Noel’s POV
“Noel come out.”
“No!’
“You been in there for 30 minutes, how long does it take to change in shorts and loafers?” Aaron asked clearly tired of this.
“Two days.” I answered back looking around the changing to see if I have supplies to last me two days, definitely no.
“What?”
“Yea and go bring some food and a pillow.” I say, that would do, I can even do without the pillow.
“Come out now Noel or I’ll break the door,” Aaron threatened.
I scoffed, “you’re bluffing.”
“Am I? Am I Dolphin?” He asked in calm scary voice. “One!”
My heart skipped at loud way he said that, I wasn’t expecting it. I smiled he wouldn’t break it, he doesn’t own this place and you can’t just break door… right?
“Two!”
Or maybe you can and I’m don’t know if he owns this place or not, even he doesn’t he can still break it because let’s face it, he’s Aaron-lee Altamira.
“Thre—”
“Wait! I’m opening up,” I cried defeated, this door is too beautiful to just break. I gently and very reluctantly turned the knob and opened the door.
Aaron smiled, “there’s my dolphin.”
I frown and stepped out. I looked at him and this time he wasn’t looking at me, he was looking at Me. His raked through my body and I should be uncomfortable but I’m not, instead I feel like twirling and giving him a show he won’t forget anytime soon.
I was putting on really short cotton shorts and a pink tank top that hugged my body. The loafers were really flat and thin it was as if I was standing in the bare ground and my hair, my hair was a mess. While I was changing in that little room the well combed hair turned messy, my beanie was in my hands, I’m not sure how I’m going to do this while wearing a beanie or without wearing a beanie.
“Aaron?”
“Hmm,” he answered absentmindedly.
“Aaron can you tear your eyes away from my beautiful sexy legs for at least one minute to hear me out?”
He looked up his eyes widened a little before he looked away in embarrassment, his cheeks were reddening and his hands went up to massage his neck. I smiled at his cuteness, he wasn’t even denying it.
“Yea, so–” I said getting his attention, “I don’t want to do this.”
He groaned, “Dolphin we’ve been over this already, we have to attend this class in other to learn the traditional dance, waltz.”
“But I don’t want to. I don’t want to learn waltz, I don’t want to dance. I cannot.” I cried out clutching my beanie in my hands.
He groaned again running his hand through his hair, messing it up but shaping it into a sexy look. He took one step and he was now standing in front of me, so close my six senses were all suddenly aware of his close proximity. “Because you say you cannot, then you cannot.”
Huh?
“Noel there’s nothing you cannot do. Everything is possible. You have two good legs,” he glanced down at my legs and back at my eyes. Then his hand went to my waist and before I know it, I’m lifted off the ground. “So what’s stopping you from dancing!” He spins around with me in his arms and I burst out laughing.
“Aaron put me down!” I shout mid air and surprisingly he listens. I look up at him and he’s smiling down at me.
“Its all in here,” he taps my head with his finger, “and in here–” he about to point to my heart but he pauses mid way. I look down see that his finger is pointing to my right breast and he has this confused look on his face like he doesn’t know where to point.
I chuckle and take hold of his finger placing it above my right cleavage, “–here.” Technically that’s not where my heart is but— whatever.
He retreats his finger like its burning, then shakes his head like a wet dog would. “Yea, your head and your heart. You do it Noel say it.
“Say what?”
“Say you can dance.”
“I can dance.” I said the words sounding completely foreign to me.
“Say ‘I can dance!’ ” Aaron says raising his voice a little.
“You can dance!” I repeat .
“No not me, you!” We start laughing.
“I can dance!” I say raising my voice.
“Yeah!” Aaron says proudly as we high five.
“You know saying it doesn’t mean that—”
“Shssh,” Aaron shushes me.
“Ok ok fine, let’s go make a fool of myself.” I mutter under my breath.
Aaron grabs my hand to lead us out, “drop the beanie.”
“What? No!” I say clutching it even tighter.
He turns to me, “you’d me more comfortable without it and moreover–” he puts his hand into my hair and runs his hands through it, “I like seeing your beautiful hair.”
God it feels so good, like if I were a cat. I would purr but since I’m human– I feel a moan coming out of me anytime soon.
“So let’s go, drop the beanie we’ll get it after.” Aaron says tugging me forward.
“No,” I say gently refusing to let go of my beanie.
He turned to me again, this time his eyes furrowed together and his hands crossed on his chest. “Why not?”
I looked down at the milky beanie in my hands, “Nothing I just don’t want to be without it.”
He stayed silent before he spoke gently “but you’ll be better off without it.”
Tears pooled in my eyes and I gently shook my head, “I won’t.”
Neither of us said anything, I blinked back the tears and looked at Aaron with a Small smile on my face. He was still looking at me, his eyes a shade darker as he studied me, tried to penetrate my walls, tried to decipher the bundle of mess that is Noel Atkins. I wish he’d drop it. Now I felt uncomfortable.
“Do you know how to dance Waltz?” Aaron said surprising me at the change of subject, he grabbed my hand and pulled me with him as we walked out.
“I- I don’t know how to dance anything.” I replied smiling a secret smile of gratefulness as I followed him.
“Shut up! You had nice moves during homecoming and at the party.” Aaron said smiling at me.
I gasped blushing, “that was one time!”
|-|
Aaron-lee’s POV
“No hold her waist like this,” the dance instructor said directing my hand to the waist of Noel.
Ok so maybe learning how to dance with Noel would be harder than I thought. I already knew how to dance, very well infact. One time in Mexico I attended a ball with my grandfather, Richard Altamira.
