"Damn, Howie, you really shelled out the bucks for her birthday," Teagan whistled in awe as she watched Howie finish conversing with the owner of the surf shop. Howie had purchased the surfboard that Oriana had been dying to own, but added his own flavor for extra brownie points. He had instructed for the surfboard to be coated in a light lavender paint with Oriana's name emblazed beneath an image of a fairy in dark purple. Teagan was overly amazed with Howie's purchase, knowing Oriana would absolutely fall in love with the gift.
"She deserves it," Howie shrugged as he was handed a slip to pick up the surfboard closer to Oriana's birthday.
“That board though---"
"You said she loves to surf and is great at it. I'm just giving her a board to show off while she's on the waves."
"Still," Teagan approved as the owner waved goodbye. They nodded with approval, stepping out into the mall's hallways. They had been shopping for several hours and Howie's last purchase had been the surfboard. "You didn't have to go all out with the detailing. She'll notice that extra effort. She's going to love it... She's going to love you..."
"I did it because I wanted to... I hope she does like it along with everything else."
"The Meatloaf shirt is completely kickass. She'll be air guitar'ing around her bedroom with it," Teagan promised, trying to encourage Howie.
"Really?" Howie asked hopefully as he situated the bags in his hand.
"Yeah," she answered confidently, shrugging her shoulder to bring her purse strap higher. "Want one suggestion, though?"
"Suggestions are always helpful."
"When you get the board, take a picture of it. Put that picture in a box and give her that at her birthday party. Then, when she opens it, tell her you two can come down to the mall and get it together. Make it kind of like a no-option kind of date," Teagan planned with a sly smile.
Howie smiled as well, nodding. "Good idea, Teag. Listen, I want to thank you for everything. You've helped me so much--"
"Don't worry about it," Teagan quickly objected, firmly shaking her head. She would have held her hands up to stop him, but they were weighted by several bags. "If anything, I did it for Oriana. You two deserve one another. It may have taken four years to get you two at a place where you could date one another, but that's all that matters. That you're both here... And I'd do anything to make sure it worked out."
"You're a great friend, you know that?"
"It's always nice to hear it once in awhile," Teagan smiled, noticing they reached the exit of the mall. "You better get going, I could hear your mom say dinner was at five-thirty."
"Yeah, Angie and Carol are coming home for dinner tonight. So, everyone has to be prompt,"
Howie laughed. "But thanks for all the help. I really hope she'll like all three gifts."
"Three?" Teagan blurted with interest, reaching to stop him. One personality trait that could never be ignored was Teagan's curiosity. She always needed to know the details about everything. Her mother scolded her constantly about such a trait, but she never seemed to be serious. "I only saw two... Wait, that's why you went into the one store alone."
"Mm-hmm," Howie replied with a smile.
"Well? What was it? Tell me, please!"
"It's a secret---"
"I'm the best friend! I have a right to know!"
"Teagan, it's a secret!"
"Dorky Dwaine!
"I'm still not telling you," Howie grumbled, reaching in his back pocket to retrieve the keys to his car.
"Why not?" Teagan whined.
"Because this is a gift that comes from my heart and I want it to go to Oriana's heart first."
"But..." she trailed off at the look on his face. "Alright, I give up."
"Really?" Howie laughed with surprise.
"Yeah, really," Teagan smiled a little. "If you mean that it's from your heart, then it's for Oriana to see first."
"I honestly mean that it's from my heart."
"Okay. That's all I need to know," Teagan leaned in and kissed his cheek. "You're going to be late for dinner."
"And I'm blaming it on you," Howie replied, offering the same kiss to her cheek. He smiled once more before finally pushing the exit door open. "I'll see you tomorrow and thanks again."
"See you tomorrow, but no need to thank me," Teagan called, watching Howie leave the mall. Gathering her bags again, Teagan resituated the bags in her hands once more and turned to head back and shop some more.
Teagan had just one more thing to pick up for Oriana's birthday before she could go home. She hurried down the mall in search of Victoria's Secret, knowing she could mortify Oriana in a way that no one else could. Her mind was filled with evil plans until her phone began to chirp within her purse. Immediately, she managed to shift the bags to one hand to give her the opportunity to retrieve the phone. She bent her head as she zipped open her purse, never expecting anyone to be in front of her. Without a thought in her head, she connected roughly with a force that sent her flying backwards and the contents of her purse spilling open. "Damnit!" she cursed.
"Holy shit! I'm sorry!" a male voice erupted.
