Faking It

18:Faking It:18

Chapter 18

Aiden

"You don't mind if I cook in your kitchen, do you?" I ask Walsh before even daring to step foot into her kitchen. She stares at me as though she's trying to figure out if I'm being serious or not. Mother of God, why is it so difficult for people to believe that I like to cook?

"No," she finally says. "I don't mind."

As she slowly backs away from the entrance of the kitchen and I head towards her stove, Alina timidly walks in, stopping right at my side. There isn't any rational thing that I can say to explain how hard it is to refrain from jumping that girl right now.

Instead of doing something ridiculously stupid like that, however, I turn and grin at her. "How does the idea of breakfast for dinner sound to you?"

She starts smiling widely, fervently nodding her head, yes.

I want to kiss her, dammit.

This is so frustrating.

"Hey, Princess," I pipe up, ten minutes later. She looks up at me, while I shuffle around, trying to find her phone in my pocket. "Here," I say, handing it to her. She immediately perks up, and wraps her arms around me, pressing her lips to my cheek for three point five seconds (yes, I counted; don't judge me).

Mother of God, if that's all I need to do to get Alina kisses, I would so do it. Forget Alicia or anybody else. Alina kisses are addictive. Even if they are simple cheek kisses.

I don't know if I'm thinking rationally or not, because the only thought that I have in my head right now is that Alina - phone + Aiden=sad Alina + no Alina kisses. Aiden + phone + Alina = happy Alina + Alina kisses.

So before even I know it, I snatch her phone back. She stares at her hands, which are now holding an empty nothingness. She then lifts her eyes up, to me, staring at me. It's silent between us for a good minute, both of us still as statues.

Then she reaches out for her phone, and my brain starts working again.

I pull it away. She pouts and sends me a frustrated look, but it can't even compare to the frustration I feel when I'm around her.

Without saying one word, I lean my face forward, turning so that it's my cheek facing her. Honestly, I'm an idiot. I don't know why I haven't realized my idiocy earlier, but I really should have. I kind of expect a slap, really, but there's no turning back now, is there? What's done is done. Que sera sera, too, for that matter.

A few seconds tick by. I almost believe that she's too weird-ed out by me to even react, but, of course, she then proves me wrong by pressing her sweet, soft lips to my cheek again. I grin at her and hand her phone back to her.

Her eyes spark up, and she takes the phone and runs from the kitchen. Because of the volume that her bracelet speaks at, I hear it saying, "I. Can. Talk! I. Can. Talk. Again!"

She's cuter when she can't say anything at all, though. She gets this little pout when she's having a tough time figuring out how to say something when she doesn't have her bracelet or her phone. It sort of kills me inside with how freaking adorable she looks at that point.

I'm a mess.

...

"I need motivation."

River stares at me. "For what?" he incredulously asks.

"Helping Alina get her voice back," I mumble. "I kind of, sort of, in a weird and twisted way...don't want her to get it back?" I squeak out.

"So you need something to motivate you to help her anyway?" River questions. At my nod, he sighs, running a hand through his hair. "Follow me," he says, leading me up to his room.