My window is open, and I can feel the brisk, salty breeze on my cheeks. As I open my eyes, I turn to face my balcony door and the white curtains are flowing freely in the wind. I close my eyes again and the sound of the waves crashing meets my ears. It's marvelous, I've never been so fortunate to be back home.
As I get up, I stretch, and I walk outside to the balcony. Such a dull day. My gaze falls onto the beachfront and it's empty and my eyes wander onto the water and there they are, little dolphins. I lean my arms on the railing and I just breathe in the fresh air; so, I suppose after you've been in an accident you learn to appreciate the little things. It absolutely and totally changed my life (in a good way, though). I'm ready for a fresh start. I need to take a shower. I head to the bathroom; I pause, and I look at myself in the mirror, this plaster is way too frustrating. I'm just going to take it off. As for the stomach one, I'm not ready for that yet. I know the stitches are still there, but they'll be out soon. I briefly stare at myself in the mirror.
"You'll be fine, Olivia," I declare onto myself and I give myself a convincing nod and I shower. So much has happened over the past 5 weeks. It's crazy how a person's life can change so quickly, but I am blessed by this life. Princeton and next year are also still so exciting, and I haven't really even thought about it as much yet. I get out and I dry myself off, wrap my towel around my body. It's best to go for loose shorts and a t-shirt, and after I get dressed, I brush out my long, tangled, wet hair. It's enduring to see my entire face open and not covered by a plaster. As I walk downstairs, I can hear laughter, I peep around the corner and Aiden is standing talking to my mom while she's busy drinking coffee. I nod at both of them and I smile as I head towards the coffee machine.
"Morning dear, how did you sleep?" Mom asks with a modest grin on her face.
"Surprisingly great thanks." I look at her and then at Aiden, who's smirking at me.
"That's wonderful. I notice that you took the plaster off of your forehead. Just be careful not to get an infection or something, dear." She glances at me as she places her mug in the sink. She squeezes my shoulder and grabs her handbag.
"Aiden's planning on cooking." I stare at her, quite bemused, and then at him. He peers down and his face reddens, he's in his grey sweats and still without a shirt.
"What does she mean by that?" I study his face and he spins around and opens the fridge to grab a few ingredients.
"Well, I, my dear, have decided to make waffles for breakfast." He glances up at me as he places all the ingredients on the counter, and I raise my one eyebrow. I'm quite stunned.
"You're going to make waffles?" I stare at him in disbelief, I wasn't aware of the fact that he can cook. He glares at me and smiles.
"Of course, and guess what?" He rests his arms on the counter.
"I don't know, but you're probably going to tell me." I rest my arms on the opposite side of the counter and he squints his eyes as he proudly says,
"You're going to help me." I chuckle. During the laughter, I manage to get a brief sentence out,
"You're joking." We stare at each other and the laughter subsides. I scrunch my nose up and he rolls his eyes.
"I have a suggestion, why don't you make them, and I'll keep you company?"
"That's an excellent suggestion." he shrugs and searches for a mixing bowl with a grin on his face. I roll my eyes at him and I plunk myself on the counter next to where he's busy mixing everything. There's quietness surrounding us every time he stares down at the recipe book. It's as if he's concentrating intensely when he cautiously mixes the various ingredients together, and I can't help but stare at him. We haven't said one word since he's started with the waffle. His face looks so sexy when he's focusing, his lips are straight, his jaw clenched, and his eyes narrow every time he reads.
"You're weird you know that." I look at him as he pours the first mixture into the waffle machine and he immediately spins around and he looks me up and down.
"Says the one who's been checking me out." He winks at me and I blush. He comes towards me and he puts his hands on my thighs, I jump a bit immediately he takes them off. I hate it when people touch my thighs. He frowns, ignoring it and suddenly he leans in and kisses my now rosy cheeks. I look at him and our stare is broken as the waffle machines beeps, he turns around and he walks towards it.
"Wrong. I haven't checked you out once." He cannot win this fight. After he picks up the first perfectly glazed waffle out, he follows the same routine. He spins around again and steps towards me with an evil grin on his face.
"You're lying." I roll my eyes and I slowly jump off the counter. The waffle machine beeps again and this time I step towards him as he's busy taking the waffle out. I bump him out of the way and pour some batter into the machine. I can feel his eyes on me, I glare at him out of the corner of mine and he smirks.
"Who's checking out who exactly?" I spin around and I peer at him, I can't help but get butterflies in my stomach. I roll my eyes and he strides forward, and he blocks me by leaning on the counter with his hands on either side of my body. He leans in and his breath hovers on me and he still smells really nice. He looks me up and down and as he speaks, he lightly kisses my stitched-up forehead.
