All I see ✔️

CHAPTER 23

Aaron

I knew triggering Lexie was a mistake that we both will pay for the second we shuddered from the absence of our skin touching each other. But boy was it worth it!

"You can't do that!" She thunders inside my room, as I pull a t-shirt over my head, much to her relief.

"Do what?" I ask, innocently.

"W-whatever you did out there." Her face is flushed red and her carefully made-up hair is in tangles from where my hands had been a minute ago.

"What did I do, Alexis?" I draw out her name and wink at her.

"You know," She grits through her teeth. "Exactly what you did."

My hands are still vibrating from touching her skin. She was a live wire in my arms, writhing and burning and so, so soft. I couldn't make heads or tails about what was happening; now that we are apart, looking at her is making my head spin.

"I don't know, Sunshine," I smirk, "Care to fill me in?"

"Stop pretending."

"Pretending what?"

"That you don't know what I am talking about!" she flips a lock of blonde hair over her shoulder and my hands remember the feel of her soft waves.

Her hair is not exactly blonde, it's like sunlight on a cold winter morning. If I had to paint it, I wouldn't just use yellow and brown; I'd have to use gold and tawny and wheat and maybe some light strokes of platinum and silver.

"I don't know what you are talking about," I shrug my shoulders.

She stomps over to me and slams her palms against me, with an unnerving force that sends me staggering back. I am taken aback by her strength.

"Whatever you're playing with me," She hisses at my face, "Don't."

Her tropical and summery scent overtakes my nostrils and I am slammed by an overwhelming want. Her lips are painted a dark red today, matching her thin red chiffon top which did nothing to hide her fever-hot and shivering skin under my touch.

"Make," I lean in and whisper, "me."

She reels back from my words and her eyes are hooded with an emotion I can't quite place. I know I am going hard on her but I can't stop. A part of me is still mulling over what she said.

It's not the words she said, I couldn't care less if she wanted to sleep with me or not – I did care, but not so much that I'd be inconsiderate of her feelings. It's the way she said them, with a panicked solidity, like she wouldn't have my back if anything went wrong. After spending half of my life looking over my shoulder to see who had my back and who had a knife, I want to know exactly the square we are on. I am not going through a college version of high school incidents again.

"You're going to regret this," she whispers near my face before backing up.

She hit a nerve. Even after every nasty comment and her snarky attitude, I was a friend to her and I deserve to be treated like a friend too.

"Why would you waste your time on a nobody?" I spit.

My words have the desired effect because she instantly straightens up and turns around slowly. Her eyes are hundred different shades of guilt; her mouth opens and closes and then opens again, but still at a loss of words.

"Tell me, Alexis," she flinches at her name, "I am a nobody, right? So why waste your time?"

"You're not a nobody, Richie," she slumps down on the bed and pats the seat beside her, "come here."

"No."

"Please? Or I'll puppy-dog-eyes you," she says, "Please Aaron?"

Her voice cracks in my name and I am beside her in an instant. She looks woefully fragile as if she might break down any moment here. My hands are itching to take all of her in my arms, but I am not sure if it's the right moment. There's always this hesitation whenever it comes to touching her – like she might either melt in my arms or kung fu panda me against the wall.

I open my mouth to tell her that it's okay, I don't need to hear what happened to her then and it's all okay because I really want to believe it, damnit! I really want to believe that every string tethering me to her is still intact and that, I, in all my doubts and insecurities, haven't broken it; but a little voice in my head stops me.

Hear what she has to say, you don't want a repeat of everything that happened four years ago.

After a long stretch of silence which feels like hours, Lexie speaks up, "I was scared. You know how our dads are with each other. I just... I just didn't want him to get angry."

Sensing my tensed shoulders, she hastily adds, "I didn't mean that we aren't friends, or that I am ashamed of you or anything. I... didn't want him to be mad at us, if you ever met my dad, I wouldn't want the first impression to be 'Oh he's sleeping with my daughter, shoot him,'"

I choke out a small laugh, "He sounds tough, also we weren't having sex."

She grips my arm and a jolt of electricity passes through me, "listen to me, Aaron, you're a wonderful man and any girl would be lucky to have you or sleep with you, I freaked out because it was a reflex, we were cuddling on the couch," a strangles laugh escapes her lips, "Dad would've been super mad to see it and then you were at the door, and I didn't want you to suffer his wrath, and if he knew we were connected, he would've flipped his shit."

A weight lifts off my shoulder even though deep down I knew, this would be her answer; guess I just didn't want to believe it, "You give quite a pep talk, Lexie."

She smacks my shoulders playfully, "Shut up, Golden Boy. And for what it's worth, you're my friend, don't doubt that."

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