Time After Time

Chapter 24: It's in his Kiss

The air was so brittle it could snap, and if it didn't, Lauren felt as if she might. The room sat in knee-deep silence. Nobody speaks; what is there to say? There was a discomfort in her chest and an urge to run, escape, or hide. What was Lauren supposed to do? Tell the truth? As if he would believe any of it.

The seconds after his curious question felt as if it was a very prolonged few minutes. Neither of them moved a muscle as Lauren's heartbeat thumped rapidly inside her chest. Paul stood in the doorway wearing his loose navy-colored pajama bottoms, his arms folded across his chest. His eyes widened in anticipation as the few seconds turned into a minute of silence, awaiting Lauren's answer. He didn't ask a question but assumed she was hiding something and he was right.

'What the hell am I supposed to tell him?' her thoughts scattered through her mind, 'I'm actually a girl from the future, Paul, and I time-traveled here,' a heavy sigh escaped her lips, 'Right, that sounds completely fucking sane' her mind cursed to herself.

At this point, after hearing Lauren's shaky breaths escape from her lips, John realized that she wasn't going to say anything or do anything but stay frozen. The only way he figured they could escape this situation was a distraction. He needed to create something that would throw Paul off completely.

Just at the right moment, Ringo stuck his head in Lauren's room after hearing Paul's last sentence, holding a juicy red apple in his hand, "What's goin' on? What do you need an answer to?" He placed the apple in his mouth and took a large bite, his eyes also now staring at the two of them.

Before Paul answered, John cheekily grinned, excited that this was the perfect time for a distraction, 'Thank God for Rings', he internally thanked the man upstairs for sending him in. With one smooth move, he wrapped his arms around her back and behind her knees, lifting her up and out of bed, "Macca was askin' why we weren't outta bed yet."

Lauren's eyes widened in surprise as John carried her in his strong arms, a smile immediately spreading across her face but also wanted to play along, "John! What are you doing?! Put me down!"

John wiggled his eyebrows and made a face at Paul and Ringo, pushing his tongue to the inside bottom of his lip, "Just ya wait, missy. 'Bout time we get out of that bleedin' bed and enjoy that sunshine."

With one swift move, he leaped off the bed with Lauren in his arms and scurried out the door. Paul grimaced in annoyance that once again, he was completely ignored. He knew something was going on between them and he was determined to find out.

When they reached the staircase, Lauren smacked John's shoulder, "Okay, okay, you can put me down."

John glanced behind him and saw Paul following behind them, "Ohp, he's on our tail."

Quickly, he ran down the steps still with Lauren in his arms, as they were laughing. He finally reached the bottom of the stairs, "Okay, I'm ready to get down."

Still with Lauren in his grasp, a wicked smile emerged as his playful thoughts took him, "Didn't you say your parents have a pool?"

"I think so, I mean, to my best recollection," Lauren smirked, as technically she's never been here in person but knows just from Lacey's memories. Lauren studied the expression on his face, "Wait, what are you going to do?"

His slow and smooth walk turned into a rapid stroll, now gripping Lauren tightly.

"John! No, no, no, no! Put me down!" She cried out as her voice echoed throughout the house, bringing attention to both Lacey's parents but also Neil, seeing them poke their heads from out of the kitchen.

Lauren knew exactly what he was about to do and she wiggled around, desperately trying to get loose from his grasp but it was no use.

"What're ya doin'?" Neil takes a bite of a piece of toast, staring at Lauren and John.