Cursed Hearts (A Crossroads Novel) (38 page)

“…I’m not really sure. How long have I known
you?” he mumbled.

Aria gave up trying to make a point.

“I told your dad I couldn’t find you,” he said
reluctantly.

“You what?” she exclaimed.
“God, Dallas, did you tell him I was at a party, drinking too? Do you know what
you’ve done? He’s going to question me now, and he’s going to find out what
happened, and then I’m going to be shipped off to an all-girls school,” she
said, throwing her hands into the air. “Are you really that stupid?”

“I thought you were missing!”

“I wasn’t missing,” Aria snapped. “I was... in
the library.”

“Yeah, okay. Go ahead and try to pass that one by
Richard. Not even I believed that. And by the way, that was the first place I
checked.”

“Do you hang out in the library in last night’s
clothes often?” Christian asked sourly. “Kind of an ironic song choice, don’t
you think?”

“Shows what you know,”
Rome
muttered. “Who the hell
invited
you,
anyways? Who invited any of you, in fact? We can take care of
ourselves.”

Kaleb rolled away from the doorframe, walking
off wordlessly.

“Well excuse me for giving a damn,” Dallas breathed.

“Alright, let’s tone down the hostility,” Jesse
said. “Everyone’s safe and they love each other. There’s no need to kill and
maim because you care. Besides, I got those books in you wanted. We just need
to ride down to my cousin’s shop to pick them up.”

“Already?” Rome said.

“Yeah,” Jesse smiled. “Why do you think it’s
called Import
and Trade
Co.? ‘Cause we
import and trade, yo. Plus magic helps.”

“You are such an idiot,” Dallas commented.

“No, I just act like one. Anyways, we going or
not?”

“Uh, yeah,” Rome said, setting down the guitar.
“Did you want to come with us?” he asked, turning to Aria. “Maybe we can look
over them together? There might be something in there about the curse.”

“I’d like that.”

She was feeling hopeful for the first time in
days, and she was more motivated than ever to find a way for them to be
together.

“I’m going,” Christian said resolutely.

“No, you’re not,” Rome said.

“In the last twenty-four hours, I’ve tripped on
thin air and
fallen down
the stairs,
nearly been mowed over by some idiot in a Jeep, and found
glass in my scrambled eggs. I don’t need any more
convincing. I believe that I’m a part of this curse, and I’m not leaving my
life in your hands.” It was more than that, though. He honestly thought that
what he was feeling had to
do with whatever spell had been thrown on
them. When he looked at Aria, his body ached. He felt horrible, like he just
wanted to cry, or wrap her in his arms and never let go. It was the worst thing
he’d ever felt, and he wanted it to stop.

“You do realize that means you’re admitting you
think we’re brothers?” Rome said, quirking an eyebrow at him.

Christian remained silent.

“So, Scarlet, you taggin’ along?” Jesse asked.
“You could ride with me? I’ve got a motorcycle.”

“Thanks, but I’ll pass,” she said. “Your
cousin’s a creep.”

“Yeah, that’s true,” he grinned. “Both of my
cousins are kind of one stamp short of postal, if you know what I mean.”

“Is that even a saying?” Rome asked.

Jesse shrugged. “It is now.”

“Can I change before we go?” Aria said, looking
over at Rome. Her clothes were a little wrinkled, not to mention dirty, and she
still didn’t have any shoes on. “I really don’t want to go into town like
this.”

“Yeah, sure. I’ll just wait out at my car.”

Ariahna slipped out of the
room, blinking back to her dorm as soon as she knew she was alone. She took a
few moments to rifle through her closet,
dissatisfied with everything she had to wear.
It felt like it was all too old, or too fancy, or it was just going to look
like she was trying too hard. She’d finally settled on a simple top and jeans
when a soft knock came
at her
door. “Just
a minute,” she said. She slipped the shirt on and opened the door to find
Christian standing there, holding her sandals.

