That Night

In that, the silent, tensest moment, with Peter Zander standing in the doorway, face to face with Brandon, Madison coming to a stop just a few steps behind, and further back Ashley, Zack, Heather, Kurt, Victoria and Kendra all watching, from down the hall came Chloe, Gavin and Trent, a bounce in their steps and their jovial voices a stark contrast to the scene they were about to walk in on.

“I’m not saying I’ll never do anything else,” Gavin’s voice traveled into the room before his body. “I mean, there’s nothing quite like being inside a girl…”

“I hear that bro,” Trent agreed, smirking at the redhead on Gavin’s other side.

“But, would I do it again?” Gavin posed the question to himself, answering as he stepped into the living room. “Absolutely.”

The three teens joined the rest of the cabin in the open living space, stopping in their tracks and ceasing all communication, the palpable terseness in the air telling them that nothing about their conversation and demeanor was appropriate for what they’d just walked in on. Gavin’s face went bright red, realizing that everyone else might have just heard him and wondering if they could put two and two together and realise he’d just been fucked by another man.

Brandon took a breath and pressed on, pushing past Peter on his planned path. Madison called out his name and followed, Peter stepping aside to allow the twin to pass. Baffled and perplexed by the greeting, or lack thereof, Peter stepped inside the cabin. Ashley rushed forth, smiling and closing the door behind him.

“Sorry about that. Brandon and Madison…are having something of a sibling spat,” Ashley said, turning back to face her sister’s ex-boyfriend. “We really have been waiting for you all day.”

“It’s alright. I’m not offended, just taken aback. There I was, ready to knock and the door opens and Brandon’s there. He looked very sad and angry,” Peter remarked, looking around at the gang, stopping when he saw Kendra. “Is he al-Kendra? What are you doing hanging out with these guys?”

“It’s a long story,” the brunette answered simply, folding her arms.

“Let’s just say that we have a bit of a Shawn problem, as well as a Hannah problem,” Ashley said, crossing into the seating area and indicating towards the others to sit. “Hopefully you can help with one of those.”

“Peter?” Zack came along side Ashley as the others sat on the sofas, love seat and chairs. “You called Peter? Why him?”

“Well, Peter is the only person I thought could get through to Hannah,” Ashley explained, glancing at Peter, since there were things that she knew that she wasn’t sure her sister would appreciate her telling him. “We’ve been trying to outwit Hannah, but maybe we don’t need something to outthink her. Maybe we need someone who can speak to her heart.”

“I thought you’d have called Taylor. Wasn’t she as close to Hannah as Peter? Or more so?” Heather interjected from her seat on the sofa. “Last I heard, you told me Hannah was the one who broke it off with Peter. Seems like seeing him might just piss her off even more.”

“Well, Hannah hasn’t spoken to Taylor since she left for Italy. Though not for want of trying. Hannah said it seemed like one day Taylor just shut her out and disappeared. So, even if I called, I wasn’t sure if Taylor would come. And there’s another reason, I think Hannah still cares about Peter…” Ashley sighed, resigning herself to saying what needed to be said. After all Hannah had done, she could suffer a little embarrassment. “Even though Hannah was the one who ended it, when she came home that night, I heard her cry herself to sleep. She broke up with him…but I don’t think she wanted to.” Ashley turned to Peter. “You’re the only man she’s ever shed a tear over.”

“Wow…I don’t know what to say. I don’t even know what to think. The circumstances of our break up…isn’t something I’m willing to discuss here, though I will say this. I was shocked that she broke it off. The decision wasn’t what you would consider mutual,” Peter said, his voice tight as he thought back to that time. “As for Taylor…I haven’t seen her since the night before she left. I thought it was just me, but I’m surprised to hear that she cut Hannah out of her life as well.”

“You really don’t know any more than that?” Zack eyed her sister’s childhood friend suspiciously. “She didn’t say much before she left, even less to my parents. But she did confide in me one thing before she went to college; she said that you and Hannah would never forgive her.”

“That’s bullshit. There’s nothing I couldn’t forgive Taylor. She’s been my friend for as long as I can remember,” Peter swiped his hand sideways, as if sweeping away the allegation. “And I can’t imagine Hannah would be any different.”

“Well, something must have happened,” Zack insisted, pursing his lips.

“I really don’t want to get into this with her little brother and my ex-girlfriend's little sister, but, if you must know, something did happen that last night, just before she left,” Peter admitted, scratching his neck. “After Hannah and I broke up, I was hurt and feeling low. Taylor came over to comfort me and, well, we wound up having sex. Afterwards, we talked a little bit about what had happened with me and Hannah and then she went home. I didn’t talk to her for a few days, and when I tried to contact her it said the number was out of service. Eventually, I called your home and your dad informed me that Taylor had gone to study in Italy.”

“It was very abrupt,” Zack agreed, putting a hand to his lips thoughtfully. “She’d applied to a few overseas schools just to see if she could get in, but the plan had always been for her to go to the same university as Hannah. Then, one day she woke up and told us that she’d accepted a place at a prestigious teaching hospital in Italy and had booked a flight out that night. Said she wanted to get settled in and acclimated as quickly as possible, even though there were nearly two months before the start of classes.”

Before Peter or Ashley or Zack could say anything else, Heather interrupted again, “While this is fascinating, don’t you think we should discuss what Peter actually came here for?”

“Right, yes,” Peter agreed, chuckling.

But Zack pulled Ashley aside, to the edge of the room, just out of earshot of the others. It surprised her somewhat, since Zack hadn’t spoken to her much since their own break-up just last night, but obviously what had happened to his sister was more important to him than whatever cold front he had been previously exhibiting towards her. He leaned in close so only she could hear him, and she felt chills run down her spine, wishing he would just lean in the whole way and kiss her like he used to do.

“Doesn’t this seem kind of fishy to you?” Zack asked, glancing back at Peter who was frowning at their quiet conversation. “If they just had sex, why wouldn’t Peter be able to forgive her? And Hannah. Don’t you think if she thought Taylor and Peter were a thing, she wouldn’t want to stand in the way of that?”

“Yeah, Hannah would definitely want Taylor to be happy, even at her own cost,” Ashley said, nodding. “But I don’t think Peter is lying. Or that he’s the type to **** himself on her. Though there is something about the break up we know he isn’t telling us…maybe the sequence is wrong. Peter and Taylor had sex while Hannah was still dating Peter, and she broke it off, and Taylor feels guilty for causing their break up.”

“Maybe, but why not just say that?” Zack asked, knowing that Ashley couldn’t know the answer. “Who is he trying to protect? Taylor, himself, or Hannah?”

“Hey, you two,” Chloe called to them. “We’re waiting.”

Zack and Ashley hurried back to the sofas and, with all the seats being filled, rested on the arms of the chairs.

“Sorry,” Ashley apologized. After all, she had been the one who’d called him and was now ignoring him. “So, Peter, tell us your plan?”