"No, it's my fault. I was stupid and thought I could--
" Teagan seemed to lose her voice as she looked up into the brightest blue eyes she had ever seen.
"Are you okay?" the man instantly asked, noticing the shock relax Teagan's tense facial features. He gave a lopsided smile as he stood up to offer her a hand. He was a little taller than Teagan with a toned build mixed with just a hint of muscular definition. He wore a loose football jersey and pair of loose jeans against his tapering waist. His soft blue eyes twinkled with amusement as she just stared at his hand in disbelief. He was the most gorgeous creature she had ever seen.
"Um... what?" Teagan asked, a little dazed. His eyes are so bright! She thought, almost drowning in them.
"Are you okay?" he repeated, shaking his hand a little in effort to get her to take it.
"Oh! Yeah... I'm fine, I think," she finally realized he meant to help her up and she took his hand.
"You sure?" he commented with a smirk of laughter playing with his soft pink lips.
"No?" she laughed as well, looking down at all her things strewn on the floor. "I need to pay more attention to where I'm going."
"I think I'd have to agree with that," he answered, noticing her stoop to gather everything that fell from her purse. He smiled apologetically, immediately bending to help her.
"I'm really sorry about that. My phone was ringing, I was trying to juggle presents for my friend--"
"It's alright," he laughed, noticing her scoop piles of makeup into her purse. He arched his light blonde brows with question when they both reached for their cell phones, their hands briefly bumping against one another. Teagan jumped back as if she had been burned by the electricity that connected both of them. "I'm not going to hurt you. I was just trying to get your phone...”
Teagan shook her head, stopping herself from smacking her forehead for acting stupid. "Sorry, I got shocked... er, static electricity."
"No problem," he trailed, finally reaching down to pick up her pink flamed phone. "Here."
"Thanks," she reached out to grab it and their hands touched again.
"No problem..." he repeated, keeping his hand poised on her cell phone so they continued to connect. His warm blue eyes burned into Teagan's sapphire eyes with a heated attraction. It was almost as if they both anticipated what the other was thinking. "I'm Brian."
"I'm Teagan. It's nice to meet you," she replied, almost wincing at the lame response.
"Teagan, that's an interesting name."
"Thank you. It was my great-great grandmother's name... but that was stupid to say. I like your name, though. It's very... sexy," her eyes grew wide as the word blurted from her mouth.
Brian struggled not to laugh as she fumbled to cover her tracks. He found it adorable the way her cheeks continued to grow a deeper red as her tongue became more twisted within the words. On a whim, he reached out to grasp her shoulder. "Thanks for the compliment, Teagan."
"You're welcome, I think. Normally, I know what to say, but you're making it hard," Teagan managed to speak a full sentence, feeling warmth rush through her body with Brian's simple touch.
"Well, I apologize for that."
"No, it's okay," they both stood up. Teagan carefully rubbed her already aching knee.
Brian noticed her awkwardly reach to pull her purse onto her shoulder while continuing to rub her knee. He smiled faintly, reaching down to gather her bags. He offered them toward her before retrieving his own phone that had fallen to the floor into two pieces. "If it's an consolation, you're extremely beautiful."
If possible, Teagan blushed even more. "No, I'm not really--"
"Yes, you are. I haven't seen someone as beautiful as you before."
"Thank you?" she squeaked.
Brian winced slightly at the high chirp in her nervous voice, but offered the same heart-warming smile. "Well, Teagan No-Last-Name, would it be possible to get your phone number, so if I find the need to talk to the most beautiful woman in the world, I can do so?"
"It would definitely be possible, Brian No-Last-Name," Teagan teased with a relaxed smile. There was something about him that made her feel like her old self, before the last boyfriend.
"It's Brian Rich---"
"TEAGIE! WHAT A SURPRISE TO SEE YOU HERE!"
"Oh, no. It can't be..." Teagan moaned fearfully, turning around. It was her ex-boyfriend Xander, the one who beat her within an inch of her life.
"Sweetheart, I've been looking all over for you!" Xander boomed, sauntering toward the couple with a drunken stumble. His clothing was wrinkled and stained, yet he didn't seem to care as his wild eyes settled against Teagan. "C'mon, Teagie, my car's outside---"
"I don't know who you are, but I do know that Teagan does not want to talk to you," Brian interrupted, pulling Teagan closer to his side.
"And who the Hell do you think you are?" Xander challenged, sizing up Brian, who was smaller compared to Xander's booming nature.
"Someone Teagan WANTS to talk to, so step off me," Brian pushed Xander away from them.
