Everything I'm Not (GirlxGirl)

33. Mine

Gray

The moment I caught sight of Alex, my heart did its usual flip. I missed her. It's not like the ones you see in the movies where the girl jumps on the guy because they finally see each other after a long time—no. Alex simply scanned the crowd, saw my face, and gave me the most dazzling smile. It's not an understatement to say her smile can light up a room because she definitely just did.

I clear a path for myself, making my way to her. When I got out of the thick crowd, her eyes scan my outfit, and a smirk forms on her lips. "You've taken quite a liking to my hoodie."

I bite my lip. I've actually been wearing it every night in Japan because it smells like her. I'm almost tempted to give it back to her, have her wash it, then give it back to me so her smell wouldn't go away. "Like I said, it's comfy."

She chuckles and gives me a bone-crushing hug. "I missed you."

"I missed you too."

"So, how was Japan?"

During the first few minutes of the ride home, I shared in detail what places I visited while in the country. Although the main reason I went with my dad was for a conference, I couldn't just waste an opportunity to explore Nippon. Of course, I didn't fail to mention how disciplined the Japanese are and how clean the streets were.

I could tell she was interested in my experience, but I can't help but feel like she's distracted. Maybe she's just tired? She did have training before fetching me.

"You can sleep," Alex suggests. "You must be tired."

"It's okay," I say, glancing at her. "You might accidentally get us in a ditch again."

"Hey! I also got us out of that ditch. Give me some credit."

I chuckle. "Whatever you say. I'm not that sleepy." I lean my head against the window and feel the cold surface. Okay, maybe I am sleepy. I don't remember closing my eyes, but the next time I open them, we were already in front of my house.

"Not sleepy, huh?" She grins at me.

I roll my eyes at her as a reply.

Alex puts down my baggage in the living room just as my dogs greet me with love. "Babies!" I bend down and gather them all in a hug and kiss them on their snouts one by one. I have no qualms about leaving them here because I know Linda, our caretaker, treats them well.

"I should get going," Alex says. "You need to get some rest."

Surprised, I stand up and raise an eyebrow at her. "Aren't you staying over?"

"Oh." Alex rubs the nape of her neck. "I wasn't sure whether you'd want me to stay or not."

"You really think I'm going to let you go home at this hour after driving for six hours just to pick me up?" I pull out my phone. "I'll message Isa to let her know you're staying over." Alex just stares sheepishly at me until I hit send. "Let's go to my room."

"Go on ahead, I'll just go get my things," Alex says and heads to her car.

I make my way to my room and go inside the bathroom. Usually, I take a shower before going to bed, but exhaustion is slowly getting to my bones, so I decided to just wash my body instead.

"Baby?" I hear Alex's voice from the other side of the door.

"In here," I answer instinctively.

When I get out of the bathroom, Alex is sitting on the couch and has already changed into boxer shorts and a shirt. She smirks when she sees me. Again, her eyes travel along the length of my body—only this time, it was laced with a hint of something else. I don't stay in the room long enough to find out and go inside my walk-in closet to change into pink pajamas.