One Summer Day (BWWM)

CHAPTER 17

The constant ringing of my alarm is what woke me out of my slumber. I had attempted to get out of bed, but I was stopped by a large arm tightening its hold around me. I quickly opened my eyes to find a mop of curls in front of me. "Rom, get off, I gotta go to work," I groaned out as I attempted to remove his arms from me but ultimately failed due to the size difference.

"Stay," he grumbled, squeezing even tighter than before. I sighed, "As much as I would love to stay here, I have a job to get to." I tried to shake him off, but to no avail. Feeling like my attempts were futile, I stopped trying and pretended to give up. Roman loosened his grip, and I took this as an opportunity to escape. He tried to grab me again, but this time I made it without him getting me.

"Cléo, come on," he groaned, still reaching for me. "Come back to bed," and I couldn't help but chuckle. "Why are you being so clingy today, Rom?" I said, walking towards the bathroom to brush my teeth. A couple of minutes later, I came back out to see Rom sitting on his bed with his hair sticking out in different places, zoned out. I smiled softly and walked up to him. I got in front of him and stepped between his legs. He looked at me and smiled softly as well. "Hi," I whispered, and he responded, "Hi." I couldn't help but laugh, which caused him to laugh as well. "This sh*t is so corny," he said, and I couldn't help but agree. He leaned his head on my shoulder and sighed deeply. I used my fingers to rake through his hair.

"You okay?" I softly asked. It was quiet for a while before he softly whispered, "My giagiá's funeral is this weekend." He paused, "It's finally hitting me that she's gone," he chuckled hoarsely, and I wrapped my arms around him. I stayed silent, not knowing what to say. I had experienced losing a loved one before, but I never really knew how to process the loss, so I kind of just... blocked it out. I squeezed him tightly and let go to look at him. My heart broke to find his eyes lined red and tears streaming down his face. I carefully wiped his tears, brought his head toward mine, and kissed his forehead. I let my lips linger for a bit before letting go and caressing his cheeks softly.

"Do you want me to go with you?" I asked softly. He nodded without hesitation. "I was gonna ask Yon, Tako, and Yonhee to come, but I wanted to ask you first," he said, and I nodded in understanding. "Of course, anything you need, Rom, I'm here for you." And I hugged him once again and squeezed him tighter. We both flinched when I heard my alarm go off again, and I hesitantly let go of him. I looked at my phone and realized it was my warning alarm.

"I gotta go now, but if you wanna hang out later, I'll leave a spare key under the doormat of my room if you need it, okay?" I told him, and he nodded. "Okay, I gotta go now, Rom," I said and walked toward the door. I quickly turned around and sent a wave at him before walking out the door.

The first hour into my shift, and I already missed my bed, more like Roman's bed. What? Thinking about last night, I couldn't believe that Roman and I almost kissed. Thinking about it, I couldn't help but blush. I mean, what would have happened if Yon hadn't called me? What would happen if we did kiss; would our relationship have changed? Rom told me earlier that he wasn't ready for a relationship, and I don't think I'm ready for one either—or so I thought. Lately, I've been feeling a lot of mixed emotions when it comes to my feelings, especially with Roman. Like, of course, I've had crushes here and there, but they were more like passing crushes. But with Roman, I can't help but want more. Not wanting to think about it anymore, I decided to distract myself with work, which I liked to do best, and wiped around the store.

The chiming of the doorbell indicated that a customer was in, which prompted me to walk to the front desk. I paused for what seemed like forever when I found the most attractive man I had ever seen. I was in utter and complete awe.

"Hello," he said, and I swear I heard an accent.

"Hi," I breathed out, "Welcome to Retro Grooves," I smiled at him, "How can I help you today?" I asked.