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Chapter 18 – Interruptions

"I love just holding you, Teags," Brian sighed softly as he brought Teagan close into his embrace. He had parked the car over the edge of the hill, allowing him and Teagan to overlook the beautiful sun sinking into the vast ocean waves. Teagan had designated this to be her favorite spot in the world and Brian agreed wholly that it was beautiful. Though, Brian still admitted he'd rather just admire her beautiful form. He reached to run his fingers through her silky brown locks, thoughtfully kissing her neck. He had left the chaos of unpacking to the unworthy, whisking Teagan away for a sweet dinner. Everything had a way of feeling so remarkable in her arms. She caused all the anger to simply melt from his heart, stirring him into a frenzy of passion and love. Without her, Brian decided, life would be pointless.

"Well, I love you holding me," Teagan replied with a smile, enjoying being in Brian's arms. She shuddered a little at his gentle kisses on her neck. Everything about Brian made her spin in a tizzy with the love she felt for him. It was something she never had with the other boyfriends, and she cherished every moment with him.

"I can tell," he laughed, delighting in the small shivers quaking from her body. He spent many hours thinking of her form wrapped within his own. He couldn't wait to demonstrate his love for her, thought, he knew

"It would be so nice if we could just stay like this forever... Just watching the sunset in each other's arms. Sounds like my perfect Heaven," she sighed happily, resting her head on his chest. The sun sank beneath the horizon and soon the stars began to come out. Winter was not too far ahead.

“Well... We have all night... Then we can sleep in Sunday..." Brian offered.

"You're ready to take that step?" Teagan asked, looking up into his light blue eyes.

"Huh?" Brian deadpanned for a moment, smiling down at her pure innocence. "I just meant sleeping next to one another... You know, watch the sunset from the car, drive back home, and cuddle up next to each other. You know, strictly a PG type of day..."

"Ohhh... sorry," Teagan felt the heat blaze on her cheeks as she blushed.

"Hey, it's okay," he chuckled, leaning down to brush his lips against the bridge of her nose. "Obviously it's on your mind, huh?"

She nodded shyly. "Well, yeah. I don't want to rush things, but I have been thinking about it. You know, the right mood, the candles, soft music playing. The things I've never had in the past..."

"We will do all of those things," Brian promised, tracing his fingers down the length of her jaw line. "Wait... No... I'll do all those things. You let me plan everything, okay? You just give me the go ahead. We'll make sure we're all alone and have the best time of our lives, okay?"

"Okay," Teagan whispered, biting her bottom lip. "I love you, Brian."

"I love you, too," he quickly responded, lifting up her chin to offer a sweltering kiss. He felt her collapse against the sweetness of his kiss, her heart hammering sharply against the soft warmth of his shirt. Ever so softly, he withdrew from the kiss, noticing Teagan continuing to chew on her bottom lip. He stifled not to frown, realizing she picked up that habit from Oriana. "Are you okay, Sweetheart?"

"I need to ask you something. It's really important," Teagan trailed off, knowing it was the prime time to talk to him about Oriana and Howie.

"Ask me what?"

"Why did you make Howie break off all his ties with Oriana?"

"Huh?" Brian deadpanned, tensing underneath Teagan's embrace.

"Nick and I have been working for weeks to get Howie and Oriana together. And now I hear that because you said some things to Howie, he broke the friendship and potential relationship he had with her. Why did you do that?" Teagan asked critically, raising her eyebrow.

"I didn't do a damn thing," Brian immediately defended, doing his best to keep cool. He kept his arms encircled sweetly around her waist, deciding he might have to slaughter Howie along with Oriana. He needed to do some quick weaving to maintain the perfection of the night. "Sweetheart, I don't like Oriana, but I'd never tell someone they couldn't date someone else. It's none of my business. Howie probably didn't want to answer to your wrath. He obviously isn't interested in her."

"But he is interested! Don't you dare lie to me, Brian Thomas. Just because you don't like Oriana doesn't mean you have to interfere in her life, even if it does involve one of your friends. You haven't even given her a chance and she's my best friend. Why can't you try being nice to her?"

