AUDREY
I opened my eyes and yawned groggily. I could feel a weight on my waist and it was holding me close, something resting on my shoulder. I tried to turn as best as I could, trying not to wake him up. When I am finally facing him, I find myself analysing him.
His breathing was soft and steady, his eyelashes were long, long enough to make any girl envious. His hair was sprawled over the couch beneath us, mine was probably worse. His cheeks were painted with a soft pink, it was barely noticeable. He looked... cute, and peaceful.
I was surprised at how calm he was, considering he was an energetic whirlwind when he was awake. All of a sudden, his eyebrows furrowed and he pulled me in abruptly, squeezing me tightly.
"No, don't leave me." It was rushed and panicked, he jolted awake.
"Hey, it's alright." I coo, stroking his hair to try and calm him.
"Audrey? Audrey!" At first, he was puzzled, but he grabs me again and pulls me closer, hugging me.
"What's wrong?" I giggle at his strange behaviour, ruffling the back of his head. I look down at our feet, laughing at the tangle of blankets, wrapped around our legs. I look back him to see him smiling at me.
"What?" I ask again, when he doesn't answer I pinch his nose and try to sit up. I stretch and run my hands through my hair, tying it up into a ponytail with the band on my wrist. I stare at the indent left behind, sighing and shaking my head.
"What time is it?" He sits up and ruffles his hair. I see my phone on the table and pick it up.
"Six. Wow, we slept five hours, that's the longest I've slept in ages." I gasp, "It's dinner time. do you wanna go out and get it, do you want a takeaway?"
"What do you have here?" He stands, walking over to the fridge, "I could whip something up."
"Wait, you can cook?" I blurted, dramatically putting a hand over my chest in surprise.
"Well, yeah. My auntie owns a restaurant so I help out there sometimes, and I also won a lot of cooking contests when I was younger." He beamed, smiling sheepishly.
I gape at him, my eyes wide, I'm sure I look like a fish but I couldn't care less. "Then why did I have to make you breakfast all those times, you can cook." I screech.
He chuckles and ruffles his hair. "I liked your cooking a lot, it had a homey feel to it and I swear it contained happiness with a hint of grouchiness." He retorts, laughing at my pout.
"Well, what can you make?" I challenged, raising an eyebrow.
"It's a surprise." He teased, leaving me in the couch area alone.
I had watched two episodes of a random show by the time he finished. He walked over with two steaming plates, setting them down on the table before going back to get drinks.
"Here I present you, spaghetti." He explains, deciding to use a really bad French accent.
I lift some on my fork, putting it in my mouth. Flavours burst on the tip of my tongue, causing me to moan quietly.
"It's, really, really good," I comment.
"Thank you very much. It's my mother's favourite and I had a feeling you would like it." He said, taking a sip of his drink.
"What made you want to learn to cook?" I wondered, taking another (extremely delicious) bite.
He chuckled at my reaction. "Remember when Mrs White retired?" I nodded, "Well, she helped me a lot and at that time I may have been the teacher's pet. Well, anyway. I was upset so I asked the kitchen staff at home to teach me how to make a cake and they agreed. Of course, they had me make a sample cake first to make sure that what I was making was edible and not poisonous."
I laughed and he laughed along with me. "After I made the trial cake, they tasted it and they loved it. The head chef said that I had talent and potential, and besides, I liked cooking, it calms me down and it's fun. After that everyone loved the cake and I decided to start learning to cook. My parents then encouraged me to participate in contests and that led me to grow even more." I continued.
"Ah. That sounds so awesome. What was it like at the contests?" I asked eagerly, scooping up another mouthful of spaghetti.
He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "What do you mean? Haven't you ever participated in a contest before?"
"Well yeah, but they were for academic subjects like English literature and physics and maths and all that stuff, the occasional sports contest as well," I replied, puzzled by his confusion.
"So, you've only participated in academics and sport, haven't you competed in any contests for fun?" He set his empty plate on the table and took another sip of his drink.
