Caught In Your Chaos ✓

Chapter Sixty-Eight

"We should take a shower," I breathed, plopping down on the rug in the center of the art room. The soft material beneath me relaxed my stiff muscles. We had just finished setting up the art supplies. The tiredness of attending back-to-back classes and arranging the room had taken a toll on my body. When Jake said he wanted help with it, he did intend the same. And when he said he was taking me for dinner, he did take me to the french diner outside his apartment.

I lifted onto my elbows and looked down at Jake. He was sitting beside my legs, staring at me intensely. Both of us were sweating due to the shifting we did a couple of minutes before. Even though I felt all greasy, beads of sweat on Jake's tatted white skin made him look ten times swoon-worthy. I gulped down a mouthful of dryness as he traced a circle over my ankle without breaking eye contact.

He slowly wrapped his fingers around my ankle, making me look at him with anticipation. A subtle smirk appeared on his lips, and before I could even process his actions, he pulled me towards his body. Our faces were just an inch away from touching as he swiped a drop of sweat off my neck.

"Yes, Amy, let's take a shower," he whispered, pressing his forehead to the side of my head. The smell of his musky cologne mixed with sweat almost made me cling to him. But I gave a subtle push to his chest and detached myself from his intoxicating embrace.

"I meant, separately," I stated, clearing my throat. Jake threw his head back and laughed, giving me a full view of his magnificent neck. Snap out of it, Amy! I quickly looked away from him and shook away my temptation.

"Too bad, I thought together." He said, getting up from the floor and pulling me up together with him. I looked back up at him and saw a playful expression on his face. It made me smile. His lips were right over my ear when he whispered. "Maybe, some other time."

I slipped away from his presence as soon as he led us out of the room. I found a pair of sweatpants and a shirt on his bed. How was I supposed to fit in them? It was Jake's and way too over my size. But as they say, beggars can't be choosers. It was befitting with me in that situation.

~~~

Jake gave me the privacy to complete my presentation on Dante's Divine Comedy, due the next day. The mere thought of standing at the podium and giving a presentation made me nervous. Nonetheless, I gathered all the relevant details to prepare myself for the best.

You can do it, Amy. Make Dante proud.

I occupied his room while Jake was catching up on his homework in the living room. A smile appeared on my face with the thought of us being so comfortable around each other. I needed my space, and I appreciated that he wasn't clingy like he had been for the last few days.

It had been several hours. My eyes were burning so, I finally saved the ppt and shut down my laptop. After debating over going outside for good ten minutes, I decided to crawl back to the bed.

I kept thinking about the kiss we shared in the art store that day and how he had almost confessed his love for me. I didn't know what would have been my response to it, but I most definitely didn't expect that coming. Sure we were nothing less than a couple, but we never put a label to it. Everyone except my family, who was due for Thanksgiving, knew about us being together, so it only made sense to take that final step of acceptance.

We didn't speak about it while driving back to his place or even during dinner. It appeared that Jake was avoiding the whole confrontation. I didn't know what to think about the way he was struggling to let out his feelings. He was trying hard to suppress something which I could feel through his touches. It was evident in his eyes.