"Well, if I'm being honest, you have the cutest forehead..." I grin and I fold my arms as he continues.
"You have the cutest dimples." I roll my eyes again and blush a little. He suddenly leans in closer to my mouth, I look at his lips as he smirks. The next thing I know I have an entire line of batter across my cheek and he spurts out laughter as if it's the funniest thing.
"Oh no, you didn't!" I shriek and I swing around to get a spoon, I smear some batter on his face and it splats him right in his eye.
"This is war." He wipes it out off, gently grabs my waist, and holds me hostage. He reaches his hand in the batter and smears it across my cheeks, I attempt to pull away but it's no use and he lets me go. I try to remove the batter off of my eyes, but his hands get their first, and as I open my eyes his light, blue eyes stare into mine. He strokes my cheek and manages to get some off. Next thing I know, he kisses me and the batter on my lips disappears. I can't help but beam. Our kiss gets cut off by an unusual smell and we swing around to where it's coming from.
"Oh no!" I shriek as we both stare at each other. He rushes towards the plug, switches it off, and gradually walks back towards me. We both stare at the smoke that leaves the machine, followed by footsteps storming down the stairs.
"What happened? Is everybody okay? Should I call 911?" A panicked and frantic Dylan looks at us and we both burst out howling. Another two bodies appear. Collin and Jess stand there coughing.
"What happened?" Collin raises his eyebrow. We both stare at them and we say the exact opposite thing at the same time.
"Aiden tried making waffles." That's what I said.
"Olivia tried making waffles." That's what he said.
We look at each other and we laugh again. This is immensely funny. Elaina walks in, and she's the only one who's showered and ready. All she does is frown.
"Let me guess, Olivia burned something?" she points at me, and Aiden bursts out laughing again. I roll my eyes and I follow suit. They stare at us as if we're crazy and need to be checked into the psych ward. Eventually, we calm ourselves down and everyone sits around the island while I boil the kettle. Aiden looks at the three perfectly toasted waffles and then at the burnt one.
"Screw it. Is there a waffle house around here?" He smirks and everyone laughs,
"Yeah, there is one." I turn to the cupboard to get mugs. He leans to me and whispers in my ear.
"You might want to go clean your face." I hesitantly run my fingers over my cheek and it's still coated with batter, I swing around, and I wink at him.
"You too." Everyone looks at us and we burst out laughing. We walk to two different bathrooms and I can't help but grin. This guy is so incredible. I clean myself up. Maybe I should cover these stitches just in case of an infection. I cover my forehead yet again and when I head back to the kitchen, only the girls are sitting there.
"Where are the guys?" I stare at them as they sip their cappuccino's.
"Shower." The only word that leaves Elaina's mouth, I give them both a smile.
"So? How about shopping?" I glance at Jess, who has an immense smile on her face.
"I think yes." Jess agrees and Elaina nods.
"Wait." Aiden walks in with folded arms.
"You were in the hospital like three days ago." I glance at him and again at my friends.
"Yes, I know, but I need to do something. Sitting here will make me crazy." I fold my arms in protest as if I'm challenging him.
"There's simply only one way to settle this," I smirk and his face becomes serious.
"And what's that?" He says with a stutter. I glance at the girls and then at him.
"You're going to have to go with us." His eyes expand and he gives me an enduring smile.
"Fine, let's do this." He winks at me and heads back upstairs. I spin around towards the girls and they seem irritated.
"What a genius Liv." Elaina blurts out, and she glances down.
"I have an idea, don't worry. Come, let's get going." The guys come downstairs and grab their car keys.
"Okay, let's head out."
"You're driving with me, right?" Aiden opens the door for me. I glance at him while he's driving, and his hair is blowing in the wind. He breaks the silence.
"Let's go out tonight?"
"Yea, what do you want to do? Give me your phone so I can inform everyone else?" I blabber off and I pick up his phone. As I type his password in, he snatches the phone out of my hands.
"Why did you do that?" I frown.
"Only us?" He seems nervous. I grin at him, and my heart is racing, and without even thinking I blurt out a yes. He relaxes a bit.
"I'll organize it."
"We're here." I glance up and we're at the mall. He parks next to Collins Audi and then Dylan parks the Jeep.
"Let's go to the waffle house," Dylan says. He loves waffles.
"So, you're paying right, Aiden?" Collin asks and Jess punches him in the stomach, Aiden looks at him and smirks.
"Of course, bro. Olivia should be the one who pays, because, due to her negligence, the waffles burnt." I death stare him for a minute and his face becomes serious.
