Grace.

Chapter 26.

A part of me hated myself. Sometimes I'd have sleepless nights. I couldn't believe how I was able to look Lucy in the eye for weeks, knowing that I was secretly seeing a guy she was madly in love with. We all knew she'd die for Edgar, but he just didn't feel that way about her — at all.
No one knew.
Not Mimi. Not Gloria. No one. I did a lot of lying and sneaking around and to me, that was definitely not what I wanted. But I had no choice. I couldn't stay away from Edgar but whenever we were together, I'd want to get out of there as soon as possible. He wasn't horrible, our situation was. Hiding stressed me out. Big time!
He knew that we couldn't meet in public, so we'd spent time at his place. He also tried his best not to mention Lucy. He loved holding me. He loved to cuddle with me and have me in his arms. We were taking things slow, but I didn't want to think of it as us dating just yet. I really liked him though. He was funny and dumb yet smart at the same time. He understood me and we never ran out of things to say to each other.
One afternoon, I was over at his house.
He had cooked a meal which wasn't so bad. After the meal, we headed to his bedroom to chill and cuddle.
"Are you okay? You're not your usual self today," he asked me, pulling me in closer to him.
"Daniel is in hospital. He got beat up in the parking lot at the mall, Friday afternoon."
Daniel was in fact in hospital. He got robbed at the parking lot at the mall. Gloria wasn't okay. But dad promised her that he'd be fine, and that she shouldn't worry.
"What? Was is it a mugging?"
"They only took his wallet but left his phone and car."
"Well, that's unusual and dumb."
"Yeah. Ria is at the hospital but the doctors said he'll be okay. Just a few fractured ribs."
"That's horrible." 
"Promise me you'll be safe," I looked up at him.
"I will, baby. Don't worry about me. I should be worrying about you. You're my heart. Do you know that?"
I looked at him, shaking my head, a smile on my face.
"Well, you are and now you know. Promise me you'll never forget that."
"I won't," I promised, rubbing my thumb on his cheek.
He bent down to my lips and kissed me. My fingers found the nape of his neck and I pulled him towards me. Like magnets, we were drawn to each other. His lips crashed into mine, and in a moment, he was on top of me, my legs snaking around his waist. The sound of my name in his low, gravelly voice sent my heart into an overdrive, and I ground my hips against his slowly. With a groan, he kissed across my jawline until he reached the sensitive skin of my neck. I let out a low moan as kissing became biting and sucking.
"Eddy..." I shivered, gently pushing him by his chest.
I looked at him straight in his eyes. The look in them tempted me into pulling him closer again and ripping his clothes off but it wasn't the right time. "Don't worry, we weren't going to go that far. It's too soon for that," he smiled. "Agreed," I nodded, cuddling closer to him again.
We laid side by side gazing into each other's eyes. With each passing moment getting lost in his eyes, was a minute I spent wondering if I made the right choice. Just because it felt right, didn't mean that it was. My heart quickened from guilt.
"I could lie here next to you forever," he cooed.
I lifted my head up from the pillow and blinked several times, "What?" I gasped.
He quickly jerked up from the bed realizing what he'd just said. Grabbing my hand, he proceeded to explain himself, "I'm sorry for rushing and being so forward. I was caught in the moment. Please forgive me?" He panicked. I looked at him and could tell how embarrassed he was. "It's okay, Edgar. No need to apologize," I smiled, hugging him.
He tightened his arms around me.
"I don't know when I'll see you again," I admitted, enjoying every second of being in his loving embrace.
"I could sneak into your room, tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow? So soon? I need to give you a chance to miss me. How about Wednesday?"
"That's too far, Grace."
"What's the rush?"
"I thought you and I would never happen, yet here you are. I'm a little excited here. Can you blame me?"
"You're so sweet, Edgar."
"I want to spend every second I get, with you. Please?"
"Okay, mister nice guy. Only cause you asked nicely. Also, I can't say 'no' to that pretty face."
"Who you calling pretty?" He frowned, tickling me on my stomach. He stopped and tilted his head to the side. "That's such a pretty cardigan, Gracie," he finally noticed.
"Only now you notice?" I laughed.
"I got lost in your smile and you smell so, so good," he joked, burying his head in my neck and taking a sniff.
We both laughed.
"Thank you, babe. It's a gift from Mrs. Collins."
"You made quite the impression, huh? But then again I'm not surprised. It's in your nature."
"What is?"
"Being the charmer," he smirked.
"You are foolish," I blushed, as I played with his ear.
"That feels so nice," he admitted, his eyes slowly closing.
I giggled and then grabbed his other ear, playing with it as well. He quivered. He seemed to be enjoying it far too much, so I stopped. He opened his eyes.
"I'm thirsty," I quickly told him, getting off the bed.
"Let's get you something to drink."
He came behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, giving me pecks on my cheek and neck on the way to the kitchen. When we got there, he pulled a chair out for me.
"Right! What would you like, babe? And don't say..."
"Vodka, please!" I quickly requested, laughing.
He gave a chuckle and slapped his forehead. "Fine, but I'm putting ice in it," he said.
"No ways!" I protested, getting up from the chair.
I tried to grab the bottle from him but he dangled it in the air. I went on my toes and so did he. The whole thing amused him and he laughed. So I quickly thought of the easiest way to make him surrender. Placing each hand on either side of his waist, I kissed him. The hand in the air slowly fell down. As soon as it was in reach, I grabbed the bottle.
"So easy," I snickered.
"I did it on purpose," he lied.
"Liar! Would you like a glass?" I asked him.
He moved in closer to me and pulled me out of the kitchen, again by my waist.
"Eddy? The glasses!" I cried.
"We don't need glasses," he chuckled.
We reached the living room and plopped ourselves onto the couch. He took my legs and rested them on him, and I opened the bottle of vodka, taking the first sip. I then handed it to Edgar who took a sip as well.
"This feels nice. Thank you," I cooed, resting my head on his shoulder.
"What for?" He asked.
"For following me behind," I replied.
He lowered his head and kissed my forehead. I took the bottle from him and put it on the table and then wrapped myself around him. He threw his arm around me, squeezing me tightly. In each other's arms and in the silence, we sat. And for a moment, it all made sense. All of it.

