"Fuck yes!" Noah cheers from beside me, making me roll my eyes. "I win!"

Throwing the controller to the side, I pick up my iced coffee from the table. "Yeah. One out of three times."

Slurping the coffee from the steel straw, I lean back. "Fucking great score, Reid."

"You're just jealous!" He claims and takes my coffee from me. I turn towards him with my mouth open and eyes wide.

"I'm jealous?" I exclaim. "I won two rounds out of three. You play this stupid game every day and still lose!"

"And I'm the jealous one." I scoff and snatch my coffee back.

I sip my coffee before turning to Noah when I don't hear a smart-ass comeback. Meeting my eyes, he watches me with amusement.

"What the fuck are you so amused about?" I ask, raising an eyebrow.

"You're so pissed about Knight's situation. It's hilarious." He says, making me roll my eyes. My anger is amusing to him.

"I am not pissed." I huff, slurping my coffee.

I am pissed. Royally pissed.

Ethan was supposed to come back tomorrow evening, but now, it won't be possible because the team has a match in Dallas the day after tomorrow. Ethan wasn't going to be a part of the match of this time because he hadn't practiced with the team for ten days now.

This afternoon he called me, sounding gloom and I just knew that his plan of coming back went right down the drain. Now, the coach wants him to play because, according to the sources, the manager of the Knicks is going to watch this game live. Knicks just so happened to be Ethan's dream team.

With the draft coming soon, the coach thinks it's important Ethan comes out in full form to impress the manager because he had contacted the coach earlier just to confirm if Ethan would be playing this match or not.

I'm not pissed that he's going to play. He should play. After all, it's his dream team and nobody knows if he'll ever get the chance to impress the manager in a live match again. I'm just upset that we'll have to wait a day longer to see each other. It's already been so long.

Now, instead of coming here, he would fly to Dallas tomorrow and then come back the day after with the team. It's three days later and I hate it.

"You're missing him, aren't you?" He asks, poking my arm with his finger.

"Don't do it again." I say sternly, turning to him. "And of course I miss him."

Just when everything fell into place, he had to leave, which is so sad. I understand why he had to leave, but that's doesn't make me any happier.

"Aww. Poor Reed missing her Knight." He coos and pinches my cheek. Something about the way he said it makes me laugh, causing his lips to break out in a smile.

"There's that smile." He says, satisfied with himself, and sits back.

"Fuck off." I scoff but couldn't help the stupid smile on my face.

"I'll order food." He says, picking up his phone. "What are you in the mood for?"

"Chinese." I say, without a single thought. It's been so long since I've eaten anything Chinese.

"Chinese, it is." He says with his eyes on the screen of his phone.

The food arrives shortly after. It's as delicious as I remember, and Noah and I practically inhale it within a few minutes. We put on The Umbrella Academy as we enjoyed our food and neither of us realized before it was like one in the morning.

The front door open, catching my attention. I move my eyes from Klaus to Gray, who just entered the house.

"What are you doing here?" He asks, looking at me with furrowed brows, making Noah snort.

"Wow. Now, I can't come here?" I ask teasingly.

"No. It's not like that." He says, closing the door behind him and steps in. "It's one in the morning. You mostly leave by eleven."

My eyes widen when his words register in my mind. "What?" I whisper and pick up my phone to see the time. The digits on my lock screen confirm his words.

"I told you we should have stopped two episodes ago." I accuse, turning towards Noah.

"You didn't complain once the episode started." He retorts, narrowing his eyes.

"Okay, don't start fighting now." Gray says, collapsing on the couch between the two of us.

"Where are you coming from, anyway?" I ask Gray, brows furrowed.

"You really wanna know?"

"Yeah." I ask, more confused than ever.

"I was with Tiffany." He tells me, making me realize what 'with' meant.

"Of course." I say, rolling my eyes.

"I warned you." He says, throwing his arm over my shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." I wave him off before picking up my phone.

"I am gonna leave now." I say, getting up.

"Woah, woah." Gray says and pulls me back.

"What?" I ask as I watch Noah sit up straighter.

"You can't leave so late at night. It's not safe." Gray says, making Noah nod.

"Oh, come on." I groan. "It's not like I'm walking back. I'm driving."

