CHAPTER 48 : I'M AMAZING AS ALWAYS
My eyes adjusted to the blazing sunlight falling on me. I pushed the hair away from my face and tried to remove Cedric's arm from my waist because I wanted to get up but he held me even tighter.
"Not now, babe." Cedric whispered in a thick raspy voice. Babe. My stomache did a somersault when he said that.
"Cedric, get up." I told him. "And let me get up." I turned to face him.
"No." He said. He slowly opened his eyes looking at me. He got on top of me with his palms resting on the bed for support, trapping me between his legs. His knee was on either side of me. His lips were hovering over mine but not coming in contact. I moved closer to kiss him and he moved away, a mischievous grin lingering on his face. I groaned.
"What Kathleen?" He asked. I rolled my eyes and looked away from him.
"Nothing Antonio." I told him. Cedric lips crashed onto mine when I said that. My eyes instantly closed, my hands going to his hair.
"I love it when you call me that." He mumbled against the kiss. The feeling I get when he kisses me will never get old. A sound came from the back of my throat when he bit my lips. I slowly, like really slowly, pulled away from the kiss, opening my eyes to see Cedric's face.
"We...should go...out...now." I told him. He nodded and got up from bed. He took his phone and checked it. I got up from bed and started looking for my top. "Where's my top?" I asked him. He threw a t-shirt towards me which landed straight on my face. I removed the t-shirt from my face and looked at it.
"Wear this." Cedric said. It was his t-shirt. I pulled the t-shirt over my head and straighten my hair. It was a black t-shirt which reached my hips and the sleeves were extremely loose. I could smell the cologne on it.
We got out of the room and went outside. I saw a woman standing in the kitchen, wearing an apron. She had shoulder length black hair and her eyes were exactly like Noah's. She was shorter than me. She saw us and a huge smile spread on her face. Cedric went and hugged her tightly.
"Shelly, I missed you." He said. I slowly went towards them and saw Noah coming out of his room.
"Cómo estás?" She said in a thick accent.
"I'm fine, in fact I'm amazing as always." Cedric said. I playfully rolled my eyes.
"Hello Mrs. Garcia." I politely said. She gave me the biggest smile. Noah came and stood next to me.
"Oh please, call me Shelly." She said. She looked at Cedric and said, "Ella es tu novia?" Cedric nodded and then looked at me. Noah's head snapped towards me. Why is everyone looking at me?
"Ella es tan hermosa, verdad?" Cedric said fluently. Wait, he knows spanish. I thought he just understood it. And now I was curious of the conversation they were having because it was obviously about me.
"She is. She is." Shelly said, looking at me. I just smiled because I can't understand a word.
I nudged Noah and whispered, "What are they saying?"
"Mom asked Cedric if you are his girlfriend and he said yes." Noah said with shock. "And then he said that isn't she beautiful and mom said she is- I mean you are."
"He said I'm his girlfriend." I said, a huge smile spreading on my face.
"Yes, but I don't understand why would he lie - oh my god." Noah held me by my arms and completely turned me towards himself. "Flushed faces, different kind of shine in the eyes, the smirk on his face and the smile on yours. The awkward tension between you two is gone and is replaced by the igniting spark." He kept muttering things under his breath, his eyes flickering between me and Cedric. I was waiting for him to come to a conclusion when his jaw dropped to the floor. "You two kissed. You two are actually dating." He finally said after 'calculating' things. I quietly laughed and went towards Cedric.
Cedric and Shelly were talking about something when I went towards them. Cedric looked at me and he placed his arm around my waist. He kissed my forehead and continued talking to Shelly.
"Why is there a girl here and why are you two shirtless?" A teenage girl with bright blue eyes came towards us. Her jet black hair reached her hips. She took her hair and tied it in a high ponytail. She looked really pretty and the freckles on her face made her look even pretty.
"Hi to you too, Jazzy." Cedric said, ruffling her hair.
"Cedric, it's Jasmine." She said, swatting Cedric's hand away. She hugged Cedric.
"Hey." I told her. She sat on the dining table and smiled at me
"Hello." She replied. "Noah, please give me the wi-fi password." She told him.
"Jasmine, manners." Shelly said, giving her a glass of milk. She groaned.
"I just asked for the wi-fi password." She said, tugging a lock of hair behind her ear and looking at her phone.
"First you need to clean the house then I'll think about it." Noah told her. She huffed.