Arriving home after spending nearly the whole day with him, I got in the shower to freshen up. As happy as I was, I still didn't feel completely comfortable with the whole idea. The last thing I needed was another fall out with Lucy. But my feelings for Edgar were too strong to ignore. I was also very excited. I was finally with Edgar! And it all seemed so natural. I wasn't trying too hard. I wasn't worried whether he really felt the same way. It was all just so smooth and effortless.
My phone vibrated and I checked it. Nayeli had asked that I ride with her and River to school tomorrow. She also had good news to share with me, apparently. I texted back to agree: of course bae! can't wait to see you guys tomorrow! Xoxo.
Putting down my phone, I smiled to myself. Everything seemed to be going well for me. A new beau. Another loving family. What could possibly go wrong?

Book club ended earlier than usual the next day. All my friends were gone home already and football practice was still on. So, instead of going home, I went to go watch the remainder of it. You'd think that most girls were home already but they were actually packed by the bleachers watching the guys in their gear. I picked a spot further away from them and chose one where I could be on my own. And there he was.
Playing like he invented the sport. He was so good at it. Ethan put his heart and soul into football. I liked that. I didn't think I'd enjoy it so much, but I did! My eyes were glued onto him, my hands gripping harder onto the book I was holding. I almost tore it apart. The experience was so exhilarating. He moved so fast, skillfully and smoothly. Strategically!
Eventually, the game ended and I didn't want it to. The players went their separate ways with Ethan removing his helmet. It looked like he was staying behind to pack up a few things. The other girls remained behind drooling over him and pointing fingers at the other guys who were walking off the field.
Somehow, he spotted me and dropped everything he was doing, running over to me. I didn't know how to act.
"Hey!" He greeted.
"Hey!" I smiled, a little too much might I add.
"How are you?"
He was standing in front of me: one hand on his waist, his other leg up on the step. I held my book tightly against my chest.
"I'm good. How are you?"
"I'm great! Y-you're here," he marveled.
"B-book club ended early so, I...I came here."
He smiled and it was the cutest thing ever! It was a...shy smile.
"D-did you see me play?" He stressed.
"You were amazing. I...didn't want the game to end," I confessed.
"For real? Can I take a seat...next to you?"
"Of course! Sure!"
He rushed to take a seat next to me and I repositioned myself to face him. We sat there, smiling and giggling, it was...insane!
"I know I said I'd like us to talk when I'm clean but here we are."
"You're here, I'm here. What did you want to talk about?"
"I uhm, firstly, I'm sorry that we're having this conversation when I'm such a mess," he started.
"Trust me, it's okay. Don't worry about it," I assured him.
"Okay, cool. I- I know you and I don't know each other that well. We don't know each other at all, in fact," he chuckled.
"We're...getting to know each other."
"Yes. And...I, I was hoping that we could get to know each other better?"
"Oh? H-how so?"
"For starters, you could go to Homecoming with me. Please? I've been meaning to ask you for a while now. I-I just knew that I wanted to go with you."
"What do you mean?"
"You were so cool during our tutoring sessions. So cool and patient."
"Thank you," I blushed.
"Unless if you have someone you're going with already, I'll totally understand."
"No...I-I'm not. In fact, no one has asked me."
"No one? There's no way."
"I'm telling you the truth. You're the only one who's asked me, and..."
I...didn't know what I was doing. Was it wrong to go to Homecoming with another guy, while being in a relationship with another? I guess you could say I was bad with guys. I had no clue about how to deal with them.
"I'll go with you, Ethan. I'll go with you to Homecoming."
"Thank you...so much."
He took my hands into his and kissed them. My whole body warmed up.
"So, are you packing up the stuff?" I asked him.
"Yeah. It's just a few things, why?"
"I-I'd like to help," I offered.
"Okay," he whispered, a smile on his face.
He walked close to me as I carefully walked down the bleachers. I almost slipped and I found myself holding onto his shoulder.
"Whoa, are you okay?" He worried.
"I-I'm okay," I chuckled.
He held his arm out for me and I looped mine with his. There wasn't much to pack away. When we were done, he went to take a shower and I drove back home.