A Beautiful, Terrible Love by Lucky 97 (books for 9th graders txt) 📖

/> "It's okay," Dex said quietly, teasingly. "I enjoy having your head on my shoulder."
"Yeah, but..." how was I going to explain to him that that was something couples did? How close we were getting to BE a couple? Would he want that... or would he scoff at the idea?
"Come on," Dex said, a little sharp, wary of my hesitation. I could tell he was hurt, though only slightly. He stepped gracefully out the door, and offered his hand to me, like a prince. He was a prince. My prince.
I smiled as I gracefully wrapped my slender fingers around the palm of his hands, feeling the soft creases, obviously not callused by hard work. He pulled me, gently, out of the limo, his hand suddenly flying over my eyes. "You can't look," he said.
I kept quiet as he led me a couple paces, some backwards, some to the sides, some forwards, until I was truly dizzy. I heard Dex's muffled laugh as he spun me around, obviously enjoying the puzzlement etched across my face.
"Stop it!" I pushed his hand away, my mouth curved upwards. Then, I took in my surroundings in complete and utter amazement.
"What do you think?" he inquired as I gazed, mesmerized, at the marshmallow puffs of flowers, scattered on the emerald green meadow we were standing on. As green as Dex's eyes, thin blades of grass pointed directly upwards, not yet creased by footsteps. Weeping Willows surrounded this abode, the thin green ropes waving in the meager breeze. It was a cliff, kind of, cutting off at the edge of the meadow to display a spectacular view that wowed its audience. The sky was a blend of purple, pink, orange, the night sky coming upon it in a rush, rapidly fading into a pure black. A lake stood before us, it's crystallized surface reflecting the turmoil above, a fountain erupting in the middle. It was absolutely...
"Beautiful," I finished my thought out loud, barely above a whisper.
"I thought you would say that," he didn't turn to look at me, still surveying the wonder before us, a smile gracing his handsome face.
"I thought you said we had reservations."
"I lied," he said softly. "I was impatient to see your look of amazement." He turned, and so did I, and we met each other's gaze.
Suddenly, to my dismay, my stomach grumbled. I wrapped my arm around my stomach in embarrassment. "Did you bring food?" I asked weakly.
Dex laughed, a wonderful sound, a million melodies blending to create one voice, "Of course," he gestured to a little blanket splayed out before us, something I hadn't noticed before. A basket, filled to the brim with delightful delicacies, sat temptingly in the middle of it, exciting my hungry stomach.
We sat down, cross-legged, said a quick blessing, and began to eat.

"That was absolutely delicious!" I exclaimed, my hands propped up behind me, I surveyed the wondrous scenery.
Dex nodded in agreement, "I had my personal chef from Hollywood make it."
"You had it shipped from Hollywood?" Did I hear that right?
"Yes."
"Wow," I simply said, overcome by incredulity. I guess Dex truly does get whatever he wants.
Silence filled us both, though not awkward, but comfortable. I watched the moon as it came into view, the bright colors receding, swallowed by the night.
"I... I..." Dex started, his voice stuttering almost, anxiety rippled through his tone.
"What?" I inquired softly.
His eyes seemed frightened, nervous, as if the words he was about to say would doom him forever. He seemed to give into this... terror though, shutting his mouth as quickly as he opened it. I smiled, knowing, somehow, what he wanted to say.
I wanted to say it too.
But we had time. We didn't have to rush anything. I was not going to press him, and Dex would never push me to say those three fated words. We had about six months, and that was more than enough.
I pushed the basket, now empty, to one side, leaning my head against his broad shoulder, sighing with delight. Once again, I was consumed with delight. Dex was here. With me. Mine.
Dex seemed to be happy too, his expression as dreamy as mine, mutual love flowing through us both. He seemed to know exactly what I was thinking, like we were on the same wavelength.
I wanted these moments, tender and sweet, to last forever. Where everything was perfect. Beautiful.
Suspended in time, we sat by each other, watching a shooting star dance across the horizon, knowing exactly what we both were wishing for.

