The Bachelor (Jerika)

Chapter Twenty

Erika POV: We were nearing the thick of the forest when Jake turned to me with a smirk on his face. "So how would your boyfriend feel if he knew you were out at night with another guy? And that you were wearing said guy's jacket?" I laugh. "He's not really the jealous type. That's why I was so surprised when he got mad at me for doing the show. He had never gotten mad at me before." "He probably knew you couldn't resist my charms," he says jokingly; prompting me to give him a light push. "Very funny. But Jake, I still don't know that much about you. I know we've only known each other for like a day, but I want to get to know you better. He nods. "Well I'm 20, I'm an influencer and I'm originally from Ohio." I stick out my tongue. "Eww, Ohio? I'm from Michigan, so not the biggest fan." "Ohioooo," he yells into my ear. I chuckle. "See, you Ohioans are so annoying." He shrugs. "Guess it runs in our blood." "Guess so. But I also wanted to ask, Tessa said you didn't want to kiss her? Why's that?" "I want my first kiss on the show to be special. I'm really hesitant about opening up to people, especially people who I'm supposed to fall in love with. So I'm taking things slow, and making sure the connections I make are true and genuine." "Awww that's so cute," I say with a smile. He shrugs in response, but I could see he was blushing. Soon we finally circle our way back to the mansion; after hours of talking about everything from our worst dates to our favorite ice cream flavors. Jake was a good listener, and great at telling stories. I was happy. Back home I didn't really have any friends, but here I had both Tessa and Jake. It felt nice to have people you could talk about anything with. I turned to Jake as we arrived at the mansion. "Well, it's time for me to go. Thanks for the walk, I had a great time." I move closer to give him a hug. He smiles, and moves to hug me back. "I had a great time too. I know we've only know each for a day, but I feel like I've known you forever."