"Um, just joking. I'll pay." He winks at me and everyone laughs. Our waffles come and we eat.
"So, what are the plans for the rest of the day?" Dylan asks as he takes his last bite. Jess, Elaina, and I glance at each other and grin.
"We're going shopping," Elaina says. The guys sigh and roll their eyes. Dylan faces us and adds,
"We actually cannot stay long. We have a thing." He points at the guys and they look confused.
"Yea, we do." Collin catches on and nods in agreement. Jess knows they're up to something and she frowns.
"And what's that, exactly?" She exclaims. The guys look at each other and they scratch their heads.
"Football practice. Yea if Collin wants to make the team then he needs to have some extra practice." Dylan says while glancing at his watch.
"Speaking of, we need to be there soon. We should go?" He stares at the guys and Collin stands up.
"Let's go." He smirks. Jess looks at them and we know they're lying; the two guys get up and kiss their girlfriends.
"Angel, I'll give you my keys and I'll catch a ride with Collin." Dylan gives Elaina the keys and pecks her again. They stride off and Aiden looks at us with a grin on his face.
"I'll pay. I need to go pick up something I ordered." He kisses my cheek as he gets up. What's he up to? The three of us look at him skeptically and he leaves.
"You know that they're lying, right?" Jess looks at us and we giggle. Boys will be boys. After 3 hours of shopping, we agree to take a break. For someone who just left the hospital, I have a considerable amount of energy. We head to Starbucks and order coffee milkshakes and a muffin. As Jess sits, I realize something.
"Jess? Why are you in Miami?" They both stare at me.
"I'm only asking because I thought that it was only Collin and Aiden that were moving here?" Jess smiles at me and reaches for her milkshake.
"Well, my parents died when I was 14, and Collin and I were dating at that time and because I have no other family, they suggested I live with them. Aiden loves me as if I'm his sister and he is a great guy." Elaina and I both stare at her. I found my connection. Elaina and I give her sympathetic smiles, and I can tell it's not something she wants to talk about. We need a change of topic.
"Guess what?" I ask them eagerly and they shrug.
"Aiden asked me to go out with him tonight." I blush as I get a warm fuzzy feeling in my stomach as they both grin at me.
"Wow, so a date?" Jess asks. As she mentioned the word date, it kind of makes me feel giddy. If that's what they want to call it. They both squeal and I can't help but roll my eyes. After we finish our milkshake, we head off to a few more clothing shops and we head to Jess, Collin, and Aiden's new house. We arrive at their home and it's massive, high ceilings with a chandelier hanging above the stairs, massive windows, a built-in fireplace, and Smeg everything. It's so homey. There are still a few unpacked boxes, though. We head up to Jess's room, which has lavender-colored walls and beige bedding. Her style is almost the same as mine.
"Your room is beautiful!" I beam at her and so does Elaina. We rest on her bed and we just relax while she unpacks the boxes.
"Guys? Does anyone know where Nick is? I'm getting worried." I ask them.
"Liv. He left. He's gone. Don't think about him, it's not worth it." They exchange a look. The next moment Elaina's phone beeps and she smiles at it.
"You have a text from Aiden." She winks at me and throws her phone in my direction. I read the message and I get are butterflies.
'We're going to have fun. I cannot wait to see you. Dress in something fancy. I'll pick you up at 6.
Aiden.'
I peek at my watch and it's only 3 pm.
"We need to go home. A could use a nap." I tell Elaina.
"I'm going to stay here; I'll see you guys tonight. Jay said we're having dinner at his house, so we'll be with him when you and Aiden arrive back from your date." Jess says.
"Let's go." Elaina yanks me to the car. As I get in, a sharp pain emerges in my abdomen followed by blood trickling. I freeze, this pain is quite unbearable right now.
"Okay, so we'll head home, and you can get rest." Elaina goes off mumbling and I'm still frozen. I assume I'm going into shock. The blood is percolating through my white shirt and it's quite a lot. I can't believe I forgot to put a plaster on my stomach this morning. The pain is becoming worse and worse. Blood completely freaks me out and yes, now I definitely am in shock.
"Olivia? Why aren't you answer-" she stops the car in the middle of the road and her eyes widen.
"What the hell!" I shut my eyes, and I try to avoid the fact that she's freaking out. She turns the car around and rushes to the hospital. The next thing I know, I'm in a wheelchair. I think I'm having a panic attack.
"Olivia." My mom snaps her fingers in front of my face, and I stare at her.
"Are you feeling okay?" I come by a slight bit and I nod. Eventually, I get out some sort of answer.