Chapter 13

The boiling sun glared at me as I clicked my fire engine red heels down the sidewalk, accompanied by Dex.
Dex was stunningly handsome today, with his beautiful, startling green eyes sparkling even more than usual and his ruby red hair waving in the wild breeze. His Hollister shirt stretched across his amazing muscles, baring some tanned, clear skin right above his rugged jeans. He wore his jeans like no other, a swagger to him, a sway, even, to his hips that seemed to make him special. Finally, to top this hotness off, his Hollister shirt was short-sleeved, allowing us a view of his fantastic biceps, huge in size, a marvel that no other rock star could even hope to mimic.
I, on the other hand, was wearing a loose, light shirt that was rather see-through in the back (not in the front, luckily). It was loose on the sleeves, which came to my elbow, but tied at the shoulders. It also tied at the waist, making it not completely sack-like, adding that little feminine touch to it. I was also wearing shorts, around mid thigh, that were white and stuck to my legs like glue. The heels? That was just so I could be almost as tall as Dex.
From far away, we looked like the perfect couple. My light brown hair was waving in the breeze, my sunglasses softening the sun's death gaze, my hand brushing across his, my lips stretched into a wonderful smile. He was matching my pace perfectly, his smile also evident, his expression of admiration for me shown in his face and his form. It was not a ruse either. Tuesday night, almost two weeks ago, was enough to guarantee that. The way he treated me, like I was worth something to him, made me feel almost like a precious jewel.
But, as the viewer would get closer to us, they would notice our faces, though smiling, were holding back, each not willing to risk the relationship we had to shoot for something more. We had both danced along the edge, walked around the subject, but we never reached the destination I so desperately wanted to go.
The grass, green and crisp like small emerald blades, stood high and mighty in the huge lawn. Small, black birds zoomed through the stuffy air, clouds trying, unsuccessfully, to block their way. A small brook ran through the side of the park, zigzagging through the wild underbrush that the park officials had not attempted to tame. We were standing in a serene, quiet place, surrounded by the ferocious trees that towered almost fifty feet above us.
But that was the beautiful thing about this National Park. It showed you two sides at one, the wild and the calm.
"Let's go!" I exclaimed excitedly, pulling at Dex until he was forced to follow behind. I weaved my way through the huge trees, stepping on roots, cautiously walking AROUND the poison oak, until we reached the creek.
The water itself flowed way beneath us, under a small mini-canyon, almost, of rocks and dirt. Steep and slippery, it looked like danger waiting to happen.
I took off my bright red heels and placed it on the pointy grass.
"What are you doing?" Dex asked me, fright in his voice, as I put one foot daintily on a huge rock that sat right on a steep ledge. I slipped down farther, catching my foot on a tangled root, and then recovering by using my hand to grab a ledge in the cliff.
Dex peered down at me from the top of the ledge. "You aren't going to...?"
A laugh escaped me as I almost fell into the clear water, consumed with delight. I had never felt this sort of... daring before. Adrenaline coursed through my veins, my heart rate accelerating to crazily high numbers, this thing called fear almost taking me over. But it was rather addictive, this fun sense of danger, so I didn't stop my navigation to the brook.
"Stop!" Dex looked at me, a sense of fear shown in his face and form. "Please," he said, "please stop for five seconds."
I obliged him, and he disappeared from my sight. I wondered what he could be doing. Maybe he left me. No. He couldn't have.
He returned, his handsome face appearing over the ledge, and I scolded myself for harboring the horrible thought that Dex might leave me.
He swung a leg over the cliff, and I smiled, aware of his intentions. With a happy grin on his face, he swung to the bottom, just by the narrow creek, in all of about two seconds.
I seethed with envy. Gritting my teeth, I let myself drop, almost five feet, then narrowly caught onto another ledge. My feet touched ground, and I wobbled upright, away from the cliff.
I bumped into something big and warm, hands grabbing my shoulders, his voice propelling me back to reality. "Eve, are you okay?"
I stepped out of his grasp and stood to face him.
"Yeah, I'm fine," I said, brushing myself off. A smile danced across my flushed face, my eyes sparkling just like his from the sweltering heat. The running water splashed onto rocks, dashing over and between them, leading who-knows-where. We stood, staring at each other, wondering just when it was going to be just right for one of us to say those three words that would make everything perfect.
A tall, gaunt man appeared over the top of the ledge, calmly surveying us. He was clean-shaven, with black hair that was slicked back, and a rather large nose that poked up at the end. He was wearing a gray suit that looked one size too big for him. My heart rate spiked when he asked, "What are you doing?"
I quickly called, "Sir, we-"
"Can answer a few questions if that's what you want," Dex interrupted me in my frenzied rant. I then realized he was a reporter and shut my mouth.
"Perfect," the man grinned widely, his set of white teeth sparkling in the sunlight. He stood, keeping his eyes on us. He reminded me of a vulture, with the way he scavenged for loose tidbits of juicy gossip. "First things first, Dex, when did you and the beautiful Eve Valencia get together?"
"How do you know my name?" I nearly shrieked. This was getting a little creepy.
"Everyone knows your name, Eve. Everyone watched that contest that you won. You are People's hot new thing, you know."
"I didn't know," I whispered. No reporters had swamped me, probably because they didn't want to get within five miles of Dex, and nobody at school really said that I was famous. I guess it was because we only have one grocery store and they only sell the collector's edition of People.
"So could you answer my question?" he asked Dex politely.
"Sir," Dex said respectfully, "We are not going out."
A sudden pain, like a lance, stabbed through my heart. The man raised a thin eyebrow.
"Are you sure?" he asked.
"Yes," Dex said firmly and without hesitation. He didn't spare a single glance at me, staring straight at the reporter.
I winced. It was like Dex was