Welcome to New Haven (71 page)

Alex’s hand roamed further up, over her bra strap, his ‘friend’ twitched in acknowledgement, and further up to her shoulder blades.

As Holly’s hands roamed over his own body, Alex could feel the stirring getting stronger.
 
Thinking of sports wasn’t helping
at all
.

He knew they had to stop.

He would embarrass himself if they didn’t.

Holly’s breath was quickening too.

Her fingertips pressed into his skin, and it felt fucking amazing for him.

She pulled away from their kiss.
 

“Alex.” She whispered. “I think…we should stop now. “I’m…oh God!” she scrunched her eyes closed and took a deep breath.

“Agreed.” He said in a strained voice, as though he had to concentrate just to talk.

Holly got up and adjusted her top, as did Alex and they looked at each other.
 

Both had
very
flushed faces and guilty expressions.
 

“Well…um…that…” Alex said, as he was the first to speak.
 

“Mmhmm.” Said Holly.
 
Alex blew out a controlled breath.
 

“You’re a bad boy, Alexandro.” Holly said as a smile split across her face.
 
”You barely touched me, and…well…” Holly pressed her knees together.

Alex laughed and shook his head.

“It’s all your doing, babe. Even thinking about sports wasn’t helping.”
 

Holly’s eyes widened.

“I think we should
both
try to be good. For a little while anyway.” He said with a wink.
 

“Holly, Your Dad’s here.” Rami shouted through the door.

“Ok thanks!” She said.
 

“I don’t want to leave you.” She said at the same time Alex said, “I don’t want you to go.” Which made them snort a laugh.

They were sad to be apart.

“I enjoyed picking out a new bed with you.” Alex waggled his eyebrows. “But, don’t let what happened this morning upset you. I know you’ve been thinking about it, and understandably so. What she did to you…” He was so angry with what she’d done to Holly’s garden and memorial.

“That can be fixed in a day or two.” She said, stroking his cheek. “We’re helping too, babe. Ok?” He said and Holly nodded.

“I should go. I don’t want to keep my Dad waiting.”
 

Alex walked Holly to the door and Dev practically flew downstairs.

“Don’t go without saying goodbye!” she yelled as she ran, eyes red from crying, and hugged Holly tightly.

“See you tomorrow Hol.” She said. “I’m sorry about this morning.” She whispered and gave Holly an extra squeeze.

“It’s over now” Holly whispered back.
 

Dev released her and Alex held her again.
 

“I love you, babe.”

“I love you too.” She replied and Alex gently pressed his lips to hers.
 

“Text me as
soon
as you get home.”

“I will. Bye babe.” She said as Alex’s parents walked into the hallway.

“Bye Holly.” Evie said with a sympathetic smile.
 
She held out her hands, to take hers, and placed one hand on her cheek.

“If you need
anything
, just let me know, ok?”

Holly knew Evie was trying to say sorry for what had happened but didn’t want to upset anybody with the details.

“Thanks, Evie. Bye everyone.”
 
She said as she walked out of the door, Alex walking her to her Dads’ car.

He pulled her in for one last kiss.

“I’ll miss you.” She said in a whisper.

“I’ll miss you too.”

Alex watched Holly go, and then walked into the house, head down and his hands in his pockets.
 
He walked towards the stairs when he heard his Dad making a comment.
 

“He’s found his missing piece, hadn’t he? Even though they’re so young!”
 

“Without a doubt.” Evie said. That made Alex smile…until he got to the landing.
 

His ‘old’ rooms’ door was closed.

He didn’t even want to open the door because he remembered what he saw the last time he did.
 
The nauseous feeling returned and he turned away, walking to the spare room, ‘Ben’s room’.

He opened the door and his laptop, phone charger, and art pad were there on the bed.

He rushed over and opened it.

“Oh, thank fuck.” He said to himself. All of his sketches of Holly were still there and not ruined.
 
