Conveniently Inspired

Chapter Twenty Eight

"Can I open my eyes now?" Skylar grinned. Kaden stood behind Skylar, his palms covering her eyes.

"Not yet." She was being blindly navigated to a 'surprise', something that old Skylar would've hated. But the new Skylar, well, she was eager to the unexpected nowadays. In fact, she looked forward to them. "Okay" he announced. "Take a peek."

His hands left her eyes, and she had to blink a few times to adjust to the light. But all she saw was her bedroom. "Um, Kaden, this is my house."

Still standing behind her, she felt his chest pressed against her back. His hands found their way to her waist as he gently pivoted her towards the back corner of the bedroom. Where her bedside table used to be now stood a bookshelf. A beautiful, wooden bookshelf that was completely stocked with all the novels on her TBR ("To be read") list. "Oh my gosh" she breathed out. Kneeling down, her fingers gently skimmed the corner of the shelf. It was painted a bright teal colour, and it had glass doors that opened outwards. She pulled out spine after spine, revealing books from Jane Austen to Dickinson, to Nora Roberts and John Green. And then on the top of the bookshelf was a picture frame, with a photo of Kaden and Skylar at homecoming. "Kaden- I can't believe it. You bought all this for me?" She spun around, lightly touching his chest.

"I bought the books. I made the shelf."

"You made the shelf?" she shrieked. "How? I didn't know you could make stuff like this?"

"It, uh, it was actually my father who taught me. He likes to make carved furniture in his freetime and takes commission for it. So I asked my dad how to build this. Technically, he should be getting the majority of the thanks."

"Kaden, tell your father thanks for me. I love it." She kissed him on the cheek. "How did you know what books I like to read?"

"Because you're my girlfriend. I know everything about you."

She narrowed her eyes, pulling out one cover with a shirtless man on it. "Really? So you're okay with me reading this?"

"Hey, I support my girl, even if she does read porn for fun." She smacked him on the head, earning a laugh in response. She stood on her tiptoes to give him a kiss. What was initially meant to be a peck turned into a longer kiss, until Skylar had to pull herself away. "My family is still downstairs" she whispered, frantically looking over his shoulder.

He groaned. "You're killing me, Sky."

She bit her lip then, turning back to him with an uncertain expression. "I actually have a present for you, too. It's um, it's nothing compared to what you gave me, but..." He waited patiently as she dove underneath her bed, pulling out a manuscript. It had no cover or anything, just a bunch of white paper stapled together. She handed it to him, heart pounding. He sat on the edge of her bed, turning the first page, quietly absorbing the words. She continued standing next to him, too nervous to sit down. Not only was it the first time she'd ever let Kaden read her work, but it was a new short memoir she'd been working on. She titled it "Out of the Shell", a personal and very intimate story about how Kaden had helped her come out of her shell more (hence the name), pushing Skylar to become a version of herself she liked the most. The memoir started off with her life 'before' - when lunch times were eaten alone and weekends were consumed in fantasies rather than the real world. Kaden was her 'inciting incident'- showing her what living was really like. What love was. She needed him to know just how much he meant to her.

After the third page, and after reading in utter silence, Kaden alas looked up. "Holy shit", he muttered. "How long did it take you to write this?"

"Maybe a week. This was by far the fastest I've ever written anything. The words just came pouring out of me." She wrapped her hands around her elbows with insecurity. "What do you think?"

"What do I think?" he asked. Instead of an answer, he yanked her down onto his lap. She sat straddling him, and he kissed her neck. He murmured against her skin, "I think this is the best gift anyone's ever gotten me."

His lips found hers, and she could feel his smile, but a voice interrupted them. "Skylar!" Ms. Lin hollered. "Come downstairs! We're playing Monopoly!"

Ben and Lena joined in the chorus of rhythmically yelling out their names. Skylar, like always, pulled away from the kiss first, earning another groan from Kaden. "Next time" he joked, "we're going to my place."

They headed down to the living room, joining the rest of the family. They already had the board set out, with various Asian snacks centered around the floor. Joining hands, Skylar and Kaden chose a spot on the ground. There was light hearted chatter and Ms. Lin was settling a dispute between her two youngest children over who got to play the shoe, when both Skylar and Kaden's phone buzzed at the same time. Kaden had a rule about never checking his phone when he was at the Lin household (he said it was basic common courtesy), but Skylar didn't hesitate to check, because a gut feeling told her she knew what it was. It was an email from the school board, with the title "short story" in the C.C. Her stomach churned. Aaron spoke up: "You okay, Skylar? You look pale as a ghost."

Skylar gulped. "The results of the short story contest are in." Everybody stopped talking. Even Ben and Lena quit their bickering to participate in the anticipation. Skylar handed the phone to Aaron. "I can't look. Will you read it for me?"

Aaron didn't move. "Skylar, I really think this should be something you read yourse-"

"Please. I feel like I'm gonna throw up."

Alas, he took the phone from her and his face lit up from the screen. Skylar watched his expression carefully. Even Ms. Lin was on the edge of her seat. Tension hung thick in the air, and Kaden grabbed her hand, squeezing twice.

It was obvious that Aaron was trying hard not to reveal too much from his face. He kept his expression neutral, and after what felt like an eternity, he finally said:

"You didn't win."