The five of us came up with a game plan (and a couple backup plans) in the event that Mom Woods ends up stopping by. We were all pretty shaken up about it, so we collectively took some extra security measures: putting doorstops on each entrance, securing the sliding glass door with a bike lock, closing all the blinds and curtains, and turning off every light we could find.
We decided that we would watch movies and camp out in the living room, because frankly, we were all a bit too spooked to be alone. Everyone gathered pillows and blankets from their rooms and brought them into the living room. Bonnie moved the coffee table out of the living room to make space on the floor, since there were only two couches.
Wes called dibs on the long couch because he's the tallest one, and simply wouldn't fit on the floor between the couch and the TV. Vivian eagerly claimed the other couch, meanwhile the rest of us were laying on the floor. We laid down a few comforters and surrounded the perimeter with pillows. And to be honest, it was quite cozy. I was in the middle.
The credits began to scroll up from the bottom of the now black screen, indicating the movie's official ending. I looked up at the couches to see if anyone was still awake. Wes was completely knocked out--and sprawled out. He looked like a cat sleeping on its back. Vivian's head was resting on a plethora of pillows, her eyes peacefully shut. She was also cuddling a pillow.
I glanced to my right to see the back of Bonnie's head as she laid sideways wrapped up in her blanket like a cocoon, facing the bottom of the couch beside her.
I then turned my head to my left to find that Leo was still awake. He looked back at me, but didn't say anything.
"Everyone fell asleep," I whispered before directing my eyesight back to the TV.
"Yeah," he replied. Although I wasn't looking at him, I could hear his smile through his voice. Maybe it's something in his tone, maybe it's just speaking with curved lips, but I knew I wasn't mistaken.
I picked up my phone, which was laying screen-down on my chest, and unlocked the screen to check the time. The brightness of the screen beamed onto my face and burnt my eyes--and probably Leo's too. I groaned as I quickly locked my phone. I didn't even get the time, but I assumed that it was the wee hours of the morning. I sighed in relief after the comfortable darkness returned. The television screen was our only source of light in that moment.
Suddenly, I became hyper aware of the fact that Leo's face was just inches from mine. My entire body turned into jello. It was then that I noticed that our upper arms were pressed together.
All of my thoughts overlapped and began screaming over each other, creating a whirlwind of emotions. Does he know that we're touching? Am I still mad? Is this grudge even worth holding? But also, what if he breaks my trust again? Does this mean I care about him? What is he thinking right now? I was overwhelmed, but I knew I had to at least say something.
"Hey," I whispered, finally looking over at him. He turned his head to me, and even in the dark, those oceanic eyes are vigorously piercing.
"I, um," I stammered. "I just, I don't want to have a bad relationship with you, or Viv, or anyone. You're my roommate, and my coworker, and we're in the same friend circle. I don't wanna risk fucking that up, y'know?"
Leo smirked and softly replied, "I get it."
"Thank you," I whispered after a long pause.
"Me? For what?" Leo responded, his smile growing.
"For helping me with Mom Woods, and walking me to the car and everything. And making sure I was safe, I guess." I rambled. I was trying my hardest to avoid using the word 'protect,' because I was honestly too embarrassed to admit that part.
Leo chuckled and whispered, "Don't you worry about it."
"You broke my trust," I conveyed abruptly. "That shit's not cool." I opposed to reciprocate his goofy smile, because I needed him to understand how strongly I feel about this.
"Don't do it again," I added sternly. I took a deep breath before sheepishly muttering the words, "...but I forgive you." I focused my eyes back to the TV, albeit I had noticed him flash a whopping smile in my peripheral vision. I tried my best to ignore it.
"You're a pretty cool woman," Leo said, to which I chuckled softly.
Leo stood up and held his hand out for me to grab. As he pulled me up, we moved slowly to remain as quiet as possible. We both looked back at the others, and sure enough, they were still dead asleep. "C'mere," he whispered. We tip toed on the hardwood floors; he led me to the bathroom in the next room over. Leo flicked the light switch to ON, and placed me in front of a long mirror, displaying me to myself. In the bottom corner of the mirror, the bathroom light seeped over into the living room and shone onto the others.
Leo wrapped his arms around my waist from behind me as I watched his hands travel through the mirror. There was a small gap between the bottom of my tank top and the top of my shorts, exposing a slice of my midriff. His fingertips lightly grazed my skin in that gap, sending a storm of adrenaline throughout my body. He leaned forward, bringing his head closer to my level. I felt and heard every breath of his, warming the back of my ear.
"So you forgive me, huh?" he smirked. I rolled my eyes, unsuccessfully attempting to hide my smile. The face in my reflection turned pink.
"This still doesn't make it okay to do stupid shit." I asserted nervously, completely avoiding the obvious yes/no aspect of the question.
"Mmm," he hummed into my ear as he dug his face into my neck. That soft little noise caused me to forget everything, and my skin feebly melted into the warmth of his. The tips of his thumbs gripped the waistline of my shorts from the inside, grazing my hip bones while his other fingers wrapped around my hips.
"Look at you," he whispered as he ran his hands up and down the sides of my waist. "Beautiful." He gripped my hips and pressed himself to me; his torso to my back, and his crotch against my butt--and, yeah, I could feel it. Which, of course, turned me into a rag doll, as if I wasn't dazed enough. At that point, I couldn't focus on anything else. The temptation to sway my hips in response was a difficult urge to resist.
I had even forgotten that the others were laying right behind us. I don't think anyone had woken up at this time, but then again, all of my surroundings were blurred. The only thing I could see was the reflection of myself being kissed and gripped by Leo.
Into my ear, he whispered, "You can be mine." With his right hand, he pushed my hair over my right shoulder and began to kiss my left. My heartbeat accelerated, as a part of me anxiously wondered what those words meant to him. Meanwhile, however, the other part of me was melting in his arms, and didn't care about anything but his touch.
"Whatd'ya mean?" I chuckled nonchalantly. Leo's lips traveled up to my neck, causing me to lean my head back with euphoria.
"I wanna call you my girlfriend." Leo specified, migrating his lips up to my ear, as he made eye contact through the mirror.
My spine straightened as I took a deep breath. I smiled to hide my embarrassment. I knew for a fact that I was nowhere near ready for a relationship, or any kind of commitment like that. It hadn't even been that long since I left home. I was still adjusting to my new life. And if I'm being completely honest, I wasn't... entirely over Bria. Despite my efforts to forget about her, I'd still catch myself thinking about her.
A lot.
I didn't want to hurt him, but I also didn't want to accidentally lie my way into an unwanted relationship in order to save someone else's feelings. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be my first time doing so.
"Can I?" he sought. I broke our eye contact and looked back at my own reflection. My face was still pink. Even my laugh looked nervous. I knew that I couldn't get away with anxious laughter as my only response. I had to say something.
"Maybe someday," I answered.
