Addicted To You

26| Stage one

Chapter 26: Stage one (Nathan's POV)

"You should have kissed her."

"No," I shook my head. 

"Yes, you should have kissed her," they said in sync. I'm currently on the phone with Brandon and he's with Kendall. So they're both listening to me rant about my date with Emma. "I know her and I know she would have wanted you to kiss her," Kendall said. 

"She's the one who said we don't know each other well enough to do that," I groaned. 

"But you should have kissed her," they repeated. 

"Guys! If I kissed her right after she tells me we should wait, she would smack me across the face without any hesitation and run," I stated. 

"No, she would think that you want her so much that she'd forget about what she just said," Brandon replied. 

"Dude, no. I'm not going to do that. If she thinks we should get to know each other a bit more, then that's what we'll do." 

"Then there won't be a chase," Kendall pointed out. 

"We both know that we like each other, there can be a chase for fun, knowing that we're both in the clear. We just have to wait," I sighed. 

"So, what's your plan now?" Brandon asked. 

"To know her a bit better." 

"That's stage one," Kendall said. 

"What about after that?" 

"We'll see. By the way, if Kendall's talking to me, who's talking to Emma?" I asked. 

"She's probably telling her mom everything that happened today," Kendall replied, "She's close with her and tells her everything." So... her mom's gonna know I said to Emma 'I want to kiss you.' Fantastic. 

I heard the front door open and then close, suggesting my dad was home. "I gotta go, I'll talk to you later," I said, quickly hanging up and scanning my room for anything he could get pissed at. It was too late by the time I saw the pack of cigarettes on my desk. "Shit, shit, shit," I started getting up to grab them but he came in and so I sat back down on the bed and grabbed my phone, going on it. 

"You're home today," he stated the obvious. "Why aren't you out?" 

"I was out," I said, not looking at him, "She had to be home." 

"She?" he scoffed, "She? As in Emma?" 

I looked up at him, sliding my phone down. "Yes, as in Emma," I answered. 

"I don't understand what that girl sees in you. She seems like a nice one, comes from a good family from what I hear, she's got money too," he nodded, loosening his tie. 

"What does that have anything to do with our relationship?" I asked. 

"Oh, it's a relationship now?" he scoffed. 

I rolled my eyes, pinching the bridge of my nose, and taking a deep breath to keep calm. "What do you want, dad?" I asked. 

"I simply want to know what she sees in my drinking, smoking, broken son," he said, walking up to the desk and picking up the box. 

I haven't smoked one today, but there's no point in telling him that because he won't believe me. "I haven't smoked today," I said, glaring at him. 

"And I'm supposed to believe that when you've got a box sitting right beside you?" What did I tell you? He won't believe me. 

"You can believe whatever you want," I shrugged. 

"Cut it out, Nathan. What did you say to her? Did you tell her your sob story?"