"I don't care what they say, I'm in love with you, They try to pull me away, But they don't know the truth, My heart's crippled by the vein, That I keep on closing, You cut me open and I
Keep bleeding, Keep, keep bleeding love..." -- Leona Lewis 'Bleeding Love'
4
Things were good. It may have just been because it was one of the best holidays ever, but Tessa felt like she was on top of the world, and nothing could bring her down. Not even when she saw Teddy give her a discreet smile as he and Jessica stood by the picnic table, talking to Cooper and Lauren.
"Don't they just make you sick?" Megan came up behind her and offered her a blue plastic cup.
"Who? Teddy and Jessica?"
Megan let out a little snort. "Who else? Its not so much him as it is her. She's had their life planned out since the night they met. I swear, I wanted to gag."
It was Tessa's turn to laugh. Kacie joined them on the steps of Marshall's front porch. "What's so funny?"
Tessa shook her head. "Jessica."
"Oh yeah, she's totally psycho." Kacie said as she rolled her blue eyes and tucked part of her short blond bob behind her ears. "The other day, she called looking for you and she was all like 'I just thought I should get to know someone Teddy speaks so highly of'. She's so Stepford Wife."
Megan and Tessa let out little laughs as they continued to watch Jessica stare adoringly up at her husband in an attempt to get his attention, but he was pretty into the conversation he was having with Coop.
"She was talking to me the other day," Megan began, "And she was asking me if I had some sort of plan for me and Ty. She was like, 'I have a plan for me and Teddy. We're going to have kids as soon as possible.'"
"What does he say about that?" Kacie asked.
"I don't know, but I'm sure he's not enthusiastic," Megan laughed as Ty came over and they gave each other a quick kiss on the lips. "I would so move on though if I were you. He seems pretty happy with her."
"So how's it going Kacie? I heard that you guys went to the police the other day," Ty asked as he sat down.
"Yeah, it went good. Hopefully everyone will get the punishment they deserve," she said. "But anyway. What's up with that Jessica chick?"
"She's totally wack." Ty laughed. "Oh hey, my brother has been asking about you. He's over by the coolers if you want to say hello?"
"Asking about me how?" Kacie laughed as she looked over at his brother, who was the exact opposite of him - fair skinned and blond. "Like as in, like, just curiosity or like..."
"Kacie, just chill," Ty laughed. "You guys were good friends, I'm sure its just curiosity."
Kacie smirked at him, but grabbed her plastic cup and went over to Greg anyway and started a conversation.
"They'd be totally right for each other," Ty laughed as he laid his head on the table and let out a yawn.
"I'm gonna go see what everyone else is up to," Tessa stated as she stood.
"Hey don't forget we're starting fireworks in an hour!" Ty called behind her as she began walking toward Teddy and Jessica. Hailey had recently joined them with Sammy, so it gave her an excuse to go over.
"Hey Sammy boy," she started baby talk when she got close and reached out for him, and thankfully he went to her willingly. "So what's going on over here?"
"We were just talking about where Lauren and Coop are going to have their wedding," Jessica told her, making her wince when she said 'Coop' like she had known him her whole life.
"Oh yeah, that's right. Have you guys set a date yet?" Tessa asked.
"Don't worry about it, you'll know before anybody probably since you're in the wedding," Lauren told her, hoping Jessica would get the hint and stop putting her two cents in.
"What about colors?" Jessica obviously didn't understand subletly.
"My colors are blush and bashful," Lauren said.
"Aren't those the same colors?"
"No, they're two completely different shades of pink. Watch 'Steel Magnolias' and you'll see," Of course, Lauren was only kidding. Even she - the most girly girl on the planet - would not have a wedding with so much pink that it looked like a pepto bismol bottle threw up. Jessica shrugged and excused herself, finally taking the hint that no one wanted her in the conversation.
"I'm totally kidding you guys," the three girls all let out a laugh, but for some reason, Tessa couldn't help but feel a little bad for the girl. "Its going to be a super classy black and white thing."
"Nice," Hailey commented, but Tessa's head wasn't in the conversation. She was watching Teddy's face as he watched his new wife walk away discouraged.
She mouthed an 'I'm sorry' to him when he finally returned, looking at her first before jumping back into the conversation. He gave her a half smile and nodded.
"So I need a refill," Tessa said as she gave Sammy back to his mom. "I'll see you guys in a little bit."
- - - -
Just like old times, Ty had given up one of her precious sparklers just for her... For old time's sake.
"You may not be my girl, but I still love you," he laughed as he hugged her and then lit the sparkler with a cigarette lighter and then returned to the middle of the road, where he and Cooper were acting like a couple of kids on Christmas morning.
"Hey," Teddy said as he joined her.
"Hey yourself," she said as she made a sideways eight in the air with the firey stick in her hand. "I'm sorry about earlier with Jess."
He shook his head. "Its not your fault. She's not exactly trying to fit in. I had to drag her here tonight. She wanted us to go out with her friends, Maria and Tasha."
"Well that sounds like tons of fun," Tessa said sarcastically as her sparkler died and she tossed it onto the concrete and stomped it out with her flip flop.
Teddy let out a sarcastic laugh. "So I heard you and Marshall are friends with benefits now?"
She rolled her eyes. "I swear... He talks more than a girl. Yes, we slept together the other night... But its not like its a big deal. He knows how I feel."
"Right." Teddy nodded, leaving them in a somewhat uncomfortable silence. "Hey, did you bring your camera tonight?"
"Oh, no, I left it in my room."
