Time seemed like a fictional construct in this place. Okay, realistically, I knew time wasn't actually fictional but considering this looked like some fairytale enchanted forest it was easy to get lost in this magical place. This place where we were all alone, and...
Blinking a few times, I halted in the spot, gaze assessing the space around me. Noah was pulled to a stop one step ahead of me, my hand still entwined with his, and gave me a puzzled look.
"What's up?"
"Why is it so empty?" I said, finally realizing why this whole experience felt so surreal. We were the only ones here.
"Ohhh," Noah chuckled, and shrugged as if it was no big deal.
He tugged at my hand until we were walking again, and I stared at him expecting a reply that was more than a syllable. As expected for the perpetually enigmatic alien that was Noah Archer, he stayed quiet and hummed until we passed through a wonderful archway, covered in flowers that climbed from ground up.
I squeezed his hand and he looked at me with a raised eyebrow. My face must have said enough, because he chuckled and let out a sigh.
"This place is only open to the public two or three days a week. But, you can rent it for events like a wedding or something."
"Wait, so how are we in here right now?" I asked, confusion clear on my face.
Did he rent this place out for us? Why would he go that far?
I'd had the distinct impression that he didn't like having to rely on his dad's money, and this didn't exactly seem like a cheap place to rent out. Especially if it was a potential wedding venue for people.
Noah was quiet, of course. Obviously, the sky would just crash on top of us if this boy gave me one clear answer. Seriously, sometimes it felt like I was dating a sphynx.
The only sound around us was the chirping of the birds and the crunching pebbles under our shoes. Most annoying, considering my head was burning with follow-up questions.
Just as I was planning to very aggressively twist his nipple and teach him a lesson, he abruptly stopped walking. Noah looked down at me with a smile that didn't feel right, almost distant, before his gaze focused back in front of him. I followed his eyes, and a few feet in front of us, nestled among trees was a small building that looked like an oval greenhouse. For a second, I was confused as to why this was significant, until my eyes landed on the plaque in front of the building.
The Archer Bird Sanctuary
"What?" I squeaked, fully aware that my eyes probably looked cartoonish with how my eyebrows were basically touching my hairline. "You-Your family, do you own this?"
Noah ran his free hand through his hair, scratching the back of his neck. "Kinda. My dad's the biggest donor for the garden, which comes with certain perks. Like naming the aviary after him."
His voice sounded strained, as always when his dad was brought up in conversation, and yet again, the curious part of me wanted to dig deeper into that family dynamic. This time, however, I didn't stop myself.
"Wow, I didn't know your dad was charitable like that," I said, and when I saw him wince, I immediately regretted the way I phrased that.
"He's not the charitable one," Noah muttered, kicking a rock with his foot. After a few seconds of silence from both of us, he looked down at me. I raised an eyebrow at him, a clear invitation to explain what he meant. He stared at me for a good minute before he let out a sigh.
"Why do you make me want to tell you everything?" he muttered so quietly I wasn't sure I heard him correctly but my heart was already beating overtime with his words.
Before I could ask him the classic line of, 'What did you say?', and have him repeat himself, he continued.
"It was a wedding gift for my mother. She always loved nature, especially birds. This is probably her favorite place in the world."
"That's so romantic! I can see why this is her favorite place, it's beautiful."
Noah snorted and shook his head, letting go of my hand as he took a few steps forward, eyes focused on the plaque in front of the aviary. He ran both hands through his hair and looked up at the sky before turning to face me with a bitter smile.
"Would be more romantic if love actually lasted."
I frowned, unsure of what he meant by that, and surprised by the sudden bitterness in his voice.
"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, walking up next to him.
His hand traced the letters on the plaque, drawing my attention to them.
To forever and infinity with you, my love. D.A. + T.A.
"There's no such thing as forever," he muttered, pulling his hand away as if the words had somehow burned him.
"That almost sounds like..." I started, not finishing the sentence as I frowned at him.
"Like what?" Noah asked, raising an eyebrow at me.
"Like you don't actually believe love exists," I stated and waited for him to correct me.
