Kipp whispered. “Officer Numbnuts.”

  I put the window down. “Problem?”

  “You’re turned sideways in the road, son,” Nerrings said. “I was going to ask you if there was a problem.”

  “Bee,” Barr said. “Big bee. Yellow and black. Stinger about three inches long.”

  “A bee?” Nerrings asked.

  “That’s right,” I said. “We were just getting ready to drive again.”

  “Anything I need to know about here, Preston?” Nerrings asked. “Do I need to check the inside of the vehicle?”

  “You’ll only find Kipp,” I said. “That’s the worst thing I’ve got in the backseat.”

  “Other than some wild looking panties,” Kipp called out. “He’s got a fucking collection back here. Edible.” Kipp leaned forward. “What’s your poison, Nerrings? Cherry or watermelon?”

  “Funny,” Nerrings said.

  “I prefer watermelon myself,” Barr said. “Flavor doesn’t linger as long. Plus, the cherry… too red. You look like you just got done with her while she’s on her time of the month.”

  I kept a straight face while Nerrings cringed.

  He nodded. “Get out of here. I’ll be following you. Make sure nothing is happening here.”

  “Since you’re going to make us late for class, how about coming into BFH and vouching for us?” I asked.

  Nerrings laughed.

  He backed away.

  I put the window up and looked at Barr. “Thanks for that.”

  “What?” Barr asked.

  I shook my head. “I’m never going to eat something cherry flavored ever again now.”

  * * *

  It was the same bullshit routine after we took care of some personal business.

  The story that spread around the halls was never the right one. But that was okay. Because as long as the story was violent and grew bigger with each telling, that was fine by me. That was the point. To make it known if you fucked with the Rulz you got hurt. And that included Tinsley. She was part of me and part of the Rulz in a roundabout way.

  I leaned against a locker and folded my arms.

  I watched her as she talked to Gi and Iris.

  I wasn’t all the way sold on that best friendship, but there was no way in hell I was going to tell Tinsley who to be friends with. That, again, wasn’t like me. My plan was always the same - control everything. It was the only way to survive anything in life. Kind of like driving. If you were driving, you were fucking driving. It wasn’t like you were handling the wheel and someone was hitting the gas with someone else was hitting the brakes.

  Maybe that was a terrible example, but whatever.

  I just loved watching Tinsley.

  Waiting for the moment when she would burst into laughter.

  It was always an explosion too.

  You could catch that first explosion from a mile away. Then she’d shy up and try to cover her mouth or force herself to quiet down. I told her a hundred times not to do that. To laugh how she wanted. Because her laugh gave life in a way. Listening to her laugh made me laugh.

  “Um… excuse me…”

  I turned my head and saw some guy a foot away from me. Thumbs hooked into the straps of his bag. Blinking fast.

  “… sir…,” he added and swallowed hard.

  His Adam’s apple looked like he had swallowed a banana.

  His moppy, curly hair stuck up like he needed a haircut.

  “What the fuck do you want?” I asked.

  “You’re, uh, leaning, uh, against my locker,” he said. He laughed.

  I didn’t laugh.

  He stopped laughing and his eyes went wide.

  “So?” I asked.

  “I need to get my chem book,” he said. “Did I… am I…” He looked around. “Am I in trouble?”

  Barr stood behind the guy and put a finger to his lips.

  “Shh…”

  Barr grabbed the guy’s bag and shook him.

  The guy screamed.

  Kipp then appeared and bumped his chest into the guy’s right shoulder.

  “Oh, shit,” the guy said. “I didn’t do it.”

  “Do what?” I asked.

  “Whatever you think I did,” he said. His lips quivered. “I swear. I just need to get my fucking chem book and leave.”

  “Apparently I’m blocking his locker,” I said.

  “How do we know it’s your locker?” Barr asked.

  “I can open it,” the guy said.

  “I’ll open it,” Kipp said. “Whisper the numbers to me.”

  The guy shook his head.

  “See, that’s a problem,” I said. “We have the right to inspect any locker we want. If you don’t comply, then I’ll use your head to smash into the locker until it opens.”

  The guy let out a whimper.

  Was this whole thing wrong?

  Damn right it was.

  Did I give a damn?

  Nope.

  “Right here,” Kipp said, pointing to his right ear.

  The guy nodded.

  He whispered the numbers so loud to Kipp that I heard them.

  I turned and opened the locker.

  “Well, fuck,” I said. “He wasn’t lying.”

  “Why would I lie?” he asked.

  “Don’t fucking talk back to us,” Barr said.

  I side stepped but kept my hand on the locker. “I know the combo now. If you get it changed, I’ll know. And believe me, you don’t want to do that. Okay?”

  “Okay,” the guy said.

