Pretending (Westshore Series #1)

Chapter Twenty Four: I Wish I Was Confident

It's now almost three in the morning, and I cannot sleep.

All I can think about is that kiss. After Abby came in Warner and I went our separate ways without saying anything else and I haven't been able to get to sleep since. It's like I'm scared that this is some weird dream and If I let myself fall asleep then I will wake up and none of this would have ever happened.

Staring blankly at the ceiling hovering above, I feel extremely uncomfortable lying on my back. So I turn to my side, drawing out my legs from underneath my duvet and resting them on top of the material. After a few minutes, I flip the pillow in order to rest my head on the cold side.

Still, I can't sleep.

"Ugh." I huff, sitting up straight in the bed and pushing the duvet from my body.

I swing my legs over the side of the bed and balance on my soles walking cautiously towards the door in the dark, because knowing me, I'd probably trip over something. Then, I walk into the hallway. From the corner of my eye, I notice that Warner's door is wide open, but it's empty.

I make it to the kitchen safely without waking anyone up, I reach over to one of the cabinets that hold the glasses and take the nearest one. Then scooting over to the sink, I feel my way to the tap in the darkness to open the stream of cold water. However, I freeze when I hear a sound behind me.

"You really should switch on the light." says a familiar voice behind me, making me jump in fright, and I accidentally drop my glass into the sink. "Jules?" Warner says again as I turn around, a gasp unwillingly escaping my lips.

"Warner, God damn it..." I place my hand on my chest, dumbly thinking it might have a soothing effect on my heart.

He chuckles softly, and I can hear him step a little closer towards me, "What are you doing up? It's almost three." He inquiries and now I can see his face a little more clearly.

"I can ask you the same thing," I reply, and for some reason, I can't help but smile a little.

The memory of him saying he liked me as well as our kiss resurfaces in my mind, making me look down to the floor in shyness, only looking up when he finishes his next sentence.

"I...I went on a run." He explains.

I raise an eyebrow, unsure of whether he's speaking the truth. "A run?" I repeat his words.

"Yes, a run," He smirks. "I couldn't sleep, and I needed to get things off my mind."

"Like what?" I ask him, curious if it had anything to do with our situation.

He smiles at me but doesn't answer the question, "What are you doing up?"

I glance back at the sink behind me. "I wanted to get a drink..." My words trail off when I see fragments of broken glass in the sink.

"Crap," I say, turning around to take a closer look at the shattered glass.

"What?" Warner asks, approaching me from behind. I feel the warmth of his body against my back as he peers into the sink too. With the glass reflecting the moonlight, I dive my hand into the sink to pick up the pieces that I can see.

"No!" Warner whispers harshly. "You're not even being careful, you are going to injure yourself, let me do it." I step aside to let him handle the broken glass.

I watch his tall figure as he paces from the sink and to the bin, each time carrying some broken glass carefully in his palm.

"I didn't know you were so clumsy." He states, shaking his head as his lips curl into a smile.