for you I open my eyes to the beauty I see

for you I open my eyes to the beauty I see by sassy

I felt as if someone was hitting my head with a hammer. Once, twice, one million f.ucking times. I hated nightmares and still I couldn't wake up, as I tried to ignore the pounding in my head. A moment later I heard the ring of my phone so close and so real...ugh it was real. And there it went my sleep. I didn't bother to open my eyes as I reached for it before tossing it away, probably breaking it too but finally silencing it. Thank god. A second later there were knocks on my door and I realized that I had never dreamt of those. Cursing under my breath I woke up regretfully, ready to shout to whoever had interrupted my sleep. Now that the team was on summer break I could finally enjoy my favorite kind of hobby, which was sleeping through the whole day.
"Oh you're alive. I was starting to worry." Lila said with a smirk on her lips as soon as I opened the door.
A loud groan left me as I turned around, running my hands through my hair, "Christ Lila it's so early."
"Early my a.ss, it's past noon." She said from behind me, getting nothing but a glare from me. I was already grumpy enough on any normal day, but right now? Good god I had to hold myself back, just because it was Lila. "Don't I get a kiss?"
I waited for her to close the door and I lifted her chin to press a hard kiss on her lips, still too sleepy and annoyed to do more than that.
She wrinkled her nose as she pulled her head back, "What did you drink last night? A whole bar?"
"I don't know and I don't care, let me go back to bed." I groaned as I pulled away, making my way towards the stairs already. She could do everything she wanted, my house could be all hers, I just needed to sleep.
"Um. Okay." Lila nodded, her voice small.
"Awesome." I muttered.
"I'm gonna go then." She said from behind me, surprising me because I was thinking she'd stay anyway.
I turned around and finally looked at her. She was all dolled up and looked like a dream. "You look beautiful Lil."
She smiled, which was a good sign and I took a mental note: more compliments. "Thanks. I'm sorry you're so tired."
"Of course I am. I was out all night." I pointed out.
"With who?" She asked, sounding curious.
"People." I answered nonchalantly, since I didn't need to make a list. I could go out with whoever I wanted to.
She nodded. "Right. Did you have a good time?"
I groaned and ran my hands through my hair, wishing I could rip my head off for how bad it was pounding. "Yeah. But now I need to sleep."
"So then I guess you're not coming." She asked my back as I turned away to make towards my bedroom.
"Coming?" I questioned, wondering what the hell she was talking about. I had no idea but I wasn't coming.
"To the gallery." She finished.
I turned and licked my lips slowly, vaguely recalling that she had asked me to be her date for an art show. Fuck. My. Life. "You go to a lot of fucking art shows." I said finally, sighing as I shook my head. I didn't mean to say it that way, I wasn't mad at her and I wasn't trying to insult her either. I was mad at myself and annoyed. She had no faults.
She blinked. "Yeah. I'm an artist Travis, that's what I do."
"It's Sunday Lila. It's my one day off from work or coaching." I barked back at her because I was feeling at fault and because I was in a bad mood.
"Okay. I'm sorry. You don't have to come. I won't ask again."
I groaned, rolling my eyes. "I'm not saying I'm not coming." I retorted as I headed to the kitchen where I downed a huge glass of water.
"Sure it sounded like that Travis." She said back and crossed her arms against her chest in what I recognized as her defensive pose.
"You know I always come to every single f.ucking art thing you want me to come." I ignored her words, wondering why in god's sake she had to be needing me always. It wasn't the end of the world if I skipped one, was it? God I needed to lay down and pass out.
She opened her mouth and closed it multiple times, making me wonder if she had swallowed her tongue, before finally speaking, her eyes wide. "Okay, I've heard enough. I'm going alone." She muttered.
"Yeah right, run away Lila." I waved my hand in the air, dismissing her because she was acting like a kid. She was a kid, sometimes I forgot.
"I'm not, but what do you expect me to do? Stand here while you keep insulting me and what I do?" She spat as she narrowed her eyes and I could see she was switching from defensive to offensive.