"I'm fine. There was just so much blood." I notice that I'm on one of the emergency beds. So, it turns out bed rest is prescribed for a good reason. Five of the stitches loosened because of moving and walking. I thought the wound would be a bit more healed by now. Luckily, one nurse stitched me up again and covered the stitches with a plaster. All good to go again.
"Well, you'll be fine. Please Liv, you must get rest." My mom thanks the nurse, kisses me, and later turns to Elaina.
"You make sure she does nothing for the rest of the night." Elaina looks at me and back at my mom. She nods.
"I will." My mom hugs her and strides off. The only thing on my mind is my date with Aiden tonight. As I slide off the bed, she steps towards me.
"Don't tell him. Please." That's my first words to her.
"I won't. But please don't go on the date tonight?" I'm bewildered.
"I'm going to go. My stomach isn't that painful anymore. Only five stitches came loose and it's not an enormous deal." I smile at her and she looks worried, I try to give her the best-assuring smile I can.
"Oh, and please mention nothing about this."
"As long as you promise me, you'll be careful." We walk back to the car and I give her a nod.
"I promise." We get in the car and drive to my house. I only have an hour left for a nap. As I make my way to my bed, I see a box lying on the table. What could it be? I pick the white box up and underneath the box is a note from Aiden.
'When you open this. Don't break it or do something crazy with it, please. I hope you like it. Oh, and please leave it at home tonight. It'll just be a disturbance. Remember, I'll pick you up at 6.
Aiden.'
I can't help but smile, he's full of surprises. I stare at the elegantly wrapped box. My eyes widen again, another phone. I smile when it switches on and he's done everything for me. All the privacy and protection apps have been downloaded, and he even logged into my social media apps as well (how does he have access to my passwords though?). I stare at the piece of electronic in my hand and I send him a message.
'Thanks for the phone. Looking forward to tonight.
Liv Xx'
After I send the message, I place the phone on the table, and I doze off. Only to be woken up by the screeching of an alarm.
The front door opens, and I assume it's Elaina. I need to take a shower. I finish up, tightly wrap a towel around me, and head to my closet. Five minutes later there's a knock on my door.
"Who is it?" I yell.
"It's Elaina." I hear her voice and she peeps in.
"Hey! How are you feeling?" She steps in and lies down on my bed. I take my stunning red dress out before I glance at her.
"I'm good. The shower helped for the most part."
"Just promise you'll take things slow tonight, no unusual moves." She quietly replies.
"I promise." I smile at her and I walk back into the bathroom to get dressed. Suddenly a loud squeal meets my ear, I shoot out and it's just Elaina who saw the iPhone.
"He bought you an iPhone?" She says in disbelief. She stares at me with the phone in her hand.
"I guess so." I brush out my hair and she's still staring at it.
"What happened to the other one?" After she asked that question, she hides her face in a pillow. Maybe she knows that that was a dumb question to ask.
"I think we all know what happened to it." She apologizes and I give her a sincere nod.
"Let me do your make-up." she gets up and fetches the eyeliner. I've never been an immense fan of makeup, so eyeliner is fine. When I'm finally finished, we head downstairs, and we wait. Then, on the dot at 6, he rings the bell. I stride to the door and there he is. I presume he's trying to do this the formal way. He stands in front of me with a massive bouquet of red roses and my heart melts.
"Well, hello there." He looks me up and down and he gives me the roses.
"Hey," I say back anxiously. Elaina takes the roses and hugs me. I study his attire and he's wearing a pair of chinos and a white shirt with rolled-up sleeves. Definitely looking as good as always.
"So where are we going?" I demand as we get into the car. He gives me a grin.
"You'll see. I assure you we're staying away from the candles tonight." I chuckle as he says that.
"Thanks for the phone, by the way," I add.
"You're welcome. Just please don't drop it in a lake this time." He chuckles and I punch him on the arm. Our small talk ends when the car slows down. I glance up and everything is black.
"We're here." He blindfolds me as we get out of the car. It's a bit cold outside, but as we walk a bit further, we enter a silent, warm building.
"Okay, stand here and wait." he kisses my cheek, I nod, and I can hear him walking away and then again, silence.
"You ready?" he eagerly asks.
"Yes." I get butterflies in my stomach. I hate surprises, but he causes me to like them.
"Okay, one, two, three... Take the blindfold off," he demands. I do so, and as I dispose of the blindfold, my eyes instantly widen. We're in the art gallery, the lights are dimmed and in the middle of the room, there's a romantic setting, with red roses, battery-operated candles, champagne glasses, and sushi. I walk closer to him and he pulls my chair out for me, I sit, and he joins me across the table.
