I fussed over my lipstick one last time before heading downstairs, running late again. I had definitely offended my sleep schedule by talking to Noah all fucking night, falling asleep only when he started snoring on the other end. It was funny to see how out of touch he seemed with reality, especially when I would tell him about the bag I used in school for four years straight or the converse shoes I've been wearing for nearly six months now. As a fun exercise I'd asked him to take a trip to the grocery store with me on Tuesday, and he'd begrudgingly agreed.

"Only if you don't make fun of me," He had said.

I held back my laugh, "Of course." I had lied. It was going to be a fun experiment and I was going to leave no chance to leave him confused.

I was headed to the mall so we could shop for Halloween, even though I hated the whole idea of costumes. Halloween spirits were upon us, and I was a mere side character in Sophie's vision for the best Halloween party ever. Eleanor and I had made up, sort of, so I was not surprised to see her there, twirling her hair around her finger as she spoke to someone on the phone.

"Look our birdie has found someone," Dan had a suspicious smile on his face as he pointed at Eleanor, who swatted his smile off.

"What are we waiting for?"

"Soph's not here yet. She had to pick up some things , I think."

While we waited for Sophie to show up, we exchanged ideas of what we wanted to dress up as.

"What made you think a trash can was a good idea?" I could only stare at Dan as he came up with more ridiculous ideas.

"Why don't you have a paired costume with Finn?" Sophie suggested when she could spare a minute from her phone calls. Her party was about to throw the town in a frenzy it seemed, with all that large planning and extra-ness of it all.

"Finn's going as Tesla, so I can't pair with that." He shrugged. That was interesting. Finn could potentially pull off Tesla's look.

"Why does he want to dress up as a car?" Eleanor scrunched her face.

"Nicola Tesla babe, the genius guy." I patted her head. She wasn't too happy with it, sticking to her Tinkerbell outfit. The smaller the outfit, the better.

"What are you and Noah dressing up as?"

"Noah's out of town on Halloween, but I'm dressing up as Katniss," I had leather pants from another occasion and Emily was lending me her corset for the top. Noah said he would drop by sometime this week to give me his toy bow and arrow for me to finish the look. All I needed was a good pair of combat boots now, and since they could be used for other outfits as well, I had decided to make the purchase.

We found Dan a very Brad Mondo-esque costume, and Sophie settled on a blue dress that was perfect for what she had in mind. She wouldn't tell us what it was though. The curiosity was killing me, but I knew she would out do every expectation we would have.

We ate our fills in pizza before Dan had to leave and then it was just us girls. A salon trip was long overdue and there was no better time to do it than just before Halloween.

"I think I need to get laid," Sophie told me as she was getting her nails painted.

"I know I need to get laid," Eleanor chimed in, "but probably not as much as poor Noah."

"I don't think he's ever had blue balls for as long as Bri's making him wait," Sophie laughed, making me want to sink in my chair.

"Well, we've been dating for only like what, a month now?" I muttered, finally picking a bright red shade to pull off a fierce Katniss vibe.

"That's like a year in sex time," Sophie rolled her eyes, "Trust me, that guy is dying for you to give him the green light."

I thought about it, zoning in and out of the conversation that followed. Was it expected of me? 

"Wait, how often did you and Alex do it?" Eleanor shifted in her seat to get a better look, earning a glare from the esthetician.

Sophie thought about it, "Like everyday almost, in the beginning. Now we're down to two or three times a week. Depends on his practice and stuff."

El and I had our eyes bulging out of the sockets, "You guys are together?"

"Oh no!" Sophie laughed, "We're not dating. But sometimes it gets a bit lonely being alone, so, you know..?"

Boy, that was messed up. No wonder Alex was not able to move on.

"So you guys are just like a sex thing, but you're allowed to date other people?"

"Ah, well it's complicated. We're free to do what we want, I think, but neither one of us is interested in someone else at the moment."

"That's... interesting," Eleanor rolled her eyes, "You guys are exclusive, but not dating, and you're having more sex than I am, so I don't fucking get it at all."

"Well, you could go back to Jeff," Sophie teased, making Eleanor's face crinkle in disgust.

"Please. He doesn't know his arse from his balls."

I laughed loudly, a little too loud perhaps, making the nail lady tug my fingers straight. With our hair, nails and body cleaned, we emerged from the salon as new women. Much to my annoyance, Eleanor had forced me, or rather, manipulated me into getting my little home there waxed too. Despite my reasonings and protests, despite the fact that no one would be seeing the efforts there any time soon, I had been laid on a table while the medieval torture was inflicted on me.

