Abandoning the party and driving off – with wine in our systems, mind you – to God knows where is not exactly how I pictured the night will go on. Luckily, not even one head turned to our directions when we sneaked out of the Anderson mansion and eloped with one of the several lavish cars the Andersons possessed. It took me a good five minutes to return to my senses after shamelessly gawking at the beauties in the extensive garage.
I can't promise if there was drool.
"Where are we going?" I ask, looking at Caleb driving freely, and focus my gaze on his face and not his strong arms which are now exposed due to his rolled-up sleeves. His bow tie hangs on his neck and a mischievous glint shines in his eyes. Not bothering with a reply, I sigh after he shoots me a teasing smile.
After a few minutes, we pull up to a rundown apartment – worse than mine even. Before I could pose a question, Caleb opens my door and pulls me to his side.
"No questions." With that, he pulls me by my hand and drags me inside. My eyes widen but I still don't feel like questioning him about anything.
"No orders, idiot." I murmur, glaring at him at the back of his head.
The dark stairs are hard to navigate through but Caleb's hand in mine does the job and soon enough, I'm panting as we stand in front of an apartment with a rusty door and a crooked number 15 on it. He kicks the door open and switches on the lights, leaving my eyes wide open. The apartment is empty and clean, contrary to the scene outside, with a small couch near the huge window overlooking a park. A piano sits in the far end of the room, contrasting the rest of the dull background, its pristine black lid reflecting the moonlight from the windows.
"Who lives here? And why are we here?" I look at Caleb after sufficiently scanning the room and he gets away from the door he was just leaning on.
"Mine." He pockets his hands, the corners of his mouth slowly quirking up.
"This..." I wave around and look back at him incredulously, "is yours? You're telling me this shitty apartment is yours?" I suddenly guffaw and clutch my stomach at the end, wiping off my imaginary tears.
"Nice going, Anderson."
"I'm hurt, blondie. You called my apartment shitty. It is so accommodating." He walks over to the counter and pulls open a cabinet, taking out a huge half-empty wine bottle.
"See, I know the way to your heart is wine so...how about some?" His gray eyes glinted with mischievousness and I took slow, careful steps, my mind still pondering on why he would have such an apartment when he practically lives like royalty.
"How is this yours?"
"This is my hideaway place, blondie. I come here to get away from my shitty parents or just when I want to be alone." He hands me a wine glass and walks over to the window. "The view's not bad." He smiles at me and I walk over to him, leaning on the opposite side of him.
"Why did you bring me here?" I ask him while calmly sipping on my wine even though deep inside, I can feel my heart hammering against my chest not-so-discreetly.
His gaze snaps to meet my own, studying my face as if assessing every single feature on it carefully. I gulp and try to focus on the view but his gaze is so sharp and mesmerizing that I just can't take my eyes off his. Finally, after what felt like hours, I tear my gaze away from his and gulp down the rest of my wine.
"Because I trust you." The four words are simple but yet manage to overwhelm me in an indescribable way. The annoying fluttering at the pit of my stomach starts once again and a heavy feeling settles in the air between us.
"I finally trust someone. It's hard...you know. After all the things a person goes through, it is difficult to find someone amidst all the problems, someone to trust. It's a heavy word, Summer." He whispers, taking slow yet tormenting steps towards me.
"I know."
Inching closer, his hand makes its way beside me, caging me in his hold while the other one snakes itself around my waist. A small gasp escapes my lips as he pulls me flush against him. My hands around his biceps tighten as I feel his hot breath fanning my face and his light stubble grazing my cheek. His lips brush my ear and I almost fall from the electricity jolts all over my body, had he not been having a tight grip on me. My lashes flutter at the contact of our skins, bodies molding into each other, our heavy breaths in sync. Cupping my jaw, he looks into my eyes and murmurs something incoherent but I close them, a demure smile taking over my lips.
Within the next few seconds, I almost burst from the electricity as his lips softly brush mine.
Caleb is kissing me.
What?
My mind flashes with all his memories - our connection, our fights, our talks. Not trusting anyone else, I put my trust in Caleb and told him about my father – something so sensitive in my life that I haven't even brought myself to share with my brothers. His encouragement and his words linger in my mind until I realize that we are in an intimate moment.
Snapping my eyes shut, I lean in and kiss him back, certainly earning a surprised reaction from him as he loosens his grip on me. My hands travel up his arm till his jaw and into his silky hair, tugging on it for an unknown reason. His hand pulls me from the nape of my neck even stronger and I could feel his smirk against the kiss. I pull back and exhale, resting my forehead against his face. His index finger tilts my chin upwards and as soon as I look into his eyes, my knees almost give away. A certain spark ignites in his eyes and the corner of his eyes crinkle as he chuckles and rests his forehead on mine.
"You're blushing. Again."
I cover my face in my hands and chuckle at the intense moment I just had. What the actual fuck?
"I don't blush."