"Oh come on." I groaned, staring down at her, "You know I love what you do and I support you." Or why bother to buy one of her pieces and keep it hidden like a treasure? I added in my head. I loved that painting, it was just so powerful, just like her.
"Then why you're being an a.sshole!?" She asked slowly.
I took a deep breath, my head hurting so bad I felt like it could explode any moment. "I'm sorry Lil, okay? But I'm so f.ucking tired and hangover I feel like death."
She shook her head, her expression changing once again and I saw disappointment. I didn't like that. "I can understand that but there's no need to treat me like this." She said in a quiet tone.
"I'm coming with you. I just need to take some meds and take a shower, but I want to come. It's important for you so...I'm coming." I said, trying to do the right thing but man it was hard when I was like this. The bad side of having a girlfriend was probably the lack of freedom in some circumstances, like Sunday morning.
"You don't have to-"
"I said. I'm coming." I cut her off and she finally nodded as she bit down on her lip. "Can you make me some coffee please while I shower?" She nodded again and I kissed her forehead, "Thank you baby." I said before heading toward my room, this time nothing and no one stopping me. Once I stepped inside I tried to think about what I could wear since I hadn't done my laundry, but I just couldn't think and my bed kept looking too tempting. I gave up and laid down, 5 minutes never killed anyone and if it was still noon? I was sure we didn't have to be at the art show before a couple hours. I dozed off immediatly, it feeling so good I was almost sure I groeaned in pleasure.
"Oh god, Travis!" Lila's voice woke me up abruptly.
"F.uck." I muttered and rolled onto my stomach, burying my face against the pillow, "Just give me five minutes Lil. For fucks sake, just five." I said, my voice coming out muffled by the cloth.
"Apparently, I gave you ten already!" She spat back and even if I couldn't see her? I knew she was p.issed.
I got in a sitting position, my head hurting even more and I took another mental note: sleep at Jax whenever I got too drunk. Or maybe Lila would come there too. Ugh. Couldn't she get undressed and lay down with me instead of all this talking? "Fuck my life." I groaned, rubbing my hands over my face, "You're starting to sound like my mom when I was late for school, calm the fuck down Lila."
"I don't have time for this." She shook her head.
I glanced at her. "What does that mean?"
"It means that I have to be there, whether or not you're coming." She said seriously, grabbing a handful of dirty clothes and tossing them in the hamper only 3 feet away.
"What are you doing?" I asked since she was acting weird. She wasn't my maid, I could take care of my laundry. Later.
"I slipped on your socks on the way in, I didn't want to trip on your jeans on the way out." She replied, sounding like a nagging girlfriend. She scrubbed her hands over her face and took off her shoes, sliding onto the bed next to me. "I don't actually care if you don't want to come with me to every event. Hell I don't want to go to some of them. But then just tell me...or maybe don't get wipe out drunk the night before. Either one."
"Uhm." I didn't look at her, instead I looked down at my pillows, wishing I had a decent answer for her but I didn't.
"Nevermind." She reached in and pressed a kiss against my cheek. "Sleep baby. You need it." She ran her hands through my hair. "I'll see you later."
I considered the offer, but did I want her to leave really? No. I just wanted to sleep. But I wanted her here. "No." I mumbled as I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her against my body and not giving her much choice.
"Trav you're ruining my hair." She protested as I engulfed her into a hug, her hands pressing against my chest doing nothing.
"Who cares, you're always so beautiful." I muttered as I inhaled her sweet scent deeply. How much I wished I could let her spoil me instead of going to the art thing. I was even excited to see her new piece, but couldn't it wait a few hours?
I felt her relax a little in my hold as she pushed her bang off of her eyes and looked up at me. "You don't have to come, really."
"How many times do I have to say I'm coming Lila?" I snapped, tired to hear her say that.
"As many as it needs to convince me!" She said back, this time pushing away from me and I let her, "Or even better, if you really want to come, get ready and let's go!" She added and stood up again, pacing the room. "Maybe I should've asked Jax."