"You son of a bit---"
"Is there anything wrong?" a security officer announced before Xander could lunge toward Brian. He had seen the entire incident from his post near the exit and finally decided to take some action. He looked non-too-happy with the situating, glaring coldly at Xander.
"This man is bothering us, could you please escort him from the mall?" Brian replied, feeling Teagan tremble next to him.
"I am NOT leaving without Teagie!" Xander lurched before the officer could stop him and grasped a chunk of Teagan's brown locks.
"GET THE FUCK OFF ME!" Teagan immediately screamed, slapping at Xander's hand with fright. Her mind flashed backward to the hospital after Xander's attack. Tubes coming out of her body as if she were a puppet on the string, gauze tainted with blood, her eyes practically swollen shut. She would not be placed in that position again. She screamed sharply and she continued to scratch at Xander's hands till the security officer managed to pin him with the aid of backup.
"YOU KNOW WE'RE MEANT TO BE, TEAGIE! YOU KNOW IT!" Xander grunted as he struggled against the officers. "IF I CAN'T HAVE YOU, NO ONE WILL! YOU HEAR ME?! YOU'RE MINE!"
"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Teagan screamed with a sharper note, clutching tightly to Brian's t-shirt. She listened to Xander throw hundreds of threats her way till he was forced outside. Suddenly, she was engulfed in a deathly silent word, causing her to gasp for air.
"Teagan?" Brian called.
"Bri...Brian... Is he... gone?" Teagan panted, her heart beating rapidly. Pain throbbed where Xander had grasped her hair.
"Um...yeah...they just pushed him into a squad car..." Brian trailed, not really knowing what to say. He was still covered in a cloud of confusion. He could only identify that he felt strongly protective over the woman clutching his shirt.
"Thank God... I'm sorry about all this... he could have hurt you," Teagan stumbled over to the wall and sat down, still shaking.
"It's not your fault," Brian objected, watching her slump to the ground. She seemed several shades lighter than before, obviously pale with fear. He sighed softly, not liking to see any woman in such distress. He gently leaned over her trembling form, placing a warm hand underneath her chin. "C'mon, let's go get you a cappuccino or something."
"Could we go to Caribou?" Teagan asked, looking up into Brian's light eyes. She felt protected and safe with him, something she hadn't felt in a long time.
"Anything you want, because I haven't scored your digits yet," he joked lightly, wrapping an arm around her waist after she collected her things. "Besides, I'm thinking you could help me. I have to buy this preppy chick a gift for her birthday party this weekend. I'm clueless in that department... All I know is that she's the daughter of some high-priced doctor and probably fifty-percent plastic."
"I can definitely help you with a birthday present for the girl," she replied, nestling herself against his side as they walked towards Caribou Coffee. "Most of the preppy, plastic girls like make-up and things that are pink. Best place for that is Abercrombie & Fitch, Claire's and American Eagle."
"Oh, joy," Brian grimaced.
"Don't worry, I'll go in and get them for you."
"Thank God," he laughed.
"Guys really don't like shopping, do they?" she teased with a smile, swinging her own large Hot Topic bag along with Oriana's presents in others.
"Not for something draped in pink," he agreed, leading her toward the coffee shop. He stopped for a moment though, holding her out at an arm's length. His soft pink lips curved into a genuine smile. "But I think I might have developed a love for it since I ran into a Goddess at the mall."
"I'm not a Goddess," she blushed, looking at her outfit. She had decided to be punk-ish and was wearing black and blue plaid Hot Topic pants with blue chains looping around and skulls stamped over the material. Her tanktop was blue and said 'Rebel' in a sparkly fire pattern. "I sure as Hell don't dress like one sometimes."
"Then they need to remake the definition, because you're a Goddess in my eyes."
"Well... thank you."
"You're very welcome. So, how about that cappuccino, then a little shopping, then a little digit exchanging, which hopefully will be followed by plans for a first real date?"
Teagan smiled at his eagerness and leaned up to kiss his cheek. "A thank you kiss for standing up for me, now some cappuccino, digit exchanging and it will definitely be followed by plans for a second date."
Oriana hurriedly slammed her fists repeatedly into the large punching bag as the lyrics of Evanescence flowed through her body. She tried to concentrate on the music, but her brain refused to quit. She was still having a hard time accepting the events that occurred that afternoon and evening. Howie's obvious attempt at a date had startled her greatly, because now she couldn't get his infectious smile out of her mind. Every time her brain merely thought of his name, she became enraptured in contentment, which scared her.
