Riannon's POV
When I woke up the next morning, I had a killer headache. Note to self, don't ever try drinking that many shots again! Ever! I was never really much of an alcohol person anyways. Never really went well together. I slowly got up and my head felt like it was literally gonna burst. I sat for a while, supporting myself on the wooden edge of the bed and as I opened my eyes, I noticed the glass of water and the medicine on the table.
Jackson.
My heart fluttered at the thought of him. I didn't remember much about what happened after I felt sick but I did know that he took me home. I suddenly felt embarrassed, hoping that I didn't say or do anything stupid in front of him. I buried my face in my hands, knowing there was a fat chance I probably did.
Oh you idiot, idiot, idiot. You surely must have made a fool out of yourself. I smacked my forehead with my palm, which I immediately realised was a bad idea with the terrible headache that I was currently having. I only succeeded at rattling my brain even more, while it was already drowned in a pool of alcohol and regrets.
I couldn't help but feel butterflies though in the pit of my stomach at the thought of Jackson. But then the other sensible part of me kept on telling me that I was just being stupid..even if I finally did admit that I might have something for him, a guy like him could never like someone like me.
I popped in the pill and drank the water. Maybe I needed to sleep in a bit more and just put all those thoughts aside for the time being. I didn't feel like I'd be able to attend classes that day anyways. I got under the blankets again and drifted off to sleep with images of his face swirling in my head.
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I woke up to music blaring loudly in my ears and I swore I was gonna murder whoever dared to disturb my sleep. I opened my eyes and I saw another face near mine and way too close for comfort.
'What the hell??!!!' I gave a strong kick and the person landed on the floor with a loud thump. Whoever it was, was groaning loudly. I peeked over my bed to take a look at the person who invaded my room.
'Jackson?'
'Is that the way to greet a person who was trying to wake you up nicely?'
'You call that nice??!' I was standing on my bed and I had my hands on my hips, ready to give him an earful when he started laughing uncontrollably. 'Okay, maybe I just wanted to have some fun since I got such a wonderful opportunity. I would have finished drawing the whiskers too if you hadn't woken up so early.'
'Whis-wha-whiskers ??!!!' Finally noticing my black marker that he held in his hand as he pulled out his phone from his pocket and started clicking pictures while laughing at me. I immediately jumped out of bed and went to the bathroom mirror to check.
Oh my God!
He literally made my face into his own drawing book. There on my face, were tons of doodles of cats, pigs and is that a drawing of..poop on my nose ?
'JACKSON!! YOU ARE SO DEAD!!' I ran out of my bathroom with the intent of maiming him. He was still on the floor,laughing but immediately got up when he saw the look of murder on my face. He ran out of my bedroom giggling like a hysterical girl.
I went after him and caught up with him before he managed to open the apartment door,pouncing on his back as I aimed several punches on his shoulder. But he lost his footing and we both fell on the ground with him on top of me. Thankfully it was a padded carpet so it didn't hurt when I landed on my back but he sure was heavy!
'You elephant! Get off me!' He didn't let me go,and we were suddenly wrestling each other on the floor,laughter filling the air. I managed to hold him in a headlock thanks to my self defence classes, 'Do you give up now? Apologise Wang!'
But he turned the tables around and flipped me over so that I was under him again, intending to pin me down. He was still smiling but suddenly the look in his eyes changed. The atmosphere around us seemed to change as well and we weren't laughing anymore. Our faces were so close to each other and I could feel his breath on my lips. He was staring at me so intently and he had a weird look on his face.. I couldn't pin an emotion to it but it was almost..almost loving? For a moment there, I wanted to just reach out and kiss him and apparently he had the same thoughts as he drew nearer. Our lips were only a few millimetres apart when his phone ringtone abruptly pierced the thick atmosphere.
'Um Jackson, your..your phone is ringing.' I whispered.
'Huh?' He muttered, dazed.
'Your phone?' And suddenly he snapped back to reality and scrambled off me. He took his phone out and huffed out of frustration. 'When will these people ever give me a break?' He said more to himself than at me. 'It's my manager, I'll be back in a minute okay?' He extended his hand to help me get up.
'Okay.' I quietly said as I awkwardly took his hand and stood up. He left to go talk outside while I went to the bathroom to wash off his artwork on my poor face. The moment I closed the bathroom, I ran my hand through my hair. Oh my gosh, I almost kissed him. Yikes!
Get a grip of yourself Riannon!
But admit it, you wanted it to happen. You have feelings for him.
No! No! No! Or maybe yes! I was such a confused mess at the moment, my thoughts scrambled. I splashed the water from the tap on my face hoping that I'd wake up from this delusion and it would clear my head. As my fingers glided over my skin, I touched the faded scar on my cheek,my attention drifting off to the other scars on my arm and my back.
No. I can't have feelings for him. I can't trust any guy. I can't.
I was once again ingulfed in the clutches of my painful memories when I was brought back again by a loud knock on the door.
'Riannon? Are you okay?'
'Yeah I'm okay.' I answered, masking the pain in my voice. 'I'm just rubbing off the ink you elephant!' I added in a poor attempt to hide my current feelings of despair.
