Piercing Hatred | ✔️

46

~Knox's POV~

I, thankfully, didn't see Gabriela very much over the next couple of days. She was out quite often, which I hoped meant she'd be getting the fuck out of my place soon.

The good thing about her lack of presence was the fact that I got to see Flora more, though usually during the night. I didn't mind, though. I'd take her at whatever time of day I could have her around me. It was almost a little scary just how accustomed I'd become to sleeping with her in the same bed, or waking up beside her in the morning, and it was apparent the most to me just how much I needed it when I couldn't have that.

"Hey." Flora waved her small hand in front of me, snapping me out of my thoughts. I looked down and saw the amusement on her face, her arms wrapped around a box of clothes that was a little more than half full. It must've not been a very heavy box because she managed to carry it just fine. "What's up?" I asked, and she gave me a sheepish grin, as if embarrassed. "I need help with these." She told me, almost muttering. "I can't reach high up enough to hang them where they need to go."

A chuckle escaped me and I carefully took the box from her, holding it with one arm, which she eyed me slightly unsurely for. I gestured towards the door and cocked up an eyebrow. "Well, lead the way. I'll take care of it for you, doll." I said in a hum.

She turned and exited the door with me trailing behind her, still holding the box with one arm. "See?" Flora frowned as she rounded the corner and pointed a finger upwards. "They go up there." She told me, and I tried to hide my amusement when I saw just how far it was out of her reach. She'd probably need a small set of steps to reach it.

I quickly unpacked the box and hung the clothes up, all while Flora quietly stood off to my right, watching me as if to make sure that I did it correctly. My eyes found her when I turned towards her after I was done, still holding onto the now empty box.

Her bright, pretty green eyes flicked up to me as she brushed her hair behind her ear. "Something wrong?" I teased, the edges of my lips tugging up into a playful smile. With a quicky shake of her head, she straightened her stance and fiddled with the bottom of her skirt. "No..." She grumbled, glancing away with an embarrassed nibble on the inside of her cheek. I slid past her, not hesitating to give her a mischievous smack on her ass after making sure nobody was around to see.

Flora jolted in surprise and I caught the scowl on her face before I walked off, grinning like an idiot when she hurried after me to smack me on the arm. "So," She began as we entered the back room together, the door silently swinging shut behind us. "You said Gabriela's been going out more lately, right?" She asked, glancing up at me.

"Mhm." I answered in a murmur, nodding. I looked down as I set the empty box off to the side, where we kept a lot of the trash and other boxes to recycle, and raised a brow. "Why?" I asked curiously, turning towards her more. "You wanting to come over for a little while?" I wondered, stepping towards her. My hands cupped her hips and pulled her against me, the intimacy causing Flora to glance towards the door as if nervous that someone might come in suddenly.

"Maybe just a little bit." She admitted, allowing her focus to fall onto me again as her full lips formed an ever so slight smile. I dug my fingers into her hips slightly and grinned deviously. "As long as you're fine with ordering in Chinese tonight. I've had a craving all day." I told her, causing her to smile up at me wider, a sparkle in her eye that I loved seeing.

"I think I can probably handle Chinese." She responded with a playful smile, and I fought off an amused snort, knowing that she liked Chinese food a lot—especially if it was from the right place.

I gave her hips a gentle squeeze. "Then that sounds like a pretty damn perfect night to me."

**

I entered my apartment after Flora had headed into hers, brushing my fingers through my hair. I was already thinking about what I wanted to order later.

The thoughts of chow mein noodles quickly dissipated into nothing when I turned around after locking the door, now greeted with the sight of Gabriela sitting on the couch with a bunch of clothes strewn about. I had obviously refused to let her sleep in my room with me, however that meant the living room was almost always a fucking mess with her clothes or makeup or something else of hers. It was something which I had grown tired of very quickly.

Despite the tick of my jaw tightening from irritation at the sight, I just rolled my eyes and headed down the hall, not bothering to say anything to her. She looked like she was getting ready to head out, anyways.

I entered my room and shut the door, kicking off my shoes. With a glance at the time, I decided to hop in the shower, wanting a way to pass the time until Gabriela was gone. However, I decided to get out once my fingertips began to prune, tugging on a comfortable pair of sweatpants and a tee after drying off.

Hoping that she was gone, I exited my room and wandered into the living room, stopping myself from groaning in annoyance when I saw she was still here. She looked up when I entered and I immediately turned the opposite direction, instead heading into the kitchen despite the fact that I didn't need anything from there.

The quiet sound of Gabriela coming towards the kitchen made me decide to swing open the fridge door, staring into its contents as if I was looking for something. Of course, I wasn't really, but I preferred this to speaking with her. Unfortunately for me, she didn't seem to care.

"Looking for something?" Gabriela asked, suddenly standing way too close behind me. I shut the fridge and quickly stepped away, frowning down at her. "No." I responded flatly, hoping she'd take the hint and leave me alone.

She smiled, seeming to do the exact opposite as I'd hoped. "No?" She echoed with an arch of her eyebrow. "Then what were you doing in here, if not looking for something to eat?" She pressed, closing the distance between us once more. I recognized the glint in her eye and knew rather quickly what exactly she was up to, so I didn't hesitate to step back again when she reached to touch my arm.

My eyes narrowed on her in a glare. "Don't you have somewhere to be, Gabriela?" I asked, and her smile fell immediately.

We stared at one another for a moment before she beamed and nodded her head enthusiastically. "You know, you're right." She laughed, playing it off as she spun around with a flick of her hair. "I just came to let you know I'll be heading out now. See you later!" She chirped, striding out of the kitchen.

I waited until I heard the front door shut before I relaxed, blowing out a breath of relief now that she was gone.