  “Good luck with chem,” Kipp said. “You know all that is just bullshit, right?”

  “You’re better off studying the chemistry of your tongue between a pretty girl’s legs,” Barr added.

  The guy’s cheeks turned red.

  I shrugged my shoulders. “They’ve got a point. We’re just trying to help you.”

  I looked down the hall and saw Tinsley walking in between Gi and Iris.

  That was enough fun for one minute.

  Now I just needed to get my hands on Tinsley’s perfect body and taste her sweet lips.

  * * *

  Kip was on his back, staring up at the sky.

  Barr smoked, deep in thought.

  I stood in the middle of the garden.

  A place of peace. Or something like that.

  It was a place for anyone to come to catch their breath and calm down. To sit, study, and enjoy the views and all that shit they tried to feed us. Everyone knew t
he second we stepped into the garden, that was their cue to get the hell out.

  “What are you thinking, Pres?” Barr asked.

  “I’m thinking I’m not going to back down,” I said.

  “They’re looking for attention, man,” Kip said.

  “And you wouldn’t show up and throw a few punches?” I asked.

  Kip sat up and swung his legs off the stone bench. “I’d be there in a heartbeat.”

  “Exactly,” I said.

  “You can’t go solo on it,” Barr said.

  “We’ll work something out,” I said. “I know it’s been busy around here too. But ignoring something like that would send the wrong message.”

  “I’ve got time,” Kip said. He made a fist and cracked his knuckles. “And I’m in the mood for a fight.”

  “You just beat the hell out of Kelvin,” Barr said.

  “That was sloppy seconds,” Kip said. “I want a fresh one.”

  “Maybe you should try smoking,” Barr said. “It’ll ease you a little.”

  “No,” Kip said. “I know what I want and need.”

  “Me too,” I said.

  I looked down the path and just as I felt like the world had shifted a few inches to the right, there she was.

  Tinsley walking toward us.

  It was impossible for a little grin to not climb across my face at the sight of her.

  She was alone.

  Not afraid of approaching the Rulz.

  Dangerous and sexy.

  Like no other girl I had ever met in my life.

  And nobody would come close to Tinsley.

  “Hey, sugar,” I said.

  She pointed at me and her eyes flared with anger. “You.”

  “Me,” I said.

  “You… asshole…”

  “Whoa,” Kip said. “That’s not a nice hello, girl.”

  Tinsley froze and looked at Kip. “You too. Asshole.”

  Barr cleared his throat.

  Tinsley looked at him. “Asshole.”

  “Okay,” I said. “You think we’re all assholes. Fair enough.”

  “Think?” she asked. “I know it.”

  “Why, sugar?”

  “He left.”

  “Who left?” I asked.

  “Kelvin.”

  “Your point?”

  “What did…” She shook her head. “Why did…”

  “Sugar, you don’t understand what he did,” I said. “I’m not tolerating that kind of shit here. You deserve better.”

  “Me? This is about me?” Her nostrils flared. “Goddamn you, Pres. I don’t need you to…”

  Tinsley stopped mid-sentence and swung her hand.

  She cracked me across the face.

  The hot sting spread across my cheek.

  She then balled up her hand into a fist and swung.

  Barr hooked his arm to hers. “Easy, love.”

  Tinsley turned and slapped him with her other hand.

  “Damn, girl,” Kip said, jumping and running toward her.

  She took a swing at Kip before I finally grabbed her by the waist and pulled her away.

  “What are you doing, sugar?” I growled into her ear.

  She wiggled away. “I don’t need you to fight my battles anymore. I can defend myself.”

  I looked at Barr and Kip. I nodded. “Give us some space.”

  “Let’s go ice your cheek,” Kip said to Barr.

  “Damn, love, you should take up boxing,” Barr said.

  They walked away and I stood facing Tinsley.

  She was still ready to attack.

  “Why?” she asked. “Did he look at me the wrong way? Huh? You jumped him on the beach? At night? He told his parents he didn’t know who it was. Lucky you, right? And his parents said he’s not allowed here anymore. Because of everything happening. He’s already gone, Pres. Sent away. To San Francisco or something. Because of you.”

  “Because of himself,” I said. “You don’t want to know what he wrote about you in the locker room.”

  “What?”

  “On the wall. About you. About your mother.”

  “What…”

  “It’s not what you think, sugar,” I said. I closed in on her and touched her chin. “I want to beat the shit out of anyone who looks at you. I want to break the jaw of any guy that has the nerve to talk to you. That shit I can swallow down. That’s me fighting how much I really love you, Tinsley. But what Kelvin did… no.”

  “Why didn’t I know about it?” she asked. “So I could have done something myself?”

  “I’m tired of that.”

  “Of what?”

  “Those I love hurting themselves to hurt those who hurt them.”