"Not safe either." Noah confers.

"So, what?" I ask, folding my arms. "You want me to take the couch for the night?"

"No." Gray shakes his head. "You can sleep in Knight's room."

"What? No!" I say, shaking my head.

"He's not here. I can't just sleep in his room."

Sleeping in anyone's bed without their permission is simply disrespectful and creepy. It doesn't matter if he's my boyfriend or not and it's not like we've been dating for years.

"You're his girlfriend." Noah says, with his eyebrows raised like he can't understand my unwillingness.

"It's still so weird to hear anyone else say that." I murmur. "I am his girlfriend but that's just not right." I say, more clearly.

"Okay, I have a solution." Gray says, getting up. "Sit here."

"Don't let her move." he says, turning to Noah, making me roll my eyes.

So much for trust.

He takes out his phone from the pocket of his pants. My brows furrow as I guess what he's doing.

"What is he doing?" I ask Noah with my eyes glued to Gray.

"I have no idea." he murmurs with his hand wrapped around my arm like I'm gonna run away. Even if I did, I seriously debate my chances of getting away from two athletes.

He presses his phone to his ear. Who the fuck is he calling so late at night?

"Hey, Knight." He greets, making my eyes widen.

He walks away towards the kitchen before I could say something.

"Is he stupid?" I exclaim, trying to get up but fail when Noah pulls me back down on the couch.

"Why would he call him?" I say, with my mouth open and brows furrowed. "Ethan's had a super busy day with hospital and the practice. He doesn't need to deal with this."

"I'm sure he doesn't mind." Noah muses.

"Don't you dare sound amused." I grind out, pointing a finger at his face.

"Yeah, yeah." I hear Gray say as he walks back into the room. "Yeah, let me just hand her the phone."

He holds his phone out to me, making me narrow my eyes at him. When he doesn't budge, I sigh, take the phone, and press it against my ear.

"Hey..." I mumble as I eye Gray and Noah, watching me amusedly.

"Hi." I hear Ethan say softly from the other side. Even though his voice is filled with sleep, it instantly relaxes my tense posture. "Why don't you wanna sleep in my room?"

"Because... you're not here and... I don't know. It's... disrespectful and creepy." I say, running my fingers through my hair with a sigh.

"It's not disrespectful if I ask you to sleep in it..." He points out, painting his soft tone. "Does that make you feel better about the situation?"

I was worried about what would he think when he comes to know about it because honestly, it's been too long since I've been in a relationship and I feel like I have forgotten how to be in one. How to be a part of something and not be only on your own.

"Yeah, that makes me feel better." A soft smile tugs at my lips as I think about sleeping in his bed. It's... intimate.

"Most of my hoodies and T-shirts are still in my closet. Take whatever you want." He tells me, making me grin like a Cheshire cat.

I might not remember how to be in a relationship, but I definitely remember one particular benefit that comes with it. Endless supply of oversized and comfortable clothes.

"Okay." I bite on my lip, trying to hide my giddiness.

"Okay." He says, sounding like he's smiling too.

"Maybe okay will..." I start, but he interrupts me with a groan.

"No. Stop." He grumbles and I laugh, throwing my head back.

"Why?" I try to whine, but the amusement in my voice fails me.

"If you say it, I'm not coming back." He threatens and I instantly sober up.

"You play dirty, Knight." I say, narrowing my eyes at the controller lying on the coffee table. "But what if I don't care if you come back or not?"

"There are no what-ifs. You care. You care so much that I'm sure you were sulking all day." His voice is filled with cockiness, but there's an underlying tone of adoration.

"You're wrong about that one." I lie through my teeth, but to my surprise, he simply chuckles.

"Yeah? The video Dani sent me says otherwise. You were chomping on those fries like they killed your cat." He says, laughing.

Okay. I'll agree. I might have been a little aggressive with the fries, but I didn't know I was being filmed and that too, by my very best friend.

"Traitor." I murmur.

"Aww. It's okay, I'm bummed out, too." He says, instantly making me smile.

"That makes me feel better." I say, chuckling. "Thank you."

"Anytime." He chuckles along with me. His smooth, honey-like voice dripping through the speaker into my ears makes me miss him more.

