Supernova Souls - Ryan Upchurch

-32-

Delilah swung her dangling feet over the edge of the tailgate while she scrolled through her Spotify playlists on her phone but none caught her eye. With her other hand she tried to shield her eyes from the bright sun that beamed it's unforgiving rays down on her face. "Why is it so bright?" She rolled over on her side in the bed, facing away from Ryan. "And why is it so hot?"

"It's the sun, that's why. You can't just turn it off." He scoffed. "And I don't know if you know this or not but you're in Tennessee, baby, it's always hot out."

"Well yeah, no shit, I know I'm in Tennessee." She rolled back over on her back and tossed her phone down beside her. She closed her eyes in an attempt to block the sun from her light sensitive eyes but to no avail. "Is there anything out here we can do that don't make shit get even hotter?"

When she opened her eyes she was met by a mischievous blue pair staring back at her. Immediately, she regretted her choice of words when she saw the look plastered on his face. "Don't you dare. Don't you fucking dare!"

He watched as she sat up straight and scooted away from him, knowing exactly what was going through his head- she could practically see those old rusted gears turning in his head. "Do. Not."

He grinned and jumped off the tailgate and grabbed her hand. She yanked her arm back, but he had a firm grasp on her small hand and he definitely used that to his advantage. Ryan pulled her off the tailgate and she practically fell into his arms, her head now pressed against his chest. She couldn't back up, because if she did she'd smack the back of her head against the truck's dropped tailgate and she quite frankly didn't want a concussion right now. "So help me God- if you do what I think you're gonna do I will fucking kill you!" She yelled at him and smacked his chest hard as she could but he just took the abuse and picked her up. Her legs involuntarily wrapped around his middle because she didn't want to fall, and she mentally cursed herself inside her head and made a mental note to never do this again, even if she knew she'd never revisit that note inside her mind.

Both her hands were tightly gripping his shoulders out of a mixture of annoyance and fear he turned sharply on his heels. He was already up to his ankles in the muddy water that was colder than shit, and she knew exactly what his plan was.

Ryan slowly loosened his grip on her and dropped her to the water so her feet were also covered by the water like his. His calloused hands were planted on her curvy hips, so he moved them a little higher on her, just below her breasts, and her hands were now clasped around his wrists. His touch sent a shiver up her spine and she averted her eyes to his chest, her racing mind doing its best to ignore the placement of his hands.

"Hot, huh?" He asked with a smirk and a little shake of his head. "Not no more!" He yelled and pushed her just enough to make her stumble backwards and fall into the ice cold water of the pond. She dipped beneath the surface and for a second and he was worried because she stayed beneath the water's surface for a few seconds too long.

Delilah shrieked after she resurfaced. "Bitch!" She hollered, staring straight at Ryan with a spark he didn't quite recognize in her eyes. "I'm gonna fucking murder you." She pushed some of her now soaked hair behind her ear, spitting out a little bit of the nasty tasting water.

She raised a hand to touch her face and noted that absolutely no makeup came off her face so it must've came off in the water, which she was admittedly a little concerned about. She never left her bedroom without her scars covered, and certainly never let anyone see them. Now, though, all of that changed all because she was getting a little too hot in her truck bed and like the gentleman Ryan was, pushed her into the water. Thanks a lot, Ry.

"What's that look for?" He asked, like he hadn't just forced her into the middle of a literal deep ass pond. That's basically a death wish, and he somehow didn't understand that.