14 | sweet place

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I park my car in front of Cal's apartment and sigh. It's still dark outside. A glance at my wristwatch tells me that it's only six in the morning. Definitely too early for me to come here.

If I suddenly appear out of the blue, Cal would sense that something is off, and I don't know how to explain it to him.

I rest my head on the steering wheel, thinking that taking a nap now won't be a bad idea. A small scoff of desperation leaves my mouth. I haven't expected that I would do something like this -- sneaking out of my parents' sight to see a guy. It's silly, I know. I feel so pathetic.

I groan and shut my eyes, allowing myself to doze off. I indeed still feel sleepy because of waking up so early.

My eyelids flicker as I feel a ray of sunlight hit my face. I instantly sit up and look at my watch, which reads 07.05 AM.

Great. Just in time.

I quickly dial Cal's number, and his voice echoes from the other side of the line.

"Amy?" He sounds surprised. "Are you waiting for me already?" he teases, and I can't deny that those simple words warm my heart. "I think I'm going to be there in about..." he falters, probably glancing at the clock. "45 minutes from now. Is that okay?"

I bite my lower lip, thinking about how embarrassing this might sound. But I've already dragged myself into this mess, so I have to continue.

"Actually," I start, "You don't need to pick me up. I'm already here in front of your apartment. I'm sorry for being impulsive, but..." I falter, trying to make him understand so that he won't be mad at me.

Of course, he wouldn't be mad at me, would he?

"I just think that it's better if we have breakfast together with Jasmine. I want to see her." Although I'm not telling him the entire truth, I'm not lying either. I do miss Jasmine.

Cal chuckles. "Well, I was planning to bring her with me too so that we can have breakfast together before dropping her off at her school," Cal says. "But never mind. You're already here."

In the background, I can hear Jasmine squeal. "Amelia's here?" Her voice is filled with so much excitement and Joy.

I laugh as relief washes over me. "Okay then, I'm coming." With that said, I hang up with a big smile on my face.

It's amazing how I just felt horrible and restless about my family, but after hearing their voices, my worry vanishes in an instant.

I get out of my car and enter the apartment building. Once I step into the elevator, I push the button to Cal's floor and wait patiently until it stops moving. Again, I realize how affordable this apartment might be, since it doesn't even have a security system to block outsiders from entering specific floors.

When the elevator door opens, Cal comes into view. It turns out that we meet each other halfway while he's about to pick me up downstairs.

My eyes scan his appearance. He's dressed in a white t-shirt and gray joggers, while the front part of his hair is still wet from the shower. A playful grin creeps on his lips, and it does something to my tummy -- creating butterflies in it, specifically.

Cal gives me a peck on the lips, and my heart thuds. He then grabs my hand, leading the way.

As soon as we step into his apartment, I'm greeted by Jasmine, who rushes to me and hugs me tightly. I laugh, bending down as I hug her back. I close my eyes, enjoying her warmth.

"It's so good to see you again, Amelia," she says. "I missed you."

I sigh. "I missed you too, sweetheart."

She pulls away, grinning from ear to ear.

I take in her appearance. She's wearing a white t-shirt and denim overall, ready to attend her Saturday morning's extracurricular activities.

"Now that you're here, will you help me get ready?" She grabs both of my hands, leading me to her room. "Don't worry. Our chef will prepare our breakfast."

I glance at Cal, who has a soft smile on his face when he watches my interaction with his little sister. He shakes his head in amusement and walks off to the kitchen. Now that our plan to have breakfast outside has been changed, he has to cook for us.

Jasmine sits at her dresser, and I hug her shoulders from behind, staring at our reflection in the mirror. "Let's see," I hum. "How should we style your hair this time?"

Jasmine giggles and exclaims without a doubt, "Pigtail buns."

I smile. "Okay. Pigtail buns, it is."

Jasmine watches with happiness skating all over her face as I part her hair in the center so that I can create two pigtail buns on each side later.

"I'm so happy to have you style my hair, Amelia." She grins. "Cal is never good at it, always making it messy," she whispers, as though she doesn't want her brother to find out. "He was always impatient every time he styled my hair, especially when he had to braid it. He always said 'That's good enough. Yup, yup, you're pretty. Come on, you'll be late for school, and I have a job in an hour. These braids are killing me. And so on.'" She mimics his expression animatedly, and I can't help but laugh.

However, it's somehow heartwarming to imagine Cal struggling to style his little sister's hair.

"Are you going to paint the school wall again today?" I ask, imagining her swiping her paintbrush and laughing with her friends. Seeing this girl happy makes me happy too. She's like a little bundle of joy.

"Nope." She shakes her head. "We're going to have a field trip today." She can't hide the anticipation in her voice.

"Really? Where?"

"Some recycling center," she says.

While she rattles about it, and after some time, I finally finish styling her hair. A satisfied smile touches her lips when she scans her appearance in the mirror.

"Breakfast is ready," Cal's voice echoes as he appears in the doorway.

I've caught the smell of the food, which makes my hungry stomach growl. Jasmine and I step into the living room and spot breakfast of three.

Since this apartment doesn't have any dining area, Cal has placed the plates on the coffee table instead. My mouth waters as I stare at sets of butter crisp waffles, french toasts, eggs, slices of bacon, and sausages.

Jasmine and I settle on the couch, while Cal sits on the stool near the kitchen counter. While we're eating our breakfast, I can't help but admit how good Cal's cooking is. It's such a simple breakfast, but it tastes so damn good. Definitely better than my cooking.

I wonder how long Cal has been making food for Jasmine. Considering that they've been living alone, he must have done it for a long time. He's been taking the role of her mother and father all this time, and that makes me respect him even more.

Once we finish our breakfast, I help Cal clean the dishes even though he insists to do it himself while Jasmine shoves some school necessities into her yellow-colored backpack with the face of Disney Princess Jasmine on it.

I hold Jasmine's hand when the three of us exit the room. We take the elevator to reach the ground level and wait for her school bus to arrive. When it does, she hops onto it and waves at us. "Bye, guys."

I wave back at her, smiling softly. I'm an only child in my family, so being close to Jasmine feels like I have a little sister. It brings me warmth and joy.

When the bus finally disappears from our sight, Cal takes my hand in his and leads me back to his place. The moment he closes his apartment door, I'm pushed against it.

My heart is beating so fast when I realize how close we are. He cages me with his arms around me, on both sides. His breath is so close to my ear. Our eyes meet, and I find myself drowning in his again.

Damn, now we're alone in here, aren't we?

"Fuck, I can't get enough of your lips." With that said, Cal kisses me hard, bouncing my body up that I wrap my thighs around his waist and circle my arms around his neck. Still in this position, he carries me toward the couch.



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