Cherry: Chapter 7
In Honour of Cherry away being betaed I have a full update of all chapters here.
Enjoy!
Title: Cherry
Chapter no.: 7
Rating: Nc-17
Summary: Autumn Richards was you average, everyday nerd. Then why was Mr Tall, Dark and Handsome stalking her?
Cherry
Chapter 7
(071227-071229)
"She looks so fragile." Lorraine Richards, Autumn's aunt, whimpered as she surveyed her youngest child prone in the hospital bed. Autumn and April's favourite and only female cousin, Bernadette, had broken her arm at a horse jumping show and in a showy display of family unity Annabelle Richards and her two daughters accompanied the family patriarch to the hospital to offer support to their family.
Annabelle Richards hated her sister-in-law and her domestic attitude. Annabelle, a local dentist, preferred to keep busy, bustling around while her husband, Ernest, preferred to sit still, particularly when he worked. Autumn had inherited her father's sit and think attitude, often spending many afternoons sitting in his office watching as he completed the work he brought home.
Autumn glanced out the window as her mother rolled her eyes at Lorraine. Lorraine and Annabelle had always hated each other and they only stayed in contact because their husbands were twins. Autumn looked out at her father and her uncle, smiling as she noted that save for the large bald spot on the crown of her uncles head, her father and her uncle were still mostly identical.
Both men stood on the balcony chain smoking, a habit they only indulged in together. Ernest leant against the rail, watching the scene inside and he smiled at Autumn. Autumn smiled back as she ran her fingers through her hair. The visit to the hospital had interrupted her monthly cleaning regime and her hair was a mess from all the activity she had done pushing her furniture around.
"Mum, can I go get some coke or something?" Autumn asked.
"Just one okay baby." Annabelle told her after a few moments surveying her eldest daughter. Annabelle, ever the dentist, worried about her daughter’s oral hygiene frequently.
"Does anyone else want any?" Autumn asked the room.
"No thanks." April droned as she slouched in her chair, her body pitched forward so she could rest her head on the hospital bed. Bernadette shifted in her sleep as Autumn crossed the room and tapped on the balcony door. Ernest and his twin brother Graham both put out their cigarettes and began to wave the left over smoke away. Graham beckoned to her niece and she slid it open and stepped out into the cold winter air.
"Did you guys want anything from the vending machine?" She asked.
"Come here baby." Autumn approached and stopped in front of her father.
"Thank god you're the logical one." Ernest told his eldest as he hugged her, holding her close for a moment.
"No thanks Autumn." Graham told her as Ernest released her.
"Neither." Autumn smiled sweetly at her father and he frowned at her.
"I left my money at home." She pouted at her father and he chuckled at her before puling out his wallet and sliding open the zipper that held the coins at bay.
"Here honey." Ernest fished out all his coins and passed them to Autumn. She pushed them into her jeans pocket and she held her cupped hand out for more as he continued to fish for money. Graham joined in and began to hand money over to his niece as well.
"Thanks." Autumn said her jeans pockets heavy from all the coins.
"Don't go through any security checkpoints." Her father told her sternly.
"And if people are staring at you it's because you're jingling like a cheap hooker." Graham joined in, causing Autumn to giggle.
"I'll be back later." Autumn slid the door to the balcony open again and slid it shut behind her before exiting the small, private room. She made her way down to the visitors lounge, the hallway eerily quiet for a child's ward. This part of the hospital however was reserved for those who preferred to pay extra for private rooms so she assumed that you also paid for tranquillity.
Autumn rounded the corner, pass the nurses station to the visitor's room. The door was open and as she entered she stopped. Autumn smiled to herself as she observed Dominick curled up one of the couches, covered by a soft blue blanket, his long frame scrunched up onto the smaller piece of furniture.
He was asleep, probably visiting his sister and he was snoring softly as he slept on, oblivious to her gaze. He moved in his sleep and after a few moments of quietly watching him, Autumn was pulled out of her reverie by someone speaking to her.
"Are you a friend of his?" Autumn turned around sharply, startled, her heart beating frantically. Standing in the doorway, blocking the entrance was a tall woman with long, dark hair, a tired face and the prettiest green eyes she had ever seen.
"Yeah. We go to school together." Autumn answered softly, mindful of the sleeping boy behind her.
"I'm his mother. Isabella Borgia, pleasure to meet you." She held out her hand and Autumn accepted it, shaking it carefully.
