| Two |
| With only six people in the house, it was very easy to tell whose personalities clashed and whose meshed. And while he had always believed her an easy person to get along with, the other females apparently didn't agree. After a week, he could feel the tension between the three of them. The two other males, however, Mark and Jared, seemed more than willing to get along with her. It wasn't that she was overly beautiful, he knew. Perhaps it was the lack of options. Sarah and Emily were coy at times, brash at others. They knew what they wanted, and so far, they had been disappointed. She had an innocent air to her that he feared made her a target, of both sexes. "I'm bored. Let's do something," Sarah announced. Jared looked up at her. "Something like what?" An evil grin spread across her face, vanishing in seconds. "Let's play a game. Spin the Bottle, anyone?" Gabriella shook her head. "We still have seven more weeks left, guys. Why stir up things that cuold only cause trouble?" Emily plopped on the couch next to her and answered in a patronizing voice, "Because it's fun, Gabs." He watched her face and knew she was fighting not to roll her eyes and back away in disgust. Instead, she smiled politely and got up. "Well, it's not my kind of fun, I guess. If anyone needs me, I'll be in my bedroom." Mark grabbed her hand as she walked past. "Wait, Gabriella. What if we played something different?" She cocked her head to one side, waiting for him to go on. "Truth or dare?" He could see the wheels in everyone's heads turning, and knew how this was going to end up. It made him sick to see her manipulated like that. But he was no longer himself, he was BJ the DJ from Florida, a fun loving ladies' man. His urge to protect her instead of jump her would not have gone over at all. Gabriella wasn't stupid. She, too, knew where they were headed. But she felt trapped in the situation. All she really wanted to do was go home so she could be with him, not him. Her heart hurt, her head hurt, and she couldn't seem to find any way to make this whole thing better. Defeated, she sat down on the floor next to Mark's chair. Sarah clapped her hands together. "I get to go first. Gabriella, truth or dare?" He rolled his eyes. They couldn't be more blatant. She sucked in her breath, weighing the options heavily. "Truth." "Which guy do you most want to sleep with?" It was a struggle to keep his jaw from dropping. Yeah, he knew they were setting her up, but that was just wrong. He made a move to protest, but Emily's eyes flashed at him, and he sat back in his seat, helpless. "I'm not like that, Sarah," she offered slowly. "Like what? A slut? Are you calling us sluts?" Gabriella rubbed her hands over her face, willing herself not to cry. She knew it would kill him, not being able to comfort her, so she vowed to be strong for him. "No, Sarah. I just mean, that's something I want to save for marriage. No offense to any of you," she smiled weakly at the three men, not daring to meet his eyes. "I think that's a cop-out answer," Emily threw in. Sarah, Jared, and Mark nodded. "Name one or take a dare, Gabs." She shook her head. They all wanted this so badly they could taste it. Why did they hate her so much? "Fine, I'll take a dare." "Which means you'll be playing a friendly game of spin the bottle with us," Sarah announced triumphantly. Gabriella nodded. From the beginning, this had all been set up. It was one of the most disgusting things he had ever had to be involved with, and the thought of it made him sick. Each girl would get her turn with the guy of her choice, it had been decided before hand, but each male spin would land on her. Why Emily and Sarah had agreed to that was beyond his comprehension, but it had all been set up, and he knew he couldn't pass on the event. At least I'll get her alone to myself for a few minutes, he reasoned. As his mind wandered, he wasn't aware of the fact that Emily's spin had landed on him. She took his hand and led him down the hallway to the bathroom. They had found that the only place there wasn't a camera was in the shower stall itself. Emily drew the curtain closed and then did what she had been wanting to do all week. When time was called, she led him back to his seat, a smirk on her face. Mark and Jared raised their eyebrows at him questioningly, and he hated himself for the fake grin he had to plaster on. The three males high-fived, then Jared took his turn with the bottle. She had been paying even less attention than he, so it made her jump when Jared pulled her up from the floor and took her back to the bathroom. He willed himself not to count the seconds she was gone, not to chew his fingernails or bite his lip until it bled. The vacant look on her face when they returned bothered him more than he would have liked. But he didn't have much time to think about it as Sarah spun the bottle and landed on him. Apparently, he had been left out of some of the planning process for this game. They returned and Mark spun the bottle. When it landed on Gabriella, he picked her up and carried her all the way to the back. Mark worried him more than Jared. It was Mark who was constantly talking about her, saying just exactly what it was he wanted to do to her. His stomach knotted when a very pleased looking Mark came into the room. She followed, shakily. Jared looked at Mark questioningly and he grinned, "Guess I was just a bit too much for her." "Hurry up, Gabriella, it's your turn," Sarah called. She leaned against the doorframe. "Can I just pass, please?" Sarah shrugged and handed the bottle to him as Gabriella found her seat. It landed on her, once again, and he offered her his hand. She allowed herself to be taken to the bathroom for the third time. He helped her into the shower, then pulled the curtain shut behind them. She wouldn't meet his eyes, so he put his finger under her chin and pushed it up. "Are you okay?" She nodded, looking away from him. He realized how much he wanted to say to her, but opted instead just to hold her. She wrapped her arms tightly around him, snuggling her face into his chest. He kissed the top of her head gently. "Baby?" he questioned softly. He wanted to know if she was really all right, if Mark had hurt her, if she hated him for having to do this. "Just kiss me, please." There were tears in her eyes and a pleading tone in her voice that brought tears to his own eyes. He lowered his lips to hers and kissed her softly and sweetly, hoping to soothe both their souls. A rap on the door signaled time way too soon and they slowly pulled apart. He gingerly kissed away the tears that had fallen on her cheeks while she whispered the words he had only heard in his dreams for the past four months: "I love you." "I love you, too, Gabby." She stepped out of the shower, letting their hands break apart and he watched as she headed towards her bedroom and locked herself in. "I miss you," he whispered to the empty room Three ~Home~ ~Plot Mistress~. |