Noel’s POV
Have you been in a situation where you see something you want to buy so badly, you go against everybody’s advice and you buy it then when you’re taking the merchandise home you start regretting because the hole it just left in your purse is too big to ignore?
As for me I’ve never been in that situation because money was never a problem, when money became scarce in my family, I always listened to people a lot but I can’t say the same for my mother. Infact right now, Grace Atkins is living the talk.
“Do you think its too big, we probably take it back. It looks so big.” Mum complained in the car looking left and right.
I was tired of talking so I just tried to subtly cuddle into my boyfriend who was sitting in the back seat with me. Peyton however was struggling to keep up with my mum. She kept trying to turn on the radio maybe the noise would tune off my mother.
Yes Peyton is with us. We were having a girls time —kind of— since Nadine was out of town. Nadine is spending the winter break with her grand parents in UK. Liv’s also out of town, last night she texted saying the cottage she was at had a lake close by. Wonderful right? So its just me and Pey. We went Christmas tree shopping and against all our advice Mum decided to buy a big glamorous tree. I was fine with Medium but not Grace Atkins, everything just has to be extreme.
“Oh it cost a lot. We should turn back and return it now.” Mum complained again and we all sighed.
“Mum what happened to ‘if we’re going to do it then let’s just go all out’ ?” I asked quoting mum.
“I changed my mind?” She said posing it like a question.
“Too late, let’s just pray it fits into the house.” I say and she sighed giving up.
Thankfully the tree did fit. Aaron and Jesse helped carry it in. Mum and I have already created the space for it so it was quite easy. Or so it looked.
“I envy you guys you know. My mum is not a holiday person or religious even. So we aren’t getting a tree or anything.” Peyton says.
“Well thank God the tree’s big enough to share,” I say and we laughed together.
Decorating the tree turned out to be so much fun. Mum bought some extra supplies but our former ones were mostly used. Mum was trying to conjure up lunch in the kitchen while we— Aaron, Jesse, Peyton and me— worked on the tree. I went up to go bring more cartons containing old decorations and while coming back down I had to stop in my track and observe the scene unfolding before me.
Aaron was standing really close to Peyton their bodies were practically touching. He was showing her something on a paper while she stood frozen staring at him. I don’t think she was even listening to what he was saying and she had this dreamy swoon-y look in her eyes, a look I get when Aaron’s involved.
A knot twisted in my stomach as I watched them. I can’t get angry or jealous, I have no right. Especially since Peyton liked him first. I mean just because he’s my boyfriend now doesn’t mean all her feelings for him are just going to evaporate into thin air. Peyton still likes Aaron, my friend is still in love with my boyfriend and there’s nothing I can do about it. And I don’t think there’s anything Peyton can do about it too.
Aaron reaches for her hand, to probably point at something for her and she yanks it off so fast like its burning iron. At that moment she looks up and our eyes meet, I try to muster up a smile that says ‘everything is fine’ but the only thing I come up with is a blank face. Shame on me. She looks at me for mere seconds before turning away and walking out.
“Um are you ok?” Aaron asks after her like the captain oblivious that he is.
I shove the carton of supplies into his hand and go after her but I see her sitting outside on our pouch, her shoulders are tensed with her arms wrapped around herself. She looks like she’ll rather be alone. I turn to head back inside and I see Jesse’s eyes on me. His arms are crossed and I can tell he’s in his observing mode. His eyes ask what’s wrong and all I can do is shrug. Then he sighs and walks out sitting beside Peyton. I smile, if there’s anybody that can talk to someone, that person sure is Jesse Donovan.
“Is she okay? She’s acting strangely.” Aaron asked concerned.
“She’ll be fine.” She has Jesse now. I think to myself. “Come on let’s get more supplies upstairs.”
“In your room?” He asked as I lace our fingers together leading us up the stairs.
“Yea but don’t think naughty my mom’s home.” I said turning back to smile at him.
He winked back, “I’ll try not to.”
When we got into the room, we started sorting through stuff that I dumped around still my arrival to New York and refused to open them up. I could still see Jesse talking to Peyton and now she was actually smiling. Oh my I totally ship them. Why haven’t I thought about this since. Oh I know why, Jesse is a play boy and is only interested in booty calls while Peyton is a nerd crushing on Aaron and only interested in her studies. Polar opposites.
“Aaron?”
“Yea?”
“Do you remember your sophomore year when you got a love letter from girl and you and your friends embarrassed her by spreading the letter all over school? Why did you do that?” I asked lying on my bed and turning to face him. I made sure not to mention Peyton’s name.
“A love letter?” He thought out loud, “I got so many of those sophomore year.”
“Think hard. She baked a cake alongside the letter and you guys tagged it ‘confessions of a desperate girl’ ” I frowned just thinking about it. I forgot all about that since but I can’t believe Aaron, my sweet Aaron is capable of doing something so horrible. He must have seen the look on my first and decided to think hard.
“Oh, the letter that went viral?” I nodded hoping we were talking about the same thing. “How do you know about that?”
“News travel.”
“Oh well that was my fault and also not my fault. Many girls give me letters and other stuff and I guess I just take them for granted. The letter was spread around by one of the boys in the team. I was mad when I found out and I helped take it down. I did look for the girl to apologize or anything but I didn’t see her. It’s like she just disappeared.” Aaron explained.
