Are you mine?

Chapter 41

After the game, the guys from the team decided to go out and celebrate, but Noah chose not to join them, since his emotions are still running high and the tension after the fight proved to be a little too much for him to handle. So instead, we opted for going to dinner to have a little celebration of our own.

Noah was craving Chinese food, so we went to a little restaurant downtown, and had the best chow mein of our lives. After that, I offered to walk a few blocks down to an ice cream parlor for dessert, but he said he was too tired and just wanted to go home. He invited me to stay the night with him, and it took a long phone call and a lot of begging, but my dad agreed to let me stay with Noah.

We walk into Noah's house to find it in complete silence, so careful as to not wake anybody up we take off our shoes and continue deeper into the residence with only our socks on to muffle our steps. Noah starts up the stairs, but the lights on in the kitchen catch my attention. "Are you coming?" he asks, turning around when he notices I'm not following him."

"I think someone left a light on back there," I say, my head turned towards the kitchen and the tip of my index finger drawn between my lips. "Let me go check it out really quick, you go ahead though, I'll meet you up there in a minute."

"You sure?" he furrows his eyebrows and I nod. "Okay, but don't take too long, as soon as my head hits that pillow I'll be out like a light." He warns before disappearing up the stairs into the darkness.

I take a few quiet steps towards the kitchen, and I'm startled when I see someone sitting at the table. Not expecting anyone to be up this late, I gasp and take a step back when I make out Claudia's figure in the dim lighting.

She has her head bowed and buried in her hands, elbows on the wooden table and long silver hair cascading down her back. Beside her are a bottle of wine that's three quarters empty, a red-stained glass, and an ashtray that has a lit cigarette resting on the rim. The sound of me drawing a breath in sharply should have alerted her of my presence, but if it did, she's choosing not to acknowledge me.

"Claudia?" I say hesitantly, never knowing what to expect when I encounter this woman, but she seems not to be doing all that well and I want to make sure everything is alright. She slowly lifts her head up and turns to see me standing a few feet away. Her eyes are heavy with exhaustion, and I can't tell if she has dark circles under her eyes or if it's just smudged makeup. "Are you okay?" I ask.

"Couldn't be better." She sighs, picking up her cigarette and putting it between her lips to breathe in the smoke.

"Okay..." I say shyly, clasping my hands together and pressing my lips together into a thin line, not sure of what to do now. The silence stretches between us and she looks straight ahead, her gaze fixed on something outside the window. I'm thinking I probably shouldn't have interrupted her, and I'm feeling out of place here, so turning my body and pointing back at the stairs I say "I'll leave you alone, I was just-"

"Do you want a cup of tea?" her head snaps in my direction, seeming to not have heard a word I just said.

"Uhm..." is all that manages to come out of my mouth.

"I just made it," she clarifies, gesturing to the counter behind her, "It should still be hot."

"Sure," I accept her offer, making my way to the kitchen and digging through the cupboards to find a cup for myself. As I approach the counter, I spot a porcelain teapot and a matching white cup with a blue design on it, sitting beside each other. I'm guessing that was for her, but something made her go for the wine instead. So I grab a little tray, setting both cups and the teapot on it and bringing it to the table. I set it in front of her and pour her some tea. She takes the cup, offering me a small smile. I grab my own and quietly sit across from her.