Porches - Underwater
Adrianne
What the fuck?!
My body froze over my homework as I took in his figure across from me.
He was dressed in a sweatshirt, his hair all messy, and he had the cutest smirk on his face.
It took me a second to realize I was staring at him with my mouth open.
Say something, you idiot!
I scoffed, making the only eligible sound I could think of that wouldn't make me sound like a dumbass.
He looked at me, holding a mug in his hand.
"Did you follow me or something?" I managed to say. I looked up to my car in the lot. He was parked next to me.
Fuck.
"Oh, you're not that special," he said with a smile. His eyes pierced mine.
I scoffed again, taken back.
Suddenly he leaned forward, and his light eyes glinted at me. I leaned back a little bit, feeling my heart explode a little.
"What's your name?"
"What's yours?" I deflected.
"I asked first." He sipped on his drink.
I paused. Why the hell not? "Adrianne."
"Hmmm," he muttered, looking at me.
"What?"
"Is that your stripper name or your real name?"
I almost choked. What a dick.
"That's - that's my real one," I stuttered.
"Interesting."
I opened my mouth to say something rude, but the waitress came up and dropped off a plate of french toast in front of him. He smiled at her.
"You need anything else, sweetie?" She turned to me.
"No, I'm good for now," I said. There was no way I was going to eat in front of him now.
She walked away and my eyes fell on him as he took my fork and started eating. He eyed me.
I crossed my arms and narrowed my eyes as I sat back in the booth.
"What about you?" I asked.
"What about me?" He replied before taking a bite.
"What's your name?"
He stopped and looked at me as he chewed. I waited as he finished and swallowed.
"Reece."
"Like the chocolate?" I grinned.
He made a face and shook his head. "They're disgusting. Chocolate and peanut butter don't mix."
My mouth hung open as he continued eating.
"You are the only person who has that opinion, I hope you know." I felt myself loosen up a little.
He shrugged and kept eating. I sat in silence as he ate and my thoughts eventually went to the night he saw me dancing at work.
Half naked.
Jesus.
I felt my face go red, but he didn't notice.
"So what do you do besides dance for money?" He paused for a second, the fork in one hand and a knife in the other.
I briefly thought of grabbing the fork and sinking into his neck.
I narrowed my eyes at him instead.
"I go to school."
"Where?"
"The only college close to here," I said, trying to be as vague as possible.
"Hmmm. Never seen you there."
"I've seen you there," I muttered.
He stopped and looked at me with his head tilted, but I spoke before he could say anything snarky.
"What about you? What do you do besides watch girls dance for money?" I sipped on my water, feeling a little proud of the comeback.
He didn't notice, though. He was focused on his french toast. "I'm a drummer."
That caught me off guard. "Really?"
He nodded. "Mhm."
He finished his plate in silence and pushed it to the side. He looked at me.
"So are you here by yourself? You don't have a boyfriend?"
My breathing stopped a little before I shook my head. "You're here alone, too."
He grinned. "True."
God. Did I really think this dipshit was attractive?
I answered my own question.
Yes.
We didn't say anything for a while, but I knew in my mind that I couldn't keep this conversation going at this rate forever.
"I should probably be getting home.." I said slowly.
His eyes looked me over. "I'll walk you to your car."
I put my papers in my bag without saying anything and grabbed my phone, standing up.
I saw him slide a twenty on the table as he stood up next to me.
I made my way to the door, not sure if he would be behind me. He was.
"Bye, Rita," he said to the waitress, and pushed the door open for me.
"Thanks," I muttered, and walked to where my car was parked.
He leaned against his car and watch me as I fished for my keys.
They weren't in my bag.
Oh no..
I cupped my face with my hands and looked into my car.
My keys were on the damn floor.
"Shit!" I whispered.
I turned to him slowly. "I locked my keys in my car," I said reluctantly.
He smiled. "I can take you home."
I froze. "Oh, no, you don't have to do that. I can call a locksmith." I panicked internally.
"It's midnight. There won't be any locksmiths open until the morning." He crossed his arms.
"But I have class in the morning," I started, and huffed some air through my nose.
"I can take you there, too. We go to the same college, remember?"
"Yeah, but.. I can't make you do that." I shook my head.
"Look. It's late and a bunch of crackheads come out at this time. You don't want to get stuck in an empty parking lot in front of a diner. Trust me."
"But-"
"Just shut up and get in." He opened his passenger door and held it open for me.
I paused.
"I'll even tell them to watch your car." He pointed to the people in the diner. "I'm cool with them."
