Under the Radar

Ignorance is Bliss

The next morning, I woke up to find Matt's arms around me. I sat up and blinked. Katy and Vy were quietly talking across the room. I yawned and stretched. Scratching my head, I tried to figure out what happened last night. I guess I fell asleep during the news show and Matt carried me up here. That was all I could process. I looked over to Katy and Vy and smiled. Placing a kiss on Matt's cheek, I stood and walked over to my two best friends.

"Good morning guys," I whispered trying not to wake Matt. They both looked at me confused. After exchanging a glance, they looked back to me. Katy placed a hand on my arm.

"Are you okay Iz?" she asked. I smiled and shrugged.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" I asked confused. They looked at each other again. I was about to ask why they would ask when I heard Matt stirring behind me. I turned to see him toss and turn. His brows were scrunched and a light layer of sweat coated him. I walked to him and lightly placed my hand on his cheek. He mumbled something that sounded like he was arguing with someone. I shook him lightly and said his name.

"No!" he yelled. He shot up and looked around, blinking hard. I grabbed his hand and squeezed it, giving him a worried look. He looked at me and sighed in relief. "Oh thank god." He breathed. I looked at him confused.

"I-I'm going to go get you some water," I said quietly. I stood and left the room. Going down to the lounge, I grabbed a water bottle out of the fridge. A few people gave me weird looks. I was thoroughly confused by the time I made it back to the room. I froze just inside the door.

"She doesn't remember anything about the news cast yesterday. It's like you... hypnotized her or something. You literally... took all of her fears from her," I heard Katy say softly. I held my breath. Were they talking about yesterday?

"I know. All I could think about was how upset she was. I didn't want her to worry. I didn't want her to think about it, so I tried the same thing I did to get her to calm down. It was like... all of her fears and worries spilled into me. I think I was having the nightmare she would've had if I didn't..." he trailed off and sighed. I found myself inching forward.

"How long do you think it will last?" I heard Vy ask tightly.

"I don't know," I heard Matt sigh. "As long as she doesn't have to deal with... this. You have no idea how much it hurts mentally. I didn't realize how hard it was to... be in her situation until I experienced it for myself." Matt said. I turned to corner and saw Matt sitting on the edge of the bed with his head in his heads. He looked really stressed out. Katy saw me and looked at me shocked. I was beyond confused now, and I wanted to know what was going on.

"Iz," Katy said surprised. I stood frozen like a deer in the headlights. Everyone turned to look at me. I stuttered a bit, trying to figure out what to say.

"What's going on?" I asked, finally finding my voice. Matt came to stand in front of me. I avoided his eyes. He tried to lift my chin, but I turned my head to the side. "Stop," I said sternly but quietly. I peeked at his face. He looked torn between worried and hurt. I took a deep breath and kept my head down. "Tell me, what is going on." I demanded quietly.

"Marissa..." he trailed off. His hand slid down my arm. "I didn't want you to be upset. You were... distraught after you watched the special last night. I didn't want you to worry about me getting hurt. I'm fine, but you were still worried, so I just... took the worry away from you. I didn't want you to have to go through it." He shrugged. I looked at his eyes now; my own eyes misting over now. I shook my head.

"I would've been fine," I argued. He shrugged and placed one of his hands on my lower back. I put my arms around him and hugged him. Looking over, I saw his bag packed and ready to go. Pulling back, a tear fell from my eye.

"You're leaving today," I breathed closing my eyes. A sob escaped me and he pulled me into him.

"I'm sorry, but I really don't have a choice. If I did though, I would drop everything and stay with you," he said quietly. I sobbed into his chest quietly. He kissed my head; his lips lingering there before pulling away. I heard the door close. Eventually, my tears subsided and I looked at him again. I noticed that even his eyes were red and puffy. I wiped the tears off of his cheeks with my thumbs and smiled sadly at him. I kissed him softly and pulled away.

"I love you," I whispered.

"I love you too," he smiled sadly. He brought his lips down to mine tenderly. It tore my heart and made it swell at the same time. It made me happy and sad. He pulled me closer, deepening the kiss. My tears flowed freely as I kissed him hungrily. I wanted it to last as long as it could because it was potentially, our last real kiss. My back found the wall and I was pushed against it. Matt's hand held my cheek and my back. I put one hand on his neck and the other on his chest... right over his heart. He pulled away and I looked at him confused. He smiled sadly and held my cheek. Backing up a bit, he took off his shirt to expose his tattoo. I closed my eyes and laughed softly as I shook my head. Opening my eyes, I lightly traced the pattern across his chest. I laughed softly and brought my eyes back to his face. Katy and Vy must've stepped out at some point.

"I couldn't help but notice how you love that," he smiled playfully. I kissed his chest where the tattoo ended.

"I do love that," I smiled, looking at him. I loved all of him. He brought his lips to mine hungrily again. My back hit the wall with a thud. My heart started pounding in my chest. I pulled his neck to deepen the kiss. He groaned and pressed against me harder. I heard the door open but I didn't care. I moaned and moved my lips along with his.

"Umm... guys?" I heard Katy say a bit awkwardly. "Iz? Matt?" She tried again. I released one hand to wave her away. I heard her chuckle.

"Wow... and I thought me getting caught was bad," Vy laughed. Matt's hands on my hips slid under my loose shirt. He ran his hands up and down my sides. I pushed against him and he lost his balance for a second. When he got it back, he pushed me against the wall again. The thump it made was loud.

"Well, don't swallow each other," Katy laughed. Matt chuckled deep in his throat, but he kept his lips on mine. I ran my hands down his shoulders to his chest and back up to his hair again. I let my fingers tangle in his hair. He chuckled in his throat again. I swear I heard him growl. It was hot. I arched against him and smiled against his lips. I heard munching and finally pulled away and looked over at Katy and Vy. When I caught my breath, I smirked and rolled my eyes.

"Popcorn, really?" I asked crossing my arms. They giggled and continued eating the popcorn. Matt wrapped his arms around my waist and I leaned back into him. Matt's lips grazed my neck and my eyes partially closed. I almost turned into him, but then I remembered Katy and Vy standing across the room. My eyes shot open and I looked at them. "Can you guys give us like... ten minutes?" I asked. Matt chuckled softly and pressed his lips against my neck fully. I closed my eyes and my breathing increased. Vy and Katy giggled and I heard the door shut. I turned into Matt and kissed him softly once. Pulling back, I smiled. He smiled and kissed my forehead once.

"I'm going to miss you," I sighed smiling sadly. He shook his head and frowned.

"I don't want to talk about it," he said smiling sadly as well. He kissed me quickly and pulled back, grinning from ear to ear. "But there is something I need to ask you."

"What?" I asked curiously. My brows scrunched up. He chuckled and put his hand on my waist.

"Will you go to Prom with me?" he asked.