I glared at her, finding her words stupid and the worst she could pick. "Maybe you went for the wrong Cole." I groaned and at this point I was beyond annoyed, standning up from my bed and walking to my bathroom. I didn't bother to look at her face, instead I washed mine, the water splashing on my skin feeling like ice since I was boiling.
"Trav..." Lila said softly from somewhere, "I didn't mean it like that."
I ignored her as I walked past her, opening my drawer and reaching for a pair of clean boxers before heading once again to the bathroom. "I don't give a f.uck, say whatever you want." I said coldly, "I'll be ready in five minutes."
Lila let out a deep breath and leaned against the wall, pulling her hair out and down and looking even more gorgeous with those blonde strands framing her face. She walked into the bathroom and took a second to look at me. "I'm sorry." She said.
"Okay." I brushed my teeth and gurgled some mouthwash, mostly ignoring her but it was for the best. I didn't want to snap again.
"Am I asking too much?"
"It would be nice to see you without having to be out." I shrugged though it wasn't that really. I liked going out with her, I loved it actually, because we always had fun whenever we went out, but sometimes I appreciated a night or a day or both at home.
"I could come over after instead." She offered softly.
"I thought you were looking at houses after." I pointed out, finally remembering our conversation of a few days before.
She rose a brow. "I'd reschedule for you." She said seriously.
I turned back to her and leaned against the sink, feeling tired and frustrated. "It won't be too long." I said finally, because I thought that she didn't need to do that. Again. She didn't need to change her plans for me, ever. We were together but we were still two different persons.
"What aren't you saying?" She asked with no filters. I liked that too...usually. This was going to be a long painful day, I knew that.
"What do you mean?" I brushed past her and into the bedroom where I pulled on a pair of dark jeans and a button down shirt.
"I mean..." She took a breath. "I'm worried I forced you into this relationship....and now you're pulling away and I'm scared to lose you." She admitted. "What can I do?"
I kept bottoning my shirt up as I glanced at her, raising a brow. "You should do what I always tell you to do." I answered quietly, trying to avoid that conversation not because I didn't want to have it, I just didn't want to have it now when I still felt like death.
She looked at me with her big bambi eyes, a million thoughts showing in her expression. She was trying to remember, I was sure. "You always tell me not to worry." She paused, playing with her hair, "You tell me not to overthing things..."
I nodded and I even shot her a grin as I reached for my watch, "That's right. Stick to that."
She kept quiet for a few seconds while I wore a pair of shoes, my eyes avoiding hers but just because I knew she wasn't going to let it go, that she was still obsessing. "But you need to give me more." She added finally.
I made eye contact again, a small groan escaping me, "What do you mean more?"
"Tell me what else I should do Trav..." She trailed off once again, looking young, innocent and in need of some kind of protection. That look always got me on my knees, literally and not.
I ran my hands through my hair, this time trying to make myself presentable since I still felt like a bum. "Lil, I don't have much else to tell you. If I didn't want to be in this relationship I wouldn't be, you're not forcing me into anything and I'm not pulling away. I just have a hell of a hungover and the last thing I want to do is to talk about something that would require some thinking." I explained, trying not to groan too much or show my frustration, "We're okay baby, relax." I added, giving up on my hair and snorting this time, but it wasn't her fault.
"Okay." She nodded and bit down on her lip, walking over me and lifting her hands. For a moment I was lost, then she reached for my hair and combed them with her fingers. I smiled, because that was a really sweet thing to do. "Promise." She added in a soft voice.
"I promise baby. Now stop worrying." I ordered, lifting her chin with my finger to press a soft kiss on her lips, still feeling like death but hey, at least now I was dressed. "Can we go now? I just need to take some meds and drink a cup of coffee."
She finally broke into a smile, letting her hands run down my shirt, "You're such a stubborn man."
"I'm coming with you but this will have a price. A high one too." I winked at her, the effort I was making was enormous. Not the part where I was with her, but the part where I had to be awake and also a decent boyfriend. I walked out of my bedroom, starting down the stairs and sure she'd follow me, my phone ringing a moment later. "Can you take it baby? I'm going to look for aspirin in the meantime." I asked as I tossed my head over my shoulder to look at her and, of course, she nodded. Once I was in the kitchen I poured myself a giant cup of the coffee Lila had made, then opened a cabinet where I kept my stack of meds and popped a pill. Now I needed a cigarette and maybe I could survive the day.
