Behind Close Doors

Chapter Thirty-Two

FLORENCE'S POV

ONE MONTH HAS passed since I lost my virginity to Harry. After the whole ordeal was over, a part of me worried that he would start to become distant, but we've been spending more and more time together outside of school. Sometimes we'll just go for a drive around in his car and talk for hours. He'll share some of his favorite memories about England with me and tell me about his family over there while I'll share bits and pieces of my mother and my memories of Oregon. Other times we'll go into secluded parts of town to find places to share a meal without worrying about anyone else running into us.

I learned that Harry is a major foodie and will eat just about anything. Italian food is usually our go-to when we can't think of anything we want to eat, but lately Harry's gotten me hooked on East Asian cuisine. I couldn't believe it took me until my senior year of high school to discover the wonderfulness of Sushi and Thai food.

The more I thought about this past month during my jog with Lester, the more I realized I'm the happiest I've ever been in awhile. Today was the last Sunday jog Lester and I had before his test, and he asked me to quiz him on some of the topics covered on the multiple choice.

"What does the mitochondria of a cell do?" I questioned him as we rounded the corner together.

"It breaks down nutrients like our digestive system does and gives the cell energy," He replied, confident in his answer.

"Fill in the blank. NaCl is known as..." I trailed off, in part to catch my breath and in part to give him a chance to respond.

"Salt," Lester said without hesitation, offering me a smirk as we continued to jog.

"Okay, you seem to know your general science. Let's see how well you know your auto parts," I challenged him.

"Come at me," He challenged me back.

I fought a smile as I tried to recall a conversation I had with my dad about cars. Since I was a senior in high school, he said he couldn't send me off to college without having any knowledge on auto parts. My eyes lit up when I remembered a specific conversation we had about automotive systems.

"What does the coolant in the car flow through?" I asked, raising my eyebrows at him.

Lester scoffed before saying, "The engine block, duh."

I rolled my eyes at him. "Alright, no need to get sassy with me, Mr. Sassy pants."

A second later I heard the sound of Lester laughing and for the first time since we began going on these weekly jogs, he was the first one to stop. I almost ran past him but stopped abruptly to turn and look at him. He was clutching his sides, and I felt my cheeks heat up in embarrassment.

"You're always laughing at me," I whined while crossing my arms, trying to steady my breathing.

"I just can't believe you called me Mr. Sassy pants. You must have better insults than that," Lester teased as he crossed his arms. I couldn't help but notice how his biceps flexed with the motion and scolded myself for blushing deeper.

"I do. I've just been saving them for the right moment," I shrugged with a smile.

Lester stared at me skeptically and lifted his eyebrows before saying, "Well, let's hear some then."

I shook my head. "I can't just force them. I gotta wait for the right moment," I reasoned.

"Whatever you say chicken butt," He replied. My jaw dropped to the floor at his words.