Don't Try the Noodles

Don't Try the Noodles x2 (Prequel)

Since we have reached 600k reads, and my mom got a kick out of three-year-old me always pronouncing 'six' as 'sex', here is the behind story of what led to the epilogue.

Enjoy~^^

(Song: Shawn Mendes - Lost in Japan)

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Don't Try the Noodles x2 (Prequel)

Bailey

It's crazy how fast four years have gone by. My graduation ceremony is next month, and with the summer it'll be Caleb and my four-year anniversary. It doesn't seem real that we've been together for this long. We even live under the same roof now after Caleb saved enough money to move out of his older brother's place earlier this year. It took a lot to convince my dad, but surprisingly not so much with my mom.

Caleb is sleeping in the bedroom, and I should be too if it isn't for the perfectionist in me wanting to make sure my senior thesis as a biology major is absolutely flawless. I've been glued to the living room sofa for nearly twenty-four hours. Despite never being much of a coffee drinker throughout university, caffeine has become my best friend and savior these past few weeks.

"Okay, one more read-through, and I'm done," I promise myself.

By the time I get to the final page, the sun is beginning to rise. Even if my mind still feels if-y about some parts, my body can no longer hold up. I submit my thesis online and finally head for the bedroom.

There used to be a time when I got too embarrassed to lie in the same bed as Caleb, but now I can't care less. The only thing that matters right now is sleep. I throw myself down next to him, but he shows no signs of waking from the impact of my fall. Although he is naturally a heavy sleeper, he also has his reasons for being so exhausted recently.

Midnight on Saturn is set to go on their first international tour in Asia in two weeks. While I'm happy for him, it's still sad to know Caleb won't be around for graduation and for most of the summer.

It's this sadness that really drains my energy level to zero as I quickly pass out into dreamless sleep.

. . .

Still half asleep, I chuckle at the sensation of two hands running up my sides. Peeling one eye open at a time, I find Caleb on top of me. Judging by the clock behind him reading eleven p.m. and the slight flush on his face, I realize he's just come home from drinking with his bandmates.

He moves his hands from under my t-shirt to my cheeks as he leans in for a kiss. I can taste the alcohol on his lips. Just how much has he had to drink tonight?

"I finally get to see you awake for once," he says teasingly.

Pushing his hair out of his eyes, I reply, "But you've been busy, too."

"I know." His gaze momentarily drops to my chest before coming back up. "Hey, Bailey? Hasn't it been a while since we—"

I cover his mouth whilst simultaneously pushing him back so that I can sit up. "O-Okay, Caleb! You're drunk! Let's get you changed and ready for bed—"

Caleb leans his entire body weight on me, forcing me back down under him. Nudging his nose into my neck like an attention-seeking puppy, he says, "Come on, Bailey. Can't you just let me win tonight?"

"Win?"

"Or is this technically winning for both of us?" He smirks as his hands crawl back under my shirt.

I hadn't woken up enough before to notice how warm his palms are. As his hands continue up closer and closer to my chest, I grow more conscious of how fast my heart is beating.

"W-Wait a second, Caleb! Do we even have..." I am too embarrassed to finish the sentence. The fact that neither of us can remember the last time we spent a night like this means I am back to practically being just as nervous as I was the first time.

"Um, hold on." Caleb clumsily pushes his drunk self up to check the drawer by the bed. He soon raises his empty hands with a shrug.

Watching him come back to me, I utter, "No, we are not doing this! Caleb—"

He throws the covers over me and him. I gulp, taking in the two of us in this tightly enclosed space.

"You can call me an idiot all you want in the morning," Caleb says with a fitting idiotic grin.

"I'm not going to call you an idiot..." I slowly whisper, finding myself becoming more and more enamored by this silly boy above me.

Never in a million years would myself back in high school have envisioned this moment to be a part of my future. To have Caleb be a part of my future.

"Don't worry. I'll be extra careful with you tonight, my darling," he says, and my nerves give way as I burst out into laughter at how cheesy he just sounded.

"Okay, fine." I wrap my arms around him to pull him in even closer. "But if you're not, I really am going to call you an idiot in the morning."

"You have yourself a deal, my darling."

"Stop calling me that," I say with another laugh.

He narrows his eyes at me in thought. "Then, how about my sexy lady?"

"How about I start calling you an idiot now?"

"Whatever you want, my sexy lady."

"Ah, Caleb!"

"I thought you're going to start calling me an idiot now."

"You really are drunk, aren't you?"

(The End for Now x2)