"You broke your phone..." She said as she walked into the room, staring down at the crashed screen of my phone. Ops.
I shrugged nonchalantly, taking another sip of coffee and emptying the cup already. "Does is still work?" I asked, guessing that yes, it did.
She nodded, pursing her lips together as she handed it back to me. "I think so. Zoe texted you."
I glanced down at the text from the girl, she was one I had slept with years before and now she was just one of the girls who hung out with me Jax and the guys whenever we were out partying. I wouldn't call her a friend, but she was fun to be around. And apparently I owed her 50 bucks, if only I knew why. "Thanks." I said to Lil absintmindedly, trying to think about the night before but there were so many holes. I stepped out on the porch, looking at my baby. "Are we going with your car? Mine? Bike?"
"You can't drive Trav." Lila said quietly, annyong me because that was bullshit.
"I could." I said under my breath but followed her to her car anyways, rolling my eyes at it. "I'm not even going to fit in that thing."
"I'm sure you will instead." She snapped back but I didn't bother to say anything back, cursing under my breath instead.
"How long is this going to be?"
"Not long at all if I drop you off on the side of the road." She spat back.
"Lil?" I looked at her, waiting for a better answer.
She shrugged. "An hour."
"Okay." We drove in silence the rest of the way. I wasn't interested in talking right now and I appreciated the silence instead. "Did you have fun last night?" She asked finally.
"You already asked me that. Yes."
She took a deep breath. "Did you want to expand on it at all?"
I shook my head since there was nothing to tell really. She could ask to Jax if she wanted. "It was a normal night out Lila. Nothing special."
She turned and glared at me before pulling over at the gallery. "You're annoyed when all I want is to fuck and you're annoyed when I want to talk. You're pissed off when I come over when I said I would, but also pissed off when I tell you I'll go without you. What exactly doesn't annoy you about me today Trav?"
"Let's not do this right now please." I groaned.
"Why? Because your head hurts from all the partying you won't talk to me about?"
I glared at her this time. "I'm fucking here Lila what else do you want?!"
"I want you to WANT to be here Travis! I want you to WANT to be with me! I want you to not act like it's some huge fucking deal when I asked you about this last week!" She said harshly, but also like she was ready to start crying any moment. "I want you to at least pretend that you like me damn it!"
I stared at her, giving her a bunch of seconds to calm the fuck down. Was she pmsing? What was wrong with her today? This was definitely the Lila I knew. "Stop being dramatic." I said eventually, my tone flat.
"Stop being an ass who doesn't answer my questions and thinks I'm crazy!" She spat back, her eyes glossy but she also looked pissed off.
"I can't believe you're seriously saying that I should pretend to like you." I paused, letting it go all. All the tiredness, the frustration, I wasn't holding back anymore and I could feel my anger filling my veins. I always said to myself I wouldn't give her myself at my worst, but she was pushing all the wrong buttons and my patience today was really short. "I can't pretend that I like you, I do like you! Why are you so f.ucking insecure today? It makes no sense!" I started, wondering if she wanted to fight just for the sake of it. "I want to be with you and I want to be here-"
"You keep acting like you don't care and you're dying to go away already." She said before I could finish.
"Don't cut me off!" I said and this time? My voice was louder than I expected, but that was one of the things that made my blood boil. If I talked, I expected her to listen. "I'm not in my best shape because I had a long night Lila, it has nothing to do with you."
"Oh I know that! I wasn't there." She spat, doing that again and making me want to get out of her car and start punching things because she was being impossible.
I stared at her, my eyes narrowed on hers, "So that's the fucking problem, uh? You're mad at me because you wanted to come with me yesterday night?" I asked and when her face turned into a mask that hid her real feelings I knew I didn't need an answer. This girl in front of me was nothing like the Lila I had met months before, she was strong, bold, feisty and confident. I was ruining her, wasn't I?
