Vertigo

Ch.9 “The Rumor Mill”

Amber sat on the edge of a very worn couch, peering over to a girl with short blue-black hair, typing and clicking away on her computer. Leigh was sitting next to her, the red head smirking and checking her nails with mild interest. Amber had only about three hours until her curfew and was getting anxious -Leigh and herself had been sitting on the damn couch for about an hour so far anyways.

“Okay, what do you need”

“Hacking into official government business again Amy?” Leigh chuckled, throwing her red locks over her shoulder.

The small girl -Amy- grinned, her wide gray eyes lit with amusement “You know I don’t do that anymore…” she replied shyly. Amber rose a single eyebrow.

“Sure” Leigh smirked. “Anyways, what I want you to do is very… simple” she sighed, leaning against Amy’s desk; Amber noticed how Amy looked at Leigh in a way she had only seen guys look at Leigh. Oh my god, Amber thought.

Its not that Amber had a problem with homosexuality, oh no, that was not it at all. She had a few gay friends and it never bothered her before -after all she and Rae often put on a show when they were drunk… but that was just kissing, so it barely counted.

All my gay friends are male though, Amber added silently. Amber shifted on the couch, messing with the strap of her purse. She sat silently as Leigh relayed the whole story to Amy, telling her the details and some of Amber and Jordan’s past together. Amy sat and listened quietly, nodding along with what Leigh told her.

“So what I would appreciate you to do is this…” Leigh grinned. She handed Amy a few pictures of Jordan and sighed heavily. “I know you have a creative mind and I know you are good with all kinds of computer stuff…”

“I’ll think of something” Amy interrupted and grinned.

“Um…how much?” Amber asked quietly, feeling more than awkward since she hadn’t said a peep since they got there.

Amy rose her brows at Amber and hummed quietly. “Two hundred.” she replied coolly, “Three if you want to keep it real quiet”

Amber bit her bottom lip and sighed softly, opening her wallet and pulling out some bills. “Hey now” Leigh exclaimed, “Amber put your money away. You can pay her when the work is done” she shot Amy a look that made the girl draw her brows together.

“Give me half now, half later” Amy shot back.

Amber sighed heavily and placed $150 in Amy’s small hand, scowling. “This better be worth it” she mumbled to Leigh.

“It’s worth it” Leigh replied, grinning.

&&&&&&&&

The lunch room was buzzing with excitement -the school years end only being two weeks away. Combined chatter of gossip, studies and laughter filled the air as lunch tables piled up with students. Amber rose a single brow at the sight, smirking lightly to herself. She couldn’t wait to get out of this hell hole.

“My God Amber is that the same sweater from Wednesday?” Rae asked silently, her brown eyes slightly widened in shock.

Amber rolled her eyes, “Yes. So?” she replied, pushing a stray lock of hair back into her ponytail. She didn’t noticed the amazed stares of her fellow rich kids. Leigh sighed with amusement.

“Never pinned you for a low maintained girl” Baden teased, taking a bite out of his sandwich.

“I was never high maintenance” Amber shot back. The table laughed.

“Oh please Amber, ever since you have been working at that homeless shelter, you have been more than careless with your looks… have you gained weight?” Jordan commented softly, giving Amber a demeaning eyebrow lift.

Amber held her tongue, not wanting to say anything that would lead Jordan to think that it was her fault about future humiliation. “I don’t believe I asked your opinion on my outward appearance, Jordan.” Amber replied calmly, before getting up -suddenly losing her appetite.

“Jordan, what the hell is your problem?” Amber heard James chuckle as she walked away.

Amber found herself in the girls locker room, sitting on a bench. She sighed with frustration, taking off her sweater angrily and throwing it on the floor. I probably shouldn’t have done that, she thought, looking at the BeBe sweater wrinkled on the floor.

And then something clicked, something inside her head made her logic and realistic wheels turn and she realized everything.

She was on parole. She got caught with drugs with her friends and was now on parole for eight months. She was living with her mother for those eight months because her father couldn’t trust her. Her father was… disappointed in her. Just like her mother was all the time. She was now working at a homeless shelter because she was on parole… for eight months… because she got caught with drugs with her friends. Her chances of getting into Yale were slipping away a little further each day because of her stupid decisions and mistakes. She could have potentially ruined everything -her life plan. The Plan.

