And then he stopped. Shane leaned his forehead against mine, breathing heavily, our eyes still closed, and he tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.
"Astra," he mumbled against my lips. "Please don't hurt yourself."
And all at once, his body fell l...
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C H A P T E R T H I R T Y - S E V E N
S h a n e ༶ ｡◕
My eyes were pretty much glued to her. I watched her as she worked. I watched her as I worked. I just kept staring at her because, although I didn't know what made today any different from the rest, it was like I'd just noticed she was absolutely breathtaking.
I kept wondering as to why she agreed to have a study session with me if she didn’t even want to be there. Maybe I’m overthinking it. This is becoming a problem.
My eyes drifted to her exposed sleeve, a few red scratches peeking over the top. It was why I hadn't let her wash the dishes before. I knew something had happened – the way she kept blanking out, the way her eyes were staring off into a devoid space of emptiness.
My face heated up every time I recalled what I'd said to her about her stories. Way to embarrass yourself. I was mostly surprised that she wasn't mad at me. Who wouldn't be?
"You good?" She raised an eyebrow as she whisked past me to grab a cup. "You're bright red." The things I'd do to have you in my arms again-
I wanted to bang my head against the counter. Stop. Why couldn't I seem to control my thoughts today? "Yeah, just the heat of the day and the rush." It was super warm outside, and tiny white flowers were growing on trees and blossoming everywhere. Spring was like being reborn; a fresh start.
Deciding to resume with my work, I looked up at the elderly lady standing in front of me who was impatiently checking her watch.
Oh my god. I think it's the same one from the bus. The one that slapped me for literally no reason when all I'd been doing was trying to help.
I plastered a smile on my face. "Hello. What can I get you?"
She squinted through her thick glasses at my face, her eyes magnified to look like humongous balls.
Balls. I silently laughed to myself.
"I would like-" she looked down at the menu she was holding very tightly in her hands. A whiff of her breath flooded the air and I had to grip the marble counter to stop myself from retching or throwing up. "Two cups of coffee, extra large with four sugars each."
I looked down and was about to enter it into the tablet when this madwoman suddenly slapped my face so hard a thwack echoed around the spacious building.
The busy chatter of the café halted and a gasp sounded from different customers. Astra, who was standing next to me, dropped the cup she was carrying, took one look at me and burst out laughing.
She was the only one in a room full of people. The brown liquid of the coffee spilled out over the polished hardwood floors.
The old lady grabbed my face and I whimpered. I let out a sigh of relief when she just aggressively bent my head down to kiss my forehead.