"No. I wanted you to be THINKING about me last night!" Lila spat back, nearly yelling.
I rose a brow at her because that was ridiculous. What were we, 18? Was I supposed to text her every five minutes too? Hell no. "You wanted me to be thinking about you?" I asked slowly, wanting her to elaborate.
She nodded. "Yes. So you didn't get shit faced and make me the bad guy by waking you up. This is your fucking fault Travis. So suck it up, and if you're lucky? I won't be pissed at you for the rest of the day." She didn't let me say anything after that, instead she got out of the car and smoothed down her dress as she waited for me on the sidewalk. I sat in the car, taking deep breaths. I could get out of the car and start yelling at her, telling her that no one was making of her the bad guy, that if I wanted to get shit faced I got shit faced and no one was going to stop me and that was how it worked for everything else. I was free to do whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted to. But that would lead to more fighting and my head still hurt enough, so I just let it go, running my hands through my hair and walking up to set my hand on her lower back. "Ready?"
She wiggled away from my touch. Too bad for her. "Yup." She walked in, said her pleasantries to the owner of the gallery, the fellow artists and some of the other people who worked there. I played my part well, saying all the right things and being there for her, being careful not to touch her since she wasn't letting me. I tried to blend in, not interested in anything really and focusing on Lila's painting instead which was the only thing that deserved my attention. The rest could wait for a day when I wasn't hangover. Lila, on the other hand, watched everything carefully and it made sense. It was part of her job, her passion too.
"Your piece is incredible Lil." I whispered, running my hand up and down her spine and this time she didn't pull away.
"Thank you." She whispered softly, turning to look at the painting of her nephew at a rugby practice. The show was dedicated to children, apparently.
"You should give that to your sister." I commented. "Quickly before someone buys it."
She turned and smiled, putting her hand on my face and getting up on her tiptoes to kiss me. Already? "Thank you for this." She said softly.
"I'm doing nothing." I shrugged, because I dangerousl close to vegetate instead. "You're still going to owe me for it later."
She smirked. "I'm sure I'll find a way. Boys like beer, pizza and sex right?"
I laughed a real laugh this time, because if I thought about it? Now I was hungry too. And the thought of pizza after a blowjob and a beer too sounded like a really good one. "You nailed it." I winked.
"I'm very smart." She replied with false modesty. If only she was this confident about us too.
"Is that what they teach at Yale these days?"
She nodded and then grabbed my shirt collar to pull me in. "You could have stayed home, or even went home when I snapped at you. Even if i didn't "owe you" I'd find a way to repay you for being a good boyfriend." She smiled and kissed me once more. I let her, instead of pointing out that no, I wasn't really a good boyfriend but I was doing what I could. "We can leave if you want. I've seen everything and talked to everyone. What did you want to do today? Go home and sleep more?" She teased.
"Do you want me to be honest?" I asked slowly as I looked at her, though we both knew it was a rhetorical question. We had a honesty only policy and I tried to follow that as much as I could.
She nodded with a small roll of her eyes, "Of course Trav." She said quietly.
I set my hands on her hips as I stared into her eyes. "Yes, that was what I wanted to do. And I'm dying to go back to my bed." I answered, the thought alone making me feel as if I couldn't stand on my feet a second longer.
She gave me a sweet smile and kissed me softly one more time before pulling away and taking my hand, "I know. You're free to go now." She said as we walked outside the gallery, "I can drop you home before I see my estate agent."
I shook my head as I let out a breath because she wasn't arguing again and that was good. We had finally gone through the fighting phase, she seemed happy again and I had managed to stay awake the whole time. Now it was time to sleep though. "I can call a cab baby don't worry." I suggested and I smiled at her, cupping her face and kissing her, but harder than she had done, and I didn't broke the kiss until I felt her body relax in my hold. "The sooner you go the sooner you come back to me." I added with a grin. I definitely wanted her there when I'd wake up again.
She bit down on her lip as she stared up at me, "Do you still want me to come over when I'm done?" She asked softly and I just nodded since I didn't need to add anything else. "Okay but I'm still dropping you home."