I looked at him for a few seconds.
Oh, why the hell not?
"Fine," I muttered, and got into his car. Hopefully he won't murder me.
He closed the door behind me, and the light turned off, leaving me in the dark.
Damn, his car smelled good. Like musk and spice. I looked around at the interior. All black, of course, and very clean.
I watched him walk back inside, talk to the waitress, then come back out.
He got in and sat next to me. "Where to, Princess?"
He turned the keys, and his car roared to life.
The drive was quiet, except for a song by Porches quietly playing on his radio.
I looked at the side of his face, twiddling my thumbs. He had a little cut above his eyebrow that I hadn't noticed before.
"How'd you get that cut?" I heard myself ask.
"Some dumbass," he muttered, his eyes still on the road.
"Ah." I looked out the window and heard him sigh.
"What, am I boring you?" I asked, hiding my smile.
"No," he said lightheartedly.
Seconds passed that felt like minutes. I watched the flat land pass by.
"What time is your morning class?" He asked.
"Twelve."
He raised an eyebrow. "Twelve is afternoon, not morning."
"I know that," I scoffed. "I just consider it morning."
I saw him falter a little through his smile. "Who's your professor?"
My voice was tiny. "Smith."
He narrowed his eyes, and I saw the realization dawn on his face that we had the same class. He looked at me. "And you forgot to mention this when I said I'd take you to class?" He chuckled and shook his head.
"Hey, I've only seen you in there once," I pointed out.
"Well, now I'm definitely going since you just said that."
I laughed a little, and we got quiet again.
A minute or two passed before we pulled into my neighbirhood.
"You don't live that far from me, actually." He stated.
"Oh, good. It'll save you gas," I joked.
We were quiet again until he pulled in my driveway.
He looked at my house.
"Do you live by yourself?" He parked the car.
"No, I live with my mom. She's not home now, though."
Getting out of his car was in the back of my mind.
Little raindrops fell onto the windshield, breaking the silence.
"Do you have a key to get in?"
"Ummm, yeah. There's a spare." I said.
He put his hand on the back of my seat and faced me, his scent wafting to me.
Oh, fuck.
"So I'll pick you up tomorrow, then."
"Yeah. Sounds good." No.
Slightly shaking, I reached for his door handle and pulled, but nothing happened.
"What the.." I muttered.
"Here." He leaned over, and his scent hit me like a brick this time. He was so close to me.
His hand went to the handle and fumbled with it. I took in how close he was to me, and had to actively focus on breathing. His face was so close to mine...
No! I brushed away the thought.
He finally opened the door, and leaned back into his chair. Thank God he didn't notice me suffocating.
"The handle's stuck on that door, sorry." He ran a hand through his hair.
"No, it's fine," I said quickly. I grabbed my hoodie off the floor.
"Goodnight, Adrianne." His voice was softer than silk.
I looked him dead in the eyes. I could drown in those silver pools.
A drop of rain on my hand brought me back to reality.
"Goodnight, Reece." I gave him the tiniest smile and got out of his car, closing the door.
Trying not to bust my ass on the wet ground, I walked straight to the back of my house, opening the gate to my backyard. I closed the gate behind me, and I saw the light from his headlights pull away.
I took a deep breath, finding the spare key behind a potted plant and opening the back door.
As I collapsed into my bed, all I could think of were his eyes.
That night I dreamt of swimming in silver oceans.
The faint sound of honking woke me up.
I rubbed the crust out of my eyes and squinted at my clock. 11:30.
Shit!
I jumped out of my bed and ran to my bathroom, making use of time by brushing my teeth while I peed.
I rushed to my closet, finding an easy outfit to wear so I could jump in my car.
Wait.
Where are my keys?
The realization of what happened last night hit me, and I thought of him. Reece.
Wait, he said he would..
I walked to my window and cracked open the blinds. My heart did a backflip in my chest as my eyes landed on his car in my driveway.
Shit!
I spent as much time as I could getting ready without being late. I put my spare key in my pocket and slung my bag over my shoulder.
I stopped at my front door, taking a deep breath.
I opened the door and walked out, averting my gaze from the driver's side of the car.
I opened the passenger door, trying my best not to fumble, and sat in the seat. The smell of him hit me.
Why did he have to smell so damn-
I stopped my train of thought as I brought myself to look at him.
His hair looked nice and combed, his face clean shaven, and his eyes were bright, as if he hadn't just woken up like I did.
I couldn't read his expression, but he had a hand out towards me expectantly.
He was holding a coffee cup in his hand.
