Where There's Light | ✔

46. Hiding

When Bee told me Nolan was in the weight room with his "friends" I thought she was just trying to be funny. That was until I peeked into the small room filled with workout equipment and sweaty members of the soccer team.

Nolan's back was to me as he did chin ups. Shirtless. The muscles in his back and arms worked hard to pull his weight above the metal bar. I had to remind myself that we were on school grounds and that, no matter how hot he looked, jumping him in front of our peers wouldn't be a wise choice.

One of our peers, Gerald or Jeremy or whatever, caught me staring and started counting just as Nolan struggled to pull himself up one last time. "998, 999, 1,000!"

Nolan didn't miss a beat, finding the strength to pump out three more chin ups before dropping to his feet. The guy tossed him a towel and hyped him up about breaking a record.

"Jade?" The fake surprise on his face made me roll my eyes despite the smile tugging at my lips. "When'd you get here?"

"Somewhere around five hundred." I played along as he slipped his shirt back on. "So, this is where you've been hiding all week?"

His brows pulled together. "Hiding?"

"It's been hard getting a hold of you after school lately."

"It's your own fault," he accused as he gathered his backpack and my hand, leading us out of the musty weight room. "You're the one who banned me from your house so you could focus on the painting."

"No, that was your fault for being annoying." Before Nolan I didn't know there was such a thing as backseat painting.

Is that the right color for my hair?

I'm not that pale.

Are my eyebrows really that bushy?

If he kept up with the complaints the painting would've never gotten done before the deadline and I wasn't about to forfeit our spot over a painting. But I've missed him hovering over my shoulder those last few days.

"I finished it by the way," I told him as we headed for the parking lot to his motorcycle.

Even though I had my own car I still got rides from Bee. Gia recently joined our car pool as well. The two of them were more than happy to have the car to themselves that day.

"Just need to add in some finishing touches. Now, maybe Opal will stop hounding me for it."

He passed me the helmet. "Do I get to see it before you turn it in?"

"Yes," I said cautiously, slipping the helmet over my twist out. "But I'm not making any changes."

"Unless I ask nicely?"

I smacked his arm, giggling. "At all."

We climbed onto his bike and I held on tightly to his waist as he pulled off of school grounds.

* * *

If Mom knew Nolan was upstairs, let alone on my bed, I'd be on punishment until graduation. Possibly my college graduation.

I sat next to him, the painting still propped up on the easel, and examined it. Well, Nolan examined it while I examined him. The way his head was slightly tilted, the square set of his jaw, the way his golden eyes seemed to take in every brush stroke. I've never been to the Louvre, but I couldn't imagine any of the art in there making me feel what I felt when I looked at him.

"You're good." He slowly pulled his gaze away from the painting, turning to me. "Really good. I mean, I kind of knew that already, but holy shit." He looked at the painting again.