Behind the Mask Ch. 04

All characters are at least 18 years old.

------

It was the last day of school before summer vacation. Graduation was on Friday, and naturally everybody was just fucking around in class. The problem was, we were still obligated to attend, and so I was stuck in a classroom for another four hours. Time I could be using to foster new connections for Taboo. Time I could be using to keep tabs on potential threats. Time I could be using to look into this whole engagement business with August. I wasn't ready to confront Charles, or even so much as look into August's mysterious benefactor. I needed to slow the whole situation down, bring it to my tempo, and regain control.

"--xi. Lexi. Lex!"

I snapped around to look at Brie at the desk next to me. Damn it, I was spacing out a lot. But I suppose I had a lot on my mind. Still, she was bound to notice something was wrong. "Sorry, what was that?" I said levelly.

Brie scowled at me, shaking her head. "You've been kinda out of it the last couple days. Did something happen? Stef told me your dad was back in town."

I looked around us. The girls were gossiping and making plans for summer. The boys were telling jokes and pulling pranks on each other, just on the cusp of starting a play fight. A few of the quiet kids were in the back, on their phones and playing a multiplayer game together. A bit ordinary, as far as school social demographics went. But nobody was listening. The teacher had just up and left, saying he had to get some files from his office, and that was ten minutes ago. Heh, even teachers slacked, huh?

I sighed. "Don't tell the others, alright?" The odds of her not telling Stef? Probably eighty to ninety percent. Odds of her not telling him if he asked, if he really wanted to know? Now, that dropped down to single digits. I almost laughed. She was hopeless when it came to her brother. She almost blew their whole relationship out into the open a few months ago, getting into a spat with another girl at school. I had to take care of it, or the consequences didn't bear imagining.

"I promise," Brie said, her voice hushed.

"'Cause if you tell Stef, he's gonna tell Drew. Drew's gonna tell Coco, who's gonna tell Leon, who's gonna tell Cherry. And then the whole gang knows." Brie bit her lip sheepishly, and I chuckled. "Anyway. I'm getting married."

She stared at me for a second, then frowned, waiting for me to continue. After another second, her frown deepened, turning bewildered. "Wait, what? When? Why? To who?"

"Ms. Winstead would tell you to use 'whom,'" I joked.

"That's so not the point, Lex. What the hell?" She looked around, then dipped her head and hissed, "Married?!"

"Yup." I sighed and sat back, picturing August on my couch. For some reason... we seemed on the same page. We seemed to get each other's humor, and both had a casual irreverence for serious topics, at least on the surface. And he hadn't made a fuss at the idea of getting married, which was bizarre.

Fucking hell, neither had I. I'd made light of our circumstances at an alarming level. Probably because it was ridiculous. We were going to get this sorted out, and then go our separate ways. Marriage? It didn't matter if it was August or anybody else. Fuck that.

"And that's it?" Brie demanded. "No other details? Lex, what the fuck. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because it's absurd," I replied simply.

She pieced together that it wasn't my idea, and realization dawned on her. "Your dad..." I nodded. "Arranged marriage? That's..." She searched for the word, her mouth moving wordlessly as she did. "Archaic!"

"Exactly."

"So what's the plan? You've already got an idea of how to take care of it, right?"

No. "Of course."

"Jesus," she muttered to herself. "Why, even? We're not even twenty, and your dad is-- Is he, like, selling you off or something?"

"Doesn't look like it. I've met the guy."

Now I had her interest. Her eyes widened and she scooted closer, leaning toward me. "And? C'mon, deets, Lex!"

I wanted to grimace, but I smirked instead. "Does it matter? I'm not marrying him anyway."

"He's a shriveled old billionaire, and he wants a hot young thing to stick it in before he croaks," Brie guessed, and this time I did grimace.

"Ew, Brie, what the fuck."

"What? That's the only M.O. for an arranged marriage, especially here of all places! Is your dad at least getting five cows when you're sold off?"

I rolled my eyes, grinning. "Oh please, I'm worth at least ten."

Brie laughed. "So? How old is he, then?"

"Three years older than me."

Brie's eyes were the size of dinner plates. "Is he hot?" And the next thing I knew, she was squealing with excitement, giggling to herself with her knuckles pressed to her mouth. "Oh my God," she said loftily. "You shoulda seen your face!"

