Always

Chapter 9

My heart was pounding harder than I could ever remember it pounding as I scooted closer to him. We were now sitting only inches apart on my bed, faces just as close. I reached across his lap and took his hand, which had been resting on his own knee. Bringing it up to my mouth, I pressed my lips to the inside of his palm while he stared at me with wide eyes, breath hitching in his throat. Once I lowered his hand back down, I held it and brought one of my hands up to his face, cupping it around his jaw. My thumb trailed lightly across his lower lip, and I could feel his breath coming out in unsteady pants. Slowly, I leaned forward, so close that the sides of our noses were touching and whispered, "Then kiss me."

He let out a slight breath before cautiously closing the small gap and pressing his lips gently to my own. He didn't move them, simply held them there, unsure of his actions. My hand on his face pulled him slightly closer into mine, pressing our lips together harder before releasing him. He pulled back about an inch, eyes looking down at my lips. A small smile pulled at the corners of my mouth. "Harry," I whispered before pulling his lips back to mine. This time I didn't just press our lips together, but started to mold mine against his. I trailed my hand down his arm to his hand and pulled it up to rest on my neck below my ear. His thumb began to slowly stroke the side of my face as we kissed, still in gentle, slow movements, and I felt like I was on fire. I brought my hands up to his face again, tilting his head to the side as my lips shaped against his. His lips parted a little and I ran my tongue along his lower lip, gently so as not to scare him off. He sucked in a small breath at that, causing me to smile again. He was so innocent, so gentle, that all I wanted to do was kiss him the entire night. He had no idea what he was doing, yet he was still somehow so captivating, and my heart had never beat faster. With a final capture of his lips in mine, he pulled back. His eyes slowly traveled up my face to my eyes from behind his glasses. His hand was still on the side of my face, and mine had fallen to his chest where I could feel his heart beating through his shirt. Soon the grin on my face spread to his as he shakily whispered, "Wow."

"Wow is right," I said back, heart still pounding and lips on fire from our kiss. "That was incredible."

He blushed at the complement, shaking his head slightly. "Yeah, right," he said, cheeks pink and chuckling nervously, doubting his own skills.

I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his once more in a chaste kiss. He jumped. "I'm serious, that was miles better than my first kiss." He looked down, finally pulling his face and hand away from me, slightly embarrassed but definitely slightly proud of himself, a small smile playing on his lips. "Shall we go find something to eat?"

"Yes," he said, looking relieved to change the subject. We wandered downstairs into the kitchen and began scouring the cupboards for something to cook. After asking him his opinion on several things, all of which he shyly responded, "whatever you like," I settled on grilled cheese sandwiches, mostly because they were easy to make and I was hopeless at cooking. Once I had the supplies ready and was about to throw the bread on the skillet, he stopped me.

"Wait, you need the lid," he stated.

"What? Why?" I asked, confused.

"Because if you put the lid on for the first few minutes, the cheese actually melts instead of just getting hot. I thought everyone knew that?" he replied sincerely.

"Apparently not all of us are master grilled cheese chefs," I grinned as I searched for the lid in the cupboard.

"Hey, I'm just saying... you won't regret it," he said, smirking a little bit. I found the lid and did what he said. After cooking the sandwiches and taking my first bite, I had to admit he was right. This was by far the best grilled cheese sandwich I had ever made. I let out an appreciative hum as I continued to eat.