"You do. Only at my words though. Or...in this case, actions." He pushes back my hair and whispers into my ear, effectively raising the hairs at the back of my neck. I continue staying silent but not out of choice – no – I am actually speechless right now. Not knowing what to do after our kiss, I look out the window, spotting the empty park.
"Come with me." I take his hand and drag him out of the house without listening to what he has to say. In a few minutes, we successfully maneuver ourselves out of the apartment entrance and walk towards the park. After a few words exchanged here and there, I learn about how he never got a chance to play in the park. Avoiding the embarrassment of my jaw hitting the ground, I give him an all-around experience of the park, from the gigantic slides to chasing each other around benches, to even climbing a tree but landing on the ground not-so-gracefully.
Well, he did that part. Not me.
For once, I can proudly say I upheld my damn reputation.
After the exhausting child behavior, we trudge slowly towards the swings.
"That was amazing." Caleb sighs and runs a hand through his messy hair, some of it falling and sticking to his forehead oh-so-attractively.
"Tell me about it."
I happily run to the swing, unsure of why I'm feeling so exhilarated all of a sudden.
"Sit, Richie rich. Don't give me that look." I raise my eyebrow, awaiting his move as he continues to stare at me with a lopsided grin plastered on his face but nonetheless, moves towards me and sits his ass on the swing next to mine.
His ass.
I can't believe I just thought of that.
Blame it on the damn wine.
"You love parks, don't you?" His mirth filled orbs never leave my face even when he starts swinging slightly. I smile and look ahead, my dress flying slightly from the chill climbing up my bare legs.
"Indeed, I do. You remember. From the night I told you about my dad and me."
Veronica's party.
I scowl at her thought and imagine crushing her with my feet but Caleb's presence seems to distract me from conjuring up any other cold-blooded murder methods.
"How can I forget that night?" He sighs and raises an eyebrow at me and I understand that he's thinking of the same vicious bitch I'm thinking about.
"I don't understand how you ever dated that...thing." I grimace and toy with the silky fabric of my dress.
"That makes the two of us."
"Then why did you? Like ever?"
"I don't know if you'll get it but it was like an obligation, you know. My dad has been a client to the West family for long and that just makes them good friends so crossing Veronica's path wasn't really a choice I had. I hated associating with anyone and in those times, she really was the only one I used to meet who was my age. So naturally, we became friends until I realized what a bitch she was to everyone at school." He sighs, looking down and running a hand through his disheveled hair and the memories of our kiss run back to my mind. I shake my head and distractedly nod at his words.
"I realized I never had any feelings for her so I should technically not be dating her. But you know her, she never takes the damn hint. But I finally lost my mind that night."
"What night?"
"The night we got stuck in Snowflakes. I don't know what happened. Your hatred for her plus the realization of all her wrongdoings finally sunk in and managed to piss the shit out of me. So when I went back home that night, I called her and just broke it off with her."
"On the phone?" I stifle in my laughter and close my eyes, savoring her precious expression the following morning. So that was what she was angry at me for and the reason as to why she cornered me in the hallway.
"Yes. Deserved that right." He huffs and grins at me.
"Totally did. So don't I deserve a thank you for opening your eyes to her evilness?" I bat my lashes and grin as if a hanger is in my mouth.
He turns towards me and leans over slightly. "Didn't I give you an amazing thank you upstairs?" He winks and looks ahead, pretending to swing with a calm expression on his face.
How does he manage to do that after leaving my cheeks flushed?
"Asshole," I grumble and cross my arms and ankles, leaning my head against the swing chain.
***
Despite my talented attempt at coaxing Caleb to stay in the park for a little while more, he still dragged my ass back to the car and drove me all the way home.
"Jason will kill us both if we stay out this late. I believe he allowed you out on a curfew."
With arms crossed and a scowl settled on my face, I sigh and look at him. "I don't have to listen to him just because he's my older brother, okay? Besides, I think last time's argument showed him what the right thing to do is."
"Which is...?"
"To leave me be!"
"I pity your brothers. I don't know how they deal with you." He snickers as he pulls up to my apartment and I take the chance to continuously hit him on his arm.
"Shut." Hit.
"Your." Hit.
"Damn." Hit.
"Mouth." Harder hit.
"Alright, tiger toes. Hold your claws." I don't listen to him until he grasps my wrist and pulls me towards him. Our eyes meet once again and the familiar pull towards him draws me in like a moth to a fire. He rests his forehead against mine and exhales. His touch on my wrist softens and he lets it go. Pulling apart, he places a chaste kiss on my forehead before I could utter a word.
"You were saying something...?"
I feel my mouth go dry and the softness and warmth of his lips on my forehead escapes into the heavy air between us.
"Goodnight, Anderson." I climb out of the car hurriedly, barely biting back a smile. I don't hear his response and continue walking towards the stairs, my dress brushing my ankles in my hurry. My heart doesn't seem to be able to calm down even when I enter my bedroom.
Those soft lips are all I can think about tonight.
***
43 CHAPTERS LATER. FINALLY!
Hope I satisfied your souls, readers. Vote and comment if you loved their cute moment just as much as I did!!