What was happening to me? I'd lost control of my expression, probably staring dreamily off into space. I grit my teeth. Lexi Rochester didn't fawn over dumb FBI studs. I only loved one man, and if I couldn't be with him, I wouldn't be with anybody. What was this August guy doing to me?!

"Damn, that's really different from my first guess, huh?" Brie gloated. "If you fail to call the wedding off, I'm definitely going to be your maid of honor."

"Eh. We'll see. Still haven't tried him in bed, don't you know." I winked, and Brie grinned.

"Never seen you with a guy before. I actually don't even know your type." Her expression darkened a bit. "Unless how you were with Stef was any indication." She was referring back to when I was trying to get her and her brother together. I'd pulled quite the daring maneuver, flirting with Stef and appearing to attempt to seduce him. But it couldn't be helped. Had I not, Brie would've never staked her claim on him. They were extremely jealous of each other, but still in a healthy way, and it was honestly so adorable. It was probably the easiest thing in the world to exploit. They were banging in less than two weeks.

I smiled. Good times.

"Stef's too blunt for me," I said dismissively. "Perfect for you, though. Obviously." Brie blushed a bit, and I winked. "But I need somebody with a bit more finesse. And better at remembering names," I added with a laugh.

"Oh God, you should see how he is with TV shows," Brie groaned. Conversation successfully diverted. "He just gives everybody nicknames, and it's so hard to keep up with both the characters' actual names, and whatever he's calling them."

As we chatted, I looked around the classroom. Funny, I didn't feel the least bit nostalgic. This would probably be my last time here, but it didn't have the same impact as probably everybody else. But it was easy to see why. Stef, Brie, Drew, Cherry, and I were all staying together. We were simply switching venues. All of us had decided to stay right where we were, and were going to the local community college together. The rest of them were to stay together with their respective family. Ahem, lovers. But I had a club to run. And I wasn't about to leave this group of pervs when they were the best part of my life.

Every moment spent with them was a moment I treasured.

--

"Privet, Coco," I said, sitting down at our usual cafe.

"Privet, Lexi," Coco said with a smile. She pouted a bit. "I still feel my pronunciation is a bit off. You need to teach me more Russian."

"I don't know much to begin with," I laughed.

"But you speak it so well!"

"And how would you know that?"

Stumped, she laughed it off. "We haven't met in a few days. Has everything been alright?"

"Just a bit occupied with graduation, but otherwise same old, same old."

She smiled, her voice gentle. "Lexi. You wanted to meet today. And you have a pensive look about you." True to form, she sounded motherly. It was part of why I wanted to talk to her. I hated to admit it, but I needed advice, and I needed it from somebody with perspective. I was too close to what was happening. "Is this something about love?"

I put on a small smile. "What makes you say that?"

"Because when it comes to you, everything is about love." She beamed at me, and I'd never felt more exposed. "You're a romantic. It's never far from your mind."

"Other people's," I clarified. "Other people's romantic relationships. I don't partake."

Our coffees came, Coco with her latte, me with my mocha. The staff here didn't even bother asking us for our orders anymore. They'd gotten used to our visits, just a little time away from the kids. It had started when I was masquerading as a Russian girl here for vacation, with the intention of helping to hook her up with her son. After everything had come to light, we had maintained our friendship, and I never told her how much that meant to me.

Now she frowned into her coffee as she mixed in her sugar before taking a thoughtful sip. "So was it a lie?" she murmured.

I blinked. "What?"

She hesitated, unsure whether to broach the subject. "What you said before. Your one love." My breathing was shallow, and she watched me cautiously as I looked down the road, biting the inside of my lip. "You told me you only lied to me back then when you needed to. You didn't need to tell me that story. I think you needed to tell someone."

I gulped. I revealed far too much of myself to my friends. But then again, that's what friends were for, right? Real friends. "No, that was true," I managed.

She nodded. She was muting her movements, as if afraid to startle me out of the vulnerability she'd coaxed me into. The truth was my nails were digging into my palms, and nothing she could have done would make me tell her if I didn't want to. But I hadn't felt this lost in years. I hadn't even spoken to my father for more than three sentences for equally long. I looked at my reflection in one of the cars parked on the street. I hardly recognized myself. It was shameful.

"There's no shame in asking for help, Lexi," Coco murmured. A chill rippled through me. The world had flipped while I was asleep. Everybody was reading me as easily as I had them. Suddenly I was a little girl again, asking mom for help. I hated how warm it felt.