"Coffee for the princess." He gave me a small smile.
He got me coffee?
I took it from him, making sure I didn't touch his hand so I wouldn't get shocked.
"Thanks." I took a sip.
As we headed to campus, it started to drizzle.
"Why is it always raining?" I heard him grumble.
I didn't say anything and sipped on my coffee.
"So am I taking you to Rosie's after class?" His eyes were still on the road.
"Yes, please."
He nodded, but my heart sank a little at the thought of him not driving me anywhere. I ignored the feeling.
He's probably just being nice. Don't get so wrapped up about it, it's nothing to him.
I looked back over at him and his combed hair.
God, I just wanted to run my hands through his hair and pull...
I focused on my coffee the rest of the way.
Even though the coffee warmed me up, I still felt cold. I shivered as we pulled into the lot.
"Are you cold?" He asked. His eyebrows knitted together on his forehead.
"Oh no- I just.."
He ignored my protests and reached into his backseat, grabbing a hoodie. He handed it to me.
"Here."
I took it without complaining and pulled it over my head.
Why did it have to smell like him?
"Thanks." I reached for the door handle, and again had trouble opening it.
When he leaned over, it felt like he was taking forever to open it.
Or taking his time.
I thought I would drown in his smell when the door opened.
"Really need to get that fixed," he muttered to himself.
No you don't.
We got out and strode in the light rain to the campus. We walked in silence, but it was comforting.
I could only imagine the look on my face when he sat next to me in the lecture hall.
"What?"
"Nothing." I put my focus on the lecture.
About twenty minutes in, his arm brushed against mine, and my body tingled all the way down. He kept his arm there on the rest, and my heart thumped.
Why is he doing this to me?
The lecture went by quickly, and all I could think of was how close he was to me. Fuck.
When it ended, he drove me over to Rosie's.
My car was still there in one piece. Relief washed over me. My car was like my only child.
I called a locksmith, who said it would be thirty minutes until he'd get there.
I hung up, slightly ruffled.
"I'll wait with you." He gave me a smirk that was so devilish my knees shook.
"Are - are you sure?"
"Yeah. Ain't got nothing better to do." He laced his hands around the back of his head, leaning back.
"Oh, thanks," I sputtered sarcastically.
He grinned, then his eyes flickered as he thought of something. "Do you work today?"
I nodded.
His mouth pulled into a small frown, then turned into another smirk.
"Maybe I'll stop by and pay you a visit."
"No!" I shouted. I covered my mouth and looked down, slightly embarrassed. "Please don't."
His grin grew wider. "Why not?"
"Because."
"Because what?"
"Because... I don't want you to," I quickly stuttered.
"And why is that? I don't mind." His grin grew even bigger, which I didn't think was possible. "Why, you don't want another tip?"
I smacked his arm lightly, and immediately regretted it. A little bolt of electricity ran up my arm. I saw him jerk a little bit, but I nervously laughed to cover it up.
"You're funny," I muttered.
"Oh, I was being completely serious."
This time I glared at him, but he only smiled again.
We lapsed into silence as the music on his radio played.
The minutes went by slow, and I eventually found myself drifting off into sleep.
I woke up to a tingling feeling on my shoulder, and opened my eyes to see his hand there.
He jerked it back and cleared his throat.
"The locksmith's here," he grunted.
"Oh," I mumbled, and had no trouble getting out of the car when I tried to open it this time. I gave the guy my information and he popped open my door before dipping.
I headed back to Reece's car and grabbed my bag through the open window of his door.
"Oh, I still have your jacket," I realized. I pulled it off, and felt my shirt underneath get pulled up a bit. I could feel his eyes on my skin. I quickly pulled it back down and passed him his jacket. "Thanks."
"No problem." He tossed the hoodie in his backseat. "Oh, here," he suddenly said.
He grabbed a napkin and a pen and scribbled something on it before handing it to me.
I took it from him and looked.
It was his phone number. Oh, shit.
"You know, in case you happen to lock yourself out of your car again."
I stared at the napkin, trying to keep my mouth closed.
"Or if you get lonely." He added. I jerked my head up to look at him, and he winked.
Before I could say anything, he drove off, leaving me standing in the parking lot with a napkin and my sexual thoughts.
_______
Yass! I know Reece sounds like a bit of a dick at first, but I think it's just his nerves talking. 😉 I also want him to have a blunt personality.
If you guys have any cover ideas, let me know!! LIKING THAT LIL STAR AT THE BOTTOM HELPS. 😊 ENJOY!!