Chapter Ten

The silence that was left between us eventually subsided, and we found ourselves sinking into a new series of light conversation.

After I so calmly assured Colton that I was okay and he should stop being so persistent, I was teased by Fabian about Colton being my 'overprotective boyfriend.'

As if.

I was glad that the tension left the air though. My bold accusation that he was only being nice to me because he wanted to sleep with me got lost in the past, and I was grateful.

I guess I could appreciate that trait about him. He knew how to make tension go away, unlike me with my naturally awkward self.

Currently, we were playing 20 confessions in hopes to learn more about each other. We were only on our tenth, and I had been dying of laughter.

"You did not have blonde hair," I laughed as I imagined him with light highlights. I couldn’t see it. His dark hair suited him quite perfectly, so blonde? I couldn't begin to imagine.

He grinned with a nod. "I did. I rocked it quite well too." There we go again with the cockiness. I simply rolled my eyes with a chuckle as I decided on what else I would tell him.

I was a relatively boring person, so I had nothing fun to contribute to this game apart from my teenage rebels and that one time I had vape.

"Um lemme see..." I clicked my tongue against the roof of my mouth as I thought. Luckily, the perfect thing came to my  mind. "Oh I know! There was this one time when I was about fourteen, when I actually stole something from a token shop!"

I beamed proudly, but he only narrowed his eyes at me. "Did you?"

"I might've actually taken it by accident and went back to pay for it, but I was a badass." I ended with a puffed chest, but it immediately deflated when he busted out in laughter.

"You are such a goody two-shoes."

"I am not," I protested in annoyance. "You're annoying." I huffed in frustration, feeling utterly tired of him making fun of everything I confessed. I felt completely over the game.

However, I was taken by surprise when I felt his arms being wrapped around my waist and he rested his head on my shoulder as his chest rumbled in laughter.

"I'm sorry, Skates. I'm just teasing."

"Don’t tease me," I demanded as I tried to pry him off of me stubbornly. "You've lost the privilege of hearing the next ten."

Despite my pushing, pinching and kicking, he wouldn’t let me go. I eventually started to laugh as I continued to push him away from me, and he even made it worse when he started tickling me.

"Tell me you'll continue the game and I'll let go," he challenged, but I stubbornly shook my head as I sank my nails in his arms.

"No!" I giggled. "You'll tease me."

"I promise I won't."

"Yes you will."

"I won't," he insisted. I huffed in defeat as my sides ached from all the laughing.

"Okay fine I'll continue." I finally gave in, giving him one last shove, just as he let me go. But I hadn’t expected him to, and so my push sent him plummeting in the beautiful blue water in a deep splash.

I threw my hand over my mouth as my eyes widened, avoiding the few droplets of water that stuck to my face and clothes when he landed in the water.

He was under there for a while, but I knew he was doing it on purpose, because the water wasn’t deep. I giggled as the amusement of it all dawned on me, and I rose to my feet as I peeped over to see him.

"Fabian?" I called, trying really hard to suppress my laughter. “Fabian are you okay?" I bent down on my knees so I could get a better look, but that was my mistake.

The minute I hovered my upper body over the rock, he sprung up like a flying fish and dragged me in with him.

I squealed and squirmed as my whole body and clothes became soaked, and I jumped to my feet with a glare in my gaze as I found a laughing Fabian.

"That was not cool. I have no change of clothes you know?"

"You-you did it first," he said through laughs, at which I splashed him with the water. That surely shut him up.

"I didn’t on purpose and I was about to apologize, but now I think not." With whatever dignity I had left, I wobbled my way over to our sitting rock and climbed out. The water was freezing after all, and it wasn’t the type of pond to swim in. Only to behold its beauty and lovely natural aspect.

"Hey where are you going?" Fabian called after me when I didn’t retake my place on the rock, but made for the trail instead.

"Out of these wet clothes before I get a cold," I pointed out in a 'duh' tone. "And you should too."

