Slipping Through My Fingers

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter 14

Rosalie's POV -

Even though I tried my very best to keep my attitude neutral, I couldn't help but feel giddy in front of my brothers. They were encouraging me to seem happier about going on my night trip to the beach however what they didn't know was that I really was happy.

My boys were happy too; Mike and Liam won a spelling competition in their school and so the prize was five tickets to watch 'The Wizard of Oz' on Broadway. It turned out well because Adam's girlfriend (who he had been dating for five months now) was really aching to see 'The Wizard of Oz' and apparently, from what Adam was telling me; she was desperate to meet me and my brothers.

Unfortunately, she wouldn't be meeting me and I was a little weary about allowing her to meet my brothers before I met her but I guess I trusted Adam enough to know that he wouldn't be dating a complete witch.

And plus, Adam genuinely seemed to enjoy my brothers company. His mind was at the same age as my twins and I was glad that they got along so well.

"Rose," I heard Adam's voice whine as he walked into my apartment in nothing but a singlet, boxers and his socks pulled up high. "What should I wear tonight?"

We were taking off Friday of school (much to my dismay) and leaving at about eight in the morning so Adam was desperate to get my opinion on what he should wear tonight.

"Well, you're going to something prestigious but you don't want to wear a suit but you don't want to look too casual either," I answered him, amusement clearly written all over my face.

"That makes no sense at all. Just speak to me in human language. Do I wear jeans, trackies, cargos?" His brows were knitted together in confusion.

"Just wear those dark jeans and a nice shirt. She won't care about what you're wearing." I replied, folding my swimsuit into my tote bag.

"You're right. She's going to care about what's underneath what I'm wearing." Adam mused.

My face immediately reddened as my eyes went wide at his innuendo.

"A-Adam!" I stuttered. "Don't say things like that! Can I really trust you with my brothers tonight?"

"You mean are Holly and I going to have sex in front of them? No, don't worry about that." Adam smirked.

"Adam!" I yelled again.

He started chuckling and I turned around, trying to allow my face to cool back down to its original colour. We heard someone clear their throat and I turned around to see Nate coolly leaning against the front door, a smirk on his face while his eyes twinkled in amusement.

"So this is the douche you're talking about?" Nate asked, bobbing his head towards Adam who stopped laughing and scowled at Nate.

"Funny," Adam glared, "I was just about to ask Rose the same thing."

Instead of Nate looking offended, he grinned widely and turned towards me.

"You talk about me, Rose?" You could just see the narcissism all over his face.

I blushed and quickly shook my head.

"N-No." I lied.

Nate laughed and rolled his eyes.

"You suck at lying." Before I could protest, he continued to talk. "Anyway, aren't you ready yet? We're all waiting."

"Almost." I answered. "I just need to get the pepper spray and baseball bat."



"Woah, Woah. Pepper spray? Baseball bat? What the f*ck is going on?" Nate seemed phased.

"Don't f*cking swear." Adam glared.

I laughed at the very fact that he swore too which earned me a scowl, too.

"Anyway," Nate said, rolling his eyes at Adam, "Why the hell are you bringing those to the beach?"

I shrugged and smiled impishly.

"You never know what could happen." I said.

"Yeah, yeah." Nate rushed. "I know that there are things that could go wrong but why would you bring those items when I'll be there to protect you?"

My only thought at that moment? How do humans breathe again? I literally felt my face burning and my heart stop, then speed up again. Not to mention all those stupid butterflies and suddenly feeling my hands become sweaty.

"D-don't say things like that!" I blurted.

Nate laughed and raised an eyebrow, making me stare at it.

"Okay," Adam announced, clearing his throat. "I'm going to leave you two love birds alone."

Impossibly, my face heated up even more.

Adam walked over to me and planted a quick kiss onto my cheek and hugged me tightly.

"Take care Rosie. And don't worry; I'll make sure Holly keeps her hands off me for the night." Before I could yell at him, he winked at me and ran out of the apartment.

I laughed at how he tripped over his own feet while trying to open his apartment door and quickly grabbed the pepper spray and baseball bat. I put it into my tote bag (which amazingly fit everything) and grabbed my keys. The boys were staying at Adam's for the night because Adam refused to sleep on my couch. I quickly made sure that all the windows were shut, the lights were off, the electricity switches were off and that the oven wasn't on. What can I say; I have OCD to a certain extent.



"So," Nate began when I walked back into the lounge room. "What's going on with you and Adam?"

I frowned, not understanding what he meant.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"Don't play dumb with me," He scoffed. "You could so tell he has a thing for you and you like him too."

If I had water or food in my mouth, I probably would have choked. Adam liking me? Wouldn't that be like incest or something? Now I knew that we were not even related but we were so close that it felt like he had been my big brother for years.

"I can assure you that we're just friends. Siblings even." I told him, brushing past him and out into the hallway.

"Rose, he likes you." Nate scowled.

