14. Warm Heart

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Mateo only waited fifteen minutes outside of the park before deciding to leave, seeing the silhouette of the two young adults not moving from their spots. His excuse to not go in had been nothing but a lie, and he was sure Tom knew that as well, yet didn't question it. He was hoping to go to Tom's house and ask for a recap of his night, but much to his dismay, Tom wasn't home when he showed up, and he wasn't answering his phone. Defeated, he decided to try to catch Orion on her lunch break, and once again was left disappointed as her coworkers informed him that Orion didn't show up for work.

Now he stood in Orion's living room, arms crossed over his chest as a smile threatened to spread across his lips. The tv was still on, the intro of whatever movie they were watching playing on a loop as it waited for the two to select an option. Only they weren't going to, Orion breathing softly as she was curled into Tom's side, said boy's head thrown back with quiet snores escaping his parted lips.

They still wore the clothes from the previous night, leading him to assume this little sleepover wasn't planned. Mateo could barely contain the excitement bubbling up in his stomach, already knowing that the night must have gone well for the two if they somehow made their way back to Orion's house. It's been weeks of spending time with Tom, then spending time with Orion, trying to somehow convince one that the other isn't such a bad person. He knew Tom was beginning to believe him, but Orion seemed hopeless at this point.

She was so opinionated and stubborn, it was one of the few flaws she obtained, but she'd never admit it to anybody. So hearing Mateo speak kindly of the man she already regarded as the bane of her existence, she wanted to roll her eyes until they fell out of her head. He tried relentlessly to try to sway her opinion like he did for Tom, but of course it never worked. Yet here she was, cuddling with the very boy she hated no more than 16 hours earlier.

He almost didn't want to wake them up, but it was 2pm and he was eager to hear the details of their night on the hill. Shutting off the tv, Mateo cleared his throat before letting out a shrill scream. He bit back a smile when Orion jumped awake, her hand flying up to smack Tom in the chest out of pure shock. Tom awoke immediately after, letting out a groan at the impact of her hand.

Orion turned to the source of the scream, her eyes wide. "Why did you scream?"

Mateo grinned at his friend, gesturing between the two. "You guys were cuddling." Orion's eyes narrowed at her friend as he brought his clasped hands to his cheek, tilting his head. "Are we all besties now?"

Orion rolled her eyes, scooting away from Tom as she stretched. "That wasn't intentional, don't get your hopes up."

Mateo wasn't even looking at Orion at this point, already knowing the girl was going to deliver a negative response. He was focused on Tom, he was running a hand through his disheveled hair as she spoke. Mateo rose an eyebrow at the boy, making him shrug. "Don't look at me, she's the boss around here."

Heaven ── TOM HOLLANDWhere stories live. Discover now