Chapter-20|Family Friend

Background color
Font
Font size
Line height

It seemed like hours later when we pulled away because of a giggle. I looked around to see a bunch of girls looking way too drunk pass by us and giggle among themselves.

When the girls were no longer in sight, I turned my head back to catch Ethan watching me intently, with a smug look on his face. We were waiting for each other to give in first and looks like I was the one here who broke first.

"Stop looking so smug!" I said, trying to sound serious, but I couldn't help it when a smile graced my lips.

"Never." He said and bumped his nose with mine, making me scrunch it.

Before I could come up with a smart-ass reply, his phone vibrated. I felt it because I still had his body pressed against mine.

"I think someone is calling you." I said, looking down at his pockets.

He pulled back from me, took out his phone, and showed me the screen where Noah's name was flashing.

"They must be wondering where we are." He said, looking at his phone one last time before sliding it back into his pocket without answering, likely because he wouldn't be able to hear Noah over the music.

"Let's go?" I asked, looking down, and pulled at my dress, trying to fix it.

"Yeah, but before that..." With that, he stepped forward and cupped my chin, making me look at him again before he kissed me.

The kiss was brief, but it made me weak in the knees. Pulling back with his hands still cupping my face, he said, "You look really gorgeous tonight."

"Thank you." I said softly, as my cheeks heated.

"Let's go before Noah comes looking for us." He said, taking my hand in his and started walking away.

"Wait..." I exclaimed, making him pause in his step and turn back to look at me with confusion.

"There's some..." Stepping closer to him, I placed my thumb on his lip and scrubbed off the red lipstick on it. Kissing with red lipstick has some downsides. No matter how hard I rubbed, the red tint wouldn't go away, but this is the best we could do without a makeup remover, I guess.

"There! Done." I said, pulling back, and looked at him with a smile. While I was busy removing the lipstick, I didn't notice the look of adoration on his face but now that I am looking at him from a step away, I could clearly see the small curve of his lips and the brightness in his eyes making me blush all over again.

"Let's go." I said, tilting my head downwards and walked ahead of him to hide my blush.

"Where the hell were you two?" Noah asked as soon as we reached our booth where everyone was sitting.

Dani only raised an eyebrow at my red cheeks but chose not to say anything.

"He had to go outside to receive a call, and I wanted some fresh air so I joined him." I said the first thing that came to my mind.

I was getting incredibly good at this; I thought to myself when none of them cross-questioned me.

Both of us slid back into our seats, and it pleasantly surprised me to see vodka shots already on the table. Not long after, I felt Ethan's arm around the back of my seat and his fingers brush my shoulder lightly.

It was around two in the morning when we made it home. Ethan and I were helping Riley get into the bed. Luckily, Grayson, who wasn't drunk, drove the drunk couple and Noah to the basketball house, saving me some extra work.

"You should go now. I can handle her." I said, looking up to Ethan, and pulled the comforter over Riley's still dress-clad body.

"No, it's alright." He said with a small smile, placing a water bottle and aspirin on her nightstand.

Once we tucked her in, I closed her door on the way out, and both of us came to a stop in the living room.

I was still pondering over what to say when Ethan spoke up.

"I think I should go." He said, scratching the back of his neck.

Great, so now we are awkward around each other. Just what I needed.

"Yeah..." I said, trailing off and mindlessly playing with the lace at the hem of my dress.

There was a moment of silence before we both spoke up at the same time.

"This can't get awkward."

"I don't want it to get awkward." He said.

Stopping our sentences, both of us looked up, catching each other's eyes, and I couldn't help the smile from coming on my lips.

"Great, then!" I said, laughing a little at our timing.

"We are on the same page." He said, taking a step closer.

"We are always on the same page." I said, mimicking him and taking a step closer.

"No, not always." He said, his eyes flicking down to my lips.

"No?" I asked mindlessly as my own eyes flicked down to his lips.

"No, because I want to kiss you so bad right now." He said, circling his arm around my waist.

"Well, then we are on the same page." I smiled, wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling his lips onto mine.

