Chef's Kiss

Dreamy

Violet

The loud snap of the front door closing brought me back to the waking world. My head popped up as I quickly came to, realizing I was still on the couch. My one hand was buried in Matt's hair, the other draped over Chris' ankles to my right.

"Hello?" I called out quietly, not quite putting together what had just woken me.

"Violet?" Nick's voice came from the entrance, showing equal confusion in his voice as I'd just expressed in mine.

"Yeah it's me," I answered, hearing his footsteps coming up the stairs and looking over, waiting for him to come into sight.

"Hey," he whispered, finally appearing. "I figured you'd have gone home by now," he commented, stepping into the living room. His eyes quickly traced our arrangement on the couch. He always was the most observant of the three of them.

"They asked if I wanted to watch a movie so I stuck around and we all fell asleep," I answered by way of explanation, rubbing my eyes and trying to wake myself up a little more. Matt stirred then, stretching his back and turning over, head still on the pillow so he faced my torso instead of the tv. I chuckled at the motion.

"Nickisthatatyou," he mumbled all as one word. I rested my head against the backrest and looked up at Nick with a sigh of tiredness.

"Come on Matt," he urged, stepping over to us and reaching out to shake his shoulder. "Go to your bed." Matt's hand instinctively reached out to slap Nick's away, a scowl in his brow. "Matt!" he exclaimed, "Get the fuck up."

"Eugh," he groaned out in reply, pushing himself up from my lap, sitting upright but without ever opening his eyes. He yawned but didn't seem to be any more awake mentally than moments before.

"Matt?" I asked on a small laugh.

"Vi?" He answered, blinking just the smallest bit and sinking back into his seat. I didn't know how Matt's sleep worked, I still barely knew anything about him, but he seemed almost like he was more out of it than a normal person should be.

"Yeah it's me. Are you okay?" I asked, sitting up and inspecting him a bit closer. Nick stepped forward then, too.

"I'm so cold," he replied, on a shiver. I looked at Nick for a moment, then back to Matt.

"Let's go to bed, hun," I urged, moving to step off the couch and reaching for his hands.

"Vi?" he asked again.

"Yes Matt, I'm here," I replied, starting to worry why he was borderline delusional as I took his hands and tried to pull him up.

"You're so pretty," he mumbled, slinking back into the couch. My yanking made no difference in pulling him up and I let go as Nick stepped in to take over.

"Oh my god," I grumbled, putting my face in my hands at the embarrassment of him saying that in front of Nick.

"And you're so out of it," Nick replied for me as he successfully got him to his feet, one of his arms around his shoulders, holding him up to walk him to his room as I followed.

"Vi sleep with me," he grumbled casually.

"Whaat the fuuck?" Nick questioned under his breath. I wanted to laugh but it wasn't like Matt to outwardly say stuff like that. He barely even 'publicly' acknowledged my existence until a few days prior.

"Is he always like this when he's fallen asleep?" I asked, my cheeks growing hot at his question.

"No, never," Nick answered, pushing open Matt's door and leading him to his bed.

"I'm so cold," Matt added, dropping onto his bed with deadweight and immediately curling onto his side. I reached for his blanket and pulled it over him, tucking it behind his back and up to his chin. My hand grazed his face and I felt the immediate blaze of his skin.

"Oh shit, Nick," I gasped, suddenly realizing what was happening and placing my palm to his searing forehead. "I think he's sick, his face is so hot." Nick had been turning off the computer monitor to cut the bright light it was emitting, and headed back over to me. He reached out to touch his palm to Matt's forehead and felt the same thing.

"Ah fuck," he groaned.

"Violet can I have a goodnight kiss?" Matt's voice came through the dark and my eyes snapped to Nick's in sheer mortification at what was happening. There wasn't enough light to gauge his reaction so I couldn't get a read on what he might've been thinking in that moment.

"I don't think so, sweetie. Try to get some sleep, okay?" I whispered back, patting his arm and following Nick out of the bedroom.

We stepped back into the light of the hallway together and I shut the door behind my quietly.

Nick had continued on into the kitchen so when I followed him into it, I was equal parts nervous and curious what he'd have to say. Had Matt's remarks given him enough to figure out what we'd had going on between us?

He opened the fridge just as I stepped in.

"I made dessert tonight," I offered. "Do you want some?"

"Holy shit, yes," he replied.

I headed to the counter to the covered dish I'd kept the food in, before realizing Chris was still on the couch.

"Should we wake up Chris, too?" I asked.

"No he can sleep through an earthquake," he replied, pulling out a chair and sitting down like he'd just finished a long workday and was finally able to rest, even though they hadn't worked that day. Speaking of which...

"You were out late tonight," I commented, broaching the subject with 'innocent' curiosity. There was a time a question like that might have seemed probing or too personal between us, but Nick and I had grown closer and closer in the time we'd spent together, and it felt like something I could ask.

"Hmmm," was all he commented on a sly smile, clearly hiding something from me in a way that told me he wanted me to know, he just didn't want me to know the details.

"Hmmm?" I asked, looking back at him as I plated a piece of the cheesecake and smiling. "Do tell," I prompted.

"I don't kiss and tell," he played and I placed the plate on the table before him along with a fork.

"Such a gentleman," I played back as I took the seat beside him. We sat in silence for a moment. As I breathed deeply, still a bit sleepy, I wondered if I really wanted to drive home that late and that tired. "How did you get home?"

"I got a ride," he explained, continuing to be coy.

"I see..." I held back my smile. "What's his name?" I finally asked. His eyes snapped up to mine, his temptation to tell me everything bubbling closer and closer to the surface.

"Elliot," he replied after a beat. I let my jaw drop at finally getting an answer and leaned back in my chair.

"Elliot!!!" I exclaimed, immediately excited for him. "Alright Nick, now you have to tell me everything."

"Oh my god he's so hot," he gushed, and soared into the tale of his night.