There was a time when Vylad felt the need to learn where on my body I was ticklish. Never once did he forget where those places were, and that angers me.
"Vylad, I will actually kill you," I push out between fits of laughter.
He stops for a moment, looking down at me like a wounded puppy. His hands have managed to linger down by my hips by this point. Vylad has fallen silent, but the corners of his lips curve up into a menacing smirk.
Frankly, I don't know how this happened. He was on his phone doing Irene knows what,, while I was resting the back of my shoulders on the arm on the opposite side of the couch. I was resting my feet on his lap, but he didn't seem to mind. I hardly noticed he moved until he took my book from me and closed it shut. I don't know what page I was on, and plopping it on the table didn't work.
Pleading for him to stop didn't work when my glasses went on the table too.
He goes to tickle me once more, but Zianna walks into the room. The wounded puppy turned into one of little pity. Now, that look has turned into one of embarrassment and shock.
"You two look more like a couple every day," she coos, sneaking her gaze over the back of the couch. Vylad visibly shrinks in size, I don't know if I should laugh or blush.
"Mom, we're not dating," Vylad groans, starting to hide himself away from his mother. When I make up my mind that I want to laugh, he glares at me. "Where's Kandi anyway?"
His distractions are poor. Zianna's eyebrow lifts in response, but it drops as quickly as it rises. She smiles. "She's doing homework at the library," she comments. "I'm surprised you two aren't there with her."
Is Jeffory homework now?
"Just because we're twins doesn't mean we have to be around each other all the time." He sits up properly, standing onto his feet. Vylad went from being playful to annoyed far quicker than he normally would. "I'm getting my water from my room."
I jump onto my feet, ready to go instead. The idea of escape is appealing to me as Zianna eyes us both skeptically. If I leave, Vylad gets pestered. If Vylad leaves, I get pestered. "I'll do it!" My words are nearly the level of a shout. That wasn't how I wanted to go about it, and my eyes widened as a result. "I have to go to the bathroom anyway. I'll grab it while I'm up."
Like mother like son, Vylad looks at me skeptically. Zianna has stopped by now, but Vylad is aware of my actions. His words mean nothing to me as I insist, already walking away.
My feet are quick on the stairs, hands out in case I tripped. There's still a bruise on my knee from the last time I did it. My stair climbing is successful when I reach the top without a misstep. This is a victory on its own.
Two arms wrap around my waist from behind. My head tilts up towards my shoulder to be met with a familiar grin.
"Do you wait for me to walk up the stairs each time I'm here?" I question, leaning back against Garroth's chest.
He only chuckles as an answer and gently pulls me along into his room. The door shuts by a lazy nudge of his foot before his hands end up on my hips. The bones begin to tingle under his touch, never wanting him to let go. "You spend too much time with my brother that you could spend with me."
"You're always welcome to join us in community service," I tease, my nose wrinkling up. "The big, strong jock holding a small, delicate book."
"I wouldn't call myself big."
"I would. You're a giant."
He pulls me closer to his chest, looming over me. I'm forced to look up, and my back touches a cold surface. It takes a moment to realize it's a wall. He's trapping me in order to prove a point.
Both hands have strayed away from my hips. One lays next to my head, firmly pressed on the wall near my ear. The other, alongside my hip. The feeling of being trapped intensifies.
"Like this?"
I can't help but roll my eyes, ducking under his hand and away from his grasp. "I have to grab Vylad's water bottle. That's why I came up here."
Our encounters never last long. I'll spend more time with a water bottle than I will with Garroth today.
Vylad's POV
Mom looks over at me from the doorway. Her eyes are soft and eyes wrinkled from her smile. She watched as I watched Alex walk up the stairs until I couldn't anymore.
Mom knows.
"Little Pea, why don't you ask her?"
I shake my head. It's harder than that. "It's not the right time to."
"You'll lose her if you wait too much."
