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Saturday, October 16th.
Alea woke to the sound of metal cluttering together, an aggravating noise that woke her instantly. She slipped out of bed, or, Leighton's bed. To be precise. She was extremely uncomfortable in knowing that she was in fact, in Leighton's home.
Nonetheless, slept in his bed. She was so overcome with exhaustion that that fact didn't seem to bother her much last night, but now in the daylight, it seemed to unnerve her more than ever.
"Must you be so loud? In the morning, no less."
"Must you be so grumpy?" He says, mocking her. It takes a moment for her to fully realize that he has no shirt on, which seems to unnerve her even more.
His variety of tattoos looked like art had been imprinted on his chest, some people would argue that tattoos were unethical and horrid but Alea thought of them as pieces of beauty, ethralling and carefully made.
And right now, in the morning's light with his messy hair and bare chest that revealed his fit tatted body, he looked breathtaking and she hated it.
She loathed it.
Her gaze then shifts from him to his face hands, he was cooking.
She didn't even take note of the scent of waffles, bacon and eggs that then filled her nostrils. She hated how good it smelled and she hated it even more knowing he was cooking them.
Almost as if enjoying something he made was going to give him some sick satisfaction.
It was stupid she was aware, but her hatred for him dictated every bone in her body, every decision she made and every thought she had.
She hated him so much sometimes it was hard to think clearly around him.
She composed herself, not wanting to induce him any longer. "I'm going to go take a shower, do you think you have any clothes I could wear that's not horribly grotesque?"
He rolled his eyes at her comment, "Eat breakfast first." She's taken aback by this, eat breakfast with him? She wanted to laugh at the thought.
"I'm fine, thanks. Just go get me some clothes an-" He put up his hand, interrupting her. He had just got finished making the eggs and putting them on the plates on the next counter over.
He shakes his head, "Nope, eat first. It's good to eat in the morning."
Asking her to eat breakfast with him was something she'd never anticipated, what game was he playing at? He hates her. She hates him.
People who hate each don't eat breakfast together, hell-- they shouldn't have been in this situation in the first place.
She wanted to say no, she wanted to decline and tell him off but it would be unjustified.
He was being kind of decent, he took the time to make breakfast for the both of them when he didn't have to.
Alea couldn't even remember the last time she ate a full meal and she couldn't deny that the smell of syrup dripping down the waffles wasn't tempting.
She swallowed up her pride and reluctantly agreed, sitting down at the small extended table.
He sets the plates and utensils down before sitting down across from her, with a wide devilishly smirk. She narrowed her eyes at him as he sat down already shoving waffles down his mouth. "What?" he says after swallowing.
"Nothing." She replies, trying to avoid any conversation. She picks at the food on her plate, not because it looks undesirable but it's been such a long time since she'd eaten so much.
3 waffles, a good amount of eggs on the side and 4 pieces of bacon was the fullest meal she'd seen in over a year-- maybe 2.
It was hard to keep count.
After her mother died, eating was something she started to find unpleasant. How could she have an appetite for anything when the memory of finding her mother's dead body constantly clouded her mind? Her mother's lifeless eyes and the paleness that washed over her skin.
Soon after her uncle committed Alea had stopped eating entirely, she had gone so long without any real nutrients that she almost died.
She was hospitalized for almost a whole year, she was 15 at the time.
She had gotten better over the years, maintaining her health with the help of her Aunt.
It wasn't easy, it's not like she could wake up and become a new person and all her problems would be solved. Although she was better, she still couldn't stomach full foods nor meals-- usually eating half a salad or sandwich here or there, never eating sweets or baked goods.
But of course, she couldn't and wouldn't tell Leighton Valak that.
She broke a few pieces off of one waffle and ate it, it was delicious.
Her mouth was almost watering from the taste, she continued doing the same thing with the rest of the waffle until it was gone.
She actually managed to eat the whole thing, she smiled to herself. She ate a little bit of the eggs on the side until finally deciding to be done. When she looked up, she saw that Leighton's plate was completely wiped clean.
