Never I Thought

Chapter 22 - A Night In

Matt's home was aggressively large. It stretched out along an emerald green lawn and was two stories high, yet we were all looking down at it.

It was a steep hill that looked out beyond the valley of trees and forest that seemed to go on forever. I didn't go to the edge of the suburb a lot, but if I was to follow the road Matt's house was on I'd eventually get to Chester Lake. The rich person's area.

Penny leaned forward, "it's like both of your houses combined," she said to Mabel and me.

Matt and Robin, who were already down unlocking the door, looked back to the four of us standing at the top of their driveway.

"Y'all just gonna stand there and freeze?" Robin asked.

I rolled my eyes and started to make my way down.

"If this doesn't make my parents approve of him I don't know what will," Mabel gave me a look and I bit back a smile.

He shut the front door and told us to follow him downstairs. I hadn't realised there was a downstairs.

If the house hadn't been on a hill then it would've been called the basement but instead, the big, open room had floor-to-ceiling windows stretched out on the one side.

Penny and Marigold were looking at the pool table and Robin had already started rummaging through the fridge next to a shelving space.

"You only have water?" Robin sighed.

"Yeah the rest is upstairs in my bedroom, I'll go get it," he said then turned to Mabel, "would you like to help me?"

Mabel grabbed my hand and squeezed it tightly. I pressed my lips together. Hadn't I already done enough by agreeing to come here?

"I'll help," I volunteered, "I'd really like to see where the famous Matt Davis lives."

He looked over at me and his eyes widened trying to tell me to let him have this. I pretended not to notice and started heading towards the stairs.

"Truly, I expect like big football posters all over your walls. 'Cause you're such a football guy," I babbled.

"I mean... no, not really," he frowned.

He was right, his room was quite bland. Four white walls. A bed hurriedly made. There was no mess. A white wardrobe. A white desk with a computer.

"This isn't actually your room, right?" I opened the desk drawer to try and find some character.

He opened the wardrobe and pulled out some cans of something. Probably alcohol.

"Yep. Why? You don't think Mabel will like it?" He asked turning to me.

"She's really not that picky with bedrooms. But I live with two brothers and their rooms are cluttered with random things," I said before wrinkling my nose, "Marcus's room always smells like something died."

Matt smiled, "yeah I guess my family aren't big on collecting things."

"Just you and your parents, right?"

"Well my dad's always travelling and my mum's a nurse on night shifts. Just me," he picked up the cans, "it's usually lonely in a house this big."

I thought about my own home. How even with my family home it was still so silent.

"I know how that feels," I said quietly and took some cans out of his arms.

Matt looked down thoughtfully, "I should probably thank you."

For a second I almost laughed but seeing the seriousness on his face was enough to sober me up, "what for?"

"You're the one who told me Mabel was— that she liked me," his cheeks blushed wanting to avoid the word love.