Piece by Piece

Chapter 43

Sebastian

The next night, I'm already asleep by the time Aliena comes home. My home. Or ours, maybe, now that most of her boxes are already here. I planned on staying up, I really did. I even left the door to my room open so I'd hear her when she returned from her parents' house, but after reading for over an hour, I must've finally lost the fight against sleep.

But now I'm waking up to the sound of soft footsteps. I rub my eyes and blink at the doorway where my new roomie is standing, looking hesitant. I sit up, growing worried that something might be wrong when she doesn't speak. I texted her earlier about how long it should take until she came home but she never answered. Maybe I should've called her but I didn't want to interrupt anything.

"You're home. How was the visit? Is everything okay?" I ask, trying to stifle a yawn. Shit, I'm sleepy. I look over at my watch to see that it's three am. Jesus, did she just come home now?

"Can I sleep here?" she asks rather than replying to my questions. My heart grows a little heavier at how small her voice sounds and there are a million questions I'd like to ask.

Instead, I simply say, "Of course, Sweetheart. You can sleep here every night if that's what you want." She just nods absently and crawls under the sheets with me, instantly curling up into a ball.

I don't move for a second, unsure as to whether she wants me to hold her or not. When, finally, she wordlessly reaches behind her and pulls my arms over her middle to clutch my hand close to her chest, I get the hint and snuggle up to her.

"Do you want me to read to you?" I ask softly. She shakes her head and takes a deep, shaky breath. When she releases it with a heavy sigh, it's like a world of tension bleeds out of her, and she melts against me.

I'm dying to know what happened. Dying to know if there is anything I can do for her, but this is not the time. Who knows, maybe just being here is enough for now.

-

Over the next few days, the two of us settle into an easy, comfortable routine. All of her belongings have arrived, and Aliena unpacked most of the boxes in her room. Still, she sleeps in my bed every night, though we don't really talk about that. Sometimes, I read to her. Others, I just hold her. It seems like both are enough to help her sleep.

During the day, we barely see each other since we're both busy with our usual lives. Despite that, there hasn't been a second where I forgot she lived here too now. It's surreal, yeah, but she never lets me forget it, leaving me leftovers or little notes in the kitchen.

It's frightening how much I like it.

I've already established that we could never be more than friends. First and foremost, I don't want a relationship and I doubt I'd be ready for one. Other than that, we simply don't have time for anything more complicated than this.

Aliena gets home late almost every night since she likes to visit her parents after work, and I get up early to go on a run and hit my gym before my classes start. Yeah, there's no way we would work but sometimes, my treacherous mind plays a scenario where maybe, we're more.

A scenario where I can touch her in a non-platonic way. Where her body is molded to mine every night because we both want it, not because she needs it. Where, maybe, she trusts me enough to confide in me again and talk about how her situation is developing now that she moved places or how her mother is doing.

But those thoughts are just slip-ups. It's best this way.

Our friends don't know about our new living arrangement judging by their lack of interrogation. I guess Aliena still hasn't told Lily about her family problems and doesn't want to explain why she had to move at all. I'm used to not sharing anything too personal anyway, so it's no big deal to keep my mouth shut about my new roomie whenever I see my friends at school.

I'm just glad that she seems to be doing slightly better, shooting me a few weak smiles or teasing me whenever our paths cross. It feels like spending time with the old Aliena. I won't do anything to jeopardize that progress by exposing her to our friends' curiosity.

"Seb? I'm home?" Speaking of the devil. I look at the time on my phone, surprised when I see it's just seven in the evening. I get up from the couch I was reading on and go to meet her near the entry, feeling my lips curl up in a smile.

"Hey, you're home early," I observe, leaning against my elevator as I watch her struggle out of her boots. When she straightens up and takes off her jacket, she rubs her hands up and down her arms.

"Yeah, no visiting my parents today. I need a break. I hope it's okay I'm back so soon?" she asks.

"Yes, of course. You live here too. You're free to hang around here whenever you want. Don't ever feel like you can't, okay?" I try to assure her, hating the idea that she might've spent more time elsewhere when she just wanted to come home and rest because she thought she was a burden.

Searching my face closely, she finally nods. "Yeah, sure. Thanks. Now, have you eaten already? I went grocery shopping so I'll probably cook anyway, in case you want to join me," she offers.

"You didn't have to do that, A. I have a lot more time on my hands. You can just make me a list of things you need and I'll do the shopping. I've always done it myself." Not to mention that she shouldn't spend her money on my food when I have enough to cover it.

But this time, she just brushes me off. "I already don't have to pay any rent. Let me at least do this so I don't feel like a stray you had to save from the streets," she argues.

"You're not a live-in maiden or cook, Aly. You live here, and it's not your job to get my groceries. I have the time and the money to spare, it's really no big deal. It just makes more sense if you don't have to worry about food on top of everything else."

Of course, like every other time I tried to talk about her financial problems since the night she told me all about them, she just gets defensive and dismisses me with a hard look. "This is non-negotiable, Sebastian. I want to contribute somehow. Now, can you help me get the bags up, please? I left them downstairs since my hands were too frozen to hold onto the thin straps any longer."

Like a beaten puppy, I drop the subject and take the elevator downstairs with her in silence.

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