Chapter Three

Amanda

"It wasn't as painful as the first time"

On a hot boring Monday morning my two friends; Keisha and Janet and I decided to spend our free period at the library to discuss the events that happened in our various lives during the weekend.

This is our favourite place to hang out when we ditch classes because nobody ever suspects here to be a hiding place.

Janet and Keisha are practically the only friends I have. We've been best friends since preschool along with Jeremy too. We were a tight circle...too tight for a single soul to join or penetrate.

Being the pastor's daughter meant people at church wanted to be my friend because of my dad's wealth and in order for them to look good but I always kept my distance. Sure I was polite but I kept my distance.

My two friends are both dark skinned

Janet had long relaxed hair. She's what you would describe as the 'modern hip teen'. She had dark brown eyes and a unique sense of style. She took her appearance very seriously, always dressing herself in the latest designer clothes. Most people whispered saying she dresses like a slut because of her mini skirts and dresses but that wasn't quite the case. Fashion is just a way for her to express herself. We're all different in our own way. She's nice but in a fake sweet kind of way depending on your personality. She doesn't really talk much, that's why she prefers her style to speak for her.

Keisha is what you can describe as 'the cool laid back bad chick'. She had natural hair like me but hers is a bit shorter. She has three ear piercings and two nose piercings. Her style was effortlessly cool. She dressed more like a tomboy...a cool tomboy but she could go girly every now and then. I liked how versatile she could be in terms of fashion. She's usually loud but calm when the need arises. She had a bitchy attitude and a snobbish look too which practically screamed 'don't mess with me or else I'll beat you up'. She grew up in the hood until her parents got wealthy so she got into a lot of street and school fights.

That's enough describing for one day. Back to the present.

Janet was telling us how she hooked up with one of her friends at a party last night.

"Did you enjoy it though?" Keisha asked her

"Of course" Janet replied "it was way better this time and rougher" she wiggled her eyebrows causing Keisha to giggle

Apparently this is her third time having sex

I hate it when they talk about sex. It always makes me feel left out in the sense that I don't plan on doing it anytime soon and by not anytime soon I mean waiting till my wedding night.

"Hey babe" a voice said from behind me. It was Jeremy. He smoothly slid into the chair beside me.

"Hi" I answered, greeting him with a short kiss

"Hey guys" he said to them

"Hi Jeremy"

"Ugh you guys are so cute it’s disgusting" Keisha stuck her pierced tongue out

"Thanks" I grinned

"Hey, wanna hang out today?" He asked me

"Sure"

"I'll come pick you up by 4 then we can head over to my place"

"That sounds great"

He kissed me on the cheek, stood up then left

"Ooohhhh looks like a dick appointment has been scheduled" Janet sang

"What? No" I replied

"You guys haven't done it yet?" Keisha questioned

"No"

Janet gasped

"Why not?" Janet asked

"Because I believe in abstinence"

"Does he?"

"He should"

"He should? You aren't even sure"

Jeremy believes in abstinence, doesn't he? Come to think of it, we've never really talked about it. I always assumed he would be okay with it because we're both Christians and he knows premarital sex is a sin.

"I'm sure" I said, even though I wasn't

Janet laughed

"Abstinence? Really?" She mocked "cute"

I was getting annoyed. What's wrong with waiting till you're married before having sex?

"What's wrong with waiting until marriage?" I queried

"I don't see anything wrong" Keisha shrugged "if that's what she wants then let her be"

I smiled at Keisha in gratitude. I know it’s unfair to compare them but sometimes I feel Keisha is the better friend.

She doesn't judge me like Janet does. I can always be myself around her.

"This is 2020 bitch. Nobody believes in that shit" Janet stated "you guys have been together for three fucking years and you haven't done it yet. That's lame"

"My relationship is between Jeremy and me. It’s none of your business" I said through gritted teeth

Who does she think she is trying to talk down on me and my life choices?

"I'm only looking out for you. If you don't give it to him he's going to look for pussy elsewhere"

"Jeremy wouldn't do that to me"

Would he?

My mind automatically drifted to the naked picture I caught on his phone yesterday or did I not see well?

How am I sure I didn't imagine things? After all, I just took a glance

"Look, all I'm saying is he's a boy after all. No boy in their right mind will say no to sex, Christian or not"

"Okay then" Keisha interrupted "let's talk about something else"

I muttered a silent thank you to Keisha for changing the subject

"Like?" Janet asked

"Uh Tyler's best friend is back from London" I spoke

"Oh really?" Keisha grinned

Her face lit up at the mention of Tyler. She's always had a crush on him since preschool. She would always come to my house very nicely dressed in order for Tyler to notice her but my brother was too busy plus she's underage. Anytime he did notice her enough to say hi, it would become a whole different story. She would keep talking about it for weeks. Keisha is pretty confident and bad-ass but becomes shy when it comes to him. It’s cute though.

"Of course Keisha is interested" Janet teased "anything that has to do with Tyler is worth hearing"

"Shut up" Keisha mumbled

"His name is Harry styles" I continued

"Hold up" Janet interrupted "Harry Styles? Isn't he a criminal?"

"Yeah" Keisha agreed "I've heard his name in the news a lot"

My mom wasn't lying then. Harry really did have a criminal record

"That doesn't matter" I spoke

"Carry on" Keisha urged

"I met him in church"

"Oh how romantic" Janet mumbled

I ignored her and continued

"He's white, tall, hot and incredibly good looking"

"Lots of tattoos, yeah?" Keisha asked

"Yup"

"And you get to see him every Sunday"

I hope so

"Ehhh he doesn't strike me as the religious type"

"Why do I have a feeling he's going to be trouble in your life" Janet said

"It'll be good then" said Keisha "our lives are getting boring anyway"

*

"I'm home" I announced as I came back from school

"Hello Miss Amanda" one of the maids greeted me

"Hi" I responded "how are you?"