"Do you want the rest of mines?" He looked almost shocked that she was asking but he nodded nonetheless and ate the rest of her plate for her.
Finishing up what used to be Alea's plate, he asks, "You remember the first time we met, in the library?"
"Unfortunately." He frowns and ignores her snide reply.
"You said that you didn't do relationships because they end badly. But- do you think hypothetically, one could last, like truly last?" Alea thinks for a second, before replying.
Confused about why he would even ask such a thing. "I suppose, I mean- I don't know. I personally just don't believe in that. In love."
Leighton doesn't say anything to this at first, his face is completely unreadable, she wished she could know what was going on inside of his head.
She so desperately wanted to know him, but it was pointless.
She had convinced herself that there was nothing worth knowing and the thought quickly evaporated from her mind.
"Why not?"
He said it like he couldn't comprehend it, as if it was so impossible. "Because what's the point in loving someone if they don't love you back?"
"What if they do?"
"They don't. Not really, not in the way you love them atleast." Leighton becomes silent, the expression on his face complexing. He seems to be so deep in thought he barely notices her, she fights the urge to ask what's wrong.
Alea fights the urge to try to console him. She wins and doesn't anything, but she continues to attempt to understand what he could be feeling right now, but the look on his face could only be described of one of pure despair.
However, it quickly fades away as he gets up and puts the plates in the sink.
"Why?" She asked him.
He pasues for a minute, "I was just wondering."
"Why ask me?" She adds. "Out of all people."
He shrugs and avoids eye contact. "I'll get you some clothes. Just go ahead and go in the shower, I'll leave them by the door." Alea wanted to ask further questions about the topic that was just completely disregarded but she didn't.
She nodded before she headed to the bathroom.
*
Alea had stayed in the shower for about 45 minutes, her body soaking in the hot water. She went over all the events from last night, her and Aidan. She'd never been to a party before let alone danced with someone at one, especially someone she had just met.
Her cheeks flustered remembering it, she could still feel the music guiding her, completely lost in the music as her body moved on its own, she wish it hadn't.
She wished she didn't like the way his body felt against hers, she wished Leighton wasn't there to watch her do it.
Leighton and she made eye contact here and there and each and every time, she felt his eyes trailing her body rigorously.
Her heart almost dropped every time, he'd never looked at her with such.. a sensual look before.
It completely devoured her, even though she was dancing with Aidan, all she could focus on was him.
All she could think about was him. And she hated it.
She never knew she could hate someone so much.
Finally done and turning the shower cap off, Alea then heard muffled voices outside. Luckily, the bathroom was closer in Leighton's room while the voices seemed to in the kitchen. She opened and closed the door quickly after getting her clothes off the floor. She slipped in a large gray T-shirt that had a saying on it,
"It's the same rain you loved, that drowned you." Ouch. She thought, the quote hit a little too close to home.
She then put on little black shorts that she couldn't even imagine Leighton wearing.
Finished putting on his clothes, she threw hers in the dirty clothes hampter.
"Leighton-" Alea's instantly cut off by the sight in front of her. Leighton wasn't alone as he was followed by two other people, a gorgeous tall brunette with deep blue eyes and a boy who looked all to similar to Leighton himself.
She was all to aware immediately that she had interrupted something by the tension in the room and by the look on Leighton's face, a look he'd once given her. One of pure hatred.
"Who's this?" The brunette spoke up first.
The realization that she evidently had Leighton's oversized shirt hits her like a tidal wave, she's painfully aware of what it must look like. "Mia-"
"Why didn't you tell me you've finally moved on from Emmalyn? If you have a new girlfriend I don't see the problem between you and-"
"Mia. Both of you should leave, now." Alea noticed that the boy didn't speak a word and kept his attention to the floor rather than at her or Leighton.
He had seemed to be nervous, fidgeting with his fingers. The brunette- or Mia, sighed.
"You can't be an asshole to him for the rest of your life."
