Swooped | ✓

Chapter 18: Like a Duck to Water

For someone who had initiated our first kiss, the moment I pulled Milo close and actually started kissing back, he completely shut down. Milo was as stiff as a board (and not in the area that would have been mutually beneficial to the both of us), and as he hovered over me I couldn't help but laugh. When I pulled our lips apart, Milo gave me a twisted, nervous and possibly even offended look.

"Sorry! I'm not laughing at you, baby!" I cooed, pressing another short kiss to his mouth, which had opened in a retort. "I'm really not laughing at you. I just- This is amazing. I never thought that, we'd, eeeek!" I screamed, as everything that just happened finally caught up to me in its entirety. My scream seemed to startle Milo, who flinched at the loud, high-pitched noise I released, dropping his head to bury itself in the curve of my shoulder and neck. 

His body was heavy on top of me, and it made it a little challenging to breathe and talk, but it was worth it.

"I thought I freaked you out when I told you that I loved you in year 9," I said, giggling as Milo huffed against my neck. 

"I did freak out," Milo grumbled, pushing back up onto his forearms to peer down at me with narrowed eyes. "You can't just spring that shit on me and not expect me to freak out, not since I had myself convinced that you never saw me that way. That you would never see me that way."

"Well, I can picture you in many ways right now," I said, wiggling my eyebrow suggestively, making Milo blush a pretty picture. "But I like what I'm seeing now, in front of me. And you're one to talk. You told me that you were straight!"

"I-" Milo started, before clamping his mouth shut, conceding. He let out a heavy, shoulder-aching sigh, fingers dragging themselves across my neck, before deciding to fiddle with my long hair that was splayed across the mattress. "When you found your... boyfriend all over me, I saw the look on your face. You looked so hurt, and I didn't want you to think that I would betray you like that. So I said I was straight, so there was no way you would think that I'd ever be like that with Alex, and then you had acted so normal afterwards. I thought that I had dodged a bullet because we were still friends. But I guess I didn't dodge the bullet, I just shot myself in the foot instead."

I giggled again when Milo rolled his eyes, almost scolding himself, and smoothed my hands over his chest. I slid them upwards, pressing against his shoulders and neck, before wrapping them around him. I buried my fingers at the hair tickling his neck, Milo's breath hitching. As I curled a lock of Milo's hair around my finger, he gave me a look long of wonder, brown eyes deep pools that I could drown in.

"How do you do that?" Milo said quietly, and I wasn't sure if he was just mumbling to himself or genuinely asking me a question. 

"Hm?" I hummed, pulling at his neck, needing to feel his mouth against mine again. Milo indulged me, letting me slot our mouths together chastely. Milo was still awkward, but I could slowly begin to feel him melt into my touch, the frigid ice king starting to thaw. I had kissed many people before, but Milo was different. Even though I didn't scare him away with my feelings, I sure as Hell didn't want to chase him away by pushing for too much, too soon. Not now that I've finally tasted him.

I pulled back before the kiss got too heated, smiling at Milo, who looked like he was here and yet million miles away in the same moment, floating on a cloud. Laughing lightly at his beautiful expression, I pecked his jaw, and then the tip of his nose, which crinkled at my touch.

"Cute," I said, Milo huffing, before giving me a serious look.

"When did you fall in love with me?" Milo asked seriously, and I snorted at his question. 

"I told you, it was in year 9," I said, pinching the meat at the back of Milo's neck. "And if we're asking these cheesy questions, when, dear Sir, did you fall in love with me?"