“I had to fight Jason for these,” he smirked. “I
don’t think he even intended to give them back.”

“Thanks,” she mumbled weakly, taking the shoes
from him and looking anywhere but at his face. They needed to talk, she
realized. The realization was followed by the strong reminder that she never
wanted to speak to him again. “…Can you actually come in for a moment?”

“Uh, s-sure,” Christian
stammered. He was a little confused. “Are we talking now? Because I want it
noted that I tried that last night and that didn’t
really go over so well for me.” His eyes drifted over to her bed and a sharp,
constricting feeling squeezed at his heart. It was difficult being in here,
after—“I’m sorry,” he said. “What did you want to talk about?”

Ariahna set the shoes on
her nightstand before retrieving his necklace
from the top drawer.
“You left this here,” she informed him, holding it out for him to take. She was
stalling, and she knew it. He took the chain from her, wrapping it nervously
around his fingers before slipping it over his head. “About the other night,”
she started. “We didn’t exactly… practice safe sex. I mean, I’m not on the
pill, and, there wasn’t a… a condom involved.” Her face was turning red as she
spoke, but it needed to be said. “I’ve just kind of been freaking out ever
since, wondering what I’m supposed to do if… My father would probably kill me.
He’d definitely kill you.” She swept her hair
anxiously
over one shoulder,
turning and pacing away from him. She stopped in
front of the window, her fingers gripping at her elbows.

“You have nothing to worry
about,” Christian said. Despite
his better judgment, he was slowly crossing
the floor, inching closer to her. He drug his fingers along the edge of the
desk as he passed, keeping his eyes on his shoes. “I want you to know… it
didn’t mean
nothing
to me. It was just supposed to be sex, but every
time I—” He bit his tongue. “What if I told you I thought I’d made a mistake?”

“I’d tell you I think I made one too,” she
whispered. She turned to face him, trying to convince herself she wasn’t the
one who should be feeling guilty. The way he was looking at her was making it
hard to believe. “What do you mean, I have nothing to worry about?” She watched
him slip a thick Celtic band off his finger, placing it on her upturned palm.

“There are a surprising number
of books on contraceptive magic,”
he said. “The ring is enchanted. As long as
I’m wearing it that can never happen.” She seemed dissatisfied by his answer.

“How can you be sure it works? How do you know
you even got the enchantment right? And what about STD’s, magical or otherwise?
I’m not naive enough to think I was the first, or even the second person you’ve
been with… You kind of have a reputation.”

“I know it works because you aren’t the first,”
he said, sounding upset. “And I don’t… have anything. I’m pretty immune to
diseases.”

“Well that’s comforting,” Ariahna mumbled. The
way she said it suggested that it really wasn’t. “I guess that’s all I wanted
to talk about.”

***

Jesse turned in the passenger seat, shooting
Rome a curious glance.

“I can feel you staring,” Rome said. Jesse
laughed in response.

“So, did you…?” he asked, making crude gestures
with his fingers.

“No,” Rome said. “And stop doing that.”

“But you’re not really a virgin, right?”

“No—I mean, yes.” Rome sighed. “I’ve never had
sex,” he clarified. “Why are we talking about this?”

“And you said you didn’t need anything,” Jesse
smirked, pulling his bag into his lap and flipping it smugly open. Rome frowned
at him.

“Are you going to pull a girl out of there or
something?”

“Sorry, I left the blowup doll in my room.”

Gross
, Rome thought.

“I’m joking. So, what size do you need?”

“…Size?”

Jesse slapped a box of condoms down on Rome’s
dash, reaching into his bag and pulling out half a dozen more. Some of the
boxes were already open, and a few loose condoms spilled out onto the floor.

“I can sell them individually or by the box,
whatever you think you’re gonna need. Personally,” he said, leaning towards
Rome, “I’d go for the box. It’s best to plan ahead, and I know a closeted freak
when I see one.
That girl
wants it,
bad.”

