A Collection of Stories

Anonymous

After a nineteen hour plane ride, I finally arrived at the Logan Airport. Ben had to take a connector flight, but he'd arrive shortly after me. I grabbed my bags off of the spinning machine and waited for my mother at the gate. As I dropped my bags, Carter ran up to me and kissed me cross-eyed. This confused me because I didn't hear a word from him in two months and yet he's here kissing me like I've always wanted him to. I pulled back and stared at him, backing away from him slowly. He said nothing also, both of us waiting for the other to speak. My phone buzzed in my pocket and I answered it immediately, breaking the silence between Carter and me.

"Hey baby," Ben said over the bustle of people. "I'm in Virginia. My flight won't come in till ten. I made a reservation at the Windum hotel. I'll see you soon, love you. Bye." He hung up quickly.

"So… who was that?" Carter asked, taking my bags. We walked towards the exit as I bit my lip, thinking of what to tell him. Carter led me to my truck, throwing my bags in the bed. He slid in the driver’s seat as I got in on the passenger side. "Are you going to answer me?" He asked as he tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.

I looked at him, and then looked out the windshield. "Why didn't you call me?" I whispered, pulling my knees to my chest. Carter didn't say anything as he started the truck. He pulled out of the garage and onto the highway, his hands gripping the steering wheel. "His name is Ben." I muttered, turning toward the window. Carter threw his phone in my lap and muttered;

"Check the call logs." I did as he said, looking at two months of calls to me. Carter looked at me quickly as he said, "I called, Mel. I called every day because I realized that I care about you so much." I stared at him, a lump lodged in my throat. The words I had waited years to hear and I was in a relationship with someone else.

"Pull over," I whispered, turning towards him as he entered the breakdown lane. After he put the machine into park, I took his face in my hands and kissed him passionately, climbing into his lap so he couldn't push me away. Carter was startled at first, but quickly recovered and wrapped his arms around me. He pressed me against the steering wheel as his hands wandered under my shirt. I unbuttoned his shirt slightly, trailing my fingers down his abs. He shuddered under my fingers and pulled me closer, kissing me harder. He pulled back slightly, touching my cheek lightly as a smile spread across his lips. I smiled back, resting my forehead against his.

"Let's go to your place," I whispered. I crawled off of his lap with a grin. Carter pulled back onto the highway as he wrapped his arm around me. The radio played in the background as he pulled into his parking space. He pulled me into his arms and carried me up the stairs, kissing me passionately as we stumbled into the apartment. We spent the night talking about the trip, explaining to Carter the situation with Ben, even all my adventures. Around midnight he ordered pizza and went to pick it up. I walked him to the door, letting him give me a charming grin before walking into the darkness. A boy about Ben’s height and build sank a knife into the center of Carter's chest before running off. Carter collapsed to the ground as I rushed to him, my cell stuck between my shoulder and ear as the 911 operator talked me through everything. An ambulance came minutes later, taking over for me as they put him in the ambulance. I climbed in after them, holding Carter's hand the whole time. 

~

They put twenty stitches in his chest when we were in the emergency room. The doctors sedated him and called my mom, telling her what happened to Carter. I called Ben and told him to meet me in the ER, needing him here while my world was lying unconscious in front of me. He woke up around three in the morning, the sedatives wearing off too quickly. 

"Melly", he whispered, reaching out for my hand. I grabbed it quickly and pressed my lips to his knuckles, holding back tears. 

"I'm here, Car. I won't leave you," I vowed, kissing his hand again. He moaned and gripped my hand tighter, the pain killers officially wearing off. I held his hand as I paged his nurse, asking her for a stronger dosage. She obliged and did it quickly, pushing a syringe into his IV. Carter relaxed slightly as the drugs kicked in.