'Okay okay.' He laughed,oblivious. 'Well I was wondering if you were hungry. I'm guessing you haven't had anything yet?'
'No I haven't.'
'Alright. I'm taking over your kitchen today then! I'll whip up something for you,' He happily added.
I opened the door to face him,'It's really okay Jackson. You've already done so much.'
'Hush now! Do you wanna miss out on the opportunity of eating something cooked by the finest chef?'
'I'm just gonna take a wild guess and say that the best thing you're good at is ramen?'
'You betcha!' While pointing his fingers and winking at me. 'My special ramen!'
Ayy. This dork.
'Okay let's go make this special ramen of yours,' I smiled, following him as he led the way.
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We spent about half an hour trying to find the ingredients he wanted at the convenience store next to my building and the other half was spent on trying to help him not to burn the apartment down. But it was amusing really, watching him cook. And being in his company made me forget things.
'Oh yeah. How did you end up at my place today? I thought you were busy?'
'Well I was, but after I was done with most of the work, I tried calling you several times to check up on you but you weren't picking up so I got worried sick and decided to come over,' He said as he added the final touch to his dish so thankfully he didn't see me blush at his response.
Blushing really? When were you ever like this?!
By the time we were finally done, it was already dark considering I woke up pretty late in the first place. We decided to watch one of our favourite pokemon movies while having our ramen and settled comfortably on the couch with our bowls.
After 2 hours, Jackson was bawling his eyes out after the ending. 'It still gets me every darn time! When all the pokemon cried after Ash turned into stone! It was just so sad!' He wailed, taking the tissues and wiping his messy face.
I was fighting the urge to laugh but I suppressed it as I handed him a glass of water. But I honestly liked the fact that he wasn't afraid to be true to himself.
We cleared the table and washed the dishes together. As dull a task as dishwashing was, it was still fun with him around or maybe I had just been cooped up on my own for too long and needed company. We were currently resting on the couch after cleaning everything,which unsurprisingly took longer than it usually would. It was safe to say that Jackson brought in a cyclone when he started cooking so we had quite a lot of sweeping and scrubbing to do.
'What do you wanna do now?' He asked tiredly.
An idea popped up in my mind at his question, 'Come on!' I said as I pulled him off the couch, 'I wanna show you something.'
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Jackson's POV
We were climbing up the stairs which I assumed would lead to the terrace. When we reached right at the top and she pushed the door open, I was greeted with a wave of fresh air. She continued to pull me towards what looked like a mini glass house, my jaw hanging open as I stared at it. When we entered, I was so surprised at how homely it looked inside. It had curtains all over the four glass walls except the ceiling providing a great view of the sky. There were piles of books spread across the room and to my delight, there was also a telescope set up near the only large window in the glass structure. I had always wanted one of those. I looked up and I felt like my breath had been taken away as I stared at the clear starry sky.
'Beautiful isn't it?'
I looked at her as she moved to sit by the window, her fingers moving across the knobs of the telescope while she looked through the lens. She was bathe in the moonlight, truly looking like the angel that she was.
'Very beautiful indeed,' I replied, my eyes fixated on anything but her, wondering if she knew what she was doing to me. I went and took a seat next to her as she pulled up another stool from the corner.
'The owner of this building is a really kind hearted old woman. She lent me this a few days after I first arrived here. I was always on my own and maybe a bit lonely since I mostly stuck with my books. So she thought that this would lighten me up,' She smiled at the memory.
'You don't need to feel lonely anymore you know. You have me.' I told her but after realising what I just said, I quickly added, 'AND YUGYEOM!'
'Thank you. I'm glad.' She said softly, her eyes going back to to the window. 'You know, I like to come up here every night. It's just.. so calm.' I only nodded as I followed her gaze, letting my mind wander.
We continued to sit there in silence just watching the stars. I looked over at her and pondered over what it would be like if I told her what I felt. Despite the confusion, I really just wanted to let it out. Maybe if I did, then it would seem more clearer? The more I delved into those feelings or whatever you'd call it..the more terrified I felt. But the bottom line was that I think ..I think.. that I ..maybe.. I'm falling for her?
The realisation hit me hard and I was suddenly gripped by fear again. My body started heating up as many questions haunted me. What if she leaves me? What if she hurts me like she did? All the what ifs started running in my head and I panicked. I hurriedly stood up, unable to sit still anymore.
'Jackson? Are you okay?'
'Ye-yeah..I.. I just remembered something and I really need to go,' I blabbered.
'Oh. Okay.' Disappointment washed over her features and I turned away, I couldn't look at her. 'See you tomorrow?' She quietly asks while I turned my back towards her.
'Yeah. Yeah sure.' I said, my words empty and I walked away.
Jackson. What is wrong with you?
Author's note: Hello everyone, I realise it's going a bit slow but I didn't want to rush it, I wantedto put more emphasis on their growing relationship. I didn't want it to escalate too quickly.
But I assure you, there will be quite a bumpy ride ahead and I hope you will stick through it with me, till the end. Thank you so much for reading ❤ do let me know if you prefer short or long chapters .