I know my grandparents like dragging me everywhere, if it is possible I’ll be staying with them in Mexico and not New York. While my grandma Dani likes showering me with love, my grandpa Richard likes showing me off. Bragging that he has such a handsome grandson and my good grades helped too, oh well if I wasn’t getting good grades I wouldn’t be here. I’d be in Acapulco, home schooling my youth out.
Ok back to the topic, so my granddad took me to this ball and someone made me dance waltz with his political friend’s daughter. I dare not fail, I dare not miss a step, I dare not disappoint, I had to… impress him. That’s my granddad for you, one hook off the right path and you’d be lucky to escape without a slap. He is very strict but I love him anyways.
So because I went to Mexico every summer and most other holidays I prepared myself to perfection. You never know when pa Richard would ship you off to a sport club and expect you to play and impress his people, regardless of what the sport it. I learned every spot I could, every dance step, almost every instrument, I was in touch with politics and man I even learned old people talk. So since I’m practically perfect why attend a dance class?
Because of Noel. This days almost everything is because of Noel. I can’t sleep, because of Noel. I read my a book twice, because of Noel. I come to school to school early, because of Noel. I pay extra attention to be a better teacher than Ms Jenkins and all others, because of Noel. I join my mom in the kitchen and Linda too so that I can learn new stuff and more about cooking, because of Noel. I’m turned on and can’t think straight sometimes, because of —
Now the instructor is literally pushing me into her expecting me to hold her and stay sane when she’s wearing dance clothes that so much skin. What does he think I am? Wood?
“Lady, um–”
“Noel.” Noel answered the instructor clearly her throat.
“You need to look at him, look up at him and not down.” He instructed tipping her chin up.
Her eyes met mine and I smiled at her. All my life I’ve travelled a lot, I’ve seen, met and interacted with many people. I’ve seen different shades of blue, green, grey, sliver, brown, hazel and other kinds of eye colour but I’ve never seen the set of eyes that spoke to me. That captivated me, left me longing and made me what to look at them forever. But that changed when I met Noel.
I know its crazy, eyes don’t speak we have the mouth to do that. But Noel’s eyes– Noel eyes spoke to me, the most beautiful set of grey eyes I’ve ever come across. Right now, her eyes conveyed the message that she was nervous, afraid, and shy at the same time.
When I smiled at her, she blushed and looked away. I smiled again. I affected her and that made me happy, leaning down I set to take care of her nervousness.
“Are you turned on?”
“What?! No way pervert.” She said looking anywhere but at me.
I shrugged, “hmm I am.”
“What?”
“I’m turned on.” She looked at me mouth opened slightly probably wondering how I’m able to say that. “Oh come on, let not pretend that you don’t know that your ‘beautiful sexy leg’ are affecting me. Plus your pressing against me. If you press a little bit more…”
“Aaron!” She scolds laughing as she looked around to make sure no one heard me.
I tipped her fine up and ran a finger down her cheek, “there that’s the smile I was looking for. Stop tightening up, loosen up don’t be nervous.”
She nods smiling as she understands the need for my dirty talk, dirty but true. We started moving like the rest if the glass, dancing. Noel kept looking at her legs, I titled her chin up once more.
“Stop looking down, look at me. Look at me like I’m the most interesting thing on the planet.”
“But you’re not.”
“That’s what you think, look into my eyes and you’ll see the different world in there.”
She looks at me and we slip into another moment that not even the instructor can break us out from. “I won’t let you fall.” And to prove my point, I pulled her closer to me, protecting her.
My eyes went to her beanie and I frowned. The other day I asked about the beanie stuff, she wasn’t being completely honest with me. She is too attached to wearing a beanie and I don’t think that’s healthy. Something is wrong, really wrong and I don’t think she knows it but I do and I’m going to help her. I’m going to find out what’s wrong and together we’ll work on it.
.
.
“I had fun today.” I said taking a spoon out of my chocolate ice cream.
“I can’t believe I didn’t fall!” Noel said excited halfway into finishing her mint chip ice cream. ” we do still have a long way to go, the man said so.”
“Baby steps.” I said and she nodded. We were sitting in my car in front of her house eating ice cream when everywhere was really cold. Stupid us. “I want your mint.”
She moved it away blocking it out of my view. “Why?”
“Nothing I just want it, one spoon.” I pointed into my open mouth.
She reluctantly scooped up a spoon, ready to feed me.
“Careful don’t drop it on Mercy,” I warned. She nodded and carefully placed it inside my mouth. “Yum, its so sweet.” She laughed. “Take some of mine too.”
She turned and opening her pretty mouth.
“Choo choo, ” I said moving the spoon in zig zag motion before putting it in her mouth.
She giggled, “you’re so childish.”
“Do that again,” I said resting my head on the seat to look at her.
“Do what?” She asked resting her head on the seat and looking at me.
“That—” I tried imitating her giggle with an awkward sound.
The awkward sound makes her giggle again and I can’t wipe the smile off my face. She’s beautiful, her laughter is beautiful and her giggle is just– wow. We put stayed there, our head rested down with our smiles almost reaching our ears. The L-word was lingering on my lips.
“Noel?” I called calmly.
“Mmm?” She answered.
“Why are you so attached to wearing a beanie?”
She sat up, “I told you, I just really like beanies.”
I sighed, sat up, turned her to me and held her hands. “Noel? Why are you so attached to wearing a beanie?” I asked again stressing each word.
She looked at me and I saw her walls breaking down. “I- I’m just scared. I didn’t say goodbye to my dad and I don’t want to leave my mum.” A tear rolled down her cheek.
My thumb reached up to wipe it, I hated it. I hate seeing seeing her cry. “Why do you think you’re going to leave your mum?”
“C- Cancer.”
What?