Breaking Hearts (B-boy #3) Page 23

  Gerald’s face reddened. “Speaking of walking off, I actually better get going. The guys are celebrating their win tonight. I really just wanted to stop by to make sure you were okay.”

  Asher’s face was a combination of pride along with the type of sadness you’d only feel when missing out on something huge. “Oh, wow. Glad to hear Grom Attack won.”

  Gerald shifted uncomfortably. “Uh, well. Next battle, you’ll be there for sure.”

  Asher lifted his casted arm and laughed. “If I do compete, it would be all top rocking for me.”

  “Yeah, maybe you should lay off b-boying for a while.” Gerald rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Didn’t think I’d ever say that.”

  Frowning, I remembered Asher’s gig in New York and wondered if he’d be laying off that too―though I would love nothing more than him staying in town a little longer, I knew he deserved this big gig, so in a quiet voice I asked, “What about your work?”

  “It’s dancing, not b-boying in that show,” he clarified. “I think I’ll be fine. I’m really more about your performance.”

  “Mine?”

  He nodded adamantly. “How are you going to play your solo?”

  “How’d you know about that?” An excited flutter turned in my stomach at the prospect he was checking up on me.

  “Claudia.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Of course. I’m not too worried about it. I can still play with a broken ankle, you know.”

  “But Damien—”

  “Will probably respect my passion to the craft.”

  Gerald’s eyes bounced between us and shifted uncomfortably. “Gosh, I feel like a third wheel.”

  I couldn’t help but giggle. “No. I think it’s really sweet you stopped by.”

  “Yeah, sweet’s his middle name. Right, Ger?”

  Gerald rolled his eyes but snickered along with us. “I guess you two have a lot to talk about, so I’ll be heading off.” He turned to leave and paused halfway. “Asher, if you want to come back to the house to crash, you know you’re always welcome.”

  Asher’s eyes stayed on me. “I’m thinking of staying somewhere else tonight…if there’s vacancy, I mean.”

  “Oh, there’s definitely a vacancy.”

  “Nice.”

  We waved our goodbyes, but once Gerald finally left the room, it felt a bit more awkward than I had anticipated. I sat impatiently, wondering who’d be the first to speak up.

  “Asher—”

  “Mallory—”

  We both chuckled uncomfortably. I bit my lip and motioned toward him. “You first.”

  He shut his eyes and took a deep breath. “Mal, I’m sorry things got so fucked up. I should have just talked to you about how scared I was instead of acting so weird around you.”

  “But why were you so scared? I should have been the one freaking out about Damien.”

  He shrugged. “Being scared is a new emotion for me. I’m used to dealing with it.”

  “Must be nice.”

  “No, I’m just saying that I just couldn’t wrap my head around how I would handle things if they didn’t end up how I wanted them to. What if I failed again? What if I crashed and burned in front of you?”

  “Then we would have just tried to find another cure for the jinx,” I replied simply.

  “That’s just it. I knew no matter what I’d say, you’d always be worried that I’d think of you as bad luck.”

  “No, I wouldn’t,” I argued.

  He shot me a pointed look. “Really?”

  “Okay, maybe…” I confessed with a sigh. “But I wouldn’t run out on you.”

  “That’s exactly what you did.”

  “No, you ran out on me.”

  He shut his eyes and nodded. “Yeah…I know…but again, I was scared.”

  “Why?” I demanded. “There was nothing you needed to be afraid of. That’s what I liked about you, Asher. You always face things head on with no fear.”

  His eyes widened. “Wait, do you mean ‘liked,’ as in past tense?”

  “Now’s not the time for technicalities,” I murmured.

  “Oh yes, it is.”

  I groaned, and he lifted up a finger to shush me.

  “No, listen to me. I technically cared about Roxie.”

  “That’s nice,” I snapped.

  “But that care didn’t have anything on how much I’ve grown to care about you. I like you, Mallory. And I’m not talking in the past tense.”