"Fine," I said stiffly.

--

"C'mon, quickly!" I whispered.

As silently as he could, Jordan slipped into my bedroom, and I closed the door with as little noise as possible. The lights were still off, but I could vaguely see where he was. I threw my arms around his neck, and he lifted my small frame off the ground as we kissed. Wrapping my legs around him, he carried me over to my bed and carefully laid us down as our lips pressed against each other with need.

My body was on fire by the time we broke apart, and we gasped for air, giggling together. My hands traced across his collarbones to his shoulders, the muscles flexed as he propped himself above me.

"You know we're dead if we get caught, right?" he breathed.

"I don't care," I cooed. "We've been spending sleepovers wrong all these years. I plan to make up for lost time."

He grinned and we kissed again. My hands ran down his torso, then slipped under his shirt. I groaned as I felt the V of his groin, and suddenly he yanked my arms up, pinning them over my head. He began an exploration of his own, leaving a trail of kisses that started at the hollow of my throat. I writhed against him, mewling weakly. The fact that my shirt was in the way was infuriating, and I ached to feel his lips on my bare skin.

Using his teeth, Jordan reached the hem of my shirt and began to pull it up, exposing my bra-cupped breasts to him. They'd started growing in this year, and it seemed he approved based on the growl he let out. Almost as dexterously as if he were using his hands, his teeth gripped the small cups and pulled them up, baring my tits to him. Before I knew it, his mouth was on them, lips and tongue sending me into a frenzy. My nipples received a lashing of a lifetime, and his sucking was drawing spasms out of my whole body.

My shorts couldn't come off fast enough. When they hit the floor, Jordan took a deep breath, and I had to resist squealing playfully.

"Hm. Smells different from what I expected," he commented.

I blushed, closing my legs. "Is it bad?"

"No, no. Just..." He trailed off, easing my thighs apart again.

I propped myself up on my elbows, squinting at him. "Is this... your first time too?"

"I... Yeah." I could hear how sheepish he was, and it made me squirm happily. "But Lexi, we can't go too far. We just barely fit into Romeo and Juliet laws, but for the other thing... There's no getting around that."

"I know." I sat up and held him. "But I can't wait anymore, Jordan. Please..."

After a moment's hesitation, he pushed me back on my bed, then lowered himself to my panty line. Before I could protest, he dived between my legs and began rubbing his face against my underwear, ravenous. I almost cried out, barely biting it back when he tore my panties off and tossed them aside. His tongue pressed into my core, and I threw my head back against the mattress, back arching.

"Jordan..." I gasped. "I want to taste you too."

He mumbled into my little cookie, and the vibrations left my legs twitching. A couple more licks and he pulled away, frantically yanking his jeans off. He was definitely ready for me, because when I pulled his boxers down I had to rear back as he sprang free. It looked huge, and as weird as it was, it looked beautiful. He wanted me. It didn't matter how wrong it was.

I did my best to reenact what I'd seen online, and it must have been working since Jordan couldn't even properly moan as he gasped for air.

"Look at me, Lexi," he begged. I peered up at him, and he shivered as he buried his fingers in my honey blonde hair. "Watch your teeth." I let my jaw go slack, and it was starting to ache, but I pushed through. He began forcing himself in, and I gagged. Jordan withdrew, and I coughed a few times while rubbing my tender throat. As much as it hurt, it was also pretty hot.

"Was that... okay, Jordan?"

"Goddamn, Lex. You sure you've never done this before?" he teased.

I tittered. "I've done a lot of studying."

"Thank God for that." I lay back down, and he climbed on top of me again. He mumbled something, then cleared his throat. "I, uh... I don't have a condom."

"It's safe," I said. After a moment, he nodded, clearly still unsure. The truth was, I had no idea when safe days were. I just saw it in a lot of porn, and I definitely wanted Jordan raw in me.

He kissed me again, then looked down to where we were about to become one. I took a deep breath, staring up at the ceiling as I waited for him to enter me. After the first time, it wouldn't hurt anymore. Just had to get this part over with. Honestly, this was magical enough for me already. Ceremonious, just like I'd imagined.

I felt his penis... his cock press against me, and I sucked in another breath.

"I love you, Lexi," Jordan whispered.

"I love you too, Jordan."

