Rebels Never Smile

June

June: Finally

Elvis and I sat under the moonlight for a long time. We watched the sunrise together. Well, I watched the sunlight. Elvis stared at me most of the time. Eventually, feeling insecure, I scolded him " Elvis, stop looking at me and watch the damn sun come out from behind the clouds." He said nothing and continued stare. I sighed and looked back at the sun. " It's beautiful isn't it?" I murmured. He laughed and said " Oh June." I raised my eyebrows and he continued " You are more beautiful than any sunrise anywhere. The sun rising is just a big ball of burning gas coming over clouds that are mists and full of water to remind us that night, a place of darkness is over. You June, are a graceful entity, a woman of kindness and warmth and you are precious."

A few weeks after the news broke about Elvis and I, things settled down and went back to normal. It was particularly hard to break it to Aaron. I found him in the library, where he had found me. He smiled and bent down to kiss me when I flinched and stepped away. His face fell. " What's wrong?" I sighed. " Look, I'm sorry I gave you the wrong impression the other night. I didn't mean to." His grin disappeared altogether. " The thing is-" " It's him isn't it?" He cut me off. He looked down at the book he was holding. " What, he rejected you, humiliated you and now he feels pity for you and he just wants to go out with you all of a sudden?" He asked. Sort of insulted I said " Uh, no. You don't understand." " So help me." He fired back. I scoffed shocked by his demeanor. I started to walk away when he grabbed my wrist and forced me to kiss him. His lips, hot and angry were rough over mine and they felt foreign, as if they didn't belong. As soon as I could, I pushed him off me and kicked him in the leg. Surprised he fell and looked back at me in shock while I walked away, not looking back.

Instead of telling Elvis, I decided life would be a whole lot better if I didn't. We're about to graduate soon and things were going great anyways. High school was coming to an end. You could feel it in the air. The anticipation and the excitement, the whole school was practically jittery. The last day came and went. Elvis and I sat together and threw our hats at each other instead of the air. Mama and Elvis' father, along with my parents met each other for the first time. I got a ride home with Elvis that night and it was the first time I was gonna hear him sing.

Changed into comfortable clothes, Mama, Vernon, Elvis and I played cards all night. Vernon was the first to leave, then Mama. Elvis hugged his mother tightly, and kissed her cheek with aggression. She winked at me before disappearing into her room. Not ready to leave, I sighed and moved us to the couch. I leaned onto his shoulder with our hands in his lap. As soon as the dust settled, we heard the radio from Vernon and Mama's bedroom. Elvis chuckled and murmured " Mama." Then as we stared out into the sky from his couch, Elvis began to hum. It was a low hum, a very low hum but it rumbled in his chest and vibrated his throat. It filled the room from silence and I listened, not wanting to disrupt this valuable, golden moment. Then he turned to me and looked into my eyes. I couldn't help but get lost in his. No longer were they the ice cold eyes I saw, they were a warmer, darker blue. He sang lyrics from the song, which I had never heard of. The melody that floated from his throat was enchanting. It was deep, rich and moving. My mouth was open and my mind was blank as I stared at the handsome boy with a heavenly voice. The song ended and his voice lingered. " That was beautiful." I whispered into his ear before biting it. He smiled a crooked smile, showing his teeth and he said " It's all right I guess." I turned his chin to face me and I quoted myself " That was beautiful." And his eyes behind his lashes drooped before he said " Not as much as you."

I kissed him first this time. I allowed my fingers to become knotted in his hair, and his arms locked against my waist. He traced my lips with his tongue and even after we finished kissing he kept his eyes closed. When I asked why he said " So the feeling of your lips could be etched into my thoughts." I rose an eyebrow. " And how's that going?" He opened one eye to look at me and with a crooked smile he whispered coming closer to me " I don't remember." And he closed the distances between our lips again.

A week later was my birthday. Elvis and I were at the park having a picnic and he looked up at me from my lap and said " Isn't it interesting how your name is June, and your birthday is in the month of June?" He inquired. This was a question I once asked myself every year until I was 11. " Come to think of it, no, I haven't really thought about it." I mocked. " You think?" Elvis teased. I laughed and slapped his arm. " Hey but seriously, what do you want for your birthday?" He asked suddenly serious. " I want you to sing for me." " Ah." He waved. " I want this to be really special. Something really special." He raised his eyebrows seducingly and crawled up my thigh causing me to squirm. " No!" I slapped his head away. " Ok fine." I said with a bright idea in my mind. " Why don't you sing at a record label?" I exclaimed. " Ok, I don't think so." He shook his head. " Wow, your such a chicken." I shouted out loud. He turned serious and with his eyebrows furrowed, " I am not a chicken." He said. " Then prove it." I said poking his cheek. He growled and tackled me into the ground before saying " Fine." Then he got up and said " But your cleaning this-" he pointed to the basket and the blanket and everything else- " by yourself." and he turned around and started galloping away laughing into the distance.