  The grimace on my face instantly relaxed. “Wait, what?”

  He nodded. “You made me realize that caring for someone was a two-way street, and that’s why I grew to like you so much. With Roxie I wanted her to watch my battles for the sake of being there, but I wanted you to come watch me so I could do you proud. That’s why I was so scared! I was afraid of letting you down and you realizing that being with a b-boy wasn’t for you. Specifically being with an unpredictable, spontaneous person wasn’t for you.”

  “I was too scared to ask you to come to my audition after our fight,” I said quietly. “It didn’t matter either way, since you didn’t show up.”

  He looked down at his feet. “Sorry about that. I didn’t think you’d want me to, especially since you’d kicked me out the night before. I didn’t want to show up and screw things up for you by distracting you.”

  I scratched my fingers along the length of my thighs and sighed. “I guess we were both scared of things we couldn’t control.”

  “But isn’t that what love is about?” he asked hopefully. “Being afraid but dealing with that fear together.”

  “Love?” I felt the familiar butterflies burst in my stomach. It was as if a million cocoons were being burst open at that very moment. “Isn’t it a little early for that?”

  “When do you think I should say that I love you?”

  As if I weren’t tongue tied before, he had to go on and say all that.

  “I…I’ve never been in love before. I don’t even know how to tell if I am in love, let alone know when you should say all that,” I admitted, though deep down I knew there was a possibility that I was already in love with him myself. I would never have done half the things I’d done with Asher for all my ex-boyfriends combined!

  Asher stared at me carefully. “Do you feel as if you’re free falling? Like your heart is beating a hundred times a minute and you can’t breathe, but at the same time you feel so alive?”

  I nodded.

  “Do you finally feel as if the world’s scariness isn’t too scary anymore, and that even if shit happens, you’ll know you’ll be ready to take it on?”

  I started to shake my head, but thinking twice about it, I nodded.

  “I know I’m falling in love with you,” he whispered.

  “How do you know?”

  “I did jump in front of a car for you.”

  I couldn’t help but chuckle. “I guess I’m falling for you too…”

  “How do you know?” he repeated in a quiet voice.

  “Because I wouldn’t be sitting here giving us another chance.” I gestured between us. “This is all too unpredictable…but it’s fine with me.”

  “It’s fine with me too.” He nodded his head with a wistful smile. “It’s definitely fine with me.”

  Chapter 39

  Asher

  A Few Weeks Later

  Having a broken arm, wrist, or any other fractured bone as a b-boy is the worst torture you can endure. However, it’s much more bearable when you have someone healing beside you.

  “You know, all I have to do is take a hacksaw and—”

  “No! Are you serious?” Mallory giggled and pointed toward the calendar, which was filled with red inked X’s. “You only have a few more weeks to go until you get it off.”

  “Wonderful.” I grunted and looked down at the crusted plaster that was just begging to be torn off.

  Mallory’s smile quickly faded as she took in the forlorn expression my face. “Asher, what’s wrong? I mean besi
des the obvious. You’ve been acting kind of weird today.”

  “Nothing’s wrong.” My voice cracked. So much for throwing her off my scent.

  “Asher,” she said testily.

  I sighed, knowing it was finally time to speak the fears that I’ve tried so hard never to admit. “What if my hand is never strong enough again to support me in my freezes? What do I do then? All that time I was worried about a stupid superstition…I should have worried about real life injuries!”

  “If that’s the case, which I don’t think it will, you’ll just have to improvise and use the other hand,” she answered with a smile. “You’ll be fine. I’m sure of it.”

  I glanced around her apartment, allowing my gaze to land on the fridge. New photos decorated the door’s entirety, replacing the old photos of shame.

  I smiled at a picture of Jinny and her parents at dinner. Jinny had finally sucked it up and told them about her engagement, which unsurprisingly they were pretty happy about.

  Beside that photo was one of Claudia after her first day of interning at a local media company. She held up her badge with pride, looking as if she were going to pop with excitement.