"Why? Don't you believe I'd go home?" I asked back with an eyebrow raised even though I was just teasing. I knew she trusted me and I also knew she was just being gentle instead, it was part of how she was.
She chuckled, pulling away regretfully and unlocking her cars doors. "That's not why. The house I'm going to see is 5 minutes from yours." She explained and it took me a moment to process that.
I got into her car after her, looking out the window as I wondered how casual her choice of going house hunting in my neighbourhood was. Or if it wasn't at all. I didn't know if I had to start worry or not. "How did it look from the pictures?" I asked, trying to get more informations from her.
She shrugged nonchalantly as she drove, her eyes not leaving the road. "Nice...I guess." She said, not sounding convinced. Good?
"You guess?" I repeated slowly.
"I don't know if you came with me you'd see yourself." She said and winked at me, making it sound like she was just teasing but if I knew her a little? She wasn't. Good god. I was f.ucked.
I made an huge effort to keep calm and be the boyfriend Lila thought she was. "I can take a quick look then I can walk home if you want." I suggested, guessing that I'd smoke one million cigarettes in those 5 minutes it'd take me to walk back home.
"Or I could go home with you." Lila suggested with a smirk.
"Oh okay." I grinned back. Now, that was a good idea.
She stopped at a red light and leaned in to kiss me. "How do you manage too look like that when you're hungover? When I am I looked like a drowned cat." She winced.
I started laughing. "I've seen you hungover Lil, you do not."
"I do." She nodded, pulling over 3 blocks away from my place and looking outside before we both got out of the car.
"It's nice." I commented, setting my hand on her back and this time she leaned into it instead.
"It is." She agreed, not being her usual mouthy self.
"Lila!" A man who I supposed being her real estate agent grinned wide as he saw her. "Wow, you look incredible." He looked me up and down.
Lila shrugged. "I was at a gallery event." She admitted, before the guy finally realized that I wasn't invisible and glanced at me. "This is my boyfriend Travis Cole." She introduced. "Trav, this is Reid Johnston my agent."
"How old are you?" I asked, raising a brow at the guy who seemed to be not a day older than 18.
"Um...24?"
I grumbled because apparently he didn't even know his age and Lila rolled her eyes though she was smiling. "Can we go in? I'm getting sunburnt." She joked.
"Yeah, yeah! Come on in." The guy pulled her into the house.
I followed them and looked around, my eyes taking in every detail. It looked really different from Lila's current place, but then again, she wouldn't move if she was fine with where she already lived. I couldn't say if I liked it or not...I, basically, had no opinion on the matter.
Lila spun on her heels, her smile big, "I like it." She said as if her expression wasn't obvious enough as she glanced at the realtor, "Even though I'd probably change a few things..."
"You can turn it upside down if you want." He grinned at her, using his ridiculous charme to close the deal. Kids.
She let out a chuckle, biting down on her lip when she finally looked at me. "What do you think?" She asked.
"It's nice." I answered nonchalantly with a shrug of my shoulders, not knowing what else to say. "So far." I added since we still had to see the other rooms.
The guy glanced at me a moment before focusing on Lila again, "I can show you upstairs too." He offered and led the way as she nodded and I, once again, just followed.
"Wow, there's so much light in these rooms." She pointed out once we walked into the bedroom.
"Wait to see the other bedroom." He said back, still grinning like an idiot.
I raised one eyebrow at Lila even if she seemed high on house hunting or something like that, while I was the opposite. "Why do you even need two bedrooms?" I asked since it made no sense to me. I was a practical man, but I was still a man, girls could came up with the most absurd things. Or they saw things in another way, same difference.
"Are you moving in together?" The guy asked, suddenly showing interest in me because if that was the case, I'd be the one giving him part of the money.
"No, I'm just here to give her an opinion." I answered flatly even if I was tempted to tell him to mind his own f.ucking business.
Lila seemed to ignore that part of the conversation, "Because it could be nice to use it as a guest room. Or I can turn it into a studio where I'd paint while I'd use the basement to keep my blank canvas and everything." She explained.