"No he doesn't. Why do you care anyway? Jealous?" I joked, trying to lighten the mood.

I walked down the steps and saw the car parked with the twins, Chris and Asher all sitting inside. Even though it was seven seater, it was a flashy car.

"Yes." Nate's cool voice answered.

I actually forgot what I had asked him but when I remembered, I stopped dead in my tracks and looked over at him.

"Seriously?" And of course, I blushed.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" He shrugged casually.

My eyes widened and I sucked in a deep breath, trying to steady the loud sound of my racing heart.

We both started at each other for a while, just stuck in time. I wanted to ask him more questions, just anything that would tell me that he actually like me. I opened my mouth to speak just as the horn for the car beeped loudly.

"Can you two just hurry up!" Chris yelled from the passenger seat.

I blushed at the fact that they probably just watched us stare at each other. I pulled my bag tighter because it was heavy but Nate snatched it from out of my hands and strode quickly to the car and put my bag in the boot.

I slid the door open for the car and was sent straight to the back with Cam. She grinned widely at me when she saw me, patting the space beside her and practically jumping in her seat. I laughed at her enthusiasm and quickly put my belt on.

"You excited?" She asked, grinning like the Cheshire cat.

I giggled and nodded.

"I would have been more excited if we didn't have to miss out on school for this." I replied.

I heard Nate mumble a small 'nerd' during a fake cough and I narrowed my eyes on him, which was staring at me through the rear view mirror.

"I am not a nerd; I just care about my education." I mumbled, more to myself for reassurance.

I saw Nate smirk, eyes still latched onto mine and I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Watch the road." I mumbled.

I didn't exactly feel satisfied dying and leaving the boys to tragically live life with Adam. I would feel sorry for them, not for Adam. Speaking of which, my phone vibrated in my lap and I saw Adam's name written on the screen. Knowing it would be something silly, I rolled my eyes in preparation and opened up the message.

Adam had actually sent me six different photos of a variety of outfits that he could wear tonight. I didn't understand why he was so nervous about tonight. From the amount of months that they'd been dating, you'd think he wouldn't care anymore about what he wears in front of Holly but it didn't seem that way.

I replied to him with a quick 'Outfit Four' and a smiley face before letting the phone rest on my lap again.

"Was that the hot neighbour?" Cam asked, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

I blushed a little, and opened up my mouth to reply but Chloe cut me off.

"Oh yeah! I remember him; he is one fine fellow." She winked at me with a sly grin.

"Have you guys gone out yet?" Cam asked, positioning herself as if she were in for a very long gossiping conversation.

Too bad there really wasn't any gossip to tell. Unless they wanted me to tell them about the time Adam poured a bucket of water on my head to wake him up and my grumpiness in the morning made a well-seen bruise blossom onto his shoulder. I was actually pretty proud of my punch. Or the time he threw the Xbox controller at my head for beating him in Call of Duty.

"Um, we go out plenty of times." I murmured, unsure of their confused looks.

The speed of the car suddenly increased substantially and I was genuinely scared for my life.

"Nate, slow down!" I yelled, checking the safety of my seatbelt.

He looked at me through the rear view mirror, his eyes holding no expression whatsoever. Just plain blankness.

"Why didn't you ever tell us?!" My attention was caught back to the gossiping girls, who were grinning evilly.

"Tell you what?" I was plain clueless.

"That you and that hot, fine, piece of eye cand-" Cam began but was quickly interrupted.

"You do know that I'm sitting right here, right? I'm not tolerating my girl complimenting any other guy." Chris spoke, smirking at Cam.

"Aw, you jealous?" She laughed.

He nodded his head quickly, his eyes serious.

"Yes. Yes, I am." He replied.

She smiled fondly at him before ordering Nate to stop on the side of the road.

Nate, obviously, completely ignored Cam and continued to drive faster.

"Nate!" Cam yelled, screaming so loud that I needed to block my eyes. "I swear to God, if you do not stop right now I will"

"F*cking hell. Relax, I'm stopping." He put his indicator to the right and quickly pulled over and put the car in park.

"Chris-" Cam began but Chris spoke instead.

"I know, babe." He smirked. "I'm coming over." He opened up his door and went out, instead coming in through the entrance of where I was sitting.

"Rose, swap seats with me. I want to spend quality time with my girl." He winked at Cam when he said that.

I nodded, and walked out of the car, and slid into the front seat. I could tell that Nate was tense, too tense actually. His veins were popping out and his body was stiff, as if someone had challenged him not to move a muscle.

We drove in silence for a while, only hearing continuous murmur between both couples. Thankfully, the twins and Chris and Asher knew not to show public displays of affection and so it just remained to be continuous mumbles. I kept glancing at Nate once in a while and slowly over time; the tenseness began to ease until he seemed to be sitting in contented comfort.