Then Kevin had tried to make some kind of peace with her, causing a fire of anger to burst through her soul. She quickly brushed him off with cruel words and traveled downstairs for peace and quiet. She just wanted to be left alone, but Teagan's heavy footsteps of excitement alerted that Oriana would have no such luxury.
"I JUST HAD THE BEST DAMN DAY OF MY ENTIRE LIFE!" Teagan shouted with an excited squeal, jumping off the last steps. She hurried into the basement and collapsed on her favorite chair facing Oriana's punching bag. A permanent smile plastered her glowing face as she clutched her phone.
"Did Victoria's Secret have a sale on panties?" Oriana grunted with sarcasm, continuing to pummel the bag. She loved Teagan dearly, but her friend's cheery attitude seemed to cause a harder wave of depression to attack.
"Well...yes...but that's not why it was the best damn day of my entire life!" Teagan giggled, picturing Brian's sweet face in her mind. She already knew she was in love. It was as if Cupid struck her hard with an arrow when she bounced into Brian accidentally.
"Then what was it?" Oriana asked, starting her various kicks upon the punching bag.
"I met a guy and he's the greatest guy on the PLANET!" Teagan sighed dreamily, giving a silly smile.
"I thought you went birthday shopping for me," Oriana stated incredulously.
"I did! But I was heading to one more store, my cell phone began to ring, I was digging for it and I ran into him. He had to shop for some girl's birthday, so I helped him pick things out. Riana, he's so beautiful. His eyes, his hair, his smile... just everything about him makes my heart beat fast."
"Honestly?"
"Honestly. And... well... Xander showed up, too. The guy DEFENDED me and we had just met. Most guys just leave, you know? But he protected me. That... that says something."
"Defended you from..." Oriana trailed, stopping her assault on the large sand bag. She brushed her chalky hands on her baggy shorts, staring at Teagan in disbelief. "Did you call the police?"
"The mall security came and forced him outside and into a squad car," Teagan whispered, looking down at her hands. A large scar ran down her palm where Xander had dragged a knife the night of the attack.
"Good."
"Everything flashed back, Riana. The tubes, bloody gauzes, the casts..." Teagan sighed, brushing back her hair. "There's no point in that damn restraining order if he keeps finding me."
"If you'd call the police when Xander shows up and violates the restraining order, then there'd actually be a point to it," Oriana replied with an open frown. As much as she hated Xander, some of his terrorizing was partly Teagan's blame. She was too afraid to stand up to the man, which gave him control over the entire situation. A few calls to the police and he would be locked away.
"Yeah, such a good idea. Then he breaks out and finishes what he started. That will work out GREAT."
"Breaks out of prison? You've been watching too much Lifetime."
"Who says it can't happen?"
"Me."
"Yeah, well, he found me that night... he could do it again..." Teagan shivered, pulling her legs up to her chest.
"Not if you took the..." Oriana let her words fall when she noticed Teagan curl into an upright fetal position. She sighed softly, relinquishing the thoughts as she turned to assault the bag with punches. Teagan would never be rid of Xander till she faced the deepest portions of her fears and Oriana couldn't do that for her. "So, tell me about this guy your madly, deeply, truly loving?"
"Well, he goes to Williams---"
"A Williams Wimp?" Oriana snorted.
"Nuh-uh! He's on the football team and he's not a wimp," Teagan laughed a little. "He's got these sandy blonde curls that are as soft as feathers, his eyes are this amazing color of blue, his body is toned just right... he's PERFECT."
"Sounds like you're talking about a Ken Doll."
"Yeah, but a Ken Doll doesn't have a dick. This guy does."
"You can be really crude sometimes," Oriana crinkled her nose.
"Learned it from our MVP."
"I don't think I go around talking about dicks..." Oriana trailed with an impish smirk as Teagan arched her dark eyebrows. Oriana raised her hands in defense. "Okay! So I had the football team measure for the biggest! One damn time!"
"All it takes is one time," Teagan snickered.
"Thank you for the information, Ms. Sex Ed," Oriana groaned, listening to Teagan's phone start to chirp. She was about to strike at the punching bag until Teagan shrieked openly with happiness, causing Oriana to miss and strike the wall. She cursed in surprise.
"It's him! It's him!" Teagan squealed, ignoring Oriana's cussing as she answered her phone.
"God, if I ever do that with a guy, strike me dead, okay?" Oriana prayed loudly, causing Teagan to throw a nearby pillow.
