Close to You || Ash Lynx (Banana Fish)

Chapter 19

A knock on the door reminded you of the situation you're currently in, you froze in your spot, who could that be? You closed your phone, stuffing it behind your pants. Your palms were sweaty as you worked up the possibility of who was behind that door right now, your hand hovered around your dagger as you took long quiet strides to the door, slowly turning the know and pulling the door slightly so you can have a sneak peek on who  it was before opening the door fully.

You pressed your palm towards you heart, a huge exhalation of a pent-up breathe left your mouth upon coming face to face with those beautiful jade-like eyes that you're awfully too familiar with. Head in the gutter, you arms coiled around him. Ash had to take a step back and was momentarily dazed on the sudden affectionate gesture. He grew stiff in your embrace and slowly relaxed into it. There may not be any clear romantic between the two of you but whenever any of the two you welcome each other in each of your own space, none of you hesistate to go into them.

The first time you did it, you toom the lynx by surprise and he had immediately drawn the line; you did the same too. You were always skeptical about being intimate with not only him but everyone in general. You planned to not get too involved with them, using them as a bait to lure something out—your plans may have backfired.

Over the weeks, your grew more bond with them, you have learned to appreciate Eiji's sweet and tender heart, Shorter's eccentricity, Ibe and Max's fatherly-figure, and Ash...

His body does not seem like a stranger to you now—the way he moves, the smell of fresh grape fruit mixed with aromatic lavender, even the sound of his heart beating that you have heard when he allowed you to rest yout head on his shoulder—but this is the first time for you to really feel it, lean and hard muscle against your own.

"What's wrong little dog? Someone stepped on your tail?" Ash was the first one to speak up, as much as he enjoyed the warmth radiating from your small frame, he was more concerned on what made you like this. He took a step back to give the two of you a small space just for him to have a better look of your face. As always, Ash brushed the stray hair on your face, letting it fall back down neatly on the tip of your ear. He threaded through your hair, it had grown longer than before, he noted.

You looked up at him, you weren't aware of how close you were until you could feel his breath on your head, you loosened your hold, face flushed at how you clung to him so suddenly. You uttered a soft apology for invading his personal space in which he replied, hands rubbing on the nape of his head as his face is turned away from you,

"If it's you, I don't mind."

There's like a fuse that suddenly blew out in you, you could imagine steam coming out of the top of your head as you hid your face with the palm of your hands; your go-to move whenever your shyness took over. Ash chuckled, he finds you very adorable whenever you'd hide your face away from his view as your feet tapped on the floor repeatedly. It made him want to tease you more and that's what he did.

He gently removed one of your hands, smiling ever-so slyly as you let out a gasp before your lips formed into a pout. You flicked his hands away, stammering a reply, "You're such a flirt!" You showed him your curled up fingers due to the cringe he gave you but your rosy dusted cheeks says another thing that may or may not have flared the other's ego a bit more.

Ash decided to drop off any further teasing upon realizing the reason why he came to look for you which was to tell you about Eiji's departure and for you to go with him. Ash was heading back to New York and it,  being Dino's territory, he doesn't want any of the two of you near it at any cost. He can't always protect the two of you, though he prayed he could.