"No? I didn't know there were contests for fun. I only competed in competitions because my parents wanted bragging rights. I guess I did enjoy them but there was always something about them that I hated, though I enjoyed them, I hated them, I was pressured and forced into them. I didn't really have a choice. It was good for my mother I guess, she always talked about how her daughters were perfect. My father always said that if I win, I get two days off work." I replied, standing and bringing both our plates to the sink and placing them in the dishwasher.
"Work? You worked?" He followed with our empty cups and placed them in the dishwasher.
"Yeah. well, when I say work it was more training to take over the business and then actually working." I closed the dishwasher and went back to the sofa.
"That's...not a childhood." He muttered, a hint of anger hidden beneath his words.
I ignored it, choosing not to protest, it is the truth after all. "So, what happened earlier?" I hesitantly asked. I sat across from him, surrounded by a large fluffy blanket that tickled my face.
"I'm not sure myself. Rachel came over to my apartment earlier and interrogated me, afterwards she left." He stopped there, sounding like he wanted to say something else but couldn't. "I don't know before I knew what was happening I ended up at your door and-"
He let out a groan of frustration and rubbed the back of his neck, this seems to be a habit of his. I giggled, causing him to look up. From there, he made an over-exaggerated frown which caused me to chuckle.
SEBASTIAN
I watched her chuckle, I did it on purpose - the frown I mean. Her voice was muffled but her small smile was genuine. The twinkle in her eyes causes a smile to arise.
After a few minutes, I decided I should leave, I remembered she had insomnia and that she should get as much sleep as possible.
"Sorry, I know my face gave it away but your face looked funny, I acted out of line. I apologize." She said, trying to contain the smile.
"It's okay, I'm glad I could make you smile, you look really pretty when you do." She began blushing and attempted to hide her face with the blanket, "Anyway, I should get going, you need to sleep anyway." I shuffle over to her and hug her.
She tenses up and I can feel her discomfort but I don't let go. After a few seconds, she relaxes and wraps her arms around my torso in return. I unwillingly let go and make my way to the door.
"Goodnight Audrey, I'll see you tomorrow." She nods as I wave. I shut the door quietly and I go to the end of the hall where the elevator awaits.
I journey back to my apartment complex, going to the rooftop instead of the floor my apartment was on. I view the night sky, the stars twinkling above me, the moon illuminating my surroundings. The street lamps are on, targeting those who pass under the bright orange glare.
Under the blanket of darkness, beneath a tree, I spot a couple. The girl is laughing and is leaning into the boy who drapes his arm around her shoulders. He says something to her and she laughs again. My chest aches at the sight, at something I didn't have. The same thing happened when I saw families on my trips to the main city, not that my family isn't like that but, I don't see myself as a part of it. I don't feel it.
The wind weaved through my hair and grazed across my cheeks. The cold like a sudden slap but a comforting caress at the same time. I closed my eyes, concentrating on the feel of the breeze across my skin, which soon became rain as well. The rain began with pitter-patters, single drops, before thickening. I could feel the ice seeping through my clothes, stealing away my warmth.
I didn't move, I couldn't. It was like I was in a trance, forever hoping the pouring rain would drown out the pain in my chest, how heavy it felt. That the wind would block out my thoughts with its whirring. In the silver moonlight, I stood alone, the rain began pouring and I still wouldn't move, the wind died away but it was still there. Through all the pain I could feel peace, it lingered in the back of my mind, calming my erratic breathing and my heart that was beating a-mile-a-minute.
At that moment, I could hear them, the violins as we danced along to their symphony. I could smell her perfume, I could feel the material of her dress beneath my fingertips, the feeling of her hand in the other. I could see dusk reflected in her deep chocolate eyes, where she held the sunset prisoner. I saw her smile and how much sadness she hid beneath it, so masked that you wouldn't find it, couldn't find it unless you really tried hard. That was it, she was it, the peace, I could breathe, like the weight had disappeared. My thoughts melted into nothingness, only to be consumed by her.
In this moment, I decided that I will not mess up this plan. I will carry it through to the end. I tell myself, plead with myself, to not take my admiration too far.