Something Gained Read online

  Something Gained

  Meadow Valley Series

  B.S. Schmitt

  Play List

  “All I Ask” Adele

  “Addicted” Saving Abel

  “Lost on You” LP

  “Feels Like Home to Me” Chantal Kreviazuk

  “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now” Celine Dion

  “Un-Break My Heart” Toni Braxton

  “Wild World” Cat Stevens

  Copyright

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.

  Something Gained

  COPYRIGHT © 2021 by B.S. Schmitt

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author.

  Edits by K.C. Edits

  Cover Art by Schmitt Inc.

  Dedication

  For Kieran Lynn. My inspiration for Jamie.

  Grandma loves you baby boy.

  Always remember,

  I wouldn’t change you for the world,

  but I would change the world for you.

  Books By Author

  Meadow Valley Series (Stand Alone)

  Something Gained

  Something Promised —Coming 2022

  Stand Alone

  Shiver — Re-release 2022

  Give and Take — Re-release 2022

  Male/Male Romance

  Breaking His Rules

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Epilogue

  Prologue

  Remy

  The whole class had shown up, all sixty-five of us, that is. The graduating class at our high school is pretty small compared to larger schools. That's to be expected for a high school in a town with less than four thousand people, a city where people are born here. They don't move here to Meadow Valley, at least not on purpose. A town so small in size that our main street is only four blocks long. It's a place where everyone knows everyone and their business, where not much can happen without the entire town knowing about it by the following day.

  Tomorrow my classmates and I are graduating high school. Like every senior class before us, we have gathered out on the riverbank on the edge of town. Ready to spend a night full of a bonfire, swimming, fun, and of course, a lot of drinking.

  "The fire is fuckin' hot," Peaches says, standing from the folding camp chair she was sitting in next to me. Peaches set her red solo cup on the ground, and I watch in disbelief as she yanks her crop top shirt over her head. The mint green bikini top with strings tied around her neck and strings around her mid-back. A few whistles broke through the air, but Peaches didn't care. I wish I didn't. I could never show off my body as she could. My insecurities had a firm grip on me.

  Peaches is a stunning beauty, thanks to her parent's gene pool. Her mom is a typical blonde bombshell with ivory skin and pale blue eyes. Her father is tall, dark, and handsome with beautifully toned skin. He gifted his daughter with flawless bronze skin, but it was her mom who gave her curves in all the right places.

  "You know we could have moved back away from the flames, right?" I ask, grinning at my best friend. Peaches smirked and shrugged her honey glazed shoulder. "I don't mind." She smiled, sticking her tongue out between her teeth at me.

  "I'm sure you don't." I take a sip of the gross beer in my cup. I wince as the bitter taste slides down my throat. I'm not too fond of the taste of beer. I don't know why I torture myself by drinking it. I know why. Everyone around me is drinking, and I don't need another reason for these kids to think I'm beneath them. I will not give them one more thing to hate about me.

  I've never understood why so many kids in our school didn't like me. I wasn't different than any of them. Besides, I got the best grades. Well, almost the best. Peaches beat me in the running for valedictorian. I tried never to let their looks and snide comments bother me, not even when they started calling me that awful nickname of Remy Pen. My freshman year, Chad Bennett gave me the name, the biggest asshole in our school. Typical jock who thought of nothing but playing ball and getting laid. He gave me the stupid nickname when I showed up to a school dance in a dress that I had bought secondhand. It didn't warrant a name, but unfortunately, it stuck.

  None of them bothered me because I had Grayson in my corner. Grayson, the love of my life, is always there to hold me and tell me how I'm more innovative, more beautiful, and have more potential than any of our classmates.

  I grin as I watch Peaches swaying her hips dancing to the country music blaring from a nearby car stereo. Glancing down where I remained in my chair, she grabbed for my hands, pulling me to my feet beside her. The two of us dance together as the music and smoke of the bonfire swirl around us in the warm June night air.

  Female laughter pulls Peaches and me out of our fun silliness. We turn to find three of our female classmates laughing and smirking at us, Lisa, Brooke, and Bridgette. Three of the four bitches of our class. The mean girls of our high school think that if you don't come from money, you're not good enough to be around them. I've been counting down the days until I no longer have to see them five days a week. It makes all the shit I've dealt with for the last four years seem bittersweet.

  "What is so amusing?" Peaches asked, putting her hands on her jean short covered hips. None of the mean girls picked on Peaches. No one dared since she was only one of six biracial students at our school. They were all too afraid it would be racism. They discriminated against her for discrimination. It also helped that her father is the police chief. Anyone who messed with Peaches is likely to get more than their share of speeding tickets.

  "We aren't laughing at you," Bridgette smirks, casting her gaze toward me. Peaches followed her gaze then snapped her head back to face the three. "If you have something to say, then say it. Or leave us alone."

  Lisa's evil grin is ear to ear. "Hey Remy, do you know where Grayson is? I thought I saw the two of you ride in together."

