This is part one of a double update :)

Chapter 23

Thursday evening came around quickly, and for that I was glad. Assignments were killing me, and I needed the distraction of a good bowling adventure to give me a break.

I pulled on a nice top with the blue jeans I really liked, slipping into my black converse shoes. I noticed a stitch coming off, but that could be fixed later.

"Didn't you shave your legs this morning? Get your ass in a dress!" River smacked my butt, sending me off to my room again. Well, now I needed to find a dress that went with the makeup I had already applied, else I would be severely late and I was not ready to have a bad first impression on Finn. It was bad enough that Soph was already not on his good side; we better not disappoint Dan anymore already. I found a muted grey dress in the back of my shelf, pulling it on with all the care so I didn't have to deal with a smudged foundation stain later on.

I chose to take the bus instead of my bike, enjoying the moments to watch people go about their daily lives. An advantage of leaving early was that I was narrowly missing the rush hour, and I could comfortably sit on the way. I happened to be right next to a small woman with her baby, and her small chubby fingers kept me entertained through the ride. Shaking the baby fever off me, I stood outside the bowling alley, dropping a text on the group chat that I had reached.

Dan: You're a whole 20 minutes early.

Brianna: Took the bus so...

Finn: I'm really looking forward to seeing you!

Brianna: me too! I hope Dan hasn't ruined my impression with his dirty mouth

Dan: My dirty mouth does a lot of things except talking about you

Sophie: Guys. Please. Some of us are single as fuck.

Eleanor: Everyone except them is -_-

Brianna: I'm gonna get us a lane inside. It's getting cold.

Sophie: You're the best. Love ya!

Eleanor: Reaching in 5, see you in!

The bowling alley was dim, lit only by dull blue lights and the occasional red lighting up the cash register and the shoe exchanging area. My rented shoes were stored in a locker tagged 68, hidden away behind some shady looking velvety curtains. As I tucked my converse away in the small compartment, I didn't quite pay attention to the only other person in the room with me, standing on the opposite side of the long bench until he had to turn to me and talk.

"How far do I need to go to get you to talk to me?" Noah's voice was butter, no trace of anger in him. I had spent my time religiously ignoring him as much as I could, even turning down the chance to stay the night with Finn and Daniel on Wednesday when they had gone out for dinner with the soccer team.

I'd also been seeing his messages every single hour, sometimes cute, some random history facts that he found fascinating, and some begging for me to at least hear him out.

"I've just been busy," I gritted my teeth, resting my foot on the bench so I could tie the lace. Noah knocked my hands off, kneeling down so he could tie it for me. It warmed my heart almost, until I remembered why I'd missed his calls and ignored his texts and DMs. Tucking the length of the laces near my ankle, Noah looked up expectantly at me to raise the other foot.

"Busy enough to spend all of Tuesday watching reruns of Friends?" Damn social media. I had posted smaller snippets of my day when River and I were celebrating her first donation success by watching the iconic show.

I turned away from him, sitting down and raising my knee to tie the other shoe. Whoever convinced me to wear a dress needed to reevaluate their lives. The skirt was quick to slip down my thigh, and Noah was quicker to reach and touch me, raising goosebumps all over immediately. The smell of his perfume rushed to ensnare me, and I felt my head getting lighter.

"You know we need to talk about Parker eventually," his voice was now in my ear, the ends of his hair tickling me as he was reaching me.

I stood up, flustered, but determined not to show it. Skirt in place, I smoothened it just so I wouldn't have to look at him, "There's nothing to talk about," I tried to keep my voice casual, "You made it clear that I was nothing more than a one day thing, so I mean, forgive me for not wanting to jump in bed with you."

"I didn't mean it," Noah stood where he was, and I was grateful to be away from the overpowering scent.

"What did you mean then, Noah?" I rolled my eyes, "If you were lying then, when were you telling me the truth?"

"I've never," Noah interrupted me, "ever lied to you."

