Switchblades and Infidelity [DISCONTINUED]

fifteen

A citrus scent wafts to Patrick's nose as dawn shines through his eyelids. He tries to stir from his slumber, but finds himself nuzzling closer to the sweet, familiar aroma. He smiles as his arm wraps around a petite figure— a woman sleeping peacefully on his chest. One hand gently caresses soft skin while his free one tangles in her hair, a smile twitching at his lips again as he feels the silky strands take his fingers as their new prisoner.

The light sound of an alarm chimes. The blond forces himself to open his eyes, straining in the new light of morning. They focus on the woman that stirs in her sleep, her head rested on his bare chest. Patrick takes the opportunity to take in Nia's features in full. His vision grazes upon the freckles that claim her shoulders and back, connecting them like constellations. He almost swears to himself that he can locate Orion's Belt between her shoulder blades.

His eyes trace the shape of her lips, remembering the galaxies and full moons it possesses alone. The memory of that full moon smile is enough to make his heart ram against the confines of his chest. It claimed her lips just the way he remembered, like tidal waves obeying the glow of the celestial being.

Nia sits up slowly, her puffy eyes barely opening to witness the aftermath of the scene. Within seconds, her eyes widen at Patrick.

"Oh shit," she mumbles, her violet eyes possessing shock and a strange hint of horror.

"Sorry I'm no Sleeping Beauty," Patrick chuckles groggily before stretching. Nia grabs her phone, shutting the alarm off. She studies the time, groaning loudly.

"Oh, shit!" she exclaims as she scrambles out of bed. Patrick jolts upright, studying Nia as she gathers clothes, both from her suitcase and from last night's event. He furrows his brow at the flurry before him, puzzled. She continues to carry the string of curses under her breath as she collects her items.

"What's wrong?" Patrick finally asks. He watches her claim the room as she tries to clothe her body again, ignoring the sloppy wrinkles. Undergarments and a shirt deprive him of the constellations, like sunrise erasing the stars from the night sky. Patrick almost frowns at that, thinking about how he just might have finally found the Big Dipper and Little Dipper spooning on her lower back.

"Last night was not supposed to happen! I'm running late for work, neither of us will be able to drop Stello off at school because he'll also be late—"
"Slow down—"
"Patrick, please tell me nothing happened last night! We didn't do anything, right? Please say that I passed out naked, somehow—"
"Nia, slow down!"

It's now Patrick's turn to get out of the shared mattress. He joins the star girl by gathering and applying his own clothes.

"What do you mean? You don't remember last night?" Patrick asks as he slips on a T-shirt. Worry seeps in his words and it almost makes him sick hearing how pathetic he sounds to himself.

"Of course I remember last night!" Nia snaps. "But it shouldn't have happened!"
"Why? If I had known you were under the influence or not in a good state of mind, I wouldn't have made any moves—"
"That's the thing, Patrick! I wasn't thinking straight!"
"So, it's my fault?" the blond asks incredulously. A scoff elicits from the rhetorical question. "You didn't say anything! In fact, you're the one who started it! I even stopped before things escalated and you continued!"
"Maybe you should have stopped me!" the woman argues.

"I'm not responsible for your actions," Patrick states firmly. "You were sober, you made the first move— I even had the decency to stop what was starting to happen to make sure it was what you wanted— so this is on you! I don't need this bullshit from you, Nia! I'm sick of it!"

"So, what?" Nia snarls. She dares herself to take a challenging step towards Patrick, despite her lack of pants which are draped on her arm. "Do you want some sort of award for that?"

She brushes past him and escapes to the bathroom. Anger and frustration boils inside of Patrick as she turns on the faucet to freshen up.

"No!" Patrick exclaims, allowing himself to finally let go. He was past his limits, past and present anger overflowing and spilling from him. "No! I don't want an award! I want you to stop playing these damn mind games! I'm so sick of it! It's always been like this, Nia! I keep giving you more chances, but it's the same shit every time! I know exactly what I want from you, but what the hell do you want from me?!"

The faucet shuts off and the bathroom remains quiet for a moment. Nia sighs behind the door. Regret starts to sink into Patrick's stomach like a brick; even forming a lump in his throat.

"Look," he sighs. "I don't care what you choose to do. I'll always respect it, no matter what. I just want to know where we stand. Are we friends? Are we not? Are we more than that? I have so many questions because you keep doing things like this."
"Then," Nia begins, her voice low. She opens the door, fully dressed and her hair in a messy, yet professional, bun. "Why don't you ask and stop assuming?"

She walks past Patrick as she gathers her last-minute items. Patrick watches her, frozen at her proposal. Gears start twisting and turning in his head, regenerating ponders that haunted him before. Instead of defending himself, Patrick takes the opportunity to set himself free of his restless thoughts.

"Do you still love him?" Patrick asks. It's Nia turn to pause as she drops her phone in her purse. A silence resides between the two.

"No," Nia says within a shaky sigh. She looks back at Patrick again. "No, I don't."
"Then, what's so wrong about last night?" Patrick asks. Defeat finally claims his demeanor and his words. Nia fixes a loose strand from her hair, tucking it behind her ear.

"Nothing is official yet," she confesses. "Ricky and I haven't signed anything, therefore we are still married... despite being separated at the moment."

"So—"
"So this counts as infidelity, Buster," she says firmly. Nia turns to Patrick, finally making eye contact with him.

"You— of all people— know how I feel about cheaters," Nia continues, her violet eyes housing a million emotions and thoughts. They are all too conflicting for Patrick to read. But he dares himself to continue with more questions.

"If it were official— the divorce, I mean— would this... happen?" he stammers, gesturing towards the invisible and unspoken matter between them that had happened no less than six hours ago. Nia averts her gaze to the wooden floor. She turns back to her purse and adds more to her last-minute items.

"Buster, I have to go," Nia sighs. "Can we continue this later?"
"Can you at least answer me this?" Patrick pleads.

The star girl turns to him one last time as she hangs her purse on her shoulder.

"Did it mean anything?" Patrick asks. Silence claims the room; Nia remains frozen at the question for a moment before she glances at her watch. She looks up at Patrick.

"Put some pants on," she states, failing to hide the smirk that threatens to claim her galaxy-possessed lips. "You look ridiculous."

Despite her turning and walking down the hallway, Patrick noticed. It's enough to ignite a small spark of hope in him. He chuckles at the comment.

"Is that a yes?" he calls after her. She doesn't say anything. Patrick only receives the sound of the door closing as an answer.

A/N:
I really struggled on ending this chapter wow,,, but the book is not over yet :) I'm hoping to wrap this up very soon, but i promise it won't be rushed.

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