  "We did. He's over with some of the guys from the team. Why?"

  The three bitches share looks as they smile and giggle. "I'm sure he is with the guys."

  What the hell did that mean? "Okay, now you're pissing me off. What are you three starting?" Peaches demands taking her normal defenses stand for me. She always felt it was her job to shield me from the names and the hate. Even if it didn't always work, I loved her more for trying.

  Lisa held her hands up in the air between us. "All we are saying is, maybe you should make sure your boyfriend is where he says he is."

  "Or with who," Bridgette says, laughing again.

  A nervous feeling crawls up my spine.

  "They're assholes, Remy. Gray would never be off with someone else. He loves you. Don't listen to these jealous bitches."

  "Oh honey, I'm far from jealous of that." Lisa sneers, racking her hate-filled gaze over me.

  "What the hell ever. We see how you guys look at Grayson. All four of you are following him around like a pack of lost bitches in heat. Give it up. He's Remy's. He always has been and always will be."

  The three of them laugh their evil laugh again. "Not all, just one of us." More giggling.

  April!

  "Where the hell is yo
ur fearless leader? Aren't the four of you a package bitch on wheels deal?" I ask, looking around the group of kids hanging around the fire, trying to find the familiar face among them.

  "I'll give you a hint; if you find Grayson, I'm sure you'll find April," Bridgette says with glee.

  My heart drops to the pit of my stomach. No. They're wrong. The girls are fucking with me like they always do. They want to see me get upset. It's the same game they always play. Stupid bitches.

  I frantically began to search the crowds. I need to find Grayson. I need him to wrap me in his comforting arms and reassure me that he loves me and tell me that he will never leave me.

  "You're lying. Grayson would never do anything with April. So, knock it off, okay." Peaches yell, grabbing onto my hand that is now shaking.

  Trembles vibrate up my hands to my wrists, and I shake them away, trying to rid myself of the sensation.

  Whipping around, I storm away from the laughing girls and leave the roaring fire behind me. The summer night air grew colder as I walked further from the fire. Goosebumps spread over my exposed legs, and I run my hands up my bare arms in an attempt to shake the bumps from my skin. I hear the crunch of grass next to me, and I know Peaches is following me into the dark.

  The further away from the fire, we go the darker it gets. I know the sandy river's edge is a few yards in front of us, and after the sun sets, the water begins to chill. Kids use the riverbanks as a private make out area. Walking closer to the riverbank, I search through the couples I can see, looking for the familiar body I know so well. Grayson is taller, and thanks to football workouts, his body is built bigger and broader than the other boys in our grade. Fear grips my throat, and I'm having trouble breathing. Tears sting my eyes, and I try not to let them fall as I remind myself that this is Grayson. The boy I fell in love with as a child. The boy who grew into a man in front of my eyes. A man who promised to love and marry me. I have faith in our relationship. I have faith in us.

  The longer I search, the more my eyes blur from tears. They're spilling down my cheeks, but I don't stop them. I can't stop my heart from pounding or my stomach from turning over. The familiar flutter of panic washes over me, and I know I need to find Grayson.

  Grayson would never touch April. He loves me. Grayson would never hurt me. Once I find him, he'll wrap me in his arms, kiss my tears away and promise me I'll never be able to get rid of him.

  I raise a palm to my chest, pressing it against my left breast, trying to control the shooting pain behind the skin. My heart felt like an invisible force had reached inside my ribs, squeezing the life out of me.

  It's anxiety. I'm letting myself get too worked up. I'll be fine once I find Grayson and see that everything will be okay.

  Peaches footsteps beside me stop, and I turn to find Peaches frozen to the ground. Her gaze off in the distance toward the tree line where the cars are. I followed in the direction of her stare, and at that moment, it was as if the world as I knew it around me didn't exist.

  My gaze lands on a couple wrapped together against a tree in the darkness. A man wedged between her open legs as their mouths smashed together, kissing.

  As my eyes adjust to the darkness, my worst fears are confirmed. It's the very moment that will change my world forever.

  "Holy shit." Peaches' voice seems distant regardless of her closeness to me.

  On stumbling knees, I close the distance between the boy I love and me. The boy I gave my heart and innocents to. The boy I was going to marry after high school.

  He turns, taking me in before he takes a step back away from April, who is wiping her smiling mouth with the back of her hand. As if she's all too proud to be breaking my heart.

  "W-what is going on, Grayson?" my words break over the hard burning knot in my throat, and I try to swallow it down, but it refuses to budge.

  Bowing his head, Grayson nervously ran a hand through his hair. He was shaking his head before sobering his eyes to meet mine. His eyes shine with tearful remorse, and I want to reach for him. To wrap him in my arms and convince him things will be okay. That was before the realization hits that he's the one causing the break in my heart. He's the one bringing the pain upon us.

  "I don't know, Remy. I mean, I've thought that—that maybe it's time for us to spend some time apart. You know, see other people."