We stopped at a servo because the girls were getting hungry and the boys were restless. Really, I didn't have a problem. I was used to starving because I always needed to keep enough food to satisfy my brothers. Also, I slept on the couch every night in the most uncomfortable position and sitting in the car felt like full on comfort. As Nate parked, I reached my hand over to the handle to open the door when a firm hold stopped my hand.

"Wait." Nate whispered quickly, his face only inches away from mine.

I nodded slyly, enough for him to know I understood the message. The twins and the boys opened the door and walked into the servo without really sparing us a glance. Once Nate made sure they were out of sight, he turned back to me with an unreadable expression.

"Are you really dating him?" Nate asked; his Adam's apple bobbing as he spoke.

I frowned in confusion and cocked my head to the side.



"Dating who?" I asked softly.

"Adam." He spat.

Adam? Why would he think that I was dating Adam? I told him just this morning that there was nothing going on with us; that I merely saw him as a brother and nothing else.

"No I'm not. Why would you think that anyway?" I replied.

"So why did you tell the girls that you guys go out?" He asked, his stance challenging.

"Because we do?" It was supposed to be a statement but it turned out to be more like a question.

"Just cut straight to the point, Rose!" He exploded, punching the head rest that I was leaning on.

I flinched quickly, wondering why he was so angry. He was fine this morning! I can't keep putting up with his mood swings.

"What are you talking about?!" I yelled.

"Are you dating Adam or not?" Noticing my aggravation, he lowered his voice a little.

"No I'm not. He's like a brother. We go out bowling or for ice cream or to the movies with my little brothers." I told him.

Nate cocked one eyebrow upwards and even though my mood was put off my Nate's anger, I couldn't help the corners of my mouth curving up.

Nate chuckled and he seemed like a huge weight of bricks were taken off of his shoulders.

"Why do you care anyway?" I asked him, suddenly feeling curious.

"I told you Rose," He stated bluntly. "I'm jealous of all the guys you have interactions with."

Blushing furiously, Nate smirked and opened the door and walked into the servo station leaving me confused as ever. If he was jealous does that mean that he could... No. I was pretty sure that this whole 'having feelings' was one sided. I thought that I was the only one who harboured feelings but could he really... Did Nate like me?

**

After eating at the servo, we went back into the car and thankfully, I was able to think about Nate without having to sit next to him. Asher and Chloe had gotten into a fight and Chloe demanded that Asher and I swap seats. I didn't mind one bit not sitting next to Nate because honestly, he just made me nervous. I was quiet throughout the rest of the car trip, only answering a few questions here and there.

Once we arrived, I slid open the car door and just kind of stood there in my path, admiring the beauty of the beach. I thought when Cam and Chloe told me about going for a beach trip that it'd be an ordinary beach with dull water and people everywhere. But oh my, how I was wrong. Instead, the water was as blue as the sky and clear as crystal, making anyone who saw it want to swim in it. The sand was levelled up and looked comfy to sit in. And what made my smile turn into an outstretched grin was that there was no one. This amazingly beautiful beach was available for me and my friends.

"Rose? You going to take your bag or what?" Cam asked me, giggling at my shocked expression.

"Oh," I giggled in embarrassment. "Yep, I'm getting it."

I went round the back of the car to pick up my bag only to find that it was gone.

"Where'd my bag go?" I asked aloud, frowning.

"I have it." I heard Nate's husky voice call from behind me.

I felt butterflies form in the pit of my stomach as I turned around and saw him smirking in my direction. He nudged his head towards the beach, indicating for me to walk with him. Fighting a smile, I made my way towards him and pulled out my hand.

"What?" Nate asked, looking at my outstretched arm.

"My bag?"

"Oh, don't worry, I'll carry it." He replied with a smirk.

I internally scoffed - of course he'd want to carry it... God forbid I try to do anything myself.

"So," I began, making conversation. "Where exactly are we sleeping tonight? Are we setting up tents or what?"

"Tents?" Nate scoffed. "Seriously, Rose? Tents?"

I rolled my eyes at him, feeling a little embarrassed that I brought up tents in front of someone who was extraordinarily rich.

"No, we aren't staying in tents. We have a beach house, right there." He pointed in the direction and I found myself admiring it. This whole place seemed to be beautiful.

"So then, do we have activities for the day?" I asked.

Nate rolled his eyes at me and took a deep breath.

"Rose, relax. We are here to chill not to have activities planned out for what we are going to do. We'll just do what we feel like."

"Oh." I felt my cheeks flame up in humiliation at my suggestion. "Well, what do you feel like doing then?"

"I hope you have a pretty hot bathing suit, Rose, because I'm going swimming." Nate smirked.

Before I could say anything else, he dropped our bags, ripped his shirt off and ran towards the beach, tackling the first wave that came his way. And all I could do was stand in my spot and watch him from the distance. God, I really, really liked this guy.

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Authors Note:

They've started their trip! What do you think of it so far?

This was inspired by a trip I took in July.

Vote, comment and fan.

Farewell xx