I mean, there was no way that was right. This was the guy that spent the past year trying to find 'the one'. There was no way he'd waste his time looking for something he doesn't believe in.
He stayed quiet, hands balled into fists at his side, gaze focused on the plaque in front of him.
Yeah, not gonna happen, buddy. No way am I letting him just ignore what I'd said. Frown on my face and arms on my hips I stood right in front of him. Not that I was exactly tall enough to actually block his view but seeing as his gaze focused on me, my intention seemed to come across just fine.
"Noah, do you even believe in love?"
Silence. All he did was stare at me. Then, his head tilted to the side, and he shrugged, a lopsided smile on his face.
"Who knows..."
Who knows? Who. Knows?!
"You! You should know!" I blurted out, unable to hide my shock.
Just when I'd almost allowed myself to start thinking this guy might not actually be as bad as I thought, he goes and says something like this.
"Why would you be doing this if you don't even believe in love? What's the point?" I continued, words rushing out of me in a torrent of accusations. Noah's lips opened as if he was about to say something but I raised my hand to stop him.
"Oh, I'm not finished," I narrowed my eyes, waving a finger in his face. "How dare you? How dare you play around with others' feelings when you're not even serious about this! That's... that's some real bullshit, Noah. I knew it, this really is all just a game for you, isn't it? You're nothing but a hypocrite and—" Noah grabbed my hand and pulled me against him so fast that I yelped and stopped mid-sentence.
"I told you from the start, Skyler. This isn't a game," he husked, more serious than I'd ever heard him sound.
I swallowed hard, slightly flustered by the fact that one of my hands was resting on his chest - seeking stability on the one hard surface once he'd unexpectedly pulled me closer - and the other one was still trapped in his gentle grasp.
Not that I could really blame him for the sudden body contact. When I started on my little rants getting me to stop was almost impossible. Except by doing something like this obviously, which seemed to instantly reset my brain.
"I-I don't believe you." I managed to find my voice and pulled my hand away from him, taking a generous step back.
He took a generous step toward me, stopping maybe three inches away. "Do you want me to prove it to you?"
Another step back. "N-No! I don't want proof, I want an explanation. Why are you doing this?"
"You know why I'm doing this," he said, raising an eyebrow as he took another step forward.
It was beginning to feel a lot like predator and prey, and I didn't like my role in that one bit.
Straightening myself and steeling my nerves, I raised my head to glare at him and poked his chest with my finger, pushing him back lightly.
In surprise, he took a step back. I took a step forward.
"Lies. You don't believe in love, so what exactly are you looking for by doing this, huh?" I said, poking his chest again.
Noah shook his head, frowning. "I'm still genuine about this. Think about it, why would I waste my time if I wasn't serious?"
I pressed my lips together, not really sure how to reply to that but also not convinced he was telling the truth. He let out a resigned sigh, and ran his fingers through his hair.
"Look, even if, yeah, maybe I don't believe in love... that doesn't mean I'm just playing around. Maybe I want to believe in it... wish I could," he said, and I could see the sincerity in his eyes. My outrage dissipated slowly, but some anger still remained.
"You have no idea what love is, Noah Archer." I said, and instantly felt like a hypocrite.
It's not like I had some vast experience in love. Was I ever even really in love? Other than a few fleeting crushes and messy kisses, it's not like I was some expert love guru.
Even this whole love experiment with Noah, I didn't exactly go into it with pure intentions. I never planned on love becoming a part of this equation. From the start, I figure he was lying and hiding things. Now, that I was proven correct in my assumption, I didn't feel the satisfaction I thought I would. Instead, there was a sinking feeling that I couldn't explain, and was scared to dwell on.
Noah didn't say anything. We stared at each other and it felt like a fire was brewing between us, getting stronger and stronger by the minute, until the intensity became too much for me. I looked down at my shoes, angry that I was the first one to look away, and even more angry at the heat I felt settling into my cheeks.
"Then, why don't you teach me?" he said, and I shook my head, positive I misheard what he'd said.
"Sorry, what?" I asked, my focus completely on a bush next to his right leg.
