BEAUTIFUL MESS [Book 2] | MIKHAIAH

16

She avoided me for days. Days of me playing that discussion on repeat in my head. It had taken me two minutes to realize I should never have brought up the subject of children. I was an insensitive idiot and had slapped myself in the forehead for being so dense. I needed to find her, and apologize.

Only problem is, she did avoidance so well, that I think it was another super power she had. She snuck into the apartment quietly at random times of the day, locking herself in her room or the bathroom before I had a chance to say anything.

I was fed up after a week of it, and cornered her in the bathroom.

"Mika Lopez! What do you think you're doing!" she said in a high-pitched voice as I broke into the bathroom and pulled the shower curtain back.

My eyes glanced down her wet, soapy body and took their time returning north. She still took my breath away. "I, uh...need to talk to you."

"It can wait!" She grabbed the curtain and yanked it out of my grip.

"No, it can't," I said, accidentally pulling some the curtain rings off the rod when I wrestled the curtain back again. "You're always running away."

"Look what you've done," Amaia said as one of the curtain rings that had fallen hit the shower floor with a clank. I did what I could not to look down at her body again, and fixated my stare on her eyes.

"Don't change the subject."

She narrowed her eyes. "If you don't mind, I'm trying to shower here."

"And we need to talk."

"Then we'll talk after I shower."

I crossed my arms. "You're not going to run away?"

"I haven't been running away, I've been busy."

"So have I. Being busy doesn't mean sneaking into the house and locking yourself in your room."

She shut her eyes and let her head hang forward, instantly going from peeved to surrender. "Will you please just let me shower in peace?"

"Okay, but please...let me talk to you?"

She nodded.

"Amaia, I'm serious."

"Fine," she said, reaching up and pulling the curtain back in place.

I left the bathroom and sat on the sofa nervously waiting for her to emerge.

She walked out with a towel, shut herself in her room, and came back to the living room fully dressed and looking wary. "Talk."

"Come and sit down," I said, patting the sofa beside me.

"I have a lab session to get to. This needs to be quick."

"Please? Will you sit?"

"Mika, I haven't got time."

My shoulders slumped. "Okay. First, I just wanted to say I'm sorry if I sounded like I was trying to blackmail you into doing something you didn't want to. It's not what I meant to imply. You don't need to tell me anything about your past. Ever. Regardless of what happens between us. Just know that I'm here if you ever do want to talk. That's all."

She didn't react, which made me fidget.

"Umm...yeah. And..." I shut my eyes and asked for strength. "And I'm sorry I mentioned about having umm...a family. It was careless and insensitive and I apologize." I glanced up at her and had no luck in deciphering her expression. I couldn't tell if she was angry, sad, unmoved, or bored. "Umm...yeah. That's all I wanted to say. Oh, and sorry for ruining the shower curtain. I'll fix it."