“Watch what you fucking say,” Rome snapped.

Jesse held his hands up innocently, smiling at
him. “Hey, I’m freaky too. No harm meant. You, my friend, need to learn to
speak guy. It’s all in good fun.” Rome was gazing intently at the cardboard
boxes lining his dash. The way he was looking at them, you’d think they were
whispering the secrets of the universe. “What’s on your mind?” he asked
tentatively.

“She said she’s not ready.”

“Little late for that… Sorry, sorry.”

Rome let it slide. “It’s
just, if I get something like that, does that
seem like I’m
expecting it? I don’t want her to feel like I’m pressuring her.”

“No, it means you’re being smart. What if she
just walked up to you and said she was ready, and you were completely unprepared?
Because I’ve had that happen, and let me tell you, there’s nothing worse than
missing out just because you didn’t have a condom. Now, what’s your pleasure?
I’ve got lubricated, non-lubricated, colorful ones, ribbed ones, ultra-thin,
glow in the dark, flavored—”

“Flavored?” Rome said, interrupting him. His
head was spinning.

“Hah, I knew you were a man of good
taste
.”

“No, I—I just meant, why would you ever need
flavored condoms?”

“What, you think latex tastes good?”

“I thought condoms were just for… you know.”

“There is such a thing as safe oral sex, just not
everyone practices it,” he remarked, lifting his eyebrows as he spoke.

Rome rubbed a hand over his eyes.

“I don’t even know what size I’d need.”

“The things I do to make a sale,” Jesse
grumbled. He sighed softly. “Okay, look. Condom size is pretty much based on
how… thick you are.”

He felt wrong even saying that to another guy.

Rome picked up one of the boxes, glancing at a
small size guide on the back. They outlined snug, regular, large, and extra-large
in approximate inches. “I think I need an XL?” he said, clearing his throat.

“You sure? You don’t need to try and impress
me,” Jesse smiled.

“Screw you,” Rome said, laughing
self-consciously. He grabbed a single, lubricated condom from the box, slipping
it into his wallet and slapping a couple dollar bills into Jesse’s hand.

“One?” Jesse said. “You’re
gonna be back, and soon, and then they’re
going to cost more. You shoulda bought in
bulk,” he said, shaking his head. “I can’t believe I suffered through that
awkward ass conversation for one condom. My sales skills are slipping.”

“Shit,” Rome said. He could see Ariahna and
Christian walking towards the car in his rearview. “They’re coming, put this
crap away!”

Jesse wrapped his arms around the boxes and
swept them into his open, bottomless bag. He bent to pick up the few condoms scattered
around his feet, smacking his head against the dash and cursing angrily.

“Hurry the fuck up,” Rome whispered. Aria
knocked on his window just as Jesse shifted in his seat, crossing his arms and
trying to play it casual.
No, we weren’t just talking about the size of my penis
,
he thought, smiling at her through the glass. His neck was turning red.

“…Get in the back,” Rome said. “She’s sitting
up front.”

Ariahna got into the front seat after Jesse
clambered into the back. Rome was already pulling out of the parking lot when
she started fastening her seat belt. It was then that she noticed the shiny
golden foil. A condom was stuck between the seat and the center console. She
frowned at it, picking it up by the very corner. Big cursive letters read:
For
Her Pleasure
.

Rome’s eyes shot to the side, watching Ariahna
dangle a single condom between her fingers. He felt like he was going into
cardiac arrest. This was how he was going to die – embarrassment. He snatched
it from her and tossed it out the open window in a moment of panic.

The rest of the drive was completely silent.

Import and Trade Co. sat on the corner of Grand
and Main in a two story brick building. An old Laundromat occupied by some shady
looking men leafing through magazines was its neighbor. A sign in the window
read:
Machines out of order
. The rest of the street was barren. Several advertisements
in the empty storefronts proclaimed they were for lease, but it seemed as
though the properties had been abandoned for some time.