"I'm Autumn Richards." She answered, earning her a warm, comforting squeeze on her hand.
"He sleeps like the living dead." His mother observed, casting her eyes over Autumn's shoulder. Autumn glanced behind her, watching as Dominick shifted again.
"Oh, we have life." Dominick groaned as his mother spoke and she stepped into the room, moving past Autumn to speak to her son.
"And how's Mummy's Little Monster?" Dominick chuckled as he sat up, pushing the sheet down to his waist to show his crumpled black shirt adorned with the bright image of the Sex Pistols.
"Sore." Dominick forced out, his voice low and hoarse. Autumn shivered involuntarily, blushing as her stomach tightened at the low, husky quality of his voice.
"No couch in the world is going to be able to fit you baby." Isabella sat down on the couch and he reclined back, resting his head in his mother lap. Isabella began to stroke his hair as he gazed up at the ceiling.
"How is she?" He asked his voice still hoarse.
"Wisecracking. She made one of the nurses cry." His mother answered and Autumn wanted to back quietly out of the room. She would have but Isabella caught her eye and smiled in a friendly, welcoming manner.
"How?"
"She's made such good friends with them all that they'll miss her when she's gone. Of course you try telling nurses in a children’s ward that being so fatalistic doesn't help the situation."
"Hope." Dominick said simply.
"Pardon?"
"Someone once told me that all you have to do is believe and sometimes that's enough. Essentially, hope is the key." Autumn blushed as he quoted what she had said to him in the chapel at school a few weeks before.
"Who exactly is this someone?" Isabella frowned down at her child as he fiddled with the blanket covering his lower half.
"A friend."
"A female friend or a male friend?"
"A female friend."
"Anyone I know?"
"Nope."
"Anyone special?"
"Yeah. Yeah, she is."
"Autumn you go to school with Dom, does anyone spring to mind?" Dominick turned to look at her and shot up, his back going rigid as he slung his legs down over the couch, turning his body towards her. The blanket ended up bunched up at his waist and he looked at the floor as he rested his elbows on his knees, hunched over at the waist. Isabella raised an eyebrow at her son before smiling widely, a fond expression coming over her tired face.
"What are you doing here?" Dominick asked as he looked up at her.
"Getting a coke. But I didn't really want to wake you and I was about to go find another vending machine when your mother came in." Autumn pointed to the vending machine and Dominick nodded as he pushed the blanket off of him.
"He's a heavy sleeper, an absolute horror to rouse in the morning."
"Mum!" Autumn crossed the room next to the couch they were using and began to pour all her silver coins into the machine.
"What? It's the truth. You're hard to wake in the morning and nothing short of a house fire or an air raid can get you up before six thirty."
"I don't like mornings."
"And I don't like blueberries."
"What has that got to do with it?"
"I thought we were sharing our pet peeves."
"Oh, are we?" Autumn perused the selection before her, scratching her ear as she listened to Dominick and his mother speak.
"I don't like reggae."
"I don't like grapes."
"I don't like peanut butter."
"I don't like the look you're giving me. Mum are you plotting?" Autumn glanced over as the can of root beer clunked its way down the chute.
"Of course I am baby."
"Should I be scared?
"Yes. Yes, you should." Autumn picked up her can and turned to leave when Dominick's voice stopped her.
"Are you leaving?" He asked, briefly glancing upwards.
"Yeah."
"Oh, alright." Dominick nodded as he once again looked down at his feet.
"Dominick! What have I told you?" Isabella smacked Dominick on the back of his head, frowning at him.
"About?"
"Don't be cute, now walk her out and mind your manners." Dominick stood and began walking towards the door.
"It was nice meeting you." Autumn told his mother as Dominick held the door open for her.
"That's my boy. It was nice meeting you too dear." Autumn and Dominick made their way down the hallway as Autumn opened her can of root beet. She hadn't waited enough and root beer sprouted out the top and down her arm.
"Here." Dominick took her wrist and brought it up to his face. His tongue came out and with a long, kittenish swipe lapped up the root beer from her skin. Autumn transferred the root beer to her other hand and began to drink it, ignoring the shaking of her fingers as Dominick cleaned her arm with his tongue. He began to back-pedal and Autumn followed him. Dominick stopped in front of a supplies room and reached behind him to open the door. He kicked it open completely and reached in to flick on the light. He released her hand as the bright light behind him bathed him in a white glow that washed him out and made him seem a little paler, the light making his hair appear silver.
He smiled at her and after a few still, stagnant movements presented her with an invitation.
