Never I Thought

Chapter 25 - Know My Love

I was trying to find a balance between old habits and the new lifestyle I had found myself with. Studying became an everyday thing. No longer was I making spontaneous trips out with Penny and Mabel who were living it up in their own relationships anyway.

I felt guilty but relieved that the less time I spent with them the less I was tempted to confess everything. The longer I kept it a secret though the bigger it was going to get. If Mabel was to find out how long I had been hiding the fact I was dating her cousin, it was obvious how mad she was going to be.

And I just didn't know how to deal with it yet.

Going back to my old ways was difficult when you had a shiny, new boyfriend. Luckily for me, he was a studier too and we spent most afternoons in my bedroom. My parents loved Kei. They said he was so nice and polite, maybe a little too quiet but they were sure he'd get more talkative with time.

Mila and Nikki had also chosen a location and were writing their report up. They absolutely loved the waterfall but wanted to keep it a secret between the four of us so Mila went with the oval near Wrigglers Creek and Nikki picked a local park at the edge of the suburb.

So now I only needed to do tutoring on Wednesdays. I know I had told my English teacher, Mrs Delvin that if my grades dropped I would drop tutoring but I knew that it hadn't been the entire reason. This year I had let go a bit. Perhaps it was the influence of my friends or I had done it to myself. Regardless I was ready to get back on track.

Or sort of.

Kei was very much a big distraction. Even when he was doing nothing he was so interesting to look at.

Seriously, why hadn't he been given a modelling career?

"What?" He'd always ask when he caught me looking.

"Nothing," I said this time, "just admiring the view."

"God, you have such a way with words," a grin curled onto his face.

We were lying on my bed with textbooks around us. I had my green blanket wrapped around me cause Kei had opened the window because he enjoyed the cold breeze.

"Well, I am a poet," I flipped my hair gracefully.

He reached out to clasp my hand and I found myself moving closer to him. His eyes watched mine wearily. This had to be the perfect moment. All alone. The mood was flirty. This was basic textbook kissing.

I went to press my lips against his softly but he pulled away. I had promised myself I wouldn't get offended but I couldn't help it. I sat up and tilted my head to the side.

"Am I doing something wrong?" I asked him.

His cheeks flushed red and he looked towards the window, "no. No, it's not you."

"What? It's not you it's me? You're really gonna pull that crap?" I sighed.

He gently placed his hand over mine, "I don't wanna ruin our first kiss. My first kiss. And I want the moment to be right."

"Hey, you're not going to ruin anything," I said softly, "and who cares if the first kiss isn't perfect because we'll have plenty more perfect ones in the future."

He looked at me and pressed his lips together, "you think that we'll have a future together?"

"Maybe not one with kisses," I joked, "but yeah, I think we will."

"Mmm, I can definitely think of some other things than just kisses."

Then he did lean forward and my heart skipped a beat. Finally. He wasn't scared of screwing it all up anymore because we'd get another chance to recreate the moment again and again until it became our version of perfect.