Prove It

Chapter 8

Tristan was relentless as he rained punches down on Chris in quick succession causing Chris to stumble. He fell into the cafeteria wall, and used it to stay upright and maintain balance. Tristan was on him before he could recover, delivering blows to the face that made sickening wet and, sometimes, crunching sounds. Chris went down to the ground.

Tristan felt multiple hands grab at him, forcing him away from Chris. He fought them, he wasn’t done. He needed to kill him. But Tristan was easily overpowered by the 5 or so guys that dragged him away. He was restrained while he watched people run over to Chris collapsed body. He wasn’t moving and Tristan didn’t care. The adrenaline was still pumping through his body urging him to finish it.   

Jessica’s face came into view when he looked around. She stared at him like she didn’t know who he was, like he did something wrong. He looked at her and all he saw was something ugly. He hated her in that moment. But, the more he thought about it, maybe the person he really hated was himself. He denied himself to keep her happy. He gave her everything. He felt his eyes sting and knew he had to get out of there before he made more of an ass of himself by letting tears fall in front of everybody. He shrugged the hands that were holding him and left the cafeteria. He heard some people call his name, but he ignored it.

He didn’t know where he was going, but he knew he had to get away. Before he knew it, he was in the music room, watching Sierra. He immediately felt an inexplicable sense of relief at finding her here. She hadn’t seen him yet, so he just stood there and watched her, knowing he had no right to be here. He had no right to come to her. But he had nowhere else to go. And even if he did, he would still rather be here.

He must have made noise because Sierra was suddenly staring at him with wide eyes, her hand moving to cover her mouth. Did he look that bad? He looked down and saw his clothes were ripped and stained with blood. Was it his or Chris’? Chris got him a few good times and he hit hard. Tristan’s lip throbbed and his head pounded. He locked eyes with Sierra again.

“I know you probably don’t want to see me – ”

“What happened?” Sierra interrupted, her voice was barely a whisper.

 “Jessica… Chris… I almost…. God, what have I done?” The words came out in a rushed jumble.

“Whoa Tristan, slow down. What are you trying to say?”

Tristan noted that she didn’t move from her spot at the top of the stairs, by the window. It was like she was glued to that spot. Was she afraid of him? He couldn’t blame her if she was, he probably looked like an animal.

“Jessica’s been cheating on me with Chris.” He gave a humorless laugh. “It’s funny. She accuses me of cheating, but it’s her.” Tristan turned to the nearest wall and started punching. “This whole time, she’s the one… she’s the one who…”

“Tristan, stop.”

He didn’t. He needed to hurt something.

“What the hell was I thinking? I did everything she wanted. Everything!”

“Shhhh. It’s okay, I’ve heard enough,” she told him. He felt her hand on his arm, gently restraining, coaxing him to stop.

He let her lead to an empty desk where he sat down. He put his head in his hands, suddenly feeling exhausted and vulnerable. He’d been fighting the tears from the moment he walked out of the lunch room, but when he felt Sierra next to him, he broke. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling his head to her chest. He turned his face to her, reveling in her warmth and comfort as hoarse sobs racked his body. He felt her fingers at the base of his skull, cradling him as her other hand made lazy strokes through his hair.

She didn’t say anything, she just continued to hold him until his cries died down. He was thankful for the silence. He closed his eyes, trying not to think about the fact that he just cried. He took in Sierra’s powdery vanilla scent that he always tried not to notice. He listened to her heart beat and felt the movements of her breaths. The heat from her body seemed to burn him through her clothes, comforting him. His hands began to move on their own, unconsciously caressing her. His arms tightened around her waist, pulling her close. He felt her tense. Her fingers stopped stroking.

“Tristan,” she warned.

He stopped immediately. He didn’t want her to move away.

“I’m sorry. I … please don’t stop what you’re doing,” he begged.

Even though he deserved for her to push him away and never speak to him again, he wouldn’t be able to handle her rejection right now. He needed this too much. It’s the first instance of calm he’s felt in so long. He needed only a few more moments of peace with her before he would be ready to go face what he’d done.

“Let me look at you.”

He didn’t release his hold on her, instead he moved closer, nuzzling. She let out a loud sigh, exasperated.

“Tristan, I’m going anywhere. Please, l need to know if you’re hurt.” He didn’t want to but she moved her hands along his arm, slowly, back and forth, persuading him. Her voice lulled him into doing what she asked.

He released her and she bent down in front of him to get a closer look. Her brow creased and she released an unsteady breath when she started to examine him. She was deep in concentration while she touched him. She started with his face, her fingers slowly gliding over especially tender spots. He winced.

“Sorry,” she told him.

She continued her gentle probing and he let her. She released a shaky breath with every new bruise she discovered. Her tenderness confused him. She made him feel like he deserved things he knew he didn’t. He felt her fingers skim over his hands. His knuckles were red and the skin was broken. The entire area had begun to swell.

“Oh Tristan,” she whispered, when she touched the damaged flesh.

He watched her as she continued her observation. She had her hair up today in a messy bun thing that left stray strands falling out around her face. She looked so pretty with her hair that way. His gaze travelled lower to where her shirt stretched across her perfect breasts. He remembered how she held him to her and how she let him nuzzle her there, though it was over too quickly. Would she hold him again if he asked? There was so much he wanted to say to her, so much he needed to apologize for, but he had no idea where to begin.

She’d been quiet for a long time, just looking him over. He could see her mind working. He needed to know where her head was.

“What are you thinking?” he asked.

She looked up from his hands. She pushed his hair from his forehead and placed her hand on his cheek. Then she seemed to realize what she was doing and moved her hand away. He wanted her to put her hand back, but she got up, stepping out of his reach.

“Why did you come here, Tristan?”

“What do you mean?” he asked, although he knew exactly what she meant.

“You could have gone anywhere. To anyone. You’ve barely spoken to these past few weeks and now… I’m having a hard time figuring out why you’re here. With me.”

Why was he here? Because he wanted to be. Because he knew that he would get what he needed from her. How could he explain what he felt in a way she would understand when he didn’t even understand?

“Honestly, I don’t know why, exactly. It just kind of made sense to me. I feel good when I’m with you.”

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A/N: Working on the next part now. Will update ASAP. I know some of you will be happy. No more Jessica!!! Well she's still around, but she's a lot less annoying. Much more to come. Let me know what you think.