Amor

~Chapter 43~

*Dancing with a Stranger was a big inspiration for me so please listen to the song while reading this and it'll make more sense. Keep in mind that I interpreted these lyrics like Oliver is searching for an escape from his pent up feelings & instead of hooking up with random people, he goes to the very person who hurt him because James is the only thing that'll give him that same fix. Link to the song is above! Get yourself some tissues cause I cried a little while making this*

Oliver's pov: (every big paragraph in italics means it's a flashback btw! Oh and p.s this takes place the same day as Sophie and Don moving boxes in the previous chap.)

Panting heavily with sweat dripping off my chest, I roll over onto the side of the large bed and stare up at the cracked white ceiling. From the corner of my vision, I see James sit up and run a hand through his messy hair before pulling on his boxers to go out onto his balcony for a smoke. As much as it bothers me that he uses cigarettes, I don't comment on it because I know those cancer sticks help him calm down after a stressful day.

A soft glow emanates from the lighter in his hand, casting a shadow of James' muscled figure amongst the bare walls and calling all attention towards him instead of the darkness that takes up the rest of the bedroom. Resting his forearms on the edge of the balcony fence, he lets out a stream of smoke to gradually fade into the chilly air and look up at the night sky. I lay there on the bed watching silently as James unknowingly puts me in a calming trance. Sometimes I swear it's like he's always known how mesmerizing his presence can be.

A phone ringing interrupts the relaxed atmosphere and James turns around to walk over and retrieve it from the nightstand. Quickly throwing me a glance, then back down to the cigarette in his hand, he puts it out on the ashtray I got him for his birthday a few months ago. My heart warms at the action because even though he loves to smoke, he gets that I hate them so he never keeps one lit for too long near me. It's sort of turned into our very own silent agreement. He can smoke however he pleases, but still keeps himself in check by being considerate of my feelings.

Putting his full attention back on the screen of his phone, I watch as his brow furrows while reading the message. I was going to ask what was wrong but the next second, he threw the device across the room making it break on impact when it hit the wall. Sitting up, I reached out to him hoping that I could calm him down but he retracted from my touch like if it had burned. Ignoring how the pit in my stomach sank, I got off the bed and walked around to his side.

"James, what happened? Who was that just now?"

Pushing right past me, he hastily collects my clothes off the floor and into a pile. "You need to leave. Now" he deadpans.

"What? No, I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on." I stand there confused as he shoves the clothes into my hands and glares harshly.

"We're not fucking doing this right now Oliver. Get dressed and get out of this apartment in the next two minutes or I'll drag you out myself."

With that, he walks out the door of his room and leaves me here to mull over what just occurred. As I quickly put on my underwear and pants, I hear running water coming from the sink in the kitchen. Shoving my phone into my back pocket and grabbing my shoes, I follow James, who is chugging down a glass of water when I walk in. Pulling the shirt over my head, I glance at the front door curious as to why he wants me to leave so fast.