Electric Touch | Jude Bellingham

Chapter 5

The restaurant was beautiful. High painted ceilings like the Sistine Chapel, and crystal chandeliers glittering in the candle light like stars in the night sky. I could hear the soft playing of a grand piano somewhere in the room, the clinking of cutlery against plates and the low murmur of th other peoples voices.

Everything was just right. John sat in front of me, fork in his lobster linguine, and I sat there in my favourite deep red dress, food untouched.

The only thing spoiling this night, was me.

"Evelyn?"

"Yeah," I said, look at my boyfriend, trying to smile.

"Are you alright? You haven't touched your pasta," John pointed his fort at my tagliatelle.

"I'm just tired that's all," I sighed, trying to focus on everything happening in front of me and not my head. That worked for about three seconds.

"How was the rest of the party?"

"Party?"

He looked at me like I was drunk or something. "Your parent's anniversary. A week ago? Are you ok, you seem really out of it."

I took a breath I tried not to think about Jude's smile, his eyes, his lips, his shirt. God I was in trouble. "Oh right, the party. Yeah, it was good."

I finally swirled a piece of pasta on my fork and put it in my mouth. It was cold. I looked at John, his blue eyes were scanning my face, trying to figure out what was going on. I put on my best smiley face and pushed Jude to the furtherest place in my mind that I could.

"So are you going on any trips soon?" I changed the subject.

"Yes actually," he turned his attention back to his food. Nothing got him chatting like his job. "We've got Brussels at the weekend, Adam thinks we can convince the board to give our team more clients."

I watched him talk. I looked at his face. His perfectly symmetrical face. Anyone would die just for a single touch and here I was, sat opposite him, in a beautiful restaurant. I was sat there unable to feel anything.

Later that night, (like later, later)

"Did you watch Strictly last night?" Eleanor lay upside down on the chair in the corner of our apartment. "Bobby is so hot."

May rolled her eyes, grabbing her vodka and coke from the coffee table. "No, for the millionth time, I watched England beat Italy. Proper TV."

"Can we not talk about England?" I said, walking from the kitchen to the sofa, bag of popcorn in my hands.

"Why? Because your super hot ex-boyfriend scored a hat trick?" Eleanor raised her eyebrows at me, looking away from her books for roughly half a second.

"No, I just don't like football," I lied.

"Didn't you eat earlier," May pointed to the popcorn. "What's going on Evie?"

"I," I said throwing popcorn at her head. "Don't want to talk about dinner or anything else on that subject."

"That's healthy," she replied sarcastically.

"Can we talk about the fact Eleanor is reading upside down again?" I threw a piece of popcorn at her instead. "Eleanor. Eleanor. Ellie."

"I have an exam in 12 hours," she replied. Leave me alone, this is how knowledge gets into my brain."

"I thought you were a scientist?" May laughed. "What time is it?"

"2:45," I replied, grabbing more lemonade from the coffee table and poured it into my orange juice.

"Weirdo," May laughed.

"Wait, did you say 2:45?" Eleanor looked up, or down, her eyes wide. "I really need to get to bed."

She closed her book and got out of her chair before May dragged her back into the room. "You don't need sleep, we need music, Evie."

I smiled and grabbed my phone. I scrolled through Spotify to find something that May would hate.

"You're drunk," Eleanor smiled as May tried to dance around the coffee table.

I clicked on the song and May stopped and stared at me. "You're kidding me."

"Last night I heard my own heart beating, sounded like footsteps on the stairs," I began singing and joined Eleanor and May in front of the window.

"Why is it always Taylor Swift?" May sat on the floor.

"Because Taylor Swift is amazing," I went over to her and tried to pull her up. "Come on, you're drunk enough just to dance."

She rolled her eyes and Eleanor helped me drag her up. We laughed and dance whilst I part sung, part screamed the lyrics.

"I love this bridge," I said, I turned the volume up. "If you're out there, if you're somewhere, if you're moving on."

"Someone's at the door," Eleanor said as I was singing, I burrowed my eyebrows and walked towards the door, "who could it possibly be at this time of night?"

"I just want it back the way it was before
And I just want to see you back at my front door."

The bridge ended just as the door swung open. Jude stood there smiling. I froze.

"Oh my god," May said extremely loudly behind me. I watched Jude's grin widen.

"What are you doing here?" I hissed. "It's nearly 3am."

"I have an early flight from Heathrow," he said, as if it was completely normal for him to be at my apartment in the early hours.

"So what, you thought you'd show up for a chat?"

He laughed. "No, your mum gave me this from your Aunt Emily. I was going to leave it outside the door, but I heard Taylor Swift."

He pointed to the speaker that just started playing 'The Way I Loved You'. I turned round to see Eleanor and May stood gawping at us. I turned back and grabbed the parcel from Jude's hands.

"Did she say why it was?" I moved it around. "I've not seen Emily in ages."

"Something about a birthday present," he said. "It's a bit late isn't it?"

"At least she thought about me," I said, glaring up into his dark eyes.

"Um, May can you help me with that thing in that place," Eleanor said quickly.

"Yes, that thing is important," May followed her into the other room leaving us alone in the doorway.

"Lynnie," Jude started but I interrupted him.

"No Jude. I was having a great night. I went out with John and we had a great time."

"Is that why you're up at 3?"

"No, you don't get to do that."

"Do what?"

"Come here, on a white horse and cast judgement on my relationship," I turned around and put the put the box on the kitchen side. "It's not fair."

"I'm not doing anything, Lynnie," he followed me into the room. "I'm just concerned."

"You don't get to be concerned!" I yelled, stopping him in his tracks. "You gave that up when you went to Germany."

I watched Jude's face melt from a smirk into a soft smile and he walked towards me. I listened to his breathing, my guard went down and his hands reached my shoulders. "Lynnie," he said quietly.

"No, no, no," I looked up and pushed his hands away. "You should go Jude."

"Ok."