The odd feeling of lace over waxed skin was unsettling, so I fled home where I could climb under the sheets and take them off. Progress over assignments was looking good, and for once in my life, it felt like things were all too well.

Suspiciously well, but I was choosing to ignore the small nagging voice in my head reminding me that things could go south any day. The higher the roller coaster goes, the lower it drops. The anticipation was making my stomach clench, but it could also be because Noah was calling me and I could no longer distinguish between that and the butterflies he gave me. I propped my phone against some pillows so I could see him, snuggling into the comforter.

"Hi baby," He let out a flurry of kisses as soon as I answered, sun peeking from behind, blocking my view of his face. I blushed at the endearment, never having heard it before from anyone. At least, not in a way that was romantic. Condescending, sneering, sure. Never in a cute, cuddlesome way.

"Hi," I responded shyly, pulling my comforter closer. The cold weather was really getting to me.

"How was shopping?"

"I got the boots, they're really sturdy," I gave him a brief rundown of everything, while he was walking god knows where.

"Where are you?" I asked as he seemed to sit down in the shade of a tree.

"Had to go see my dad," he ran a hand over his face, "'m waiting for lunch now. Amanda wanted to eat outside near the pool." He made a face, making me laugh immediately. I assumed Amanda was his dad's new wife. Keeping my phone propped up, I had to quickly google to confirm.

Yep, Amanda Sterling. 27 year old socialite. What even was their job? To show up at events? And get paid for wearing clothes. God, I wish I could waste my life away like that. Well, if I was slightly into SoulCycle or whatever new fad everyone was on about.

"You're not a fan of eating outdoors?"

"Not a fan of hers," he corrected, squeezing his nostrils and flattening his lips in a poor imitation of the woman. I laughed hard enough to feel pressure in my insides, something I'd been doing a lot around Noah lately. It made me twist on the insides, giddy with excitement and something else looming around the corner. I didn't dare approach the word, and I knew Noah and I were too far from tipping ourselves over the edge completely.

I told him about Alex and Sophie, he said he had his doubts too. Alex had been acting suspicious of late, and this might be the reason. We left the call once he was being reproached for delaying lunch, and while I blew him a kiss, he only nodded back at me before disconnecting the line.

With nothing else to do, I chucked everything away, ready to take a nap. 

In my dreams, Noah and I were at the beach. Or I assumed it was a beach, since I was wearing a ridiculously small bikini and Noah was walking around without a shirt. Noah kissed me as he emerged in my view, gently, as he always does. I could taste the salt off his lips, the warmth of his breath on my face. Soft as ever, his fingers traced my scar delicately, before reaching behind and pulling me closer to him. Chest pressed to him, legs entangled, I was in Noah-heaven, reveling and slowly unravelling as his skilled mouth worked wonders on my body. My breathing hitched as I felt the hardness of his pants press on me, and I could feel anticipation roll off me in waves.

The bed was warm, engulfing me in it's softness... wait. Bed? I couldn't spend a second to ponder as the sheets were pulled over us, and we picked where we left off. Wandering hands, tangled limbs and lips that could not get enough. I was marked in a million places, and I could see the dark red stains coloring Noah's neck and chest. Had I done those? My question was answered soon as dream-Bri flipped us over, effortlessly pushing her hair to one side and kissing a trail down his neck. I stopped for a second at the base of his collarbone, taking my time to elicit a response I had been hoping for. Noah's breathing was visibly disrupted as I sampled him slowly, while my hands attended him where he needed me the most.

Fuck. As the dream progressed, clothes came off, and temperatures were soaring. What started in soft, gentle touches became harsh grabbing and needy pulling, a symphony of moans and whispers and broken breaths rising as we reached our crescendo and then I woke up. I woke up cold, alone, horribly needy and terribly missing Noah.

Lord save me, because I was surely going to hell for this guy.

***

Does anyone want a chapter from Noah's perspective? Because I sure do want to know what's going on in his teeny weeny head. 

Also, Happy Diwali and Happy New Year to all those celebrating today. I would paste a generic love light and joy message, but I'm a lazy fuck. So *shrugs* you get the point. 

Stay safe, stay home!

- Pari C 

p.s. if you're reading and you like the chapter, please drop a vote or comment! It really motivates me to write further and update faster :)