“Hmm.” I simply said turning over to look at my ceiling.
“Are you angry at me for that? I promise I don’t accept girls gift again.” He said giving me a pleading look.
I chuckled, “no I’m not angry at you.”
We continued our search and soon found the right box.
“What’s this?” Aaron asked showing me a white shirt that now had paint hand prints all over it with my name written boldly at the center.
I laughed, the hand prints were mine. “Its some kind of middle project. I decorated the shirt myself.”
“Cool,” Aaron said and suddenly pulled his shirt over his head exposing his abs and shiny packs to me.
My breath got caught in my throat immediately, I’ll never be used to this. “What are you doing?”
He smirked at me before pulling on my middle school project. It fit him perfectly with my name across his chest. “Can I keep it?”
“No.” It looked good on him yes but its totally cringe worthy.
“Why not?”
“It looks terrible on you. Pull it off Aaron.” I urged.
“Liar, nothing looks bad on me and this, especially this looks fantastic on me.” He barged
“It’s mine and I’m not giving you. Pull it off.” I said walking to him.
“Nah, I won’t do that. And you’ll have to catch me first to remove it!” He shouted running out of my reach.
“Aaron stop it. Pull it off. That’s absolutely horrible on you!” I shouted running after him.
It turned into a cat and mouse chase. Me being a couch potato didn’t help at all but at one time when he was about to jump over my bed I held onto his leg and he ended up falling flat on the bed. I victorious straddled him with a triumphant smile.
“Gotcha, now take it off.” I breathed out panting a little from the chase. My hands where on chest and I could feel his heart beat. There’s a thing line between a frolic atmosphere and a passionate one. Between me and Aaron that line is really blurry, almost completely gone.
His hands move up to my hips, “remember how you said not to think naughty?” Before I could reply, he flipped us over and over positions got reversed. Now I was lying down and he was hovering above me, his body positioned between my legs. “That is becoming really hard to do.”
“A-Aaron just take off the shirt,” I shuttered out and he smirked. He knows what he’s doing to me and he’s proud of it. Dumb face.
“Take it off yourself. That’s if you can.” He says smugly.
I braced myself up determined to wipe the smug look off his face. I reached out and grabbed the hem of the shirt, my fingers brushed over his warm skin, the smug look fell right off his face as he shuddered slightly. Now it was my turn to smirk. I slowly pulled the shirt off but that turned to be a bad idea because now his perfect body was right above me.
I gulped tearing my eyes away from his body to his eyes. He was looking at me differently. The same way you look at ice cream sundae on a hot day. More even, more intense. Like I’m the most important and special person ever. My heart, feelings and hormones take over winning over my brain. My hands reach up and I touch his body. We both gasp softly at the touch and soon we’re kissing like it’s the end of the world.
My mom’s downstairs, Peyton and Jesse are here. We should stop but instead I feel like taking off my shirt to give Aaron’s hands more access. Foreign sounds are escaping my lips and I’m turning into a moaning mess.
“We should stop,” Aaron says his lips on my neck, moving lower.
“We should,” I moan out pulling at his hair and arching my body up to meet his.
The moment is ruined when I hear my mum’s familiar footstep near the door. My eyes pop open so quickly and I practically push Aaron off me. “Noe—” My mum called opening up my door without knocking. Rude.
“Yeah?” I answered my voice coming out shaky. I was still very much flustered.
My mom frowned her eyebrows knitting together as she looked at me. I straightened up using my shirt to cover my exposed tummy. And I flashed her my best smile. “Where’s Aaron?”
Oh I’m done for. This is how I’ll be shipped off to an all girls boarding school. No, please no. Her eyes scanned my room and Aaron finally gave up looking up from the ground. “Hi Mrs A.”
Mum’s mouth opened slightly as her eyes moved from me to the shirtless Aaron and after putting two and two together, she frowned folding her hands. “Out. Both of you.”
Think of sad stuff. Dying people, feuds, bomb blast. Anything to bring tears to my eyes. I walked out and Aaron followed after me, both of our heads looking down. “Put on your shirt Mister.” Mum said in her bold voice.
“Yes Ma’am.” Aaron said so meekly I almost laughed. No more Mrs A, its now Ma’am.
We came down and Jesse and Peyton gave us questioning looks. “What’s going on?” Peyton asked.
Jesse looked between us before he burst out laughing, “No way. Christmas I thought I taught you better.” I glared at him taking a seat and waiting for my mother’s judgement.
“I don’t understand.” Peyton said again.
“You’re too innocent for this Davis.” Jesse said as Peyton glared at him. “Mrs A I know the perfect punishment.” He then learned down to whisper into my mum’s ear. She nodded after then Jesse and Peyton left.
“Mum please don’t send me away,” I pleaded a tear coming out.
“Ok guys so I know you guys are a couple now and you’ve probably heard this before but I have to repeat it.” Mum said. Aaron and I shared a confused look.
“What do you guys know about the birds and bees talk?”
No! No please no. I’ll kill him. I’ll kill that chimpanzee called Jesse Donovan. I’ll murder him.
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Love is so short, forgetting is so long.
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