Tori|
The most inconvenient time for your lungs to fail you is when you are in the midst of kissing someone. It is also the only time my lungs seem to fail me. Ever.
I pull back from the warmth of Jade's lips not because I'm not deliriously happy to be kissing her, but because if I didn't, the lack of oxygen to my brain would have surely caused me to pass out. My hands find her shoulders somehow, swallowing great gulps of air as my purple walls spin. Jade's cold palm presses against my cheek while the other finds my hip, steadying me as I blink and try to rearrange my thoughts, which have blown uselessly to the corners of my mind, just out of my grasp.
What just - how did - why - ?
"Jesus, Vega."
Jade sounds breathless too, but her worry is much more evident. She guides me to the bed and puts a hand on my back as we sit. My heart is hammering my ribs unmercifully, making me even more dizzy. I clutch onto her, mouth empty of words, mind vacant of coherent thoughts. My eyes can only focus on Jade, her black hair twirling in corkscrews, the strands of blue almost green now. Her green eyes are rimmed in black and her tank-top shows off her white shoulders and chest and her lips are parted and oh my god she kissed me -
I lift a hand to my mouth. It's warm. When I dart my tongue across my lips, I can feel her there. Unable to say or do anything, I end up just gaping at Jade, whose expression is switching between concern and embarrassment.
"You should have warned me that you were going to go into cardiac arrest," Jade mumbles, removing her hands from me and looking down at the floor. Her cheeks are burning a light pink and I can't think of a time I've ever seen Jade blush before. It's cute, really, one of her hands raising to press against a burning cheek.
"Uh." It's not an entirely intelligent sound, so I try to remedy it before the silence can stretch too long. "I mean, uhm, what, why ...?"
Jade shifts. Upon seeing her standing in the doorway of my room, my initial reaction was body-freezing shock. I had spent the majority of today curled up in my bed watching TV - speaking of which, the babble is still going on behind us. I reach for the remote on the other side of my mattress, flicking the TV off. Quiet swells between Jade and I, who still hasn't answered my question. I wait, looking between my hands clasped together and her stern profile. My brain has finally situated itself, and while my heart is still giving vicious roar cries in my ribcage, I can think again. Jade kissed me. I lick my lips. Jade showed up in my room and her expression had been torn between fear and something like ... victory? Like she had won, but wasn't sure if she was eligible for the prize anymore. I chew the inside of my lip and look down as well. Finally, Jade turns to watch me.
"He took me to Paula's Pizzeria."
A smile threatens to grow on my lips. "Isn't that the same place where a lady found dead ants cooked into her pizza crust?"
Jade makes a face. "I wouldn't be surprised."
I lift my head, tucking my hair behind one ear and meet her eyes. We both struggle to hold the other's gaze for a few minutes - mostly because the last time I saw her, I had been so incredibly pissed off that I could barely imagine her face in my mind without feeling like punching a wall. Our last conversation replays in my mind, my good mood simmering somewhat. "So." I cross my arms. "He took you to a bad restaurant and you came here."
"I couldn't do it." Jade looks at the mattress, then back to me. She's tense, a thick line protruding in her neck. "I couldn't ... date him. It wasn't just the restaurant. It was ... him. I don't ... I don't want him."
My heart flutters. I swallow, unable to hold her gaze and staring at the white carpet beneath my feet. "And Beck?"
Jade's hands clench on her knees. I look up and her eyes are over my head, toward my window. Her lips press together and then she looks at me - really looks at me, a decision weighing in her eyes. Then, she scoots closer, our thighs melting together. Her hand touches my knee and despite the usual coolness of her skin, the touch erupts with fire.
