Her Tattoo

Alice

"Oh. My. God." Delilah squealed with the finnes of a fangirl at a teenage boy band. I had just finished telling her all about Mr.Styles.
"I know, it's insane." I said, unable to get the image Gray's dark blue eyes out of my head. It really bothered me how much he haunted my thoughts.
"Do you think he and your mom'll do a little dancing?" She asked wiggled her eyebrows.
"Eww, Don't talk about my mom like that, Delilah!!" I faked a gag, which caused her to erupt into contagious laughter.
"I have never wanted to be your mom so badly." She said, wiggling her hips, which caused me to laugh even harder.
"You're so baad." I scolded between laughs, smacking her on the shoulder.
"Like you don't find him hot." She teased, sticking out a pink tongue with a blue ball in the center, a terrible decision in my opinion.

I stuffed a final sock into my bag, looking around for any more clothes left on the floor.
"Ugh, I can't believe you're going on vacation without me."
"Consider yourself lucky, I'm going to Idaho, land of cheese." She groaned. I sighed.
"You mean potatoes?"
"Yea, what do you think I said?" She laughed, tossing a skittle at my head. "At least you're gonna be with mister sexy -I mean, Mister Styles."
"Yea, what and listen to him slam my mom? No thanks." I stuck a finger in my mouth and pretended to gag.

When I got home from Delilah's that afternoon, Mom wasn't home and Gray was asleep on the couch. He looked really peaceful and kind. I looked at him for a long time, my heart pounding in my chest. I couldn't shake this strange feeling that he gave me, but I couldn't put a name to it either. After a few minutes he woke up, rubbed his eyes, and looked at me.
"Hello." He smiled sleepily.
"Sleep well?" I asked, sitting next to him. The couch was the kind of comfortable that pulled you into it and let you sink down into pillowy softness, and with his added weight, it had me slide a little too close.
"Yes. Work is tiring. I'm glad spring break is closing in on us, little Alice."
"How can one week of art be tiring?" I joked, jabbing my finger into his side. He jolted back, and I realized he was ticklish. Dancing my fingers along his side and stomach, I watched him laugh and writhe around, shouting "No, no, stop!" In that way that meant "Please don't stop." His hand reached out and soon he was tickling me instead, our roles reversed, and I screamed, laughter filling the room and suddenly his lips were only an inch or two apart, I could reach out and kiss him if I wanted, but he was a man and I was a girl.

When Mom home that night, I saw her slip a white note under Gray's door. I pretended not to notice.