Pollack Drive

ONE
There was something to be said about having the house to himself. The quietness, knowing that there would be no nosy younger siblings dashing in and out of his bedroom, the absence of an over protective father… the quietness. Noah did the only logical thing a newly home-alone teenager would do: he drank orange juice straight from the jug. Yup, that was as risky as he’d be, Noah swore as he replaced the now empty jug into the refrigerator, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
However, the guys would probably ridicule him from now till the apocalypse if they found out about it. No plans for a party, no plans to bring some girl over for a little after school rendezvous. Just him, the flat screen, and the fridge. What more could a guy ask for? Opportunities like this were scarce in his life, and he made it a personal goal not to fuck them up, when given. So, his father would return on Thursday with the twins, to find the house just as he’d left it, his seventeen year old son, sober and with his zipper up. A sure incentive to leave again any time soon.
It had taken a lot of coaxing to get his father to leave him on his own, and he still had to submit himself to Mrs. Dunne ‘keeping a watchful eye on him’, but it had happened. As tiring as it got sometimes, Noah knew that Jacob Banks’ over protectiveness stemmed from fear for his family. Noah wished he felt the same need to shelter his younger brother and sister, even to be overly cautious himself, but he didn’t. Because as much as he hated to admit it, he hardly remembered his own brother or the sound of his mother’s voice, her perfume, her laughter. Shit happened to people, but his father deserved a long life with the woman he’d loved since the third grade. It was only fair.
As Noah activated the security system and turned off the television, with every intention of going to bed, he silently admitted to himself that life wasn’t fair. No one had ever said it was.




..
“So what are your plans?” Kari asked in reference to his final day with house all to himself. He rolled his eyes at her. She knew him better than to ask such a silly question. And it was a silly question, coming from the girl who last week swore his sole purpose in life was to eat, sleep and make her life hell.
“Continue to be a good housekeeper; watch as much T.V. as I can before the twins get back- ouch!” He rubbed his arm where Kari had punched him, smiling. “What else is there?” He challenged. Her answer was immediate.
“Pajama party, of course,”her grin was infectious and he knew better than to believe she was serious. Still, he was honest enough with himself to admit that he appreciated the images her suggestion had conjured. A pajama party, just the two of them, pillow fights…
“Of course.” He wrapped his arms around her in a bear hug of sorts. A year ago, when they’d just met, his friends had all said that it was not humanly possible for a guy to be ‘just friends’ with Kari Anderson. Especially a guy who was so damned attracted to her the way he was. But he had proved them wrong. Kari and he were ‘just friends’, and he took the cold showers to prove it. “Hmm, who do you think I should invite?” He asked, teasing her. Her lips parted slightly, chocolate brown eyes stared into his own. There had been moments during their friendship, when Noah had suspected that Kari might be hoping for a little bit more. And he would have been happy…elated actually, to oblige. But all he did was suspect. She never said anything of the sort, at least not in his hearing, and she never made a move on him. Still, there were those moments.
“Well,” she pretended to consider the question before smiling impishly at him. “You could always invite me.” He loved the direction this conversation was heading. He nodded.
“Mm-hmm. I could do that,”he replied, no longer grinning now. A few months back, he’d made the decision to never hug Kari, as a matter of fact; he’d banned himself from touching her at all if not necessary. It hadn’t been long before he’d realized that touching her was necessary. She was no fool and had noticed what he was doing, though she couldn’t have known his reason for doing so, and had been hurt. As was her way, she did not call him out on it, actually she had made it simpler for him… but he knew she had been hurt. So from then on, he had resigned himself to the life of a masochist.
“And…” She wrapped her hands around his mid-section and tilted her head to the side. “Is it okay if I’m you’re only guest?” She asked sweetly. It took all the will power he possessed not to groan. She was pushing it and he was weak. Damn! He was very weak. She was so close; the heady scent of her perfume, her smile, and the conversation… a weaker man would have kissed her there, in the street. Or was it a wiser man? Noah was not certain which was true, but he was sure his resolve was weakening. What if she wasn’t joking? What if this was Kari’s way of letting him know that she wanted to spend the night with him…alone? What if he indulged himself? What if he kissed her only to find out she did not want that? Damnit! He hated what ifs. Better to continue and see where it lead, he decided.
“No complaints here,” he whispered seriously. It was best that she understood he was and had every intention of having her over, minus the pajama, if she were willing. Not exactly baring his soul, but it was risky nonetheless. There was still a chance she was simply kidding around, and he doubted he could handle foreplay without any actual ‘play’. For a second, he feared she would note his seriousness and bolt, but astonishingly, she only smiled wider.
“Perfect.” Did she just-
“Do you know what you’re asking me for?” He said, certain she had not just agreed to… there was no fucking way Kari Anderson, good girl Kari Anderson wanted to-
“Absolutely,” she replied a little breathlessly, pressing herself closer to him. They were standing on the street before Kari’s house, her sister was working a night shift at the hospital and no-one was outside. He lived five houses down the same street…this could work. It most definitely would work. There was almost nothing in the world he wanted more than her soft, willing body beneath his. And he was not going to have sex with her tonight. No matter how agreeable she was to the idea. No matter how real the pain of rejecting her was.
Never breaking her gaze, he used his forefinger to tip her chin a little higher, leaning his head so that his lips were barely an inch away from hers. “You don’t know how long I’ve waited to do this,” he told her before sealing their lips in a kiss. A sudden hunger overcame him. Thoughts fled and instinct took over… Damnit but she tasted sweet, her lips so soft, her body pressed against his. He almost forgot his earlier resolve about not bedding her. Unsure how he found the strength to do so, he drew back. Eyes still closed, he stepped out of her embrace and breathed long and deeply: One…two…three…four. He opened his eyes and looked at her. Her hair was mussed where his hands had roamed, her mouth set in a frown and her eyes betrayed confusion. Heck, he was confused too. Although, he supposed she was just wondering why he stopped, howhe was able to stop. He grabbed her hand, squeezing gently.
“I’m going to stand here and watch you walk in,” he said in a surprisingly level tone. “And after you close the door, I’m going to walk away. Okay?” She did not answer, just stared at him. He kissed her cheek, careful to hold himself still, distanced. “Go on,” he urged. Kari stared at him another moment longer before she nodded and walked away. On the verandah, she turned to give him a small wave before hurrying inside. The first time he and Kari came together, it would be magic. And magic could not happen if he was wondering if Mrs. Dunne or his father would walk in on them at any second. He just prayed that Kari would not take his ‘not now’ for a ‘no’.