  Next to that one was a photo of Mallory during her spring performance. Even with a broken leg she went up there and killed it, gaining numerous accolades and attention in the local paper.

  The Wall of Fame, as Claudia had newly dubbed it, was not only a testament to adulting and growing up, it also seemed like a testament to conquering fears.

  These ladies were definitely an inspiration and I would get my picture on that fridge if it killed me.

  “You’ll get on that fridge too, you know,” Mallory said quietly as if reading my mind. She placed her arm around my waist and squeezed me tight. “You’re the Hellhound, right? You’re hot like fire.”

  I turned toward her and couldn’t help but grin at her encouraging expression. “You know what? I got to thinking that maybe going down the Hollywood path is where my life is headed for now. Maybe my days of underground b-boying is…” I paused to stare at the fridge again. “Something of the past and not being an adult like you guys are.”

  “Oh we’re hardly adults.” She laughed out loud. “Did you know, Claudia rides her skateboard to her internship and Jinny freaked out over the color of her wedding napkins? We are far from being grown up. It’s all in how you present yourself and deal with things.”

  “But you’re looking toward the future. I feel like I’m just coasting in the comfortable, you know?”

  “Asher, I was talking to Gerald…” Her voice trailed off nervously.

  “Since when do you talk to Gerald?” I didn’t know whether to laugh or…just laugh. Somehow the two didn’t strike me as the best friendship combination, but hey, what do I know.

  “We were concerned about you. We were both concerned.”

  “About what, exactly?”

  “You didn’t exactly agree to attend the battle at the end of the month.”

  “My arm is broken,” I reminded her gently. “I can’t win a battle just by dancing around on my toes. I need acrobatics.”

  “That you can do without using your left hand!” She rolled her eyes at the doubtful look on my face. A mischievous smirk appeared on her face. “C’mon, you did pretty well last night with your other hand, remember? Then again, I may be biased.”

  I threw my head and let out a loud laugh. “Yeah, well, I could totally use my right to take you down to Orgasmville, but I don’t think the same goes for breakdancing.”

  “Of course it does.” Her forehead crinkled in concern. “Asher, why are you really scared? I know there’s something you’re not telling me.”

  “It’s hard to explain.”

  “I’m pretty sure I can follow along.”

  I nodded my head and sighed. “After the past couple months, things with b-boying haven’t exactly been cut and dried, you know. I…I can’t put myself through the humiliation of realizing I’ve lost my touch to Hollywood.”

  Her voice dropped a few octaves. “A wise man once told me that unpredictability is one of the best things in life. Maybe that wise man should take his own advice.”

  “Maybe.” I reached out and took her hands in both of mine. Squeezing tightly, I asked, “Why do you want me to b-boy so badly?” Roxie would have been thrilled I was second guessing it.

  “Because you love it and you just seem so sad not doing it.”

  “But what if I fail?”

  She leaned over and placed her plump lips against my cheek. “Then that’ll be just one of life’s unpredictable turns, right?”

  “When did you get so smart, Carmichael?” I teased, placing my own kisses down the length of her neck.

  “I told you,” she said, gasping as I sucked on her skin. “I took the advice of a wise man.”

  I plunged my tongue into her mouth, cutting her off mid-sentence. Groaning slightly, I whispered against her lips, “You know what we can still do with the few bones I have left, right?”

  She giggled as she pressed her breasts against my body, “We better get to my room soon or there’ll definitely be a resurgence of the Wall of Shame—oooh!”

  I stood up and literally swept her off her feet, throwing her over my shoulder. “I’d let you walk, Miss Independent, but I don’t think I’m patient enough to watch you hobble to your room.”

  She giggled and kissed against the scruff of my chin. “My hero.”

  “Your Hellhound,” I corrected, practically sprinting toward her bedroom.

  Chapter 40

  Mallory

  “Are all b-boy battles this intense?” Claudia shifted awkwardly beside me, pulling at her brand new oversized graphic tee that she insisted she buy in preparation for the competition. It had a huge boom box printed on it with a few musical notes, but as cute as it looked, it just screamed newbie. I opted for a more normal look consisting of my uniform tank top and shorts.

