Hidden Girl

17- Secrets

After we take the elevator up to Alex's floor (they finally fixed it), we head into Alex's room to work on the literature project some more. We decided to change it to a scene from Twelfth Night since that play isn't as popular as Romeo and Juliet and less people will be doing it in class. We had been actually figuring out our parts when Alex got distracted.

"No avoiding the subject. What's wrong?" Alex finally asks me as he sets his iPhone down and closes the top to the laptop that I was working on.

"Huh?" I ask confused.

"The SOS," he rolls his eyes. "So what's wrong?"

"Um..." I debate whether or not I should actually tell him. Azalea will end up telling him if I don't though, and I do not want that. "Well Azalea is just really worried about me and is making me talk to you."

"About?"

"My nightmares, I guess," I shrug my shoulders. "I mean I don't really know what she expects you to do since like you can't just stop nightmares from happening just like that and-"

"Stop," Alex says, stopping me from continuing my rampage. "Now come here and calm down."

I can tell that this isn't a choice so I set the laptop on the floor. Alex grabs me around the waist and pulls me to where he is lying against the pillows and makes me sit in between his outstretched legs. I lean back against his chest and sigh.

For a second we just pause and I listen to Alex breathe and his heart beat. I focus on the life that is coming out of him. I realize right now that I probably wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Alex. I was having a really rough time before he found me, and my life has improved drastically since I met him. Who knows what I would've done if I was alone like that any longer?

"Thanks," I tell Alex.

"For what?"

"For being here for me when I was giving up on myself," I say truthfully. "For feeding me when I couldn't provide for myself-"

"That was not your fault," Alex tells me firmly.

"Fine then," I laugh lightly. "Just thanks, for being a friend I've never had."

"Wait, so now I'm a friend?" Alex jokes.

"Yes," I laugh again. "You are now my friend, not an almost-friend."

"Good," Alex sighs happily as he tightens his grip around my stomach to situate me better.

I slowly begin to get sleepier since I didn't sleep well last night and I find my eyelids slowly drooping. I finally realize I'm about to fall asleep on Alex, so I quickly sit up. Before I'm even all the way up Alex pulls me back down.

"Please don't move," he whines. "You're so warm!"

"We have to finish this project!" I try to tell him as I attempt to sit up again, but I can't get up with his arms holding me back.

"It's not due for two more days though!" Alex complains.

"Exactly!"

"Well how long did you sleep last night?" Alex asks.

I don't say anything.

I couldn't fall asleep because the nightmare I had freaked me out so much. This time, it was Alex getting harmed, not me. Problem was it was all my fault. I feel guilty for that and it's not even real.

"Exactly. So, you need some rest," Alex points out like he won the argument.

"I have to work later tonight," I explain to him as I try to get up again but fail.

"What time?"

"Eight to eleven."

"See? You can sleep until like 7," Alex says. "Then you'll have time to eat dinner and get ready."

"Fine..." I sigh as I give in and lean back against his chest. Since he's propped up against the pillows, he scoots lower so it's a little bit more flat. I decide to flip over and I rest my chin on his chest and stare at him. "Thanks again."

"Anytime, sweetheart," Alex smiles back. He reaches next to him and grabs his phone. He sets an alarm, and then wraps his arms around me again and gets comfortable. I stare at him, just observing. Intrigued.

"Why did you never stop bothering me that day we sat next to each other?" I ask Alex before he can close his eyes and to sleep. "You could've easily made me come over the bare minimum to get the project done and never talk to me again. So why keep bothering me?"

"You called that 'bothering'? I called that 'building a friendship'," Alex tells me with a smile.

"You didn't answer the question!" I whine at him in annoyance.

"You really want to know?"

"Yes!" I exclaim. "It's been killing me."

"Well..." he starts and sighs. "I really don't know. I saw you every single day, but never took a second glance really. Just know that every day I regret not talking to you earlier."

"I regret that too," I admit. "Even though I tended not to talk to a soul back then."

"True," Alex laughs, making his chest rumble beneath me. "So as I was saying, you were just the cutest thing I have ever seen. You were just so small and scared of the world; scared to stand up for yourself. The second I started talking to you, you just came out of your little shell with all this sass and this little fire that burns inside of you; it burned so bright. The reason I mentioned your eye color in the first couple seconds of knowing you because I swore that I could see that little growing fire better if your eyes were a different color. The brown didn't, and still doesn't, look right."

"You make me laugh," I giggle at Alex. "This isn't my real eye color."

"What?!?!?" Alex quickly sits up, knocking me to lay down next to where he was. He sits up and looks down at me, disbelief in his eyes as I continue to giggle at how he's making such a big deal over this. "What?!?!?"

"I wear colored contacts," I laugh.

"Since when?!?!"

"Ever since I moved here," I tell him, still smiling at his facial expression.

"Wait do I get to see your real eye color?" Alex asks, now almost excited as a little puppy.

"No," I smile at him. "Maybe some time."

"This isn't fair!" he whines as he collapses down next to me. "Why not?"

"Because secrets are secrets for a reason," I tell him with a shrug of my shoulders. "All of my secrets I will slowly tell you. One at a time."

"One at a time," he agrees with my point. He wraps his arm around my shoulder and snuggles me against his chest. "Goodnight, Aurora."

"Goodnight, Alex."