Fill My Lungs | J. Todd ✔

[05] Coffee And Cigarettes

He was outside the supermarket, parked a short distance away, just in time for her shift to end. He was sitting in his car, waiting for her to come out with his blue-green eyes fixed on the exit of the supermarket.

A short while later, he spotted her delicate figure step out through the gates. She had changed out of her uniform and the face mask wasn't covering her features either. As she came to the spot where he had parked his car, a smile played upon her lips and he pushed open the door for her.

"Hi," she greeted him, getting into the passenger seat.

She was dressed in a black pencil skirt with a coffee-colored top, a daisy motif pinned to the side of her collar. Her brown hair were cascading in waves as if she had just brushed the strands out after keeping them tied up in a braid for the day.

"Hi," he replied, tearing his eyes away from her as he didn't want her to feel uncomfortable.

"I hope I didn't get too late," she said as he backed the car out of the spot, driving off to the cafe he had chosen to take her to for that evening, "you weren't waiting out here for long, right?"

"No, I had just reached," he replied, keeping his eyes on the road although it was quite difficult to focus on anything else with her beside him.

"Okay, good. Oh, this is my favorite coffee shop," she remarked as he parked the car upon reaching the destination, "you must try their cupcakes. Heavenly..."

"It's my second time here but I appreciate that you know what's best to order," he replied, cringing internally at how formal he sounded.

She didn't seem to mind that though and a lovely smile played upon her lips as she got out of the car and accompanied him inside.

He noticed that she had a very carefree personality and everything she did or said reflected that. It was almost as if she had decided to enjoy each and every moment of her life to the fullest, regardless of the company.

She was telling him about all the drinks she had tried there and which ones were her favorite. In the end, they settled on ordering cold coffee with cupcakes and Jason brought the tray over to the corner table where she was sitting.

It was all extremely different for him; sitting in a cafe with a pretty young woman talking to him freely as if they had known each other for a long time. His eyes would constantly trail down to her lips and he would rebuke himself and recollect his thoughts that were spiraling too much in her presence.

He did not know why but she had the same effect on him that going on a dangerous spree could have. The same feeling of adrenaline and excitement each time she caught him staring at her lips and a shade of red would tint her cheeks punctuated by a light carefree laugh.

How could someone so peaceful have the same effect on him that a raging entity of chaos could?

Or maybe he was the chaos who felt drawn to the peace and calm that hung about her.

He was bad for her, he reminded himself once again, shaking himself out of the thoughts that had gone down the similar rocky pathways of that night they had spent a few weeks earlier. He knew he shouldn't have asked her out either but for some reason, there he was, sitting in front of her, watching her every little move that made her stand out from the rest.

When it came to Valerie, he was impulsive. There was no other explanation for that.

And perhaps it was the same impulse that took hold of him eventually such that by the time they were leaving the cafe and had gotten into his car, his eyes lingered on her beautiful features again.

The daisy pinned on the side of her collar was rumpled and he reached out to fix it. She had stilled in her seat, grey eyes curiously observing him.

He was a little too close to her as such and her lips parted to say something but the words drowned in when he leaned closer and kissed her. With both of them sober that once, she was able to register the feeling of his lips on hers more clearly in her mind and her hands reached up to hold his face tenderly.

The next few seconds seemed to tick by in a breeze. He had pushed his seat back and brought her on top of him, his lips trailing down to her neck. The faint taste of coffee and cigarettes lingered in her mouth as her hands closed onto his shirt, head arching back to let him go deeper.

His arms had wrapped around her and he stole her breath away again, kissing her as if her lips were air and he needed to breathe.

Valerie too responded to the heat of his kisses with as much passion but stopped him when his fingers trailed to her collar.

"Don't tear this blouse off, it's my favorite," she mumbled in a low voice although her heart was racing and she didn't want him to stop.

"Oh... Sorry," he replied, looking at her to make sure that she was doing okay. He hadn't intended for things to escalate that fast but it just happened.

Impulsive, he thought again, he was way too impulsive when Valerie Kayes was the person in front of him. What was the reason behind it was still a mystery to him.

"Jason... Did you ask me out today so you could get to kiss me again?" She asked at last, bringing her racing heartbeat to a temporary calm by focusing on his oceanic eyes.

His cheeks shaded red ever so slightly but she didn't catch it as it was dark around them. He considered what to say but the words slipped past him without much thought, "maybe."

"You could have mentioned that earlier, y'know," her eyes sparkled playfully, and a smile crept upon her lips.

He let out the breath he was holding, seeing that she did not seem offended at his remark. In fact, it seemed as if she would have no issue if he took things a step further provided that he didn't tear her favorite blouse off.

"Do I have to drop you back at your place?" He asked, his hand fitting over her cheek lightly.

She leaned into his touch, grey eyes melting into his irises as she shrugged, "I can stay over at yours if you like."

He smiled slightly at that remark, letting go of her so that she could slide back into the passenger seat while he started the car. Once again, he was going to take her back to his safe house, knowing that Roy and Kori wouldn't be there.

The only difference from the last time he had taken her to his place would be that both of them weren't heavily drunk to forget most of what happened between them.

And strangely enough, they looked forward to it. The curiosity and the attraction between them were mutual.

***