"Like she's been nice to me," Brian scoffed like a child, moving his gaze to the opposite window. He furled his light brows in annoyance. "Freaking slammed me against a wall today, Teags."

"And you didn't do anything to aggravate her? She only reacts when she feels the need to defend herself," Teagan disagreed with a frown. "And stop acting like a child. All I'm asking is for you to be nice to Oriana and let her be with Howie."

"And how would I possibly aggravate her? Besides, I didn't do anything not to let her be with Howie! Whatever he did or said to her was purely on his own thoughts. He said whatever he wanted to say to her. Hell, maybe he changed his mind about her. Maybe he saw her without halos and angel wings. And I never said 'don't date Oriana.' Frankly, I told him whatever made him happy!" Brian growled with frustration before mumbling under his breath, "Even if it is with a prostitute."

"Don't you growl at me and get all pissed off! You're going to be nice and I don't want to hear you insult her all the time under your breath. Yeah, I can hear you at times and it hurts! She's my best friend and you're putting me in the middle because I love you. Damnit, Brian!"

"She's putting you in the middle, not me!"

"She is not!"

"She--"

Brian was interrupted with the sound of shattering glass and Teagan screaming. Brian was stunned as Xander's voice filtered into his ears, hollering above Teagan's sharp screams of protest. He watched Xander's cumbersome hands coat with blood as he struggled to pull Teagan out of the window. "WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING WITH THIS DICK, TEAGIE?! I WARNED YOU! I FUCKING WARNED YOU! GET IN MY CAR NOW! WE'RE GOING TO GET WILD-CHERRY! HOW ABOUT THAT?! LET'S GO!"

"LET ME GO! OW! I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE WITH YOU!" Teagan shrieked, clawing at Xander's hands. Glass dug into the back of her neck, causing her to scream even more. "BRIAN, HELP ME!"

Brian finally managed to pull away from his startled form, forcing his body to move. He hadn’t realized that Xander was such a dangerous threat in Teagan’s life. He assumed that Xander was just having a disgruntled day at the mall, but this insanity made Brian quake with fear. He hurriedly jumped forward, slamming repeatedly upon Xander's thick hands. Yet, he proved fruitless in attempts to free Teagan's neck. So, he hurriedly climbed into the driver's seat, hurriedly revving the engine. He grasped Teagan's hands as he quickly reversed to pull Xander away. "Hold on, Baby! Hold on!"

"YOU'RE NOT TAKING MY TEAGIE AWAY FROM ME! SHE'S MINE!" Xander shouted, his hands still holding onto Teagan. Brian hit the accelerator to the floor and sped off. Xander's hands lost his grip on Teagan's neck and he fell, causing a large piece of glass to embed in her skin. She screamed in pain and shied away from the window.

"BRIAN, DRIVE!"

"I'm driving!" Brian hollered back, hurriedly throwing the car into drive. He peeled away from the horrifying scene, speeding toward home. He forced his eyes upon the dark road, trembling with raw fear as Teagan fell silent. Brian became utterly nervous, "Teagan, talk to me!"

"M-My neck... glass in my n-neck," Teagan stuttered, reaching back to touch the injured area. She felt shards poking out and immediately curled up into a ball.

"What am I supposed to do? Teagan, what am I supposed to do?!" Brian blurted with nervousness, glancing between the road and Teagan's fetal-like state.

"Duckie! Take me to D-Duckie. I need my Duckie."

"Who the Hell is Duckie?!"

"My Duckie!" Teagan wailed like a pitiful child.

"Teagan! Damnit! Talk to me!" Brian burst, hurriedly pulling into the Riley driveway. He was thankful to see his father's car gone, alerting that the parents had drifted off somewhere that night. Brian hurriedly threw off the engine, pulling Teagan's quivering form into his arms. "I'm so sorry, Teagan. Just... God, who is your Duckie?"

"Oriana! I need her, she knows what to do!" Teagan replied, wiping away her tears.

"Oriana?" he spat in disbelief, glancing upward to see Oriana's light on in the second floor of the home.

