Jay:
When I heard Nya's breathing grow slow and shallow, I knew she fell asleep.
I didn't want to move her and risk waking her up, so I leaned my head against hers.
Now that she was asleep, I let myself run over the day's events.
Nya invited me to meet her only living family, and we've only known each other a week.
Nya deserted me with her brother when he did something to upset her.
We risked getting her in trouble with the law just to find her.
I found her, and the words she said in her groggy state were ones I didn't intend on forgetting anytime soon.
"Jay? You came."
"I want to go with Jay."
"I could stay at your place?"
"Do his cuddles help you sleep better?"
"You can do all those things with me."
"Little spoon."
I grinned at the last one, trying not to laugh so I don't wake Nya up.
I look down at the sleeping girl in my arms. She looked so peaceful, so vulnerable, the complete opposite of who she was when she was fully conscious.
You wouldn't have known it from looking at her, but this girl has gone through much more than most people at this age.
Whatever happened between her and that guy she used to like must've been pretty bad if it meant she ran away.
Was that why she didn't want to see Kai? Because he brought it up so casually?
Nya:
I woke up, and the first thing I noticed was that Sunny climbed up into my bed, and I was snuggling her.
The second was that Sunny didn't have dog breath.
My eyes snapped open, and I tried to sit up, but whoever was in my bed had an iron grip on me, keeping me lying down.
Then the memories of last night came back, and I relaxed.
"Jay." I said, tapping his cheek with my open palm. "Jay. Jay. Jay. Jay!" On the last 'Jay,' I poked him in the gut.
He sat up. "Owwww, Nya, you didn't have to do that!" He whined. He released me and blushed at how close we were.
I ruffled his hair. "I need a nickname for you. I have Pix for Pixal, Sky for Skylor, and Hothead for Kai, but I can't shorten 'Jay.'" I used to call Cole 'Boulder Brain' anytime he'd say something stupid, but I wasn't about to mention that to Jay.
He stretched his arms. "My friend calls me Sparky because I walked into an electric fence." His cheeks grew pink. "You can't call me Sparky."
"Don't worry about it, Sparky. That's not as bad as Water Lily."
He raised an eyebrow. I found myself lost in his blue pools that normal people call eyes. His eyebrow dropped back down, and I suddenly became blissfully aware of how close we were, sitting on the ground.
His brown curls seemed more auburn now, messy, yet framing his face perfectly. His freckles scattered across his face, and his pale lips tempted me.
What is going on with me?
I shake myself out of my daze, Jay still looking at me expectantly, waiting for an explanation to my nickname.
"I'm a good swimmer." I don't actually know why they called me Water Lily. I am a good swimmer, but I don't think that has to do with the nickname.
He nodded, not taking his gaze off of me. I feel naked, like he's looking through my soul.
How does one's gaze have such an effect?
We're interrupted by Jay's stomach.
Thank the First Spinjitzu Master.
He laughs awkwardly, and I stifle a smile.
"Do you want to go out for pancakes or something? Waffle Tree should be open right now."
He nods. "Sure. I'm driving, though."
I chuckle. "Yeah, right, Sparky. That's what you said last night."
Jay:
As we pulled into the parking lot, I tried to get it into my head that Nya didn't feel the same about me.
It's not that I believe that, seeing as it seems that she does, but I don't want to rush into things before she realizes her feelings for me.
I also don't want to get my hopes up in the case that I'm being delusional.
I mean, sure, she called out for me last night.
And sure, we cuddled until she fell asleep.
And she may have stared at my lips longer than the average person, but that doesn't mean anything.
I'm doing a terrible job of convincing myself.
We walk into the restaurant, and our hands are right next to each other. It takes all my restraint to not hold her hand.
I'm starting to think my maybe-crush may be a definite crush.
Wow, I really suck at this romance thing.
I'm not sure if this is a love at first sight deal or an attraction at first sight deal.
I mean, sure, I thought she was pretty when I saw her on our first day of school.
But when I heard her speak, well, let's just say that her sarcasm was something I wanted to be around constantly.
I think that's what made me want to approach her on that first day.
But then again, that would've been second sight, wouldn't it?
And when I woke up to us cuddling?
I try not to blush while Nya gets up to order, and I find us a table.
I just hope she doesn't order me scrambled eggs. I've had enough of those for a lifetime.
I also hope Mr. Cuddlywomp isn't being brutally tortured by Kai. Or even worse, I get brutally tortured by Kai.
But for Nya, it'd be worth it.
I doubt that Mr. Cuddlywomp will be as good at cuddling as Nya, though. Last night was just bliss.
I never thought I'd enjoy silence like I did then.
Nya comes back to the table with two plates of pancakes.
"You could not have chosen better than this." I grin at her.
Her cheeks get a bit rosy. "Yeah, you seemed like a pancake person."
It's getting harder to convince myself that she doesn't like me.
"So, after this, I think we should drop you off at my apartment, and you can sort things out with Kai."
Her face pales. "No." She says firmly, and I can tell she won't budge on this.
Well, neither will I. "Nya, I let you drive. I let you stay at my parents. I let you cuddle me, which, I might add, is a privilege not many get. Besides, the longer you wait, the worse things will be."
"Puh-lease. You were so hesitant to let me go this morning, I think you were the privileged one." My cheeks heat up. "I'm not going home."
"Not even to Sunny?" Her pokerface falters, and for a second, I can see a glimpse of her worries and hesitation play across her face. She must really love that dog.
"Maybe we could go on a walk first?"
I sigh, knowing that she's stalling. But on the other hand, it is early, and spending time with her sounds pretty good right now, so...
I nod. "Fine, but I'm taking you back after."
"Yeah, yeah. Come on, let's go." She grabs her pancakes in one hand and my hand in the other. I barely manage to grab my breakfast before she drags us away from the table and out the door.
"Where we going?" I ask, my mouth full of pancakes.
She gives me a lopsided smile. "Beach."
My eyes widened. "Isn't that really far from here?"
"I go there with Sunny all the time. It's your fault that you brought her up." She just shrugged and took a bite of her pancake.
She was still holding my hand, and I had a sudden burst of confidence.
"What are we?" I wanted to take the words back almost immediately. I've known her for a week, and I've known I had feelings for her for one day!
She blushed, and I pretended not to notice. "We're friends."
"What about last night?"
"Friends that cuddle." Her face was bright red, and she dropped my hand. "Why are you so interested?"
"Why are you acting so interested?" I question.
"What are you talking about?"
"You can't tell me you weren't staring at my lips this morning."
She doesn't say anything, but her silence speaks numbers.
You don't know it yet, Nya Smith, but I do.
My heart is yours the minute you realize you want it.