"Step into my office."
Enjoy!
Title: Cherry
Chapter no.: 7
Rating: Nc-17
Summary: Autumn Richards was you average, everyday nerd. Then why was Mr Tall, Dark and Handsome stalking her?
Cherry
Chapter 7
(071227-071229)
"She looks so fragile." Lorraine Richards, Autumn's aunt, whimpered as she surveyed her youngest child prone in the hospital bed. Autumn and April's favourite and only female cousin, Bernadette, had broken her arm at a horse jumping show and in a showy display of family unity Annabelle Richards and her two daughters accompanied the family patriarch to the hospital to offer support to their family.
Annabelle Richards hated her sister-in-law and her domestic attitude. Annabelle, a local dentist, preferred to keep busy, bustling around while her husband, Ernest, preferred to sit still, particularly when he worked. Autumn had inherited her father's sit and think attitude, often spending many afternoons sitting in his office watching as he completed the work he brought home.
Autumn glanced out the window as her mother rolled her eyes at Lorraine. Lorraine and Annabelle had always hated each other and they only stayed in contact because their husbands were twins. Autumn looked out at her father and her uncle, smiling as she noted that save for the large bald spot on the crown of her uncles head, her father and her uncle were still mostly identical.
Both men stood on the balcony chain smoking, a habit they only indulged in together. Ernest leant against the rail, watching the scene inside and he smiled at Autumn. Autumn smiled back as she ran her fingers through her hair. The visit to the hospital had interrupted her monthly cleaning regime and her hair was a mess from all the activity she had done pushing her furniture around.
"Mum, can I go get some coke or something?" Autumn asked.
"Just one okay baby." Annabelle told her after a few moments surveying her eldest daughter. Annabelle, ever the dentist, worried about her daughter’s oral hygiene frequently.
"Does anyone else want any?" Autumn asked the room.
"No thanks." April droned as she slouched in her chair, her body pitched forward so she could rest her head on the hospital bed. Bernadette shifted in her sleep as Autumn crossed the room and tapped on the balcony door. Ernest and his twin brother Graham both put out their cigarettes and began to wave the left over smoke away. Graham beckoned to her niece and she slid it open and stepped out into the cold winter air.
"Did you guys want anything from the vending machine?" She asked.
"Come here baby." Autumn approached and stopped in front of her father.
"Thank god you're the logical one." Ernest told his eldest as he hugged her, holding her close for a moment.
"No thanks Autumn." Graham told her as Ernest released her.
"Neither." Autumn smiled sweetly at her father and he frowned at her.
"I left my money at home." She pouted at her father and he chuckled at her before puling out his wallet and sliding open the zipper that held the coins at bay.
"Here honey." Ernest fished out all his coins and passed them to Autumn. She pushed them into her jeans pocket and she held her cupped hand out for more as he continued to fish for money. Graham joined in and began to hand money over to his niece as well.
"Thanks." Autumn said her jeans pockets heavy from all the coins.
"Don't go through any security checkpoints." Her father told her sternly.
"And if people are staring at you it's because you're jingling like a cheap hooker." Graham joined in, causing Autumn to giggle.
"I'll be back later." Autumn slid the door to the balcony open again and slid it shut behind her before exiting the small, private room. She made her way down to the visitors lounge, the hallway eerily quiet for a child's ward. This part of the hospital however was reserved for those who preferred to pay extra for private rooms so she assumed that you also paid for tranquillity.
Autumn rounded the corner, pass the nurses station to the visitor's room. The door was open and as she entered she stopped. Autumn smiled to herself as she observed Dominick curled up one of the couches, covered by a soft blue blanket, his long frame scrunched up onto the smaller piece of furniture.
He was asleep, probably visiting his sister and he was snoring softly as he slept on, oblivious to her gaze. He moved in his sleep and after a few moments of quietly watching him, Autumn was pulled out of her reverie by someone speaking to her.
"Are you a friend of his?" Autumn turned around sharply, startled, her heart beating frantically. Standing in the doorway, blocking the entrance was a tall woman with long, dark hair, a tired face and the prettiest green eyes she had ever seen.
"Yeah. We go to school together." Autumn answered softly, mindful of the sleeping boy behind her.
"I'm his mother. Isabella Borgia, pleasure to meet you." She held out her hand and Autumn accepted it, shaking it carefully.
"I'm Autumn Richards." She answered, earning her a warm, comforting squeeze on her hand.