I nodded, because now that made sense, leaning into her slightly, "I'm not going to sleep in the guest room." I whispered into her ear as I brushed past her, walking to the window and looking outside. Now, you couldn't really see my house, but you could see my neighbors. It was really close.
"Do you like it?" Lila asked finally and when I turned around she was leaning against the doorframe, shamelessly checking me out.
I shrugged. "It's a house." I commented, not really wanting to come forward. It wasn't even any of my business and I knew better than pushing her in a direction or another.
"How did you decide to buy your house?" She asked, sounding genuinely interested.
"Same way you are." I said with a brow raised. There weren't too many ways to decide to buy a house.
She sighed and I could tell from the look on her face that that wasn't what she was expecting me to say. What she expected though, I had no idea.
"What do you think Miss Trenton?" The realtor asked with a fake smile on his baby face.
She looked towards him. "I like it but I'll need to think about it." She admitted, his face fell a little but then snapped right back on.
"Do you want me to set up anymore showings?" He asked politely.
Lila shrugged, not looking so excited anymore. "Not right now. I'll call you." She said before she took my hand and basically pulled me out of the house. Finally, but also, weird.
"What's up Lil?" I asked, wondering why she was suddently acting as if she was scared.
"You still tired?" She asked back instead.
I rose a brow at the understatement. "Yup."
"Can you walk home? I need to go get drunk or something."
I grabbed her waist as she walked past me. "It's not even 3 Lil. What are you doing?"
"I'm suddenly feeling really old. Buying a house? That's....woah." She admitted.
I pulled her against me as we walked, even if it was uncomfortable, and I shot her an amused look. There she was, my very young girlfriend again. "There's no hurry Lil." I said into her ear before pressing a kiss on her cheek, "There's no need to get drunk either."
She tilted her head back and leaned against my shoulder as she looked up at me with a silly little pout on her lips. "Why?"
"Because if you want to get drunk you'll have to do it alone." I answered simply because that was simple. I could make an effort and do things for her, things that made sense like going to the gallery or seeing the house she liked, but drinking this early? Hell no. She was smarter than that.
"And what if I don't instead?" She asked back, pout full force and looking adorable.
I grineed wider and kissed those soft pouty lips before taking her hand so that we could start walking like normal people again. "You can come home with me and we can talk about whatever is going on in your head."
"Talk when you're so hangover?" She faked a gasp and widened her eyes, even taking a hand to her chest.
"Eh, you can talk and I can pretend to listen." I joked, though that wasn't so far from the truth, except for I'd really listen if that was what she needed. I wanted to fix problems right away and now that Lila was my girlfriend I expected her to do too, I didn't like people who ran away or hid instead.
She hit my chest playfully, biting back a smirk, "Ass."
I ignored her but kept grinning as I unlocked the door of my house, letting her go inside first like the gentleman I wasn't. "Nice ass." I said back as I squeezed her bottom, getting a giggle out of her. "Why are you suddently so worried about this house thing Lil? I thought you wanted it. Unless you're finally realizing that you're so young that you can't really buy a house. That's what an old man like me would do." I said and I teased her, trying to make it easier for her to open up. Then I lit a cigarette, to make it easier for me too, as I opened the french window that led to my porch.
"I do want it. Sometimes it just feels a little overwhelming." Lila admitted, reaching out and grabbing a cigarette from the pack I set on the rail.
"What are you doing?" I asked, raising a brow as she took a lighter out of her bag and lit it. Not only I knew she didn't smoke, but I also knew that she hated when I did, so that was at least odd.
"Being young and stupid." She replied taking a long drag and blowing out slowly.
I grabbed it out of her hand and stomped on it, making her turn towards me and glare. "Is this what that feels like when I do it to you? Because it's annoying."
"Why do you even have a lighter?" I asked, shaking my head.
"In case I want to burn things." She deadpaned, clearly struggling not to laugh.
"Don't be silly." I said flatly, wanting a decent answer to give a sense to what she was doing.
"I can't help it. Silly is my middle name." She replied with a grin. "If you're not going to let me smoke yours I have something stronger in my bag." I widened my eyes at her. She had to be kidding me. "What? I'm an artist!"