"What? Tessa the photo album history book of Bradford Lane has forgotten her camera? Is the world about to end?" Teddy joked and she rolled her eyes. "Girl, you document like every moment of your life on that thing."
She laughed with him, realizing that he was right. "I'm pathetic, aren't I?"
He laughed and shook his head, looking her in the eye, "No, you're not pathetic. There's nothing wrong with wanting to freeze a moment in time forever."
She smiled up at him, hoping that he couldn't see her cheeks turning that pink shade they always did when he was around.
"Let's go get it," he said, pulling her arm, and she followed.
The air conditioning felt so good as they entered her house. She stopped for a second just to take it all in.
"What are you doing?" He laughed.
"Taking as long as possible so I can cool off. I don't know if you noticed, but its really hot out there," she laughed as he came back down the stairs and began pulling her up with him."
"Whoa, I like the wall," he said as he gazed at her picture wall, the one with the diamond shapes covered in black and white photos in thick black frames.
"Thanks. My dad painted it and I figured it was the perfect place to hang all my photos since its the biggest wall in the room."
"You have a gift for capturing the moment." He told her as he continued to look at the photos.
"I didn't take all of them," she told him, pointing to the one of the two of them. "But I guess because of everything that happened, it made me want to savor every moment as much as I can, ya know? So I do it with pictures."
She held her camera up and gave him a goofy smile. "Ready to get back?" She started to walk away, but he grabbed her arm, pulling her to face him. She wasn't expecting it, and it was just a simple thing, but her heart began pounding in her chest as if she'd never even seen a boy in her life. "What if they start looking for us?"
He let out a quiet laugh, and then leaned in and kissed her cheek before wrapping his arms around her. She wished she could stay like that all night. Just the two of them, with the dim glow of the midnight blue lamp on her night stand and the hum of a radio she had left on. They started to sway just a bit, as if they were dancing to the Leona Lewis song that was playing. She rested her head on his chest, smiling to herself.
She set the timer on the camera and set it on her dresser to take the picture. Now she could stay like that forever. In his arms.
"We should probably get back," he said after the flash went off. "I'll go out first... Just in case someone gets suspicious."
She nodded sadly, wishing it didn't have to be this way.
"If anyone asks, I was using the bathroom... The one's in Marshall's house were full," he told her and she nodded again as she sat on her bed and watched him leave the room.
Her phone began vibrating in her pocket. "Girl, where are you?" Lauren asked before she even had a chance to say hello.
"I forgot my camera and I've been searching for it. I couldn't remember where I put it," she made up an excuse.
"Did you know Teddy was in your house?"
"Oh yeah, he had to use the bathroom." She lied. "Marsh's were all full and he said it was an emergency, so I let him in."
Of course, Lauren didn't buy it, but she pretended to, like always, "Ok, well hurry up and get out here!"
She let out a laugh and hung up the phone before bouncing down the stairs and out the door.
- - - -
"Hey Tessa," she heard someone call as she walked through Target, a new photo album in hand. She turned and found Jessica walking fast to catch up to her. "Hey."
"Hi... Jess." She felt a little awkward around her. The two of them didn't exactly know each other that well.
"Hey," she said it again, her blond ponytail bouncing as she said it. Tessa decided she must have been a cheerleader in high school, because she was just too chipper not to be.
"So what's up?" Tessa asked curiously as she tossed her own long blond hair over her shoulder.
"I just thought I'd say hey. I haven't really gotten a chance to know you."
"Yeah, sorry about that, I've just been a little... Preoccupied." Was that even a good enough word to describe it? Probably not, but Jessica acted like she understood.
"Teddy told me about your sister. I'm sure thats taken up a lot of your time, with going to the police and catching up and everything." Tessa nodded. Thank goodness Jessica bought anything Teddy told her.
"So are you going to teach here?" Jessica asked curiously.
"Oh, I don't know. Its too late to apply for it this year, so I'll probably just see if I can get my job at the pet store back until I can apply again." She told her as they continued walking.
"So what brings you to Target?"
"Oh, well, I just had to get a couple photo albums. I have pictures from Vermont and the night my sister came back and last night that need to be organized," she told her.
"Oh yeah, Teddy was telling me about your pictures. How you've got like everything..."
Tessa smiled, because it reminded her of what he told her last night... About freezing a moment in time, "Yeah. I like to take pictures of my friends and family... To remember the moments and stuff. Sometimes I do it just for fun. Me and Hailey and Lauren used to have these amateur photo shoots all the time."
Jessica nodded. She was truly interested in getting to know Tessa better. Of course, after her questions, as the two of them wandered through the clothes section, she began gushing about Teddy like he was the best thing since the invention of the toilet. Tessa picked up three simple t-shirts in blue, light purple and black and a few tank tops to match, then started walking towards the checkout lines.
And the entire way, all Jessica could do was tell her about how excited she was to be married... And not just married, but married to Teddy.
"He's so sweet," Jessica said. "He brought me flowers the other day, for no reason. Of course, they were roses, and he knows I love daisies... But still, its the thought that counts."
"Yeah, he's a Romeo, that Teddy," she laughed awkwardly. "My favorite flowers are daisies too."
"Hey, can I get your number?" Jessica asked when they reached the check out lines, completely changing the subject. "You're like the only person who's really even given me the time of day... It'd be nice to have someone to talk to in your group."
Tessa was a little shocked, but she tried not to let it show, "Oh, yeah, sure. Here, let me see your phone, I'll put it in for you."
She wondered how much this girl knew about her relationship with Teddy. Maybe he had told her everything and she was trying to keep her enemies close...
