Forever and Always His

Chapter 20

                “Come on, Everett, it’s a cheerleading movie.” I punched his shoulder gently. “You should like watching girls flip around with their stomachs out.”

                Everett rolled his eyes, before wrapping his arms around my waist. He buried his face in my neck, as he gently pecked on my skin. “Babe, who needs half naked cheerleaders when I have you?”

                I couldn’t deny that my cheeks were becoming warm, but I still managed to slip a grin. “Stop lying, Everett.” I flicked his nose, as he accidentally tickled my sides, making me burst into laughter. “You would love it if I was a cheerleader.”

                Everett pulled away from me, looking at me dead in the eyes. His green eyes turned bright and lucid, as he pushed a strand of my hair out of my face. “No, I wouldn’t, Riley.” He said, his voice full of honesty. “I like you the way you are.”

                “Really?” I asked, sounding weak and breathless.

                “Really.” He repeated, leaning in to press his lips against mine.

                Everett’s laugh snapped me out of trance, sending me back into reality. I turned towards him, noticing how much more attractive he looked when he was smiling. “Are you talking about that dumb cheerleading movie?” He chuckled, leaning his back against the couch comfortably. My eyes began to wander across his face, trying to hide back a smile. On the inside, I was screaming because he had remembered, as well. “That one doesn’t count.”

                I raised an eyebrow. “How come you get to call the shots here?”

                Everett chuckled, his eyes shining brighter by the second. “Because I can.” He stubbornly retorted. “Now, are you going to click the play button any time soon?”

                I gave him a long stare, as he gave me a daring grin. I rolled my eyes playfully, before jamming my thumb on the play button. “You figured it out once. You’ll do it again.” Leo spoke, as Channing Tatum’s gorgeous face appeared on the screen.

                Just as I had expected, Everett had fallen asleep in just half an hour back into the movie. But before that, I could tell that he was trying his very hardest to keep awake. I caught him once or twice trying to conceive a yawn. Eventually, Everett couldn’t resist anymore, and his eyes just gave up. I debated on whether or not to wake him up, but I finally decided not to. He just looked too peaceful and innocent in his sleep. He didn’t have that usual frown on his face- one that he had developed after the death of his mother.

                Everett began to stir in his sleep, as I gently lifted his head, placing it upon my lap. Licking my lips, I hesitantly brushed a strand of hair away from his face. The touch of my fingers to his skin instantly made him smile faintly in his sleep. I began to wonder if he was just having a good dream, or that my touch had soothed him. I stared back up at the dim lit screen, my fingers unknowingly running through Everett’s hair.

                After the movie was over, I had turned off the television. Everett was still fast asleep on my lap. Since the lights were out during the movie, the room was not completely dark. I checked the time that flashed across my screen on my phone, noticing that it was just a little bit past ten. I hadn’t heard any noise throughout the movie, meaning that everyone, including Maria, was still out of the house. I slowly got up, not wanting to disturb Everett. But, he must’ve felt some kind of movement, because when I stood up, his eyes opened.