Drowning

Chapter 30:

When I woke up, I looked at the alarm clock on the little table next to Aiden's bed. It was almost noon. I slept in way too late. I didn't have to go to work today, so it wasn't the end of the world, except I didn't have my car with me and would need to find a ride home.

I put my feet on the floor, cringing at the thought of the dirt that was under them. This house really needed a deep cleaning. I didn't have my sandals or any socks to cover my feet with, so I was stuck walking barefoot through the house unless I put the knee-high boots back on. I was not going to even consider that as a possibility this morning.

I moved to the door to open it and turned the knob. Down the hall, Ezra's door was closed. Maybe he was still sleeping. I used the restroom and took one quick look at myself in the mirror. My hair still didn't look half bad. Anna was an artist when it came to making my hair look amazing.

Turning off the bathroom light, I began to walk down the stairs. The living room was empty. The house was almost silent except for a few small noises coming from the kitchen. I couldn't see who was in there from the stairs, so I decided to just go in to sweet talk whoever it was for a ride home.

Ezra was sitting at the kitchen table with a bowl of cereal in front of him. He didn't look up right away, which gave me the perfect opportunity to study him again. His hair was a messy tangle from his sleep, slightly out of place in a good way. His blue eyes were light and soft, no trace of the late-night we had last night on his face. Ezra looked refreshed and gorgeous, the opposite of how I was feeling. He was carefully reading the cartoons on the cereal box. He put a dark t-shirt back on at some point in the night, which was probably good thinking on his part. I would not be able to keep myself from attacking him if he was shirtless.

I shifted my feet and leaned against the doorway. He heard the movement and looked up at me quickly before looking back down at the cartoons on the box.

"Good morning." I said in a friendly tone.

"Hey." Ezra didn't look up. He was avoiding making eye contact with me. He was acting off like he didn't really want me there. He must have regretted what happened between us last night. My heart fell a bit when he didn't give me the attention that I was hoping he would give me. It's not like I expected him to jump up from the table and walk over to kiss me passionately, but a simple smile would have been a welcome sight.

I hesitantly moved to the table. After what happened here the other night, I didn't really want to be sitting here, but it was either the table or go back out to the living room to sit on the couch to wait for someone else to take me home. I sat on the chair closest to me and propped one leg under me so I was sitting on it. It was a habit I got into because of my height; it made me a little taller.

"It's quiet," I interrupted the silence that felt too long. The thick air between us was stifling. "Where is everyone else?"

"JD had to go to work and took Anna home. Mark went to meet up with some friends." He placed the spoon to his mouth, taking a bite full of the multicolored sugary cereal. He was still not even bothering to look at me.

"Where's Aiden?" I asked quietly.

At the mention of Aiden's name, Ezra slammed his spoon down in his bowl with a loud clang and finally decided to look at me. His eyes were hard as his jaw clenched. I was not sure exactly what I did to him, but he seemed angry with me this morning. I wanted to apologize to him and I didn't even know why he was upset.

"Your boyfriend wanted to wake you up and take you home." Ezra mouthed sarcastically. I saw him catch a glimpse of my borrowed outfit. His eyes moved down to my breasts, staring at the way my nipples stuck out a little under the thin white fabric. I crossed my arms over my chest, self-consciously to cover them. I forgot how seethrough this tank top was. He snorted before leaning back down and grabbed the spoon to take another bite of his cereal.