"Now, please go to my bed and sleep because you have to wake up for your class tomorrow and nobody likes a grumpy Iris." He says, teasing.

"Oh please. I am not grumpy." I defend.

"Yes, you are." Noah and Gray say together. Their voices make me jump because I got so lost in the conversation that I forgot they are still here, which is surprising since their tall bodies are kind of hard to ignore.

"They agree." Ethan's laughter pours through the speaker, turning my pout into a smile.

"Whatever." I shout, trying to silence the three boisterous boys I have around me. "I am going to sleep."

"Alright." Ethan says, calming down. "Good night. I miss you."

"I miss you, too." I say before hanging up the phone and looking up at Gray and Noah, who are giving me amused glances with raised brows.

"What?" I asked, nervously.

"You're worse than him." Gray says and Noah nods in agreement, confusing me.

"What?"

"We thought among the two of you, he's the one who is whipped as fuck but we were wrong." Noah explains and I cover my face with a groan, knowing where this is going.

"You are so fucking whipped." Gray says, smirking at me. "You can't keep that stupid smile off of your face."

"Shut up before I slap you." I say, but my voice gets muffled because of my hands on my face.

"You can live in denial but that doesn't change the facts." Noah sings with a teasing grin on his face.

"Fuck off." I say, showing him the finger and get up from the couch.

"You going to bed?" Gray asks, collapsing on the couch, right where I was sitting.

"Yeah, because apparently, nobody likes a grumpy Iris." I grumble, shaking my head, and walk towards the stairs and Noah and Gray laugh behind me.

"Alright, goodnight, Reed." Noah says.

"Knock on my door or call me if you need anything." Gray tells me.

"Sure." I call back and start climbing the stairs.

Reaching the end of the stairs, I come face to face with Ethan's door. I wrap my hands around the doorknob and push it open. I don't know what I expected, but a dark room wasn't it.

Why would he leave the light on? Stupid!

I walk inside and softly close the door behind me. With the door closed, the light from the hallway is no longer lighting up the room. Moving to my left, I find the switchboard and turn on the lights.

My eyes jump from one corner to another as I take everything in. It's exactly how Ethan and I left it ten days ago.

I half expect myself to feel lonely in here, but the familiar scent of his room comforts me. It's almost as if he'll walk in any second.

Sighing, I walk over to his closet and take out the first black T-shirt I see. After changing my clothes and brushing my teeth, I slip under his navy blue covers. Instantly, the smell of his cologne envelopes me. It's faded, but it's there. I wonder if he sprays his bed covers with his cologne.

I shake my head at the stupid thought. Just as I begin to close my eyes, my phone pings, showing a message. Sighing tiredly, I pick up my phone and unlock it.

The message brings a smile to my face as I giggle a little before slapping my hand on my lips with wide eyes. I did not just giggle. No.

Locking my phone with a giddy smile, I close my eyes, but the letters from the message keep swirling in my head.

Ethan:

Stop making me think about you.

⤎❁⤏

Ethan won!

The match ended a few hours ago with our team emerging as the winners. Unfortunately, I was forced to watch it alone since Riley was still in North Carolina and Dani is at her friend's place for a group project. That didn't stop us from face-timing as soon as the match ended and gushing about it.

Once the call ended, I hopped into the shower and changed into a pair of black sweatpants and a strappy cropped tank top of the same color. Pulling my hair into a messy bun, I sat down to complete my assignments and study for the upcoming test.

It's around eleven at night when my phone rings, making me move my eyes from the book opened in front of me to my phone lying on my bed.

Pushing back my chair a bit, I get up and pick up my phone from the bed. My brows scrunch when Dani's name flashes across my screen. Swiping, I accept the call and hold it against my ear.

"Hello?" I greet in a very confused voice.

"Hey. Hi." she says, meekly. "I am so, so sorry. Don't kill me for this, but..." she starts, making me raise my eyebrows in question.

"I forgot to take the keys with me. Can you open the door for me?" She says softly and I can already picture her pouting on the other end of the phone.

"Seriously Dani? Again?" I groan before putting away the pen still lingering in my hand.

"I know. I know." She sighs. "I am so sorry. