ALANA'S MISTAKE ✔

Chapter 8

Alana opened her eyes and found herself in an unfamiliar room. It was big and white with bright morning sunshine streaming through the windows. It felt like she were seeing everything through a misty fog and her head kept pounding with a dull thud. She was alone, wrapped in unfamiliar white cotton sheets, completely naked underneath. Her clothes lay strewn over the floor, intertwined with Elias' clothes.

Her first and only thought was: what have I done? Memories of last night streamed into her mind. She was with Elias, eating falafel, at the pub, they were in the taxi, then they were here... They were here. She took in a shaky breath, her head not moving from the pillow.

She looked around the room and saw that there was very little by way of furniture or belongings. Just a few shelves filled with vinyl records, then a record player on a stand against the wall. A few small plants sat on the windowsills and a few classic movie posters hung framed on the walls. The ceilings were high and lined with delicate coving, everything painted the exact same white.

She heard footsteps and then Elias appeared wearing a canary yellow kimono made out of silk, holding two steaming mugs of coffee. She couldn't work out why he wore a kimono or why it was yellow but she didn't have the energy to ask. His hair was wet and freshly combed, his chest was tanned and showed a little through the gap in the kimono. When he saw her he raised an eyebrow and walked over to the bed which lay low on the ground. He sat down on the edge and handed her one of the mugs.

'For you, my sweet,' he said.

He gave her one of his smiles as she sat up in bed, holding the sheets around her. He watched her, an amused expression on his face.

'You don't need to worry about that,' he said. 'We're all friends here, right?'

He bent forward to kiss her lightly on the nose. She smiled, a little nervously. He was gorgeous, of course he was gorgeous, that hadn't changed. But in the cold light of day, the realities of her life crashed to the forefront of her mind. She already knew that what had happened between them really, truly, should not have happened. She had never felt so naked, and so unwashed in her whole life; all she wanted to do was take a long, hot shower.

Elias sipped on his coffee and looked at her, a longing glint in his eye. He reached out his hand to stroke her hair behind her ears. She tried to smile again but it was difficult, Noah always did that. It confused her, and frightened her, that she had somehow managed to get herself into this position. She was just so attracted to him, like nothing she had ever felt before. Elias stood up from the bed and walked over to the shelves then picked out one of the records.

'Nina Simone,' he said. 'Reminds me of you.'

He tipped the record out of the sleeve, then carefully placed it onto the record player. He gently lowered the stylus onto the record and the music began to drift into the air. Nina's voice was clear and beautiful and heartbreaking. Alana didn't know what to do. She picked up her phone which lay at the side of the bed, almost out of charge. There were 7 missed calls. Every one of them from Noah.

She checked her messages and saw that he had sent her some photos. Noah and Snow, on the beach, with shades and matching sun hats. Her heart leapt into her throat. She was almost sick, right then and there. All she could think was: what have I done?

Elias stepped forward towards her and lay down on the bed next to her. His kimono fell open and he leaned over. He reached under the sheets and then began to kiss her, just like he had last night.

'Last night was amazing...' he murmured.

She let out a sigh, but as his hands reached lower she pulled herself up on the bed, pulling the covers with her. She managed a smile.

'I should go,' she said, brushing her hair back with her hands. 'I've got so much work to do today.'

He reached further and kissed her again, on her neck.

'Stay,' he said. 'Have some breakfast with me.'

She reached at the ground, trying to find her underwear. He reached over too and found her knickers before she could.

'Want me to put them on for you?'

She smiled, as sweetly as she could muster, then grabbed the knickers out of his hand.

'That's ok,' she said. 'I can do it myself.'

There was a momentary flash of disappointment in his features as she grabbed her bra and put that on too.

'Stay,' he said. 'For breakfast I mean. You can't go without eating something, at least.'

She pulled on her t-shirt and nodded.

'Ok,' she replied. 'I'll stay for breakfast'