"Very well. How was school?"

"Went great"

She took my backpack from me and went upstairs to keep it.

I heard voices from the kitchen. That's awkward. The house is usually quiet when I get home cause my parents and Tyler came home late. Who could that be?

I walked inside to see who it was. To my surprise, it was Harry and Tyler

My heart almost stopped at the sight of Harry. He was so physically charming that it hurt. Call me crazy or whatever but I feel like I have this pull to him that I can't explain.

Anyone reading this can relate, can't you? That moment when you meet someone and you just don't know why you're interested in them.

They were having a conversation. Tyler was sitting on the counter while Harry stood casually leaning on the island with a drink in his hand. His tattoos were showing from the corner of his mid sleeve shirt.

His hair was packed in a neat bun; some strands were falling from his sides hanging around his eyes.

Why?

How?

How can someone be so effortlessly flawless? My subconscious scolded me telling me I just met him yesterday and I should get a hold of myself but my inner goddess purred at the man in front of me.

As if he felt my presence in the room, he turned left and looked at me straight in the eye. I was so not expecting that

"Hey Amanda" he acknowledged

I automatically snapped out of my brief daze

"Hi Harry. Hi Tyler"

"How was school?" Tyler asked

"Good"

Harry smiled at me. I smiled back

Suddenly feeling very thirsty, I went to the fridge and took a bottle of water to drink.

"Harry and I are about to go out" Tyler said

"Jeremy and I are going to his place too"

I got a buzz from my phone. I brought it out from my back pocket to see who it is.

Baby : hey, I'm outside

I quickly replied him

Me: okay. I'm coming

"He's here" I told Tyler

"Let's go"

I walked over to the door. I was so self-conscious of the fact that Harry was right behind me even though he was talking to Tyler

He could be looking at me. I ran my hands through my natural hair to make it smooth just in case he's looking

Wait... Why do I care what Harry thinks?

"Cause he's hot" my inner goddess said

"So? She has a boyfriend" my subconscious argued

"Has that ever stopped anyone?"

"She just met him less than 24 hours ago you whore"

"Love at first sight exists. Not like she's asking him to take her to the altar (although that wouldn't be a bad idea cause they would make gorgeous babies) , she's just admiring him''

The argument went on in my head till I got outside. Jeremy's red Ferrari was parked in the premises

"Hey baby" he said through the window

Jeremy's eyes landed on Harry

"Harry Styles" Jeremy said in a mocking tone

"Yes?" Harry replied

Oh no. This is not going to go well

"Ran away from England? Heard the police were on your trail"

"Jeremy be nice" I reprimanded him as I entered the car

"Nice ride" Harry complimented

I was in awe of Harry's self-composure. He wasn't even angry about what Jeremy said. He's probably not as bad as everyone thinks after all.

Jeremy smirked

"Too bad you can't afford it"

I gasped in horror

"How could you?!" I shrieked

Before Harry or Tyler could reply, Jeremy took off

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I scolded

"Relax babe. He deserves every bit of insults he gets. He's a fucking criminal"

"You aren't supposed to judge"

"Listen, I don't want you anywhere near that boy. He is nothing but bad news"

"You can't tell me what to do"

"It’s for your own good"

I huffed in disapproval

Everyone's bad remarks about Harry just made me want to get to know him more

If I want to hang out with Harry I will

I didn't speak to Jeremy through out the ten minutes it took for us to get to his house

I got down from the car banging the door behind me and went up straight to his room. I laid on his bed and faced the ceiling

"Are you mad at me?" He asked when he came inside

"Of course I am. You didn't have to be so rude"

"Why do you even care?"

Why do I?

"Because we're Christians. We have to go according to God's will and that does not include being rude"

My inner goddess (let's name her Sasha) raised her eyebrows at me asking "is that really the reason?"

He wiped his face with his hands. That's what he does when he's confused or upset.

"Alright fine. I'm sorry"

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to"

He sighed

"Fine. I'll apologize to Harry whenever I see him"

"Good"

He jumped on the bed and laid beside me

"Can I get a kiss now?" He whispered

"Yes"

I turned over on my side and kissed him.

This kiss was different. It wasn't filled with passion like it usually was. It was filled with need and maybe.... Lust?

Soon enough he got on top of me and tried to take off my shirt but I refused

I broke away from him in shock

"What are you doing?" I asked

He trailed kisses down my neck

"Come on. We've been together for so long. I think its high time we got intimate"

I tried to move but he pinned my hands down

"Let go of me" I screamed trying to wiggle free from his grasp

"Stay still"

"No!"

I jerked upward with so much force that he almost fell. He stood up from the bed abruptly

"What is wrong with you?" He shrieked

"What's wrong with me? You're the one trying to have sex"

"What's wrong with that? Are you really about that waiting until marriage thing? What do you expect us to do? Hold hands and have amateur make out sessions? We're not ten Amanda. We're 18 for Christ's sake"

Oh my God .

Janet was right

No boy in his right mind will say no to sex

Jeremy wasn't as innocent as I thought he was

"I-i h-h-have to g-go" I stuttered

I pushed past him and left his room in shock. The most surprising part was he didn't even try to stop me or come after me.