Her plan to go to Yale in the Fall for pre-law (she was still waiting for her acceptance letter). Ever since she was a little girl she had this dream… The Plan. And she blew it.

“Oh my god” Amber gasped, tears escaping her eyes. She held her chest and breathed deep, “No… oh my god… oh god” she sobbed, hunching her shoulders.

She couldn’t breathe properly and her vision was getting blurry. Amber blindly reached in front of her to get up but fell to the cold, hard floor, sobbing and shaking like mad.

Someone called her name in the distance, but it as very faint… so faint that she could barely hear. I cant breathe! Amber gasped, reaching out for the bench to no avail.

Memories flushed her mind, taking over all rational thought- sirens, blue and red flashing lights, small cheerful voices, like children laughing… the homeless children, a heated kiss, watching thick white smoke curl up towards a basement ceiling and the look on her fathers face when he arrived at the police station.

Blurs of motion greeted her already blurry eyes and faint shouts broke through her ears but still sounded very distant.

Amber was still shaking and her head was starting to slightly pain her. A small white light greeted her eyes, making her clench them tightly and gasp for air more, reaching out for something… anything to soothe her nerves.

“Call an ambulance!” she heard a somewhat familiar voice yell in the distance.

Amber’s vision was edging with darkness. I’m dying! She thought, trying to yell or something, but nothing would escape her throat.

I’m going to die!

&&&&&&&&&

Something was under and around her… it was soft and comforting. And she could breathe. Amber scrunched her brows together as soft chattering could be heard from around her. Am I dead? She wondered, afraid to open her eyes.

Light shone through her eyelids, making her grunt in frustration. She was too tired to reach out and cover her closed eyes. Too weak right now. Oh my god.. I am dead, Amber thought, horrified.

She finally wrenched her eyes open only to be greeted with a blinding, albeit small light. Directly into her pupil. It was annoying but scary at the same time. She gasped, clutching the softness that engulfed her body, trying to get away from the light. She watched those television movies late at night… she knew to stay away from the light. Maybe if she could get far enough away, she would go back into her body and go on like this never happened.

The light swayed and finally went out with a faint click. Amber blinked several times and peered at whatever was in front of her… a very handsome man dressed in white. His soft blue eyes looked to her with warmth and concern, laced with some amusement.

“G-God?” Amber choked out, trying to sit up.

‘God’ chuckled and shook his head, “No… Dr. Thomas” he replied.

Amber cocked her head to the side, “So I’m… not dead?” she asked, a sigh of relief followed her stammering. It was a little hard to get out the words.

“No, you had a panic attack”

Amber looked around the room, her vision was only a little blurred but she could make out the look on her mother’s face. Hard and cold like stone, distant but somehow mixed with a slight concerned look. Amber sighed heavily and looked to the window only to regret doing so… it was so bright outside and she had to clench her eyes shut once more.

“Panic attack huh?” Amber mumbled, trying to sit up. She heard her mother impatiently sigh and sit down in a chair somewhere.

“Is there anything she needs to take or can we go now?” Amber heard another male voice… Jason. Oh god, she thought, cringing.

“She can go home now” Dr. Thomas grinned. Amber looked over to Jason and her mother, who were nodding and thanking the doctor as he walked out of the room, telling Amber to calm down and breathe whenever she feels like that again.

He must have explained everything to them while I was out, Amber realized, slipping off the hospital bed. Jason laid a hand on her shoulder, in an almost too friendly kind of matter. Amber pursed her lips and stepped out of his reach, heading for the door. Her vision was clearing up and she didn’t have to -or want to- rely on creepy Jason.

The car ride home was quiet and a bit awkward. Her mother sat in the passenger seat, staring straight out the windshield, not speaking to her or Jason, who was messing with the radio, and kept stealing glances of Amber through he rearview mirror, making her feel slightly violated. Amber glared at him back then continued to stare out the window… it was starting to rain.

So I had a panic attack, Amber sighed lightly, shifting in her seat. It made sense… she had worked so hard, making sure that Yale would take notice in her excellent grades and yearning to be a part of the school. Of course, having her father know some of the faculty and staff had helped her a lot too, but she had still even so worked her butt off for her grades. And she basically ruined everything in one night, even though she had connections and one foot in the door.

She never thought she would be one to be on Parole. For eight months too. I guess it could be worse, Amber reminded herself, remembering how Brandon had been sent to jail for a year, along with Krystal and Rae’s boyfriend Tony. They didn’t have as much money as Rae, Luke and she did, and weren’t given the option or opportunity to take Parole for as little as eight months.