"She's going to be a doctor and I need her!" she pushed herself away from him and got out of the car.

"Teagan!"

"Brian, I have glass in my neck! She can get it out!"

"Just..." Brian groaned in disbelief, slamming his hands against the steering wheel. He couldn't believe his misfortune. He wanted to spend an evening alone with Teagan, now he had to deal with Xander and Oriana. "Fuck it all to Hell... Damnit, Teagan! Wait for me!"

*~*~*


Oriana hurriedly tapped her fingers rapidly across her laptop, her mind fueling with flurries of brilliance for her Enriched Literature class. Her soft lips curved into a smile as she continued to rotate her hips to the beat of her music while she sat primly at her desk. She was notorious for her multi-tasking, finding it easier to work under the pressure and with music flowing. She had just gotten home not ten minutes ago from The Center and decided it was easier to start her work now. She seemed to fall into a perfect rhythm until her phone chirped with a familiar ring tone, alerting her to a text message. She never heard the slam of the front door as she focused on locating her cell phone, knowing it was a message from Howie.

She finally found her phone and opened up the message.

Alex told me you wouldn't be able to call me tonight, so I thought I would text you. I miss you bunches and I hope to hear from you tomorrow. I love you. -Howie-

Oriana wilted onto her large bed with a contented sigh, just staring at the message flashing upon the screen of her phone. She felt her stomach tighten and flutter with anticipation just reading his words aloud. She quickly flicked her gaze to the clock, noticing it was a little after midnight. She could at least text him back. She hurriedly clicked in the correct words, immune to the pounding of footsteps on the stairs. She bit down on her bottom lip, eyeing the message before sending.

So sorry. Busy all night between Alex and others. Sweet of you to text me, even at midnight. Nice little break from the hardcore English paper. And I'm not the only one to work a phone, so maybe I'll hear from you. Sweet dreams. *Ori*

"DUCKIE! DUCKIE, ARE YOU HERE?!" Teagan's voice finally interrupted Oriana's thoughts.

Oriana jumped in surprise at the sharp opening of her door, tossing her cell phone onto the bed. She immediately pushed herself into a standing position, noticing that Teagan's trembling hands were covered with splotches of blood. Oriana swallowed hard to maintain a cool exterior, wiping her sweaty hands down her boxers. "What happened?" she questioned calmly, walking into the bathroom to retrieve her first aid kit. She was used to Teagan running to her with every little bump, bruise, and scrape. Not to mention the times she came home from a bloody battle with Xander, wanting Oriana to hide the mess.

"Brian and I were on the hill above the city watching the sunset..." Teagan wrung her hands, smearing the blood. "Xander came out of nowhere, broke the window open, and tried to pull me out."

"Did you call the police?" Oriana questioned, seating Teagan at her desk. She swallowed the anger building in her chest, already knowing the answer to the question. She immediately covered the older girl's hands with a warm washcloth, tracing the source of blood to Teagan's neck. She pulled away the damp tendrils of chocolate locks, noting several pieces of glass embedded into her neck. Thankfully, they weren't deep.

"I just wanted to get away from him--"

"In other words, you mean no? Damnit, Gabby, you're lucky these cuts aren't deep! He could have severed a nerve, an artery... You need to call the police on him. He's gone too far."

"He said he'd come after you!" Teagan wailed, furiously rubbing her hands to wipe away the blood. Her entire body trembled with fear as she swallowed the hot sobs posing at her throat.

"Then let him come after me. I'd rather see that so I could call the police myself," Oriana murmured, grasping tweezers, antibiotic ointment, gauze pads, and medical tape from her kit.

"Then it would be my fault for him hurting you and I can't let that happen!"

"I can take care of myself--"

"No! You can't!" Teagan snapped, growing fierce for a moment. She became tired of Oriana’s ‘Superman’ stance to life. "You can't even get Mac's hands off you when he was fucking pawing you at Homecoming! If I hadn't of pulled you from his car that night, you wouldn't be saving any special gifts for your husband!"