I didn’t know why, but another one of his famous smirks pulled on his lips. "So you want us to strip together?"

The nerve of this guy!

I knew it was only in his teasing nature, so I simply rolled my eyes and continued on the trail. Soon after, I heard his heavy steps jogging behind me, until he was beside me again.

I glanced over his chest, immediately regretting it when I noticed that the water soaked through his shirt completely, leaving it stuck to his hard, lean body. The image of him shirtless this morning resurfaced, and I quickly directed my gaze back to the trail that I was already familiar with.

It was then that I remembered that I was soaked wet too, and I hadn’t worn a bra this morning when I was getting dressed. My eyes widened again as I quickly glanced down at my own body, seeing the peaks of my femininity on full display indeed.

I quickly folded my arms over my body to hide them, and I instinctively glanced up at Fabian’s face to see if he had been looking. However, he held his head high and straight ahead as if I wasn’t even there, but I could see that something on his demeanour had changed.

He definitely saw.

I mentally scolded myself for being so unobservant as we walked to the house in silence. The minute we were through the door, he left and returned with two towels.  mumbled a thanks as I wrapped one around my hair, and the other around my body.

"Um, do you by any chance have a blow drier or something?" Despite the warm outside air from the effects of almost summer, I had been shivering. He frowned as he analyzed my wet clothes and shook his head regrettably.

"You can borrow my clothes if you'd like. Until you get home at least," he offered, and I really had to contemplate his offer. He was at least three times my size. I barely touched 5'3 and my frame was as petite as they come. But did I really have a choice?

"Okay."

I followed behind him upstairs of the cozy house, and I immediately appreciated the warmth that it provided. He led me into a room that was solely engulfed by his scent, and I immediately knew that it was his.

"This is where you stay when you're here?" The room was as plain as they come, with a little mess here and there, but it was your typical guy room.

His bed was still undone, but I suspected it was because I woke him up and stole his morning away. The drapes were still drawn in front of the windows, and I resisted the urge to open them as I did downstairs.

"Uh-yea." He rummaged through a drawer before returning with an identical pair of sweats and a plain t-shirt.

I frowned as I took them, seeing the amount of adjusting I'd have to do to fit into them, but I took them nonetheless. "Thanks."

"You can use the bathroom just down the hall," he said as he pointed to a door a few doors away from his. I nodded, still gripping the towel and the clothes as I entered.

As quickly as I could, I discarded my clothes, thanking God that my phone was okay, before pulling on his. I giggled at my reflection in the mirror. The white tee fell to the middle of my thighs, with the sleeves almost at my elbows. And don’t even get me started on the sweats.

I folded the sleeves to my desired length, before tying the tail of the shirt into a cute knot at the base of my stomach. I also stretched the collar and hung it on my shoulder as if it was a half-shoulder kind of shirt, and I was actually happy with the results.

However, the sweats were a bigger challenge. The length pooled at my feet miserably, so I searched endlessly for a pair of scissors, feeling utterly satisfied when I finally found one.

I started the task of getting rid of the excessive length, after which I made two small strips to tie around my ankle, in order to give it that natural 'sweat pants' look. I also pulled on the strings around my waist so that it wouldn't fall from my hips. It was still a bit loose, but wearable.

I sighed in content as I finished, feeling much better in Fabian's huge clothes. Another plus was that his scent was all over them.

Completely intoxicating.

I found him in his room again, where he was pulling a dry shirt over his head.

"So what's the story about this house anyways?" I asked in new found curiosity as I plopped my bottom on his surprisingly soft bed.

I chuckled at the way he jumped, seeing that he didn’t realize that I re-entered. He spun on his heels and met my eyes, and I watched as his lips pulled into a smile as he gazed down at his destroyed clothes and my new outfit.

"It was my parent's house, once upon a time. If I'm being honest, it was my grandparent's house, but my parents got married and moved in. I kinda grew up here," he provided, getting me completely engrossed.