  “What?”

  “I’ve watched it before and did nothing,” I said. “It won’t happen with you, sugar. I’m going to defend you and protect you… and there’s nothing you can do about it. One of these crazy bitches want to get in your way, that’s all you unless you ask for my help. But these assholes… I’m not letting it happen.”

  “Pres…”

  I felt anger and sadness wash over me in a way that I didn’t like at all.

  Not right there. Not with Tinsley.

  I shook my head.

  I swallowed hard.

  I pulled at her chin and brought my lips down to hers.

  A soft and gentle kiss.

  That didn’t ease anything in me.

  So I went for a second kiss.

  Better… but still…

  “If he didn’t leave I would have beat the shit out of him every single day for the rest of his time here,” I whispered. “And that sends a clear message to everyone else. Of who you are. And what you mean to me.”

  Tinsley nodded. “Okay. I get it, Pres…”

  “No. You don’t.”

  I kissed Tinsley one more time and then backed away.

  I took a deep breath and grabbed her hand.

  When I started to walk, she tugged at my hand. “What are we doing now?”

  I didn’t look back at her.

  I blinked fast.

  “I want to show you something, sugar.”

  Chapter 3

  If I really wanted to sit down and think about time and life, then I’d get even more pissed than I normally was. Because I’d end up wishing to meet Tinsley sooner. I would have loved to see her with my mother. My mother would have put her arm around Tinsley, pulled her close, kissed her head, and then playfully told her to run like hell from me.

  We’d be in the kitchen, eating some kind of fancy ass snack, waiting for Tinsley to figure out what she was eating. Then my mother would have tossed it all away and got everyone some real snacks.

  And some real food.

  Then we’d end up eating, laughing, my mother telling all the cliché embarrassing stories about little Preston. Leaving me on the edge of being mad at her, but watching Tinsley laugh at my behalf would have made it all worth it.

  Sadly those moments never existed.

  They’d never have the chance to exist, either.

  And there was nothing I could do about it.

  A lesson I learned the hard way.

  A lesson I watched as time gave and took so much at the same time.

  My fingers were interlocked tight to Tinsley’s hand as I approached the tall, wide, black door at the back corner of the house.

  It had originally been a guest bedroom. Complete with a sliding glass door that led to the pool. Plus a side door with beach access. The room was almost like Barr’s bedroom. It had that whole apartment feel to it. It was only ever used if my father had some business people spending the night.

  At least until my mother got sick.

  It didn’t take long for her to remodel the entire room and claim it as her own.

  That was the thing about her…

  “She just accepted it all,” I whispered as I put my hand to the door.

  “Who did?” Tinsley asked.

  “I’ll show you,” I said
.

  I opened the bedroom door.

  There was a sinking feeling that forever hit me.

  I never knew if I was going to find her alive or not.

  That was the kind of shit that could ruin a person with ease.

  Especially when I thought about my father. Running around the country - and the globe - fucking as many women as he wanted to. Not giving a shit that his wife was home, bedridden, knowing she was going to die.

  “Oh, Pres,” Tinsley whispered. She pulled at me. “No.”

  “No?” I asked her. “Are you afraid?”

  “I’m not afraid,” she said. “This is… it’s too much. For you. To me…”

  “No, sugar,” I said. “This is me. I’m showing you who I am. What my life is. And why things happen the way they do.”

  Tinsley nodded fast. She then had both hands to my one hand as I led the way to the bed.

  My mother had a terrible look to her. And that wasn’t being cruel. That was reality. She was skeletal, weak and tired, physically looking as though it were her time. But when you saw her eyes you saw life.

  She sat up in bed and had the room equipped in a way that it looked like a hospital room. There was no other choice at this point. A table tray thing was in front of her with a TV playing her favorite shows.

  Everything about her looking like a nightmare I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy.

  “Hey, Mom,” I said to her and touched her hand.

  There were times she had no sense of touch.

  She moved her eyes.

  I leaned to get into her range of view.

  “Wanted to visit just for a minute,” I said. “I know you’re watching your shows.”

  There was no response.

  And talking to someone who couldn’t respond was another punch in the gut to get used to. But she heard me. I knew she heard me. And I always paused long enough as though she were able to respond. Out of respect. Out of love.

  “I want you to meet Tinsley,” I said. “You’re going to love her.”

  Tinsley inched closer to the bed.

  Tinsley smiled big. “Nice to meet you.”

  My mother’s face lit up. She smiled. She looked at me.

  “What?” I asked.

  She slowly moved her head back and forth.

  Her right hand started to move a little.

  I kept myself composed for her sake.

  I couldn’t believe what I was witnessing as my mother fought damn hard to reach for Tinsley. And Tinsley let my mother take her hand.