𝐄𝐳𝐫𝐚 | 18+

36

Twenty minutes go by and as soon as the timer goes off, he rips the mask off with a groan.

"Finally!" He gasps.

"You big baby." I say, throwing out our face masks. He stands up and walks towards the kitchen where he grabs a cup and pours water in it, staring down at his phone.

"Would you still be my friend if I were a worm?" I ask, trotting up to him. I jump up on the counter and look over at him.

"Uhm..." He looks at me, concerned.

"Yes or no?"

"Yes."

"Good answer. What if I were a microwave?"

"Most definitely." He chuckles. The room falls silent again.

"Kill, screw, or marry: Miss Piggy, Elmo, or Tweetie bird?" I say, my feet dangling off the edge of the marble.

"Hm...marry Miss Piggy, screw Elmo and kill Tweety bird." He nods. My eyes widen.

"You would screw Elmo?" I ask, faking surprise. Of course he would, he's a freak.

"Absolutely. In the back of a Church, if I must add." He says. I hold back my laughter.

"Well, it is expected from you, Mr. Romano." I scoff.

"Is that so, Ms. Bouras?" He angles his head a certain way, his eyebrows furrowing downward.

"Indeed. I could unquestionably picture you screwing a fucking puppet in a church."

"Ah-ah, language, Ms. Bouras." He says, raising his eyebrows and lifting his index finger up.

"Great heavens, forgive me." I put my hand on my chest and laugh. He does too, walking over to me.

"What would you do if I poured water on your head right now?" He asks, swirling the water around his cup in circular motions.

"You see..." I bring my foot up to his crotch but stop right as I'm about to hit him. "Your precious jewels are in my target area, so I strongly suggest you not to do that or you'll be seeing stars for the next week."

His eyes examine me before he backs up. His tongue pokes the inside of his cheek and his lips pucker a bit.

"Noted." He nods. I laugh and jump down.

"Have you ever put on makeup?" I ask. He shakes his head no and I smirk, already knowing that his answer will be changed in not too long.

"No...don't even think about it." He warns me.

"I'm thinking about it..." I cackle evilly.

"I did the masks! What's next? You paint my nails pink or something?!" He groans.

"No, but thanks for the idea. I will also be doing that." I chuckle.

"Nooooo," He grumbles. "You're killing me."

"You seem pretty much alive." I say.

"Great observation. I hate you."

"I hate you more." I narrow my eyes at him.

"No, you don't." He smirks.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, bellissima." I say, jokingly flicking my hair away from my shoulder. He chuckles.

"What's the most embarrassing thing you've ever done?" I ask.

He thinks about it before answering.

"In third grade I finally got to sit next to my crush. But then, I fell out of the chair and farted, and my crush got up and walked away to sit next to someone else." He says. I erupt into a fit of laughter, holding my stomach from how hard I'm cackling. He joins in.

"What about you?" He asks.

"In second or third grade, we were getting these cool little certificates for God knows what, and I thought I heard my name, so I went up to the front of the class to accept the paper. When I got up there it was 'Kevin' written on the paper and I was so embarrassed and I looked like a tomato." I say, grimacing at the memory. That tragic, tragic day. Ezra laughs and throws his head back.

"That's horrible." He cackles.

"I know! It's one of those things that just stick with you forever." I chuckle. When the laughter dies down, I jump off the counter and head for the couch which is much more comfortable than the marble. In my opinion, at least.

"I need a hug." I say, randomly. His head snaps up.

"Awh. Why?" He asks. I shrug as he walks over to me with a small smile.

"I dunno." I say. He wraps his arms around me and I close my eyes against his chest, a feeling of warmth spreading through me.

"Are you okay, Lee?" He asks softly, his cheek resting against the top of my head. I hear his steady heartbeat in my ear.

"No, you reminded me of the most embarrassing day of my life." I respond. He chuckles, patting my hair. He pulls me away from me and looks down at me, his arms still hooked behind my waist. He smiles before peppering kisses along my forehead, making me giggle.

He pulls away and I stare up at him. We stand there for a couple moments, admiring each other. He's beautiful, to say the least. The trip to Greece adorned his nose and cheeks with a few freckles that are only visible from up-close and made his lips a bit darker.

"You have no idea how badly I need to kiss you," he says softly, his gray eyes glancing between my eyes and down to my lips. I let out a shaky breath.

My body erupts into a fit of tingles as I process his words, letting out a shaky breath.

"Then do it." I whisper.

What if this ruins our friendship? What if he will want nothing to do with me afterwards? What if-

My thoughts are cut short as soon as his lips meet mine. I momentarily freeze, not knowing how to react to the feeling of his soft lips on mine, so he pulls away. But as soon as he does so, I move my hand behind his neck and press my lips firmly against his again. A breathy groan rumbles through his throat and it takes everything in me to keep myself from falling to my knees. His hand snakes around my waist as his lips move against mine. My fingers knot between the soft locks of his hair at the nape of his neck and I press my body closer to his, demanding to close he distance between us. The hand on my waist moves up the side of my body, a sensation of tingles erupting everywhere his fingertips touch, until he reaches the side of my neck, where he can feel my rapid pulse. For a brief moment he pulls back, before tilting his head a bit at an angle and pressing our lips together again, catching my mouth in a breathtaking kiss.

There's nothing rushed about the kiss, it's slow and passionate. It's as if he were trying to memorize the feeling of my lips, exploring every detail of them. His hand on my neck travels back down to my waist and he pulls me closer to his body, causing my mouth to slightly part. My back instinctively arches at his touch and he leans forward, in order to keep our lips together. He gently glides his tongue across my bottom lip, pulling it between his teeth. My fingertips pull through his hair and a soft chuckle erupts from him as he smiles against my lips. He turns our bodies so that my back is facing the couch before gently pushing me until I'm laying on down. Without parting our mouths, he crawls on top of me and snakes an arm behind my back, pulling me upwards so our chests meet. He pulls his lips away from mine and peppers my jaw with kisses, moving along to my neck. He instantly finds my sweet spot and kisses it mercilessly until I'm sure he left a mark. I sigh, a veil of ecstasy consuming every part of me.

I place my hand under his jaw and bring his face up to mine, kissing him once more. I graze my teeth along his bottom lip as he kisses me and a sound escapes him, one that I never thought I'd hear. He presses one last kiss on me before pulling back, his lips red and swollen, as we catch our breath.

"Well, fuck." He breathes.

word count: 1383
☂︎︎☂︎︎☂︎︎☂︎︎☂︎︎☂︎︎☂︎︎☂︎︎☂︎︎☂︎︎

WELL THEN. It only took 36 chapters but DANG. Anywho, lmk what u think abt the book so far🙌
Stay safe<3
-S