Tongue Tied

October 2012

My head span all night long from those fateful words and continued to do so for the weeks that followed. I just couldn't believe it. After what Scott said to me I could barely meet his eyes, never mind fall in love with him. Or, you know more in love with him if my heart was still there. I honestly couldn't tell.

How could he just say something like that and not expect me to freak out? And how the hell could I concentrate on anything else when he raced through my mind more than ever before? I could hardly focus on my work which was a freaking nightmare since this was such a crucial time. I needed my head more than ever, and it was nowhere to be found.

I was a mess.

"Hey, Carlie!"

It didn't help I couldn't escape Scott either. Now him and Natalie had some sort of budding friendship, he spent most of his time at our home, purely to torture me. I couldn't get away wherever I was, which gave me no space to figure things out.

"Hey, Scott. How's it going?"

What the hell is wrong with me?

I watching him lying across our couch like this was his home too. His dark curly hair was a mess and he had low-hanging sweatpants on, yet somehow, he managed to look undeniably sexy. My pulse immediately kicked up a notch and a heat trickled down my stomach. It wasn't fair, he was temptation personified, crying out to me.

This is what I've wanted for so long...why am I holding back?

I couldn't understand it, I didn't know what was keeping me from falling headfirst into Scott's welcoming arms with a giant grin on my face. Not only had it made it obvious he wanted me, his new touchy-feely approach spoke volumes too; an arm brush here, a knee knock there, anything to show me he needed me to be his.

He'd hurt me before. I kept reminding myself of that. I had walls up to protect my heart because what the hell else did he expect? That, timed with the knowledge I really did need to worry about what came next, made it an impossible choice.

"You coming to watch TV with us?" Scott patted the seat next to him. "There's a horror movie marathon on in a minute, filled with all the top-quality films; The Blob Eats Dead Things, Strange Creatures from Outer Space, Screaming Vampires...that sort of thing."

"Are they even real films?" I raised one eyebrow doubtfully. "They sound awfully made up to me."

He shrugged and smirked. The crinkles around his eyes appeared making my heart race. That was a look I hadn't directly seen for far too long and it hooked me in. I clutched my books tighter to my chest and averted my eyes once more. I just couldn't see him, when I looked at him everything started to go horribly wrong. The world tilted on a brand-new axis and I couldn't keep straight however hard I tried.

"Who cares? That might as well be the titles. It'll be fun."

"Has Natalie agreed to watch these movies with you? They don't sound like her sort of thing at all."

"I'll admit, she was hesitant. In fact, I think her words were 'Do what you want, Albert, since you practically live here these days. I'm going in the shower.' Sounds almost like an agreement to me, am I right?"

"You're insane, that's what you are." I dropped my books on the small table which passed for a dining room and sighed, knowing I was defeated. "Fine, whatever. I suppose I can watch some crappy movies with you for a bit, but..." I did need to put my foot down. "Not for long. I do have work, you know?"

Scott's face lit up like a Christmas tree. "Deal, whatever you want. I have work myself anyway. It's just you distracting me all the time."

"Me? Are you serious? I'm definitely the innocent one. You're the one who's constantly here."