Oriana recoiled in shock, finding herself speechless from Teagan's haunting cruelty. She glanced away for just a moment, blinking back the stray tears. She refused to cry, doing her best to maintain a stiff posture as she plucked the last of the glass from Teagan's tender flesh. She pushed the bloody pieces into a square of gauze before smearing antibiotic ointment. Then she hurriedly secured the wounds with gauze and tape. "All... All fixed up," she squeaked with a strained voice.

"Thank you," Teagan mumbled, getting to her feet. She gingerly touched the back of her neck, surveying Oriana’s patch-up. Then, her eyes traveled back to Oriana’s submissive state, instantly feeling guilty for taking her frustrations out on the younger girl. "Duckie, you're not invincible. I just don't want him coming after you!"

"You made that very clear," Oriana whispered faintly, quickly moving to clean up the mess so she didn't have to look into Teagan's eyes.

"Duckie..." she sighed heavily. “I didn't mean to bring up the past. I only wanted you to understand—"

"Teags!" Brian's voice burst, jumping into the room. He offered a cold glare to Oriana before wrapping his arms tightly around Teagan's waist. His need to comfort Teagan suddenly mixed with the satisfaction of showing Oriana affection that she dare not have. He pressed several kisses along her jaw line. "Are you okay, Sweetheart? Do you need anything? God, Baby, I'm so sorry!"

"I'm okay, Brian. I'm okay. Duckie fixed my neck and everything's fine," Teagan reassured Brian, wrapping her arms around him. "Come on, I was being rude and interrupted her homework time. Let's leave her so she can finish."

"Yeah, wouldn't want to interrupt the little one from her ever-growing homework," Brian called with a sinister smile.

"Actually, it's homework due next month, but thanks for the consideration," Oriana answered, wrapping her arms around her chest for warmth.

"Thank you, Duckie. Sleep tight," Teagan looked back at Oriana and winced at the coldness radiating from her best friend's eyes. She was the cause of it.

"You're welcome, Teagan," Oriana answered, unable to form the nickname 'Gabby' upon her numb lips. She swallowed hard again as Brian heaved Teagan into his embrace, smothering her with kisses as he carried her out of the room, letting the door sharply slam closed.

Oriana stifled a sob, shakily walking back to her bed to hear the familiar chirping. It hurt too much to realize the disasters occurring within her life. Trying to make the best of her situation, she grasped the phone, hoping Howie's words might cheer her up.

Are you still awake or working hard on the paper? I thought that maybe you could take another break and I would call you. I thought you might like this lyric: "Don't tell me it's not worth trying for. Don't tell me it's not worth dying for. You know it's true. Everything I do, I do it for you...” Hope you liked it. -Howie-

Oriana stifled yet another sob, realizing how much she really needed Howie at that moment. If she was loosing her best friend, then why couldn't she rely on her boyfriend for support? She bit down hard on her bottom lip, grasping her phone as she hurriedly moved to lock her door. She fumbled to communicate the words within her phone, hurriedly sending it to Howie. I'm neither awake nor working hard at the moment, but in a funky mix.

Just call me, please? I need you as stupid as it sounds.

She got a quick response.

It's not stupid. I'm calling you right now, Baby.

Oriana pressed a cool hand to her forehead, trying to calm her frazzled nerves. It felt like Hell when Oriana was out of sorts with Teagan. She held such a tight bond with the older girl and found her heart physically aching from the severing of her connection. She did her best to gather several deep breaths when she heard the sharp ring of her personal line. She furious shook her trembling hands before grasping the cordless phone. "Hello?"

"Riana? It's Howie," his soft voice replied on the other end. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she lied, finally allowing the tears to fall down her heated cheeks. She concentrated her gaze upon the photograph of her and Teagan on her nightstand. "I just wanted to talk to you..."

"Oh, okay. I was hoping I could hear your voice tonight anyway. I missed you today."

"What'd you do today?" she sniffled, struggling to control the mess of emotions clogging her heavy heart.

"Went shopping with my sisters and brother and did the whole huge dinner with Mama and Papa before they left for the night. Not a whole lot besides that. How was the move-in day?" he asked, knowing something was off in Oriana's attitude.