In the dark, I was reminded of Noah and I in the club, a few days ago, when I had decided that he was worth going to hell for. His lips looked just as inviting, the grey shirt peeking from under the black jacket he was sporting. The broad expanse of his chest and the square of his jawline were mesmerising me, legs itching to move closer to him.

I was convinced Noah had telepathic powers when he crossed over the bench, walking into my personal space again. How was it that breathing him in deeply came naturally to me, like I was designed to forever be this close to him, and there was no space designed to come between us.

"I meant every single thing I've said to you."

I rolled my eyes, scoffing.

"How is it that I lie once in front of you and that becomes more important than a hundred truths I've said before?" He sighed, "Look, I didn't want to say something and regret it later, okay? You don't know who Parker is."

"What is he, a criminal? Some drug lord or mafia? You're just making way harder than it needs to be, Noah." I pushed him away slightly so I could move outside, to the lane we had designated for us.

Luck seemed to be on my side as Eleanor came rushing towards me near the lanes, trapping me in a bone-crushing hug. The guilt was weighing heavy on me, I could still feel his touch burning on my thigh. Could she smell his perfume clinging to me? Her blue eyes showed no signs, and my already sinking heart took a nosedive as she tucked my hair behind my ear and kissed my forehead, "I don't know if I've told you this recently, but you're my best friend and I am so lucky to have you."

Tears threatened to spill as I thought of where I had been came running back to me. How was I being selfish enough to do this to Eleanor? Even as my stomach flipped over and over, I decided that I would tell her everything. I would tell her how I had fallen for Noah's charms, I would tell her that he kissed me and that I tried so damn hard to resist it. She would understand. She was caught up in his charms too, and I understood her obsession so much better now. If I was forcing her to see better, I had to see better too.

Sophie, Dan and Finn arrived just in time for me to notice the rest of the soccer team just one lane away from us.

"You guys aren't joining them?" I asked Dan, although I wondered why I never asked myself what Noah was doing in the locker room.

"That was a last minute thing," Dan shrugged, "And Finn's been dying to see you."

Finn stepped forward and grabbed me in a warm hug. An absolute cutie, he looked better than the photos Dan had shown me. His brown hair had natural looking blonde highlights, looking dishevelled as if he had just woken up. His face was one of those that looked perfect with a clean shave, exactly how he was sporting it, unlike Noah, whose four o clock shadow made his-

No, Brianna.

Bad Brianna.

Appearing comfortable in his faded blue shirt and skinny pants, Finn was the exact vision I had in my mind for Daniel, and it was hard to miss how happy they looked when Finn hugged him from behind. Daniel turned to whisper something in his ear, and their moment looked so innocent yet intimate, I had to look away. Eleanor and Sophie had knowing smiles on their faces, and I knew he had their approval too. I wondered briefly what happened to the girl Daniel was talking about, but it seemed obvious that Finn was very much taken to Daniel.

Eleanor chose to go first, hitting two pins first and knocking four off in her second go. Eleanor was here to win, even if she sucked at this, but she wasn't giving up hope yet. Her competitive streak was showing and I felt my heart warm to see her so happy. Occasionally her eyes drifted to the soccer team, who was leaving no chance to bring attention to themselves. They were hooting and hollering regardless of what the outcome of a ball was, whether it knocked 2 pins or all.

Damn it was a challenging task to not look at Noah, but I was determined to push that chapter behind me and I was not going to quit that easily. 

***

Raise your hand if you missed Noah! I know I sure did ;)

I'm planning on posting around 2-3 chapters every week starting now, only so I can complete Bittersweet just in time for the Wattpad India Awards, and I really hope I'll be able to make it! 

I'll also be uploading some of my shorter stories for the story story version of the Wattys, and if you want to see what any of those look like, Circle of Love is a great start!

I'm going to stop rambling and just leave you here, please don't forget to vote and comment!