"Seriously Noah? I can just ask Cedric or Angie." She shrugged. "Cedric, stop looking at your girlfriend and tell me the password." Cedric went towards Jasmine and took her phone away. He raised the phone above his head and Jasmine was trying to catch it but the height difference wasn't helping her. Cedric had a huge smile on his face and Jasmine had an irritated look. Cedric was looking really...adorable?
"Emma?" Shelly told me. "Can we talk?" I removed my attention from Cedric and looked at Shelly.
"Sure." I told her. Shelly started walking and I followed her. She opened a gate to a large lawn. The floor was covered with artificial grass and there were coffee tables in the centre and a barbeque set in one corner. Shelly went and sat in one of the chairs and kept her tea on the table. I went and sat in the chair opposite her.
"Cedric seems really happy." Shelly said. "You have made him happy."
"Oh no no." I told her. "He's the same cheerful person I met the first day." I said with a soft laugh.
"I know him since his childhood. The person I am seeing today was lost after Kiara's death...you know about Kiara?" I nodded.
"Cedric told me." I said.
"I remember when he use to come to our place after fighting with Liam or Will. He would be a mess, the nightmares kept getting worse. Lily and Cedric had not spoken a word since the funeral. They did not talk for a long time. The first time they spoke after the incident was on Kiara's birthday. I remember how Lily called me saying that Cedric actually spoke to her. She had called you to wish you on your birthday."
"Yes I remember I gave him my phone to answer it because I thought it was someone else." Shelly nodded taking a sip from her tea. "So Kiara and I share birthdays." She nodded again.
"I had no idea. This is the reason Liam never shows up on my birthday." Liam has never been there on any of my birthdays. He always use to go away saying that he had some work.
"You know Liam?" I nodded
"He's my bestfriend." I told her. "I didn't even knew that Cedric was Liam's brother." I told her, fidgeting with my fingers.
"And yet look at them today. Look at Cedric today. He apologized to everyone and it's all because of you. Thank you Emma." She said with a genuine smile on her lips
"But I didn't do anything." I told her.
"You have done a lot." She told me. Cedric and Noah came and I didn't even get the chance to say anything.
"What are you two talking about?" Cedric asked.
"I was just telling her about Lily and me. Yes Emma, we have been bestfriends since middle school."
"And Cedric and I since childhood." Noah said, sitting next to her mom. Cedric looked at me and raised his eyebrows. I shook my head.
I can't believe Cedric has been through so much. He has always been there for me, always kept smiling. He didn't let anyone know about all the things he has been through. He didn't have anyone but that won't happen again. He will always have me, always. I would never let him be alone, even if we don't workout as a couple. He'll always be a friend to me, I'll always be a friend to him.
"Where's Jasmine?" Shelly asked. Noah and Cedric exchanged a look.
"She's in her room." Noah said.
"Shelly, why is Jasmine so moody? She isn't opening her door and not even talking to me." A man with beard and brown hair came towards us. He looked a lot like Noah.
Shelly looked at Noah and Cedric and started shouting at them because according to her they were the reason Jasmine was acting this way. Noah's father smiled at me and came to me.
"Emma, right?" I nodded. "It nice to finally meet you."
"Same here, Mr Garcia." Mr Garcia smiled and went away.
"I didn't even do anything. I just took her phone." Cedric said. "It was all Noah." So they were the reason why Jasmine was acting this way.
"I just pulled her hair. Cedric started it." Noah said. Shelly held their ears and twisted it.
"Ow. Oww." Cedric and Noah said in unison. I quietly laughed.
"Go and apologize to Jasmine." She shouted.
"Why should we- Oww. Okay okay" Noah said. She left their ears.
"Kathleen, we are going out." Cedric came towards me.
"Like a date?" I asked him. He nodded.
"Go and get ready." He whispered to me and pressed his lips against mine, leaving a light kiss. "And Noah let's go to apologise to Jasmine." He told him.
"Apologize on my behalf as well." Noah said. Noah took out his phone and he turned pale when he saw it. "That bitch must have called Angie and complained about me." Noah shouted.
"Noah she's your sister." Shelly shouted.
"Cedric, you talk to Angie and tell her I'm busy." Noah said, ignoring Shelly. "Actually, Em you do it."
"I'm not involving myself in all this." I said. Noah finally picked up the call and Cedric went to Jasmine.
"No Ang...babe...listen to me." Noah was saying over the call. I took out orange juice from the fridge and poured it in a glass.
"Cedric and Emma are dating." Noah said over the call, obviously trying to change the subject "Yes and Cedric told me before you...I guess you should call him and ask that babe." I rolled my eyes and went to my room.