I felt him begin to push in. Then I shaded my eyes as light flooded into the room.

"Oh shit," I heard Jordan mutter. "Um, Uncle Charles--"

When I looked, my dad was storming in. I barely opened my mouth to freak out when he grabbed Jordan by the neck and tugged him out of bed. Jordan was apologizing the whole way out, and by contrast dad didn't say anything. I was left alone, lying naked on my bed and clutching my blankets around me.

What just happened?

I heard the front door slam, and it made me jump. Then dad came back, standing in the doorway and backlit by the hallway light.

"Get dressed, Alexandria," he snapped. "My office. Two minutes."

He stalked off, and I scrambled back into my clothes. My head was still spinning. We'd been caught. How did it go so wrong?

Dad was waiting for me, and gestured for me to close the door behind him. I stood before him as he sat gravely in his office chair, fingers steepled as he glared at me. As for the lecture he gave me, I actually blotted most of it out. The only words I caught, the only words that mattered, kept echoing in my head.

"You are never going to see your cousin again."

I couldn't tell if that was an order, or a truth. How was he going to enforce it? Would he and Uncle Ian work together to keep me and Jordan apart? The two of us would become adults someday. They wouldn't be able to stop us then. It would be years, but it wouldn't be forever. My heart felt like it was shattering all the same.

I was sent back to my room, with the promise that we'd talk more in the morning. I felt hollow. It had been so sudden, but my love had been torn away from me. And now I was going to be alone.

I looked at my phone. No. Not yet. One last chance, before dad and Uncle Ian cut us off from each other. I dialed Jordan's number. He let it ring for a long time, and I was starting to get worried until he picked up.

"Jordan..." I whispered. "I'm sorry."

"Nah, it's my fault," he sighed. "That was stupid, doing it at home." He chuckled. "What'd I say, huh? Over time, people start forgetting to be careful."

"What did my dad say to you?"

"He didn't say anything. Just threw me out after I put my pants on. I'm walking back to the hotel now." He grumbled. "I'm guessing my dad's gonna kill me when I get there."

"I'm sorry," I repeated.

"It's alright, Lex. It's just... It might be quite a while before we can see each other again, y'know?"

"My dad said never," I gulped. When had I started crying? "Jordan... I'm so sorry."

"Hey hey hey, enough of that, alright? We got caught, but we're still lucky that it was only family. What's done is done. We'll figure something out, right?" I nodded. "You can't charge forward if you're always looking back."

"Yeah..."

"I love you, Lexi."

"I love you too, Jordan."

"Hey, y'know, we haven't actually done anything wrong yet," he pointed out, and I could hear the smile in his voice. I managed one myself as I listened to him. "I mean, not technically illegal, y'know? Just taboo--"

There was a thunderous sound on the other side of the line, and then silence.

"What was that? Jordan?"

He didn't reply, and I checked that the call was still connected before putting the phone back to my ear.

"Hello?" My voice was quivering.

I heard the squeal of tires, and then an engine revving off into the distance. Then there was silence once more.

"...Jordan? Please say something. Jordan? Jordan?!"

--

Coco still had a hand to her mouth as I chuckled humorlessly, sounding more like a rasp. She had tears in her eyes. Evidently, she'd pieced everything together. Everything I'd told her as Lexi, and everything I'd told her as her Russian friend Sasha.

Please don't look at me like that.

"Drunk driver. Who knew that two words could change my life forever?" I murmured, then gave a chuckle that sounded more like a rattle. "I guess it still doesn't have the same kick as 'cancer,' but it's a close second."

"Lexi... I'm so s--"

"Don't pity me!" I snarled. She flinched, and I softened. It was her nature to care. I knew that. I had no more tears left to cry, but apparently the pain still lingered. I took a deep breath and gathered myself. "There's no point feeling bad about it anymore. You can't charge forward if you're always looking back."

I looked at my coffee, which remained untouched. Coco wasn't drinking anything either, and I'm pretty sure I just ruined her day. At least she'd keep it to herself though. She never shared our coffee chats with anybody. With a sigh that made me feel a thousand years old, I stood up and collected my things.

"This isn't why I asked you out today," I said flatly. "But it still helped."

Wordlessly, she reached out for me, and I pulled away. She was one of the purest people I knew, and even she was looking at me like I was weak. It was getting hard to breathe. I needed to focus. I needed to do something. I needed to get away.