  I rose on my tiptoes and glanced around the venue, taking in the cyphers that sprouted across the room.

  “Yeah, I guess so. I’ve only been to two…er, one and a quarter. I sort of ran out of the last one and got this,” I tapped against my new walking cast, which was becoming more bothersome as the days went by. Still, I was just happy I didn’t need surgery to fix the minor fracture. That would have added weeks to my recovery time.

  Claudia gazed around the crowd of dancers, bouncing her head to the music. “What are they doing over there? Is that a battle?”

  “Nah, it’s a cypher,” I answered as I looked for Asher in the crowd. He would be late to his comeback event. Then again, he was probably busy throwing in a few last minute practice sessions beforehand. I knew he was nervous, but I had something up my sleeve that would make things a little better.

  “Hey, isn’t that Asher?” I followed Claudia’s finger and felt that familiar jolt of energy spread throughout my body.

  “Thank God! It is him. Hey, wait here for me okay? I need to give him this.”

  Claudia frowned. “Are you sure you can make it over there?”

  I flinched, looking down at my walking cast. “Yeah, at least this isn’t plaster or anything. I should be fine.”

  “If you say so.”

  I shot her a grin. “I’ll be right back.”

  The good thing about having a cast? People automatically make room for you. Whether it’s because they feel sorry for me, want to help out, or believe my condition was contagious, the crowd on the floor parted, allowing me to inch along. Remarkably, I made it to Asher in record time and immediately threw my arms around him. “Hey, boyfriend.”

  I used the term any chance I could, still in disbelief that this gorgeous creature was actually mine.

  He glanced down and flashed his movie-star quality smile in my direction. “Hey, I’m glad you’re here.”

  “You nervous?” I asked, nodding at Gerald, who was posted beside him like a bodyguard.

  “Nah.” He shook his head, but there was no mistaking the
fear plaguing his eyes.

  “That’s good…but I think I have something that might make things even better.” I giggled when his eyes flitted down to my chest. Nudging him, I snorted. “Not that.”

  “Oh? That’s too bad. A little romp in the bathroom would have really made things so much better.” We glanced over at the one bathroom in the pub and grimaced when an overweight man with a greasy shirt walked out of it, hacking up some phlegm. Asher smacked his tongue and shuddered. “Well, actually I can wait for that. Rather not contract some nasty disease just because I can’t keep it in my pants.”

  “Ditto,” I replied, making a gagging noise.

  He placed his arm around my shoulders and squeezed me against him, allowing me to inhale his woodsy musk. “Thanks for coming. It really means a lot.”

  “You really don’t have to thank me, Asher.”

  “No, I want to.”

  I knew he was probably thinking about Roxie, but I chose to ignore that nagging feeling in my gut. I really didn’t want to be one of those girlfriends, especially since Asher made it clear I was his one and only. Still, just as a personal reminder, I rose on my tiptoes and gave him the hottest, chaste kiss I could. PDAs and I were still a venue I’d need to explore.

  He pulled away and looked down at my hands. “So, you have something for me?”

  I nodded excitedly. “Close your eyes.”

  “Mallory,” he replied with a roll of his eyes.

  “Okay, okay, that was corny.” Snickering, I pulled out a lucky rabbit’s foot from my front pocket. “Ta da!”

  His eyes widened as a look of disgust washed over his face. “Those animal rights activists are going to scalp you.”

  “It’s fake,” I told him with a laugh, earning a relieved sigh from him. “I got it off Amazon. It’s made out of the same material they make those teddy bears out of.”

  “Whew, you had me scared for a minute there.”

  I nodded, thrusting it into his hand. “I figured it’d be symbolic, you know? The jinx giving the b-boy something lucky for a change?”

  He planted a kiss on my lips and smiled. “You’re the only luck I need, you jinx.”