I watched as he ran his hands through his wet hair as if subconsciously trying to style it as he walked over to me.

I pulled my legs all the way on the bed, curled them under each other and shuffled so that I was facing him. "You guys moved?"

'Obviously, Paris.'

"Uh-yea." I could sense his newly formed nervousness as he continued. "A lot happened after my little brother was born."

"But he's like ten, no?"

"Twelve," he corrected and I silently scolded myself for forgetting.

"So if my calculations are correct, you moved when you were like 5?"

"I was touching six year old, and yes. But I still considered 'growing up' here, because those were my best memories."

I wanted to ask what happened, and why they moved after his brother was born, but that seemed personal. Despite my nosiness, I let it go.

"So now that we're all dry, what next?"

He shrugged. "Want to go get lunch?"

"Like this?" I glanced down at my outfit in unsurity. Even though I redeemed it somewhat, I wasn’t sure if it was public friendly.

"You look great to me," he casually said. "Come on, lunch is on me."

I was actually hungry, but oddly, the feeling of being alone with him in private versus being alone with him in public seemed different. I oddly craved being alone with him in private more.

"Okay. We'll take my car," I decided ultimately, knowing I shouldn’t be having such thoughts about him.

"Come on, Skates. Don’t you want to ride on my-"

"Nope." I immediately cut him off. "I am not going on that death machine. FYI, I am terrified of bikes okay? Now let's go." I uncrossed my legs as I made for the door, but he halted my movements by holding onto my hand.

"Come on, live a little. We're not even going that far. I promise I won't go fast," he smirked as he gazed down at me challengingly. My breath hitched when the feeling of his hand holding my arm suddenly became distinctively evident, and I slowly lifted my gaze from his smirk to his eyes.

'Maybe I want you to go fast.'

Wait what?

"But I'm a-afraid. I've never done it before." The sound of my voice took me by complete surprise when I heard how soft and vulnerable it came out, almost pleading for him to show me. Suddenly, the air between us grew thick, and our conversation was no longer about bike rides.

He pulled me closer, and I let him, not one breaking eye contact as he cupped my cheek.

"You don’t have to be afraid. Just hold onto me and you won't fall."

"Promise?" I asked as my mind grew foggy and my breaths shorter.

"Promise," he confirmed, and before I could overthink it, my lips were on his. He drew in a breath as our lips met, and it took a few seconds for it to become real.

But when it did, it was the most majestic thing I've ever encountered. His lips were as soft as I imagined, and his movements were slow and soothing, almost as if ensuring I was sure and reassuring my comfort. Slowly, my arms reached up and wrapped themselves around his neck, and he did the same with my waist as he pulled my body flushed against him.

I sighed contently in the kiss as my heart erupted in uncontrollable bliss. The tenderness of his kiss and the gentleness of his touch made me feel special, valued and appreciated, though that was far too deep for whatever connection we've just built.

I tilted my head to the side so that I could get more of him, and one of his hands flew up to grip the back of my neck. I've never had a kiss like this before, that was for sure. And it haven’t even been rough, demanding or erotic. It was simply sweet, slow and caring.

Disappointment dawned on me when he pulled away, and he rested his forehead against mine as my breathing slowed. I still had my eyes closed, and a hint of fear and almost regret poked at my brain when I realized what had just happened.

I kissed Fabian. And I freaking liked it.

Slowly, I opened my eyes, and I was most delighted to realize that the fear and regret I felt immediately disappeared when I met his eyes. A smile stretched on my lips as I gazed up at him, loving the way how his expression mimicked mine.

"Still scared?" he whispered in a soft voice, both of us knowing that he wasn’t talking about the damn bike.

I shook my head as my smile only grew wider. "No, I'm not," I admitted, and it was then that I could see Fabian in a new light.

A new light that I knew too well.

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First kiss guys! Yay!

Stay tuned to see what happens next!