Two Weeks to Fall in Love

29. Two Weeks to Kiss the Guy

The party was still in full swing. It was clear that some people were passing through Tipsy and straight to Drunk, fairly quickly. An uncomfortable feeling spread through me and I squeezed Noah's hand to get his attention.

"I think I need to go check on Mel, and make sure she's okay." It didn't really feel okay leaving my best friend alone here for so long when I begged her to come. Maybe she could join us on the house tour.

Noah just grinned at me and nodded his head in the direction on what must have been the designated dance floor. My eyes followed his gaze and settled on the familiar shape of my best friend, dancing with his pink-haired sister.

I stared at her, my mouth falling open when I noticed she had a huge grin on her face. Tara leaned toward her and said something, her hand grabbing hold of Melissa's, and my best friend laughed. I could have sworn her cheeks were colored redder than they used to be and I was pretty sure it wasn't because she added extra blush to them.

"I haven't seen Mel this happy in a long time," I commented without really thinking about it, my lips pulling up into a smile.

"Same goes for Tara actually."

I turned to look at Noah at that, tilting my head to the side. "Really? She seems like such a happy, bubbly person though."

"She's really good at masking," Noah said and let out a sigh, an almost sad smile on his face as he looked out to his sister. "Usually the people that seem the happiest have the most scars."

It felt like there was something oddly personal about that statement, seeing as how he always seemed to be full of energy and smiles. Maybe he was just as good at masking as his sister was.

"Ready for the infamous tour of the house?"

I nodded enthusiastically, perhaps a bit too much even, and Noah started leading me through the house. Even though it was obvious what every room we passed through was – living room, kitchen, first bathroom, guest room, second bathroom... – he leaned toward me and spoke into my ear to introduce each one. When we moved upstairs, the volume from the bottom was more muffled, and there didn't seem to be any other people there.

"How come this area is so deserted?" I asked, curious.

"The upstairs is off-limits. Even Tara makes sure that's followed. Our dad's study is here and he'd kill her if something happened to it."

"Oh wow, now I feel special, being allowed here."

"That's because you are." Noah winked at me and my breath got stuck in my throat. My heart hiccuped.

Did he just call me special?

"And this is me," he said, leaning on the wall next to a door, before pushing it open.

Oh shit. I never actually considered the tour would probably end at his room. Which kind of made me dense, because hello, of course it would. I'd watched enough rom-coms and read enough romance books to know that the bedroom was always the end destination for any party or house tour.

I swallowed hard and glanced at him, and noticed the smirk on his face that popped up as soon as he saw my uncertainty. As usual, my stubbornness kicked in, and I raised my head higher before stomping inside full of very fake confidence.

Noah chuckled and walked in after me, closing the door behind him.

His room was spacious, much more spacious than mine, but it also seemed like it wasn't really lived in. There was a bed, a small couch and TV, a desk with some books, a guitar and keyboard tucked into a corner and another shelf with books. That was it. No pictures, no posters, no stickers of his favorite bands.