It was embarrassing as hell when she first walked back into school after that night. Everyone kind of looked at her weird and whispered about her behind her back… Amber knew they did. Hell, she would probably done the same thing if she were them. The fact that her worst enemy had noticed changes in her that she didn’t even notice herself kind of ticked her off as well.

“Dinner is at seven”

Amber rolled her eyes, “I don’t want anything tonight… if I get hungry I’ll find something healthy in the pool house” she spat out the word ‘healthy’ like it was a bad habit and glared harshly at her mother.

Julia hummed in a patronizing way, lifting her brows and proceeded inside the house. Jason rose a single brow at Amber and then walked inside after giving her a look that clearly was not a look for giving your step-daughter. Amber cringed inside and closed the Mercedes car door sharply, noticing her car had been moved back to the house -probably by Leo. She made a face, not happy that he was anywhere near her car.

Amber walked around to the side entrance and found her way to the pool house, sighing heavily as she flopped down on her stomach in soft and comforting blankets. Her headache had gone down some, but there was still some lingering pain and her throat was slightly dry. Without even bothering to change into her pajamas, Amber pulled some blankets over her and closed her eyes, drifting into a much-needed sleep.

&&&&&&&&&&&

The hallways were buzzing. Laughter filled the sir as Jordan Hews walked along the lockers, her over-confident nose stuck high in the air as she vaguely regarded a snickering freshman. Since Amber had fallen slightly in the social ladder, Jordan took it upon herself to exude as much snobbery as she could stand, demanding respect amongst her peers as well as… well, fear.

“Hey baby” Jordan smiled at her loving (well… whipped) boyfriend and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

“You’re taking this rather well” Craig said quietly, gently taking her arms off his shoulders.

“What are you talking about and what the hell is your problem?” Jordan snapped, glaring up at Craig.

He handed her a piece of paper and looked to the floor, sighing heavily. “How come you never told me?” he asked.

“What are you talking-” Jordan rolled her eyes then looked down at the paper. “What is this?” her tone was deadly.

It was awful. Her face was on a busty figure, that only wore a scrap of material as what could be vaguely recognized as a bikini bottom, a bikini top dangling from the figure’s hand.

There had to be at least five muscular men surrounding the girl in the picture, all shirtless and touching the body of the woman in some way that could have been illegal in most countries.

If that wasn’t enough, the title of the supposed DVD said made Jordan gasp, choking on her words. Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked up and her boyfriend then back down to the paper. Who could have done this? She felt violated and humiliated. This wasn’t even her body! She had never done anything to do with porn or… this wasn’t true!

“What the fuck is going on?” Craig asked, his brows drawn together angrily.

“This isn’t me” Jordan whispered.

She looked around the hallway where people were continuing to point and laugh, whispering while looking down at their own copies of the paper. Jordan felt heat cover her face and neck as she backed away from Craig, who looked angry and hurt. Then she ran, turned around and ran down the hallway until someone caught her arm.

“Miss Hews, we need to talk” mumbled Principle Mayfield.

&&&&&&&

Tanner sighed heavily and let his head fall gently onto his desk -it had been a long day. There had been another fight at lunch… the women’s lunch time this time. Trying to pry two angry, street raised women apart from each other was no easy task. On top of that, something went wrong with the air-conditioning so the whole building was stifling. All day he heard complaints and questions about the air.

“You look like you need some of my famous Iced Tea”

Tanner grinned and looked up at Eleanor “You can say that again.”

The older woman sat in a chair and looked at Tanner knowingly. “Miss Michaels is coming in today?” she asked innocently, but Tanner knew better.

“Yea”

Eleanor leaned back in the chair and folded her hands in her lap, sighing gently with slight amusement lacing through the air. Tanner saw that look in her eyes that had become so familiar… she was remembering something. “How many years have I known you child?”

“About nine I think” Tanner grinned back, rolling his eyes in amusement.

The old woman nodded, looking around the office and tucking back a stray of graying hair, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone get under your skin like Miss Michaels”

Tanner remained silent, knowing the look he might get from Eleanor if he disagreed with her. He slouched back in his chair and rested his chin in his hand, letting her continue her theory. She knew him better than anyone of course… well, except for Cedrik, her son.