The larger one on the loose papers, the one that had taken him the longest…the one he completed not long after he realized how much he loved her.
 
The smaller ones; in A.Bio with the daffodil, sitting in the pool room at Riss’ house, standing against the wall with her head back and eyes closed, outside Delaney’s class.

All from memory.

Of course, he’d taken some photo’s in class. In English, he’s taken a snap as she’d been busy writing.
 
At the lunch table, when he pretended to be busy on his phone.
 
The selfies they had taken the night before… Alex saw a note on the dresser.
 
It read: -

Alex, Honey.
 
I know you don’t want to talk about this right now, but we’re here for you. Always.

We love you so much, our precious boy.

Mom & Dad.

P.s. I’ve filled the drawers and closet with things definitely not touched.
 
They’re from the laundry room and the others, I picked up from the dry cleaners whilst you were out.

Alex checked everything out.
 
His Mom had done it all for him, and he was grateful.
 
He didn’t have to go into the other room to retrieve anything, and he was truly grateful.
 

Alex’s phone beeped, and his stomach flipped with anticipation.
 
It was Holly!
 

H: Hi babe.
 
Just got back. Are you ok?

Alex was relieved Holly was home safe.

A: I am now. I’m glad you’re back safe. Are
you
ok?

H: No.
 
I’m lonely. :(

A: Me too, babe. Will I see you in the morning?

H: What time do you go to the gym with Ben?

A: About 9:30am. We’re usually only there for an hour, though. Is after that too early?

H: I’ll be over before you go. ;)

A: Really? Awesome! :D

H: I’ll get Dev to help me for the hour. :D What are you doing now?

A: I’m sorting through my stuff in the spare room.
 

H: I’m sorry you have to do that, babe.

Alex knew Holly wasn’t happy, at all, about him having to change rooms.
 
He didn’t like the fact that she was more worried over his situation than her own. He hated that her garden had been ruined, and her Dad’s memorial had been torn apart, yet she was more upset over what happened to him.
 

His stuff could be replaced easily. Her hard work had been destroyed in a matter of minutes.

A: I’m sorry about your garden.

Alex’s phone rang. It was Holly and he was happy she was calling.
 
He preferred to hear her voice.

“Hey, babe.” He said.
 

“Hi baby. Look. You don’t have to be sorry about what she did. I can fix it. If my Dad’s ashes had been…” Alex could hear Holly blowing out an angry breath.
 

“…Then, I wouldn’t be so calm about it.
 
Everything else can be replaced. His plants will grow again.”

“But, babe, all your hard work…” He began to say.

“Yeah, she trashed it and killed a lot of the flowers. I can fix it.”

“
We
can fix it, remember? All of us.”
 
There was no way they were letting Holly do all of the work on her own.

Not a chance.

“How are you so perfect?” she sighed into the phone, making Alex’s skin tingle.
 

“I
love
you.” He said quietly and so full of emotion, his eyes misted.

“I love you too.” She said, and her breath caught as if she were going to cry.
 

“Baby are you ok?” He asked gently.

“Yeah.” She said, sniffling. “Just emotional… again.” And she snorted a short laugh.
 

Alex just listened to Holly breathe for a few seconds whilst he switched on his laptop.

His wallpaper…Holly at the lunch table.
 

“You’re the wallpaper on my laptop, you know.” He said.

“I am? Is it a picture from last night?”

Was she going to freak when he told her?

“Um…no. It’s one that I took a little while ago. At lunch.” He said and waited for her to reply.
 

“What? How did you get a picture of me at lunch?” Holly didn’t sound mad.
 
She sounded as though she was happy about it, and Alex relaxed.

“I…may have pretended to be texting, and I took you picture when you were texting Emily.”

Holly laughed.

“Oh my God!” She said, still laughing.

“What?” He asked.
 
He didn’t understand why it was so funny.