  My head begins violently shaking before he gets the words out. "No. You know that's not true. We talked the other night about our future. After tomorrow we are free to get married."

  "That's just it, Remy." He said, cutting me off. "I'm not ready for that, and neither are you. I think we have spent way too much time together. It's time to see other people. It's time to be free and to see what this world has for us."

  "NO." Tears sting my eyes and blur my vision. "Why are you doing this, Grayson? This isn't you. You told me last night you loved me and that you always will. What has happened since then? What made you change your mind about me? About us?"

  He shakes his head, taking his eyes off mine. The fact that he can't even look at me or hold my gaze is a sign that he's struggling with this too. When he does finally lift his head and look back at me, I can see the signs of tears he's frantically fighting to hold back.

  What the hell is going on? My head is spinning. My mind is racing.

  "Look, Remy. Grayson has decided to move on. The faster you come to terms with that, the faster we can all move on." April says, moving to stand next to Grayson's side.

  I turn my blurry gaze to April whose leaning against Grayson's side. Her arm is thrown around his back as if she has all the right to be touching my boyfriend.

  "Leave us alone, April. This has nothing to do with you." I snap my words from behind clenched teeth. What I want to do is grab her by her stupid blonde hair and punch her ugly face.

  An evil chuckle slices the air. "Oh honey, haven't you heard. You're out, and I'm in. Grayson promised to pick me up tomorrow on his bike so we can go to graduation together. And don't worry, I'll be taking real good care of him every night after that." She purrs, letting her slim fingers slide along Grayson's cheek.

  "Cut it out, April," Grayson said, moving her hand from his face, but he didn't push her away from his body. And he didn't deny her claim. My gaze cuts from her to Grayson. How is he not standing up for me? Why is he letting her say these things to me? We're drawing a crowd of all the kids we go to school with and already treat me like I'm nothing but garbage?

  Without looking at him, I utter my question. "Is this true?" the words are small and yet so powerful. Those three words could be the downfall of my heart.

  "We both know it's not that easy," Grayson said, taking a step toward me. I stand my ground. My heart is pounding so high up in my throat that I can hear the pounding inside my ears.

  "Is it true, Grayson?" my words spit out with force.

  "Remy…"

  "Answer me," I scream so loud my throat shakes.

  "Yes"

  I can't breathe. That one word is the punch to my stomach, making me gasp for air. I fall to my knees as tears pour down my face. I can hear painful screams around me. It sounds like an injured animal caught in an iron trap, but I can't determine where they're coming from. A second later, Peaches' beautiful face is in front of me. Her eyes are holding pain I've never seen before as she tries to soothe me like a mother to a child.

  She's trying to calm me.

  She is trying to quiet my screams.

  The screams are coming from me. I'm the wounded animal.

  My chest knots up like someone has reached inside and squeezed it in a fist. I grab at the front of my shirt, ripping at the fabric as if the very feel of it is the reason I can't breathe.

  "Honey, look at me. You're having a panic attack. Breath Remy. You need to breathe." Peaches' voice drifts in my ears, but her words are sounding jumbled, and I can't make sense of them.

  How? How could Grayson do this to me? Why would he do this? Why would he do this with her of all people? I'm angry. I want
to fight and yell and scream for him to do the same. For him not to throw me away. But I can't breathe to get anything out. My fists clench tight around the front of my best friend's shirt. My breaths are shallow, and it's getting harder to fill my lungs with air, but it doesn't stop me from gasping anyways.

  The warm ground is suddenly against my back, and I know I'm lying in the grass with Peaches leaning over me. "We need to call someone. I've never seen her act like this before." Peaches' voice grows higher with panic.

  "Remy?"

  I glance up to see Grayson's face drop down into my line of vision. "Remy? God damn it, what's the matter?"

  "Are you fucked in the head?" Peaches' voice holds the anger I want to be feeling. God, I love this girl.

  "She just found her boyfriend who is everything to her kissing that dumb bitch before he just broke up with her. She's having a fucking panic attack, you asshole. I need to get her to calm down. She can't fucking breathe. Hey, someone call 911. We need an ambulance."

  "Oh my god, baby. I'm so sorry. I didn't want to hurt you this way." Grayson says, leaning toward me as he wraps his arms under me to cradle my head. Closing my eyes, I take in the familiar scent of him. Wetness pools and falls from my eyes as the years of meeting, playing, and loving Grayson flash in my mind. Grayson and I had been friends’ way before we started dating.

  He was there for me every time I needed someone. We were there for each other when my mother passed away. When his father walked out on him and his family, he was my first real boyfriend. He was my first love and first lover. I thought after graduation; he would ask me to marry him. At least, I had hoped.

  "Remy, baby, can you hear me?" Gray's voice cuts into my mind. Glancing up at him through wet lashes, I watch the frown deepen upon his lips. "Baby?"

  I open my mouth to speak but instead of words, all I can manage are gasps for air, hoping to inflate my lungs.