“I think that girl has come a ways… when she first got here all she wanted to do was leave and had an attitude about her like no other. Now she’s dropping off clothes for the residents and trying her hardest to get your attention, but you don’t know what to think of her, am I right?”

Tanner tried to ignore her pointed glare, “She’s still seventeen Eleanor”

Eleanor huffed, “True” she mumbled. A small smile graced her lips and she sighed lightly, “Remember when I first met you?” she chuckled

“How could I forget?” Tanner laughed, glad she had changed the subject. “You nearly ripped my ear off and bruised my ass”

“You shouldn’t have been stealing from my shop child!” the old woman countered, a warm smile gracing her face once more. “Although I’m glad you did.”

“Yea, it was either help you out to pay you back or you call the police” Tanner chuckled, “I was fifteen… young and stupid.”

“And hungry”

Tanner nodded, looking down at his shoes. Sometimes he felt so ashamed of his life before he met Eleanor and Cedrik. He was out on the streets from the time he was twelve until he met them. And it was the worst and most shameful 3 years of his life.

“You need to come to terms with your life child” Eleanor said quietly before standing up. “Miss Michaels will be here soon. You had better straighten up the kitchen and for goodness sakes fix that mess you call hair!”

“Yes ma’am” Tanner grinned.

&&&&&&&&&&&

“Are you sure you don’t want me to call someone about the AC?”

Tanner chuckled, looking over at Amber. Sweat was beading on her forehead and she shifted uncomfortably in her jeans. Her eyebrows rose in a ‘hello!?’ sort of way as she finished drying a pan.

“Its going to be taken care of” Tanner assured her. He bit back the urge to wrap his arms around her. Glancing at the clock, he saw that she had to leave in about an hour maybe.

Amber sighed heavily and moved next to him, resting her hand on his shoulder. “Let me call someone. I can have them come in an hour tops”

“I told you its taken care of”

“You said its going to be taken care of” Amber countered, grinning. “Why don’t you let someone else take care of some things? You do too much” Her hand ran down his arm so her fingers were linked with his. Tanner rose a brow.

He slowly dipped his head down and grinned, inches away from her lips. Amber gasped quietly. “Because I’m use to doing things on my own” He replied, gliding his fingers across her hip and up her back.

Amber cautiously wrapped her arms around his shoulders, breathing deep. “Its always nice to have a little help” she didn’t even know what they were talking about anymore.

She felt his breath on her neck. God it was hot, her skin was on fire -and not from the broken AC alone. Tanner brushed his lips across her cheek then against her ear, whispering “You know I’m probably going to hell for this”

Amber chuckled, turning her head to capture his lips with hers. Tanner sighed heavily and kissed her back, backing her up against a countertop where no one would see them. He lifted her up to sit on the counter and pulled her close. His hands slipped under her shirt, resting on the small of her back.

“See… not so bad.” Amber smiled, moving a lock of hair out of Tanner’s face. His green eyes flashed with lust and he ran his hands down her jean clad thighs, pushing against her. Amber bit her bottom lip and trailed her fingers down his chest.

“That’s the problem” Tanner pointed out, his voice muffled against her neck as he kissed and nibbled at her skin. Amber sighed happily and wrapped her legs around his hips, pulling him fully against her.

“Time?” she gasped, kissing everywhere she could reach.

“Uh… 5:30”

Tanner’s hand found its way up the front of her shirt, cupping her full breast, the other one gripping her hip and moving her with him as he showed her what she did to his body. Amber was feeling bold. She needed to push her boundaries with Tanner. Or else he would run away like he always did.

She slid a hand between them and cupped his erection through his pants. Tanner stilled, his eyes flew open to stare into hers. Amber collected her thoughts, tightening her legs around him and moved her fingers slightly, slipping her tongue around his, to distract him.

After a few moments of heavy petting, soft groans from both of them and lots of kissing, Tanner backed away slowly, his lips reddened and eyes heavy. Amber slid off the countertop and wrapped her arms around his waist.

“I’m going to go to your office. I have to leave in an hour.” She kissed his lips softly. “I don’t know what you’re doing to me, but I don’t want it to stop and I’m not letting you run away from me again.”

“You know we cant-”

“Lock the door when you come in”




A/N: Oooh Cliffhanger. Sorry if there are any spelling/grammar errors. I was kind of in a rush/writers block and I had to get this done! Haha

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