⤎❁⤏

Sundays are always joyful. Just the fact that it's a Sunday makes the day better, but today has been exceptionally amazing. I finally got to hand in my notice for the cheer team. I received a call from the coach very early in the morning asking me if I was okay to put in the official notice today, as she found the perfect replacement.

I was walking towards my car in the college parking lot when my phone rang in my bag. Pulling it out, I saw Dani's name flashing.

"Hey." I said, receiving the phone call.

"Where are you?" She asked, although her voice was overpowered by the sounds of voices floating around her, making me wonder where she is.

"In the college parking lot." I replied, unlocking my car.

"What are you doing there?" Dani was still in the basketball house when I stepped out and Riley was still asleep, which explains her confusion.

Explaining to her why I was here, I slid into the driver's seat of my car.

"Where are you? There is so much noise around you." I asked when I was done telling her about everything.

"Oh! You forgot!" She exclaimed.

"What did I forget?" I asked, completely confused about what was going on.

"We all planned a brunch today, Iris. In fact, everyone is sitting at the table, waiting for you." She mused, and I could picture the teasing smile on her face.

"Oh, my god! How could I forget?" I said, almost banging my head against the steering wheel at my stupidity. How could I forget? We all knew that we would be hungover today, some obviously more than others. So, we thought it would be a good idea to have a greasy, good breakfast together.

"It's alright. We are waiting. Just come quickly." She said as I heard Riley and Noah laugh in the background.

"Tell them to fuck off! And I can't just come. I have to change. I am all sweaty and smelly because of the damn sun." I groaned.

"Okay, so change and come." She said in a duh voice.

"Yeah, but I don't want to keep you guys hanging. Alright, I'll come as soon as I can but you guys go ahead and order without me." I said, putting my keys in the ignition.

"Yeah, okay, be quick!" She said and hung up as I started driving back to the apartment.

That was why thirty minutes later, I walked inside our favorite restaurant named 'Aroma'. It was a classy restaurant, but not formal enough to require you to wear cocktail dresses.

Changing within twenty minutes was a task, but it became significantly simpler when I found my new dress hanging in the very front of my closet. It was a beautiful blue dress with a sweetheart neckline and a side slit. It had small white flowers all over it and that just made it cuter.

My white heels clicked against the hardwood floor of the restaurant as I tried to locate my friends, finally finding them on our usual table in the corner.

As I got closer to the table, I noticed Dani, Grayson, and Noah sitting with the fronts while Riley, Ethan, and Mason sat with their back to me. What surprised me was the unfamiliar redhead sitting beside Ethan, whose face wasn't visible to me.

"Finally! I was starving!" Grayson exclaimed, bringing everyone's attention to me as he saw me first, and stood up to come to meet me halfway on my way to the table.

Chuckling a little at his behavior, I hugged him back and followed him to the table, where everyone had their attention on us.

Finally, setting my eyes on the redhead, I realized I've never seen her before but she was beautiful. The kind who didn't have a single hair out of place or a clipped nail. She could be a model if she wanted to be.

"Hey, guys." I hugged Riley and Noah from behind on my way to the empty seat next to Grayson, right across from Ethan.

"Why haven't you ordered yet?" I asked, looking at the empty table as I bent down to hug Dani.

"We were waiting for you." Ethan said, making me look up to meet his eyes and finally get a good look at him. It was a mistake. The urge to pull him somewhere private was strong, but to push that girl's hand off of his shoulder was stronger.

"I bet you were." I said with a formal smile on my face, sitting down on the empty seat.

"Hey. I am Iris." I said, looking at the girl, trying my best to keep a friendly smile on my face.

"Hey! I am Lily." She said, and her strong Australian accent threw me off slightly.

"She's a close family friend." Ethan elaborated, making her look at him with her big green eyes filled with admiration.

"Way too close." I heard Riley cough from the other side of the table and I was sure I'm not the only one who heard her, as the smile on Lily's face flattered a little.

"She's visiting LA. So, that's why..." He said, looking a little flustered and apologetic.