"Not too bad... All in all..." she trailed, deciding not to mention her brief physical encounter with Brian. "Alex gave me this hideous black and blue leopard cowboy hat with these silver sunglasses... I think he's trying to pawn off his rejects on me."

"Not the black and blue one! Man, he has some weird sense of fashion," he groaned with a laugh. "Which pair of sunglasses did he give you?"

"Silver rimmed with kind of an oval shape to them?" Oriana tried to describe, just loving the fact that she had Howie laughing. His voice was doing wonders.

"Ugh, those are the nasty ones! Sneak into his room and get different ones. He has about a million of them, and some aren't too bad. He has these black ones, normal shaped lenses but with a silver tint to it. I think you would like those."

"I didn't want them to begin with, but he insisted for some reason..." Oriana drawled, finally folding over the frame so she couldn't look at Teagan. She drew a thick set of covers upon her body, staring up at her ceiling. "Besides, I saw some nice Adidas shirts and sweatpants... He says he wants style and all, so I might confiscate them just for his well-being in the fashion world."

"Alex is weird like that. He's a great friend, I'm just glad he's not going to be my step-brother," Howie chuckled.

"Thanks for the support!"

"Would it make you feel better if I said he'd be a great brother-in-law?"

"Would it make you feel better if I said you were pushing that a little far?" she trailed, rubbing her burning eyes.

"Not really, but I can take a hint..."

"Good call," Oriana sighed softly, closing her eyes to relieve the headache building within her temples. She hated lying to Howie about what was really wrong. She wanted to open up, but how did she explain that her friendship was diminishing over a guy.

"Sweetheart, are you sure you're alright?"

"What do you mean?" she wavered.

"You sound like you've been crying. Something's wrong."

"I'm fi--okay, so I'm not fine..." Oriana finally admitted, slapping a hand against her forehead. She immediately winced with a pitiful whine, feeling her temples throb further from the unshed tears. "I'm sorry that I made you call me... I just needed to talk to someone, you know? And, I needed you..."

"I'm not sorry that you made me call you, I wanted to call. Just tell me what's wrong. Please?"

“I think I'm loosing my best friend?" she whimpered meekly.

“Teagan? But how could you be losing her? That--" he realized the reason why. "Because of Brian?"

"Yeah..." Oriana whispered, finally starting to cry softly. She held a hand across her eyes in hopes to calm herself, but it hurt. It hurt so bad.

"Oh, Honey... Shh... Don't cry. You're not going to lose Teagan because of a guy. You two have known each other since you were babies. I know you don't want to lose her, and she doesn't want that either," Howie soothed gently.

"It's so stupid..."

"It's not stupid."

"I shouldn't be bothering you at midnight about it though..." Oriana drawled, quickly swallowing her emotions.

"Stop talking like that. You're not bothering me, especially if you're upset," Howie scorned.

"I'm not upset... I'm just... I'm frustrated. I'm frustrated that I gave her the go-ahead to date that snake because I know she loves him... And I know somewhere in his black heart that he loves her... But, then I start thinking that if I'm not doing well with Teagan, then I loose my relationship with Teagan... And I loose you..."

"Hey, hey, hey! You're not losing either of us. Alright? She loves you and I love you. Nothing will take me away from you."

"Not even my crazy rambling?" Oriana sniffled, feeling absolutely foolish.

"Not even your crazy rambling," Howie agreed.

"I think I feel better..." she breathed after a few moments.

"What can I do to make sure you do feel better?"

"You don't have to do anything..."

"I know, but I want to."

"I don't need anything---"

"I know what I can do. Just lie back in bed and close your eyes."

"Howie, phone sex---"

"No, not phone sex," he groaned with a laugh. "Close your eyes and relax."

"Hold on..." she sighed, crawling out of her bed. She hurriedly saved the progress of her works, clicking off the computer. She then quickly clicked off the lights in her room, checking to make sure her door was locked. Crawling back underneath her bundles of covers, Oriana finally closed her eyes. "Okay."

"Alright," Howie was silent for a moment and then he began to sing.