I chuckled lightly. "You're a hypocrite. And not too old at all."
"My brothers got a lot of money really fast." She said out of nowhere and god only knew why, but I was going to listen carefully since she didn't open up so much. "Colbie too."
"Your family is very successful." I pointed out, thinking about how different our families were.
"I think they were all so thrown when Dad died and we had to work for everything we had." She admitted.
"It makes sense. You always want more for yourself and your family than you had." I said slowly, trying to guess what her point was.
She nodded. "I guess so. Money's just never driven me you know? I mean I love a good designer dress as much as the next girl but I'd be just as happy shopping the thrift stores. Happiness is in relationships, not in things."
I looked at her for a second, the things she was saying where things I suspected about her already, before lighting another cigarette even at her annoyed look. "Now you're sounding old again." I said to make the moment lighter.
"Damn it you're right." She laughed. "Let's have sex on the balcony to make up for it."
"Is that something young people do?" I asked.
"I'm pretty sure." She smirked.
I shook my head and kept my smirk in place as I took one last drag of my cigarette. "It's not going to work Lil."
She furrowed her brows, looking genuinely confused and just as genuinely adorable as she set her hands on my chest and looked up at me. "What?" She asked.
I dropped my hands on her hips, pulling her closer to me. "You're using your sexiness to distract me."
"Distract you from want?" She asked and bit down on her lip, making me wonder if she was aware of that or not.
"From serious talking." I answered then kissed her nose, a small move to let her know that I wasn't pointing my finger at her. But she did that, a lot, and while I liked whenever she tried to seduce me I didn't like that she used sex to change the subject. She didn't need to do that.
She bored her eyes into mine and looked lost into her thoughts, processing my words. "I don't want to talk about that anymore. It's hard for me to open up." She said finally, her voice small, as she hid her face against my chest.
I tangled my fingers with her soft hair and kissed the top of her head. "I know baby. I like that you try with me." I said quietly as I pulled back, "Let's go upstairs I'm exhausted."
She nodded and followed me, holding my hand firmly, "I am too."
"Long night?" I asked without hiding the amusement as I glanced at her.
She just rolled her eyes as we walked into my bedroom once again. "The one you didn't invite me to? Sure." She said back like the smarta.ss she was and I glared. "Okay okay! Lets drop it before we start arguing again."
"Good idea." I said and I spanked her ass lazily before I took off my shirt and jeans, climbing onto my bed next and god it felt so good. I needed to sleep desperately. "Get out of that dress baby and come here."
Lila sighed and shimmied out of the dress, watching me eye her skimpy lingerie she had underneath. Goddamn. "Were you planning to seduce someone today?" I questioned as she hopped into my bed and cuddled up against me.
"Maybe later." She shrugged and grinned before kissing my lips and then turning in my arms so I was spooning her. She was so tiny in my hold, a feeling that I liked a lot...it felt right.
"Definitley later..." I trailed off, my hand running down her spine to cup her ass roughly. Just like I knew I needed to sleep now, I knew I'd need to be inside of her later.
She shivered and arched into my hand. "Don't tease me. I know you need sleep first old man."
I muttered something unintelligible under my breath and then wrapped my arm around her stomach, pulling her closer. "Smart girl." I whispered into her neck.
"That's me." She agreed, finally relaxing in my hold. It was weird, but I could literally felt her body giving in.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, inhaling her sweet intoxicating scent. I still felt awful, as if I had been awake for days instead of just a few hours but I was glad to have her with me too. "I'm happy to have you here." I whispered into her hair.
"Are you talking in your sleep?" She asked as she slid her hands down my forearms until she found my own hands and tangled her fingers with mine.
I let out a small muffled laugh, my chest vibrating against her back. "No silly. I mean it." I said, squeezing her against me.
"I know." She said back softly.
I pressed a kiss on her shoulder, then one on her neck and one on her cheek before adjusting myself and her too in the most comfortable position, letting out a content sigh. "I adore you baby." And with that, I fell asleep.