"He sleeps like the living dead." His mother observed, casting her eyes over Autumn's shoulder. Autumn glanced behind her, watching as Dominick shifted again.
"Oh, we have life." Dominick groaned as his mother spoke and she stepped into the room, moving past Autumn to speak to her son.
"And how's Mummy's Little Monster?" Dominick chuckled as he sat up, pushing the sheet down to his waist to show his crumpled black shirt adorned with the bright image of the Sex Pistols.
"Sore." Dominick forced out, his voice low and hoarse. Autumn shivered involuntarily, blushing as her stomach tightened at the low, husky quality of his voice.
"No couch in the world is going to be able to fit you baby." Isabella sat down on the couch and he reclined back, resting his head in his mother lap. Isabella began to stroke his hair as he gazed up at the ceiling.
"How is she?" He asked his voice still hoarse.
"Wisecracking. She made one of the nurses cry." His mother answered and Autumn wanted to back quietly out of the room. She would have but Isabella caught her eye and smiled in a friendly, welcoming manner.
"How?"
"She's made such good friends with them all that they'll miss her when she's gone. Of course you try telling nurses in a children’s ward that being so fatalistic doesn't help the situation."
"Hope." Dominick said simply.
"Pardon?"
"Someone once told me that all you have to do is believe and sometimes that's enough. Essentially, hope is the key." Autumn blushed as he quoted what she had said to him in the chapel at school a few weeks before.
"Who exactly is this someone?" Isabella frowned down at her child as he fiddled with the blanket covering his lower half.
"A friend."
"A female friend or a male friend?"
"A female friend."
"Anyone I know?"
"Nope."
"Anyone special?"
"Yeah. Yeah, she is."
"Autumn you go to school with Dom, does anyone spring to mind?" Dominick turned to look at her and shot up, his back going rigid as he slung his legs down over the couch, turning his body towards her. The blanket ended up bunched up at his waist and he looked at the floor as he rested his elbows on his knees, hunched over at the waist. Isabella raised an eyebrow at her son before smiling widely, a fond expression coming over her tired face.
"What are you doing here?" Dominick asked as he looked up at her.
"Getting a coke. But I didn't really want to wake you and I was about to go find another vending machine when your mother came in." Autumn pointed to the vending machine and Dominick nodded as he pushed the blanket off of him.
"He's a heavy sleeper, an absolute horror to rouse in the morning."
"Mum!" Autumn crossed the room next to the couch they were using and began to pour all her silver coins into the machine.
"What? It's the truth. You're hard to wake in the morning and nothing short of a house fire or an air raid can get you up before six thirty."
"I don't like mornings."
"And I don't like blueberries."
"What has that got to do with it?"
"I thought we were sharing our pet peeves."
"Oh, are we?" Autumn perused the selection before her, scratching her ear as she listened to Dominick and his mother speak.
"I don't like reggae."
"I don't like grapes."
"I don't like peanut butter."
"I don't like the look you're giving me. Mum are you plotting?" Autumn glanced over as the can of root beer clunked its way down the chute.
"Of course I am baby."
"Should I be scared?
"Yes. Yes, you should." Autumn picked up her can and turned to leave when Dominick's voice stopped her.
"Are you leaving?" He asked, briefly glancing upwards.
"Yeah."
"Oh, alright." Dominick nodded as he once again looked down at his feet.
"Dominick! What have I told you?" Isabella smacked Dominick on the back of his head, frowning at him.
"About?"
"Don't be cute, now walk her out and mind your manners." Dominick stood and began walking towards the door.
"It was nice meeting you." Autumn told his mother as Dominick held the door open for her.
"That's my boy. It was nice meeting you too dear." Autumn and Dominick made their way down the hallway as Autumn opened her can of root beet. She hadn't waited enough and root beer sprouted out the top and down her arm.
"Here." Dominick took her wrist and brought it up to his face. His tongue came out and with a long, kittenish swipe lapped up the root beer from her skin. Autumn transferred the root beer to her other hand and began to drink it, ignoring the shaking of her fingers as Dominick cleaned her arm with his tongue. He began to back-pedal and Autumn followed him. Dominick stopped in front of a supplies room and reached behind him to open the door. He kicked it open completely and reached in to flick on the light. He released her hand as the bright light behind him bathed him in a white glow that washed him out and made him seem a little paler, the light making his hair appear silver.
He smiled at her and after a few still, stagnant movements presented her with an invitation.
"Step into my office."