“I wasn’t texting Emily. I’ll show you what I was doing…hang on.” Whilst Alex was listening, he heard a small ’ping’ from his phone. He’d received a picture from Holly. As he opened it, he realized what they’d both done.

He’d taken a picture of Holly, taking a picture of him!

It was his turn to laugh.

“Wow, that’s crazy!” He said, still chuckling.

“That’s why I was wary of giving you my phone at Riss’. I was worried you’d see it.”
 

Alex remembered Holly holding her phone back, before she handed it to him to translate the lyrics she’s sung.

“I would have loved it. And I do. But…if you’d have just asked, I would have posed for you.”

“Oh my God!” She squealed.“ That wouldn’t have been appropriate though.” She said with mischief in her voice.

“Why not?” Alex really wanted to know the answer to
that
question. He had a feeling it was going to be hot.

“Well…telling you to take off your shirt and lay on the table, so I could take a picture, might have been a bit much for lunch time.”

“I see your point.” He said, still chuckling.
 
“Oh yeah…” He said as he remembered something. “I think you forgot your bag of
stuff
you left in my car.

"“Yes I did! I’ll have to remember then in the morning.”

“I could go outside and get them. You know…have a little peek inside…just to see.”

“Don’t you dare!” Holly whisper shouted as he chuckled.

“Why not? I was wondering what you’d chosen out of the things you picked up.” He said innocently.

“No, Alex. You
cannot
see them.” Holly sounded shocked but with humor too.
 

Alex was certainly having fun with it.

“Aww babe, just a little tiny peek?”

“Not a chance, Mister!”

“Tell me what you chose, then.” He said with a threat that was ‘tell me, or I’ll see for myself’.

“You
really
want to know what
underwear
I chose?” she asked, sultrily.
 

“Yes I do.” He said in the tone that he knew Holly loved so much.

“Well!” She said in a mock gasp. “Mr. Valencia. I thought you were so sweet and innocent.” Holly giggled.

“I kind of changed when as
very sexy
British girl almost walked into me at school. I don’t think sweet and innocent things around her…at all.”
 
He said in that same tone and he could hear Holly’s breathing quicken on the other end.

“You are a bad boy, Alexandro.” She breathed into the phone.

“Because of you, babe. But, you still haven’t told me.”

“All of it.” She said.

Holly had bought
everything
Justin, the nicer assistant, had suggested.
 

“Holy fuck!” Alex said as he almost shouted.

He remembered the white lacy set. That was fucking awesome imagining Holly wearing it.
 
The red set was too hot to even think about because his pants had gotten too tight as it was, and he may just explode.

He also remembered black sets, pink sets, teddy’s (he heard the assistant saying) and that Holly had to have special ones because of the size of her ‘ladies’.
 

“Alex, are you ok there?” Holly’s voice was amused on the other end of the phone.

Alex had growled, sexily down the phone and Holly’s breath was coming even harder down the line.

“Yeah, just remembering what…” He swallowed hard “…You had looked at.” His hand gripped his phone tightly as he scrunched his eyes closed and took a deep breath to calm himself.

“Yeahhhhh.” Holly said with a purr. “They’re
very
nice.” Alex whined a complaint into the phone. “I’m sorry babe that was mean.” She said even though she was laughing.
 
Alex knew she never meant to make it painful for him, even though he was in agony.
 
His body had broken into a sweat during their conversation, and he could hear his heart pounding in his ears. There
was
one thing he knew he could say that could quickly escalate the way their thoughts had turned during their call.
 

“Holly?” He whispered in a low growl, breathless, trying his hardest to control himself.
 

“Yeah?” she asked with a breathlessness to
her
tone too.
 

“Nine days, babe. Nine days.”

Holly gasped with a shaky breath.

“Just remember that, babe. In under two hours, it’ll be eight.”

“Mhmm.” He heard her say as she breathed into the phone.
 

“That’s
so
not fair.” She finally said.

“Neither is you telling me about your new underwear.” He said with a smile.