Magnetism

3 - moonlight

I stayed sat with Ivy for a while. Somewhere in the evening the distance between us had disappeared, our bodies had come together. My legs on Ivy's lap as her hand rested on my ankle, her thumb rubbing up and down the band of exposed skin between my ankle and my sock. Two empty mugs of tea sat on the small coffee table next to the remote, which had been used to put the tv onto some series we hadn't been watching with the volume turned down low. In the whole time, we hadn't stopped talking. Conversation drifted, alive with interest as I told Ivy about home. She touched on her old home and how somehow she'd managed to persuade her parents to let her have this whole space to herself. There was a fascination we both had, an intrigue to get to know, to understand, one another in a way that felt uniquely intimate. Truly, I would have stayed there for the rest of life learning however much I could have about that girl.

When I looked over my shoulder again, at the wide window that showcased the main house, I saw the sky was no longer a greyish blue, but a deep navy.

"Shit" I whispered as I pulled out my phone from my pocket.

10: 02 blared up at my from in front of my screen.

I moved my legs off of Ivy, a certain felling of intrusion edging into me. She'd asked me to come to her house, not spend then night at her house. My welcome had been outstayed, my very presence imposed on her space. Ivy had a sort of reputation for being polite, and the first thought that came to my head was that this was one of those moments.

"What are you doing?" she asked

I stood up "I think it's time for me to go"

"Go?"

Pausing for a moment I opened my mouth to speak, I looked at her confused "to go home"

"But why?"

"Because" the question left me momentarily confused, like it didn't even need an answer "it's 10"

"So"

"Haven't you got things to be doing?"

She looked up at me, large doe eyes speckled with pieces of amber entranced me as she held my gaze. It was so captivating, utterly beautiful, the type of look that held a seriousness.

"Nothing better than talking to you"

I felt a flutter deep within me at her words. For a second I forgot how to even breathe as I looked back at her with my own green eyes.

"Still" I muttered "I should probably leave"

Ivy got up, her body so close to mine for a moment that I could smell a hint of sweet vanilla. She looked me up and down, if she'd stayed a second longer I'm not sure I'd have been able to not close to gap; to not remind myself was it was like with a lips tighter her hand around my waist. But she did. She walked towards her kitchen island, and took two tall clear glasses out of the cupboard. I headed towards her and stood on the opposite side of island, curiosity as to what was running through her head, as if just watching her would give me some kind of a hint. The next thing was to get her phone out. Ivy made no attempt to conceal was she was doing, she lay it flat on the table as if she wanted me to see what she was doing. It was open on the calendar app on her phone, notable red dots covering the current week. For a moment I just watched her. Her face crumpled into concentration and her short sloppy hair covered her right eye in a careless sort of way.

Finally, she looked up "Stay with me tonight?"

Her eyes were pleading and large, glowing with emotion her face was soft and loving. I wanted more then anything to melt into her, I wanted her arms around me and to lay with her.

So I nodded.

The corners of her mouth twitched indicating her happiness. We both just stood there for a while. Digesting what we had both just said yes to, we stood and felt each other's presence. Ivy glanced back at her phone again
"My parents don't come back for another few days."