Crowded Room

16. Under the Rain

Camila had finally started rehearsing with the other students that would be part of the musical and she was relieved that they all treated her as equal even though she was the only freshman there. Most of them had been part of productions like these before and it was really nice to be able to take tips from them. She was now working on one of the duets she had with Luke, the guy was playing the prince. He had a great voice and they sounded really nice together, but she was getting kind of annoyed at how Shawn would always ask them to stop and correct something. Even Taylor rolled her eyes at him at some point, clearly annoyed.

 “ Okay, I think we should stop for today.” Taylor says, sending Shawn an unpleasant look. “ Some of us are not in a good mood.”

 Shawn stayed quiet and she wondered why he was being so picky. She loved working with him when it was just the two of them, but the second Luke got involved, Shawn became a different person.

 Camila walked to where she left her bag on the front row of the auditorium, looking for her phone, when she saw Luke approaching her.

 “ Hey.” He smiles at her and she has to admit he’s quite charming. No doubt he would make the perfect prince with his blue eyes and blond hair. “ I was thinking maybe we could rehearse some of the scenes just the two of us. Do you think I can have your number?”

 Camila looks up at him in shock at first. Their rehearsing hours had already been set and they were more than enough. Was he hitting on her or did he genuinely mean it when he said they should rehearse more? She wasn’t that great at reading these types of situations, but they were about to spend a lot of time together because of the production. It only made sense for them to have each other’s numbers.

 “ Sure.” Camila smiles at him, taking his phone and typing her number.

 “ I’ll text you.” Luke says, walking out of the room as Camila’s eyes find Shawn looking at her.

 Taylor is talking to him, but he’s clearly not listening to her. His eyes are glued to Camila and he looks a little angry. She’s almost a hundred percent sure he heard her interaction with Luke and she kind of wants him to feel jealous. At least it would mean he cares the way she wants him to. After they shared so many personal things the other night, Camila can tell he’s been acting more open with her. It’s like they really got to a place where they can be completely honest with each other. The only thing neither of them would talk about was the kiss they shared. She felt like if he didn’t try anything soon, she would just give in and confront him. She wasn’t sure if that was a good idea, though.

 “ Can you walk me back to my dorm?” Camila asks him when he’s done talking to Taylor and stands next to her.

 “ Sure.” He smiles at her as they leave Taylor by herself in the auditorium. “ Actually, are you busy now? I thought maybe you could come over and we could watch a movie or something.”

 They’re alone in the levator when he says that and Camila feels hopeful when he suggests that.

 “ I like that idea.” She nods her head, smiling with rose cheeks.

 The two of them walk out of the building and Shawn takes her hand once again. He’s been doing that a lot and it’s almost electrifying, the feeling of his skin against hers. He doesn’t have his car this time, so they have to walk for a few blocks. It’s already dark and Camila feels a drop of rain in her face when Shawn speaks again.

 “ Luke seemed really excited to get your number.” Shawn says, conforming what she already thought. He heard their exchange.

 “ I don’t know what you mean.” Camila plays dumb. She can’t decide if she finds it cute or annoying that he’s clearly jealous.

 “ Nevermind.” Shawn sighs. “ Forget I said anything.”

 “ No.” Camila stops on her tracks just as the rain starts falling for real.

 “ What do you mean no?” He asks, standing in front of her.

 “ You know exactly what I mean.” She says. “ Just tell me what you’re feeling.”

 Shawn looks down at her, the rain drenching both of them. He looks torn, like he’s fighting whatever it is he actually wants to say.

 “ Are you jealous?” Camila asks with a small laugh, but he doesn’t laugh with her.

 “ Yes, Camila.” He says loudly over the rain. “ I’m jealous. There. I said it.”

 Camila can’t help smiling after his confession, but she didn’t expect for him to suddenly grab her face and connect their lips. His lips are wet because of the rain, just like hers, but they’re just as soft as she remembered. She’s not sure for how they’ve been kissing under the rain until people start complaining they’re standing in the way. Shawn pulls away first and without a word takes her hand so they can keep walking to his apartment.

 Shawn gives her a towel and a change of his own clothes so she can warm herself, so she walks into the guest bathroom and gets rid of her wet clothes. She ends up in one of his shirts that look like a dress in her, finding him in sweatpants and a shirt as they put her clothes in the dryer. Camila takes a seat on the couch while Shawn makes hot chocolate for them to warm up. Not a single word has been said since they kissed and when he hands her a mug and sits down next to her, she feels like she might explode if she doesn’t say anything.

 “ This is awkward.” She whispers. “ Please just say something.”

 “ What do you want me to say?” He chuckles before settling his half empty mug over the center table.

 “ I don’t know, Shawn.” Camila looks at him. “ Maybe tell me what the hell is happening right now.”

 “ I don’t have an answer for that.” He says, getting closer to her. “ Is that okay?”

 Camila feels his hand touching her cheek before going for her long wet hair, sending chills down her arms as she almost drops her still full mug of hot chocolate, but Shawn takes it from her and places it next to his. She nods her head as he leans in closer to her, the way he’s looking at her giving her butterflies.

 “ Can I kiss you again?” He whispers, resting his forehead against hers.

 “ Please.” Camila nods, letting her hand touch his arm as his lips meet hers again.

 It started slow and delicate, like he wanted to appreciate every second he got to kiss her, but it didn’t take long for him to deepen the kiss and for the two of them turn into a desperate mess. Her hands were tugging at his wet curls as he laid her down on the couch. She wasn't sure how suddenly every inch of her skin was on fire, but the second his lips were on her neck and one of his hands squeezed her thigh, she heard an involuntary sound leave her lips. She could feel his hand running up her thigh and she was a little scared where that was going.

 “ Shawn.” She whispered and his hand immediately left her thigh, going back to her hair as he looked down at her.

 She pulled his face down for another kiss and soon enough his lips were on her jaw and neck again, making it hard for her to breathe.

 “ I’m a virgin.” She blurts out, making him stop what he was doing to look at her. “ Sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.” She closes her eyes, thinking that wasn’t something she should just throw at him like that, but she was nervous about where this was going.

 “ Hey, look at me.” He whispers, holding her face gently.

 Camila opens her eyes, feeling her cheeks burning in embarrassment. She totally just ruined the moment.

 “ I’m not trying to sleep with you.” Shawn says. “ At least not right at this moment.”

 Camila laughs and covers her face with her hands, but Shawn takes her hands in his and makes her sit up on the couch next to him.

 “ I just really want to kiss you, okay?” He smiles at her and Camila nods her head, leaning in for another kiss. This one is less desperate and she feels him smiling against her lips before kissing her cheek and resting his face in the crook of her neck, holding her in a hug.