Once I saw that leg move a few inches toward me, I inhaled sharply, biting down on my lip. A moment later, I felt his finger brush against my chin and tilt my head up. Left with nowhere left to look, my eyes locked with his, trapped, caught. Prey.
"Teach me what love is, Skyler Fox."
I could feel my heartbeat, so fast and strong it felt like my brain was vibrating. My mouth went instantly dry, as if I hadn't touched water in days. Blinking a few times, I shook my head rapidly.
"I-I can't!" I stuttered out, my brain malfunctioning. It was like I couldn't process his words. What was he saying?
"You can't? What, you're such an expert but you can't take on the challenge?" He said, and nodded, a smirk on his face. "Oh, I get it, you're scared. You don't think you're up for the task."
A new wave of heat washed over me, this time out of anger. Skyler Fox never backed down for a challenge. And even though a tiny part of me screamed to let it go this time, that it was going to bite me in the ass, I pushed on. Undeterred. Stubborn. Relentless.
"That's not what I said!" I said, pursing my lips as I stared at him.
"Hm, so you think you can do it then?" He raised one eyebrow, unimpressed.
I was burning up inside. The desire to get the last word, pushing me forward. Straight into my own doom with six little words.
"Of course I can do it!"
Noah grinned, that Cheshire smile that instantly made the voice in my head go 'Uh-oh, you messed up' even before he spoke.
He reached out his hand, and gently brushed a strand of hair behind my ear, making sure his fingers trail against my face. Goosebumps rose on my arms from the not entirely unpleasant sensation.
"Great. Looking forward to it, Fox," he said, and winked.
I just stood still, petrified by my own stupid mouth as he brushed his hand down my arm slowly before he reached my hand and entwined his fingers with mine again.
My heart didn't slow down. The redness on my face stayed permanent. The anger I felt second ago deflated like a sad balloon as my mind rehashed the conversation we'd just had and what I'd just agreed to.
Teach him what love is? The person whose only experience with love was through fictional romance books or movies?
He'd managed to get me right where he wanted me, again, and I fell for it, again. It was starting to feel like with every passing hour I was falling deeper and deeper into the rabbit hole that was Noah Archer.
And I knew, deep down I knew, this could only end in disaster.
Hi lovelies! ❤️
I must, once again, ask for your forgiveness on this late update. *insert Bernie meme*
I hope you enjoyed the chapter though, and that it was worth the wait. 🥺🥺
Honestly, I'm really loving these two and I can't wait to share more of their story and for you to find out the truth behind Noah Archer. 👀
Does anyone have any interesting theories so far? I would LOVE to hear them!
Also the irony of my month-long disappearance due to editing Love Bitez, is that I was like 3 chapters away from finishing LB by 30th of September so I didn't even manage to write it all in time for the Wattys. :') Oh well, guess it wasn't meant to be for this year, but the good part is that I should have the novel version of LOVE BITEZ up by end of year when I finish up the remaining few chapters, and ready for next year.
I'm going to try my hardest to publish at least 2 more chapters of TWO WEEKS TO FALL IN LOVE before the month ends. Why, you ask?
Well, first off, things are finally getting like hella interesting to write, so expect a bunch of events and revelations in the near future.
But, more so, I decided to participate in NaNoWriMo with LOCKED IN LOVE. Considering I only ended up writing the one 'intro' chapter for the book, it feels like the perfect project for November, seeing as I have it all planned out in my head already.
Also, exciting news for MMIQ readers... I plan on doing a bit of a rewrite for the book. Now, don't panic, it won't be anything extreme. The major changes are focused on their first 2 days, where there their little bickering and arguing will be extended into... kind of almost 'pranking' each other for payback, before settling on a truce. So, basically, more funnies at the start. There will also be a bit of a change toward the end of the book, with the appearance of much detested, father of Maddox. Plus a few more tweaks and changes. Basically the book should be more exciting when I'm done with this edit, and hopefully well worth a re-read for those of you that checked it out already. Eeeek!
That's it from me, my loves!
I hope I'll be talking to you soon in the next chapter (I'm looking at you Wednesday) and until then stay strong & stay safe.