Honey and Spice | ✔️

Chapter 27

I sit up and pull him up with me. So now we're sitting cross-legged on my bed facing each other. I take both of his hands in my slightly cold ones, rubbing my thumbs lightly on his knuckles.

"Oh, right. I forgot something . . ." I say as I reach for his glasses on my bedside table and give them to him. Nathan stops half-squinting at me and clumsily puts on his glasses with one hand, the other still in mine.

Then he puts his hand back in mine and I continue rubbing his knuckles comfortingly. He doesn't look at me for a while. And I wait.

His head finally goes up. "I'm scared, Ryder," he says, biting the inside of his cheeks afterwards. "I'm scared of what he'll say."

I smile softly at him. "I'm sure he'll understand. He's probably just surprised." I give his hands a reassuring squeeze. "Your mom sounds okay with it, from what I can tell from yesterday. I mean, I don't think you'll be thrown out or anything."

He smiles and gives out a small laugh, visibly relaxing. "Yeah . . . you're right."

"Come here." I let go of his hands and open my arms, ignoring the fluttering feeling in my stomach.

Nathan looks at me curiously, head tilted, being insanely adorable.

"Come here." And he does.

I wrap my arms around him as his arms go around my neck. And I pull him to me, nuzzling his neck.

Warm. (So warm.)

I breathe him in. Coffee and cotton and books and golden rays of sunshine. He smells like a new beginning. A new life.

He feels so . . . safe.

I tighten my arms around him, but also careful not to crush him. I'm so glad to have him. I feel like crying - but happy tears, which feels foreign to me. Not until now.

Nathan snuggles into me, his lips forming into a smile against my skin. "This feels nice," he whispers to himself.

And then butterflies erupted inside again.

*

Nathan and I are standing on the curb outside my building, waiting for his dad. Nathan nervously looks at his phone and the road, and back at his phone again. Multiple times. I can feel his anxiety radiating off of him like a heatwave.

So I pull one hand out of my pocket and close it around his free hand. I give it a reassuring squeeze and he immediately stops fidgeting.

He smiles sweetly at me, blushing as he squeezes back.

Then, a black car pulls up in front of us. Nathan lets go of my hand in alarm and adjusts his glasses awkwardly. I scratch the back of my neck, unsure of what to do when a man gets out of the car and walks towards us. He has a very serious look on his face, unsmiling and tense. He's very tall, with tailored brown hair, signs of stubble and steel blue eyes. He's wearing a neatly ironed black shirt, straight grey slacks and black leather shoes. This man screams of intimidating professional shit.

"H-hi, Dad," Nathan says beside me.

Oh wait, that's actually his dad? I glance between them, trying to see the similarity between the shy blue-and-green-eyed ginger and the scary blue-eyed brunet.

Nathan's dad gives him a nod and looks at me instead. His steely eyes bore into me, making me squirm a little under his gaze. But I pull myself together. "Hi, Mr Adler," I say, shooting my hand out. "I'm Ryder."

"Hello . . . Ryder." He shakes my hand twice, firm and professional. Then he mutters under his breath, "So, he's the guy." Before I can make sense of this, he abruptly lets go of my hand and straightens his shirt. "Alright, we'll take our leave now," he announces, turning back to the car.