"Watch me." Mia rolled her eyes, annoyed. "Let's go." She says to the boy whose name Alea doesn't know and they leave.
"What just happened?" Alea asks.
"I'm not entitled to tell you anything." He answers bitterly, he's upset. No- upsets not the right word.. He's infuriated.
His manner and demeanor are calm but he's far from it. She's taken aback by his harshness, not expecting such a response. "I never said you were." She says, softly.
She didn't mean for it to come out that way but it seems it was her most natural response, he's angry and she doesn't want to anger him any further.
"There's this dinner with our parents in a couple of days and they were trying to convince me to go." Leighton tells simply as he leans against the kitchen counter, facing her.
"Could be fun." She tries to be optimistic, which clearly is not a good look on her.
"Yeah, a dinner with my parents that I've never actually had a conversation with longer than a minute. They timed each and every one of our exchanges since I was kid, and my brother,"
"Who fucked my girlfriend—ex girlfriend now. But yeah. Could be fun." A moment of guilt takes over her as she remembers the words she once said to him, she truly did have no idea what he had been through with his own family, she made assumptions and misconceptions about his character and about his life and the guilt was crawling up inside.
"But you love them anyway."
"What?"
"It's the same rain you loved, that drowned you. Right?" She points to her shirt as she watches his facial expression change.
"I know how it feels like to still love someone when all they've ever done is hurt and disregard you." Alea says quietly.
Her gaze soft and warm as she speaks, she doesn't care in that moment that they're supposed to hate each other, that she's supposed to come up with some witty and snarky thing to say because in that moment, she saw a hint of herself in him.
She could relate to how he felt.
How it aches to love someone who hurts you.
She knew it all too well.
They stand there for a while, staring. Leighton seems confused about Alea's sudden change in personality but doesn't seem at all displeased, "Careful now, Alea. You aren't sounding like you hate me right now." He sneers, walking over to her.
"I was simply being nice."
"Were you really?"
"Yes!" He laughs at this, causing a unknown feeling to arise inside of her in which she quickly ignores.
He stands towering over her, meeting her eyes.
Alea can't seem to look away no matter how much she might want to, she simply can't. She's completely trapped in those dark grey eyes and there seems to be no escape.
No matter how much she hates him, she cannot deny his beauty. All he's doing is staring at her and she's entirely in awe of how unreal he is, she hates it.
"Do you like what you see?" She says snarkly, his response takes her off guard,
"Yes. Yes I do, you in my shirt like that.. is doing things to me. Things indescribable." She's speechless, for once all the words in her vocabulary disappear while he stands over her with a look of seduction.
Eyes are the gateway to the heart, the gateway to how someone is feeling but with Leighton Valak, one look could mean a million different things all at once and it's infuriating.
"Kidding. Ready to go?"
***
"Why don't you go with me?"
"Go where?"
"To the dinner." Alea finds humor in his words. "I would rather not spend any more suffocating hours in your presence." She says casually as her attention doesn't stray from the window.
Her mind had been wandering and wandering the whole ride, an usual occurrence for her. Scattered, broken and in pieces had been her mind for the past few years.
"Exactly, I need your disturbance."
"So, you want me there to upset you and your entire family?" Alea asked, her gaze shifting almost instantly.
"Your family who pays me to tutor you?" Suddenly, a thought pops into her head and she can't resist not questioning it, "Why didn't you have them drop me by now? After everything, you could've easily gotten someone else." He shrugged, "I didn't want someone else." An unknown spark had a begin to give birth in her eyes, unbeknownst to her as she was left once again, speechless.
"We're here." The words went into her ears and out again, leaving a sense of displaced unfulfillment inside of her. She hated to admit it but today had been one of relief and consolation from the tiredness of her everyday life.
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So glad y'all are enjoying the series so far, I've been trying to slowly build up to the major plot points and events to really move the plot but it's been a slow process, but tyy for everyone commenting and supporting the series it means everything to me <3
- ria