One Step at a Time

Chapter 15

Sadie POV

Simon continued to stare at me on the floor. Not that I blamed him. I had just yelled that I had to pee after being found in the bathroom of the room he had been hooking up in.

"Here," Simon walked over and offered me his hand. With some hesitation, I took it and he picked me up from the ground. He then grabbed the mop and set it back up. "That was a loud thud, did you hurt yourself?"

I shook my head and wiped myself off. "You're not mad?"

"How much did you hear?"

"Do you want me to answer that?"

Simon turned his back, a hand raked through his hair. "Great."

"Sorry." I had said it more out of habit than anything. All I could do was stare at his back. His shoulders were tense. I could tell that he was as uncomfortable as I was.

"What are you sorry for?" Simon said over his shoulder. His tone similar to how he it used to be in rehearsals. I almost flinched at it. This week had made me forget how frustrated he could be towards me. Simon shook his head. "All you did was have to pee."

This made me laugh. Hard. I had no idea what had come over me, but the small joke he made had gotten to me. The sound of my laughter echoed off the tile that surrounded us. My face began to hurt from how wide my smile was growing. I didn't know what I was doing. And from the look on Simon's face, he thought the same. But I continued to laugh, holding on to my stomach. Tears filled my eyes. A blurry grin showed on Simon. I think I even heard a small chucked coke from him.

"Sorry," I wiped my eyes, having calmed down.

"You already said that." This time Simon's response was accompanied by a smirk. A silence fell over us. I glanced in the mirror to see if my mascara had been painted across my face. Thankfully not. I grabbed a tissue and rubbed off the small amount under my eye. "That funny, huh?"

"I guess so."

"What are you doing here anyway?" Simon questioned me. His gaze had fallen on me through the mirror. I made small eye contact before turning to face him.

"I think we already established that I had to pee."

Simon rolled his eyes. "That's not what I meant. Here, at this party. This doesn't seem like your scene."

For whatever reason, this rubbed me wrong. Similar to Aedon's comment earlier. I was feeling sensitive tonight it seemed. "How do you know I don't party all the time, Simon?" I folded my arms, an attempt at a stern glare on my face.

"How cute, Sadie Jane." Simon's mocking tone went over my head as I had to fight the warmth spreading across my face. "I think we both know you don't."

"And why is that exactly?" My annoyance could no longer be hidden. What I didn't know was whether I was more annoyed at Simon, or how embarrassed I was.

Simon took a moment to answer my question. Instead, he took a dramatic exit out of the bathroom. He landed at the foot of the bed, sitting down. Both of his hands planted behind him as he leaned back slightly. "Sadie Jane. You don't have to prove anything to me. If it's not your scene, it's not your scene."

"Whatever," I dropped it, knowing I had given in to his taunting too much as it was. "Why are you? How do you know these people?"

"Oh you mean Philip? We go way back."

"You said you didn't know Philip."

Simon let out an embarrassed chuckle. "Right. Almost forgot about that." I don't know if it was the lighting, but I could have sworn I saw Simon's cheeks turn a faint pink. "Stop just standing there. It's making me feel uncomfortable." He patted the spot to the right of to him indicating me to sit on the bed next to him. I walked past him to the other side of the bed. Sliding off the sandals I had on, I sat down at the top of the bed. My legs were crossed as I rested my chin on my hands, my knees supporting my elbows.