Smoke Break /Georgenotfound/

՜՞՜25՜՞՜

The scientific thing George was watching put me to sleep real quick.

While I was half-asleep, I might've accidentally stretched out my legs and placed them on his lap.

There were also some other memories I was recollecting that might have been products of my imagination or dreams, but two particular things stood out.

I recall his hand resting just above my ankle, gently rubbing messy patterns over the sore marks left by my shoes on my skin. The tingling of my skin and the weight of his hand were just too real to be a dream.

Another memory is of him removing his jacket and draping it over my thighs cause I kept adjusting my dress for it to not ride up too high. I remember this moment distinctly because of the scent of his cologne overflowing my senses. And also, I fell asleep shortly after that cause I no longer worried about my dress.

I slept well. But not for long. I'd say four hours at best.

Gradually, I became aware of the weight on my leg and the faint light seeping through the curtains and my closed eyelids. When I tried to stretch, I realized that I wasn't in my bed, and there was someone else present on the couch with me.

I opened my eyes slowly, lazily peering from beneath my lashes to take in my surroundings. The first image that greeted me was George. He was sitting with his head tilted back, leaning into the couch, eyes shut. His chest rose and fell gently, one hand resting on my leg while the other held his phone loosely.

I quickly regained my memory and awareness.

But he appeared different from my memory of yesterday, possibly because he was in a plain black T-shirt instead of the jacket, which was now draped over me, covering from my stomach down to my knees.

I knew it wasn't a dream.

His hair was messier too, yet what stood out the most was the soft expression on his face as he slept peacefully.

With his head tilted to the side, his neck was prominently displayed before me. My attention was drawn to a faint red mark, barely noticeable yet intriguing cause I knew what it was from. His skin must be exceptionally soft and sensitive to bruise that easily from a gentle nibble.

The TV was still on, and the remote sat on the couch's armrest, right next to him.

Gently, I moved my legs from his lap and knelt beside him. Leaning over his sleeping figure, I tried to retrieve the remote without waking him up, making sure to watch his facial expression carefully and stop moving if he flinched.

But he didn't even flinch.

Instead, his eyes slowly opened. I quickly returned to my kneeling position, pulling back my outstretched arm that was reaching for the remote.

God. What do I do now.

His gaze was fixed on me, and I had no idea how to react.

Until he smiled. With his eyes still fighting to stay open, he smiled. And I questioned my whole existence from the intensity of the butterflies I got from something so small and simple.

"Sorry," I mumbled, acknowledging that I had interrupted his sleep.

"S'okay," stretching barely, he proceeded to sit up straight, "Slept good?"

I nodded, afraid to choke on words because of how attractive his voice sounded.

"You?"

I just remembered how he swore to be unable to fall asleep without smoking a cigarette before bed.

"Surprisingly."

Guess he was pretty much able.

I swear, my insides were doing backflips from the way he was looking at me. Never would I have thought I'd react like this over just a gaze.

"Coffee?" To distract myself, I stood up.

Rubbing his eye and trying to fix his hair, he spoke, "Please."

The way I disappeared into the kitchen to finally catch my breath was ridiculous. And turned out I functioned just fine when he wasn't around.

While making the coffees, I noticed two bananas on the counter that were just about to turn brown. I took them, returned to the living room, split them, and tossed one for him to catch.

Well, I tried.

"Whoa.." my aim was so off that he had to stand up a little bit to catch it.

He still got it.

"Oop- you got it!" I cheered, peeling my banana and putting it in my mouth to take a bite.

"Yeah, thank-" he raised his brows subtly, but enough for me to notice, "thanks."

Only after that did I realize that eating a banana in front of him wasn't the best idea. Luckily, I had to go back for the coffees anyway.

Whatever was going on with me, should kindly stop. Cause I felt unwell.

While I was getting our little breakfast ready and finished nicely putting the fruits and sweets into plates, I heard footsteps approaching from behind and mentally prepared myself.

George brought the peel back to throw it away, and I could still hear him munching on the remains of the banana.

"And I was thinking what's taking her so long," he glanced at the plates over my shoulder, and I froze, clearly unprepared to feel him so close behind my back.

"Help me with the plates?"

I turned my head slightly to look at him, and boy, it was the worst decision I could've made. His face was right there, so close that I could practically taste the banana on his lips if I stuck out my tongue.

Extremely flustered, I swiftly turned my head back, and my reaction was so obvious that it made him chuckle. He casually slung his arm over my shoulder, picking up one plate and then the other with his other hand, leaving me with only the two cups to manage.

That dream must have messed with my brain chemistry, because I don't recall being this awkward around him before.

"Everything okay?" I was hoping he would leave with the plates, and I could follow him, but he seemed to be waiting for me to take the lead.

"Just a bit hungover, I think." I gripped the cups hard, turned around, and saw that he wasn't buying it.

I breathed out as I caught the slight hint of a knowing smile on his face, and I led the way, choosing a spot to take a seat which felt like it was miles away from him.

That decision, along with the food, managed to ease the tension. We engaged in a random conversation while eating, although it was short-lived because his phone rang, interrupting our discussion.

I had no intentions to look at the screen. But he didn't pick it up and muted it instead, which made me throw a quick glance.

It said Hannah. And the name had a rose next to it. Hannah. With the rose emoji.

Suddenly, I was having difficulties swallowing my food.

"Aren't you gonna get that?" I cut him off even though he hadn't even said a word yet.

"Not now," he shook his head, "maybe lat-"

His phone rang once more, and this time I shamelessly looked at it. A small part of me was hoping it wouldn't be that Hannah girl again with the rose next to her name, but unfortunately, it was about to take a turn for the worse.

It said Sylvee. With a pink heart next to it. A literal heart.

I glanced at his face, hoping for a reaction, but he appeared emotionless. He grabbed his phone, muted the call again, and ignored it.

Then he checked the time and seemed to have a sudden realization. Whatever it was, it made him close his eyes briefly before quickly finishing his coffee and getting up.

"I actually need to head out," he slid his phone into his pocket, "forgot that I had to be home for something."

I nodded, carelessly sipping my cold coffee and hoping that it wasn't obvious that my insides were burning.

Not even sure what for. I was probably going crazy.