Wonder | SM

Chapter Fourteen

Song of the Chapter - Piece of You by Shawn Mendes

SHAWN

Surprisingly, I woke up an hour earlier than I usually do, especially on a weekend. I feel like those lyrics I wrote last night sparked something inside me, and I wanted to do something special for Valerie.

Glancing next to me, she was still peacefully sound asleep, and I smiled at the sight of her laying there so innocently. I thought of what I could do for her, and decided that I'll make her a nice breakfast, since she's made me a spectacular meal every single day.

I'm not a great chef, but thankfully my mom taught me how to make pancakes, so I prepare the batter and fry some bacon in a pan. I played some John Mayer on my kitchen speaker and sang along softly to the lyrics. Hopefully me belting out the song would wake her up in the most nonchalant way ever. I'm praying that she's surprised to see me up before her. Usually, that wasn't the case.

I heard my bathroom door shut, and a few seconds later, Valerie came shuffling into the kitchen with the brightest smile on her face. Her eyes were lit up with shock, and I'm assuming it's because I'm making an involved breakfast after I got about 5 hours of sleep.

She sat down at the island and propped her chin on her hand, placing her elbow on the table to hold up her head. "What time did you go to bed?"

"Around 3. I wrote part of a song actually," I told her, and she continued to look shocked as I mentioned my songwriting. She and I are still not used to me being so inspired, so every time I mention new lyrics, we doubt it for a second and make sure that I'm not dreaming.

"Oh really? What about?" she asked me, and I chuckled as I flipped the bacon over. You moving in with me after a short period of time. It seems to be a really special song to me already, and I don't want to spoil the surprise of it just yet. I think I should make her wait to hear it once it's done.

"Us. You'll have to wait until we get into the studio to hear, though," I say, and she rolls her eyes playfully. I hand her a plate with a couple of pancakes and some bacon, and she practically drools over how good it looks. If I'm being honest, I'm shocked at my own creation. Maybe Valerie is bringing out Chef Shawn again. It's either a good or bad thing...

We eat together, small conversations forming, yet we keep the calm aura around us. Sometimes silence is what works best for us.

"We should go out tonight. Maybe invite Connor, Brian, and Sabrina if we're up to it," she suggests out of the blue. Of course, I would love to see Brian and Sabrina, but Connor's been getting on my nerves lately. I mean, I saw how he was acting at the release party last night. He was awkwardly trying to move past the fact that Valerie and I are together, and I'm sure if he came to the club with us, he'd still act the same. On the other hand, Valerie must've not caught on to what his intentions were. She's probably clueless and has no clue that he still believes there a "them" in the future. I think I should keep Connor to myself and deal with him on my own.

"That sounds fun. We're gonna need to unwind before we go to my parent's house tomorrow," I half-lie. It'll be fun to get away from the chaotic music business, but it's gonna suck having Connor there who's all over my girlfriend.

"I'll text the three of them to meet us at The Trap Door at 9." She pulls out her phone and texts them, and they all agree to meet us there tonight. At least this was my secret location out in the city that doesn't have paparazzi. I'm happy that I finally get a carefree night out.

After we clean up the mess I made, Valerie and I are set on having a movie marathon all afternoon before we head out. We get into comfortable clothes and snuggle on the couch for hours, watching movies back to back, and end up ordering Chinese for dinner. I'd rather do this all night than get all dressed up to out in the public eye. But, it's what she wants to do before she meets my parents tomorrow, so I'll do whatever she needs to in order to alleviate her stress.