"And also because Ethan missed me too much. I had to come and meet you, boo." She said, plastering a chaste kiss on Ethan's cheek, making his eye go big while mine narrowed on the lipstick stain on his cheek.

I solely focused my eyes on Ethan, who was trying his best to scrub off the lipstick, making last night flash before my eyes when something very similar happened and it made my cheeks go a deep shade of crimson red. Ethan gazed at me, and his dark eyes told me that his mind was also in the gutter.

"This will not end well." I heard Noah whisper to Gray, who started nodding his head, reminding me of the kiss Lily gave him.

"There is nothing to end." I whispered harshly, leaning over Gray to look at Noah more closely.

"Let's order something." Dani said loudly, likely to diffuse the tense situation.

I could feel Ethan staring at me, but I refused to look up at him, knowing I'm reacting illogically. She kissed him. It's not his fault, and she's just a family friend who likely wants to drag him somewhere private, just like me. But that's not the point. The point is, I'm being unreasonable.

"Hey! You guys look cute together." I heard Lily say.

Looking up, I noticed her looking at me with a sweet smile on her face, too sweet to be honest. She wasn't just looking at me instead; she was looking at me and Gray.

"We?" I asked, pointing a finger at him.

"Yeah! You make a great couple."

Looking over at Gray, I saw him looking at Ethan, trying so hard not to laugh. On second thought, it's actually hilarious that she thinks that Grayson and I are together, and I can't even imagine the look on Ethan's face.

"Oh, no-" Gray started clarifying, but I stopped him mid-sentence.

"That's so sweet of you. Thank you." I smiled at her, leaning my head on Gray's shoulder, making him stiffen. I pinched him under the table, making him flinch a little, but instantly relax, getting my hint to play along.

Looking at everyone at the table, I could see the humor on their face. It was wrong of Lily to assume we were together, so you can't blame me if I want to have a little fun.

Looking at Ethan, I could see his face get heated with all the anger he was trying to hide. He was completely ignoring Lily's ranting because his sole focus was on me, or more precisely on my head on Gray's shoulder.

"He's gonna kill me after this." Gray whispered as the server started taking everyone's order.

"No, he might punch you but killing is a little extreme." I said, sitting up straighter and smiling sweetly at him.

"By the way, just for the record, you're not my type." He smirked, shrugging his shoulder.

"Neither are you." I retorted.

"Oh, I know because I know your type." He said, taking a sip of my iced coffee.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Yeah, it's called... Ethan Knight." He smirked just as Noah choked on his orange juice.

"Haha, hilarious and you! Stop eavesdropping!" I said, pointing a finger at Noah.

"This conversation is way too entertaining to not eavesdrop, especially when your cheeks get all red." He said.

Everyone at the table was having their own conversations. Riley and Dani were engrossed in a conversation about their classes while Mason and Ethan talked about their next game, with Lily trying to intervene every minute.

"One day, Reid! One day. You'll find a girl and I'll tease the fuck out of you." I said with a determined expression.

"What? Noah got a girl?" Dani asked, her voice laced with excitement.

"No! I don't have a girl!" Noah scoffed.

Soon the dishes came out and everyone got busy with their food. All the dishes looked really pretty but Ethan's dish that I don't know the name of looked really appetizing. Maybe he was right. Maybe I do like having options when I'm eating. Unfortunately, we were surrounded by people and he had a girl wrapped around him, otherwise, I could have taken a bite from that delicious-looking dish.

⤎❁⤏

Hey guys! So, the redhead.... Lily! Do we like her?

I had something to ask you guys. Do you think we are going too fast or too slow? I am not talking about the pace of the story but the pace of updates. Sometimes, I feel like I'm updating too much and on other days, I feel like I'm updating too less but then again, there is no such thing as too many updates, right?

Don't forget to vote and comment if you enjoyed the update. Also, follow me on Wattpad and on Instagram (spiicychoco)

QOTD:  I asked this in the beginning but now, we are twenty chapters deep, so I think it's time to re-evaluate. Who is your favorite character?

You are reading the story above: TeenFic.Net