"I'm speechless, Aiden. This is amazing, I love it." I take his hand while I take a minute to look around the room. This art gallery is so impressive, it's one of the finest ones in Miami.
"I'm glad you like it." he beams.
"The battery-operated candles are a delicate touch by the way." I wink at him and he looks proud of himself.
"By the way, Aiden. I appreciate what you have been doing and how you've been looking after me. It means so much. No guy has ever stepped up like this for me." I smile and he stares at me with his baby blue eyes. As he smiles at me, his dimples appear, and they are so adorable.
"Always. I'm sorry about Nick. I know he's your best friend-"
"Let's not talk about him. It's not worth it and you're going to ruin this night." I quietly reply and he nods.
"Let's eat." He hands me the chopsticks and we eat. Salmon roses and cucumber rolls have always been my number one choice. We eat, talk a bit, and then Aiden gets up and holds his hand out to me.
"Dance with me?" he asks, and I smirk. I grab his hand and he pulls me up.
"With no music?" I grimace as he pulls me closer to him. He takes his iPod out and suddenly there's music playing, my favorite song -
'Capital Letters - Hailee Steinfeld'
"This is my favorite song. How did you know?" he grabs my one hand and puts his other on my waist.
"Really Olivia?" he questions, and he stares into my eyes.
"Of course." I roll my eyes and we dance in silence. I bet Elaina gave him all of this information. While dancing, it gets difficult not to get caught up in the moment. He's so amazing and so completely perfect. Right here, right now, I've never been this happy and so content. Nothing can ruin this. Nothing. He tugs me closer to him and our eyes meet again, followed by our lips. I wish I could just pause and capture this moment in a photo. Our lips part.
"Olivia?" Aiden looks at me and the song ends.
"Yeah?" I smile.
"You're incredible, I've truly never been so happy in my life. Will you please be my girlfriend?" He stares at me with desperation in my eyes. My heart thumps so fast and I get quite nervous. I kiss him again and smile while our lips are touching.
"Of course, I will." He sighs with relief, followed by a smirk. We dance again and silence surrounds us again. I marvel at what he might think right now.
"How are you feeling? I don't want to cut our date short but you need to get rest, after all, you were in the hospital-."
"Of course, Elaina told you. Look, I'm sorry I said nothing about being at the hospital this morning. I just didn't-."
"Wait. You were at the hospital this morning?" He looks shocked. Oh crap.
"Oh. Wait." Avoid eye contact, Olivia, avoid eye contact at all costs. See, this is what I get for not allowing people to finish their sentences.
"What happened at the hospital? Why were you there?" Well, there goes our perfect date.
"Um, well five stitches that were on my stomach tore but they fixed it and I'm good." His tense body relaxes and when I eventually make eye contact with him, he smiles.
"Oh. See, maybe we should go home. You need rest, Olivia." He grabs my hand, and he tries to lead me to the table.
"One more dance?" I pull him back.
"Of course." he kisses my cheek, and we dance to one more song. I don't want this night to end. However, after the song ends, we head back home. He puts his hand on my leg and I slightly twitch but I need to get used to it.
"Thank you for an unbelievable night, Aiden. I needed it." He smiles at me and we stop at my house.
"You ready to tell them?" Aiden interrupts the silence. I nod and we get out of the car.
"They'll approve, right?" we hold hands and nervously walk toward Jay's door.
"Yeah, they have little choice, besides I don't think they'll be that surprised." He whisks his lips on my forehead and we walk in. Everybody's sitting around the dining room table playing Monopoly and everyone's eyes are on us while we stand there awkwardly for a few seconds.
"And how was it?" Jay's the first person to speak. Aiden and I both stare at each other and smile. He grasps my hand and we glance back at everyone.
"We're finally dating." I get goosebumps as I glance at him and everybody applauds.
"Wow, I'm so happy for you two." Dylan hugs me, followed by Elaina.
"I'm glad he makes you happy." She whispers and I nod.
"Okay. I think Olivia needs to get home, she hasn't taken her meds, and she needs some rest." Aiden takes my hand and leads me outside to my house.
"That went well." I wink at him and we walk to the front door. We stand there for a minute and I just stare into his eyes.
"You are so perfect." I haul him closer to me and our lips meet once again.
"Goodnight Love." He opens the door for me and kisses my forehead. I love that he calls me Love. I walk in, close the door, and lean against it for a second. He's the perfect gentleman. How did I get so lucky? I wander to the kitchen, drink my meds, and go upstairs. As I get changed, I hear a beep from the phone.
'Night Love. I'm glad you're mine.'
I grin as I get butterflies again.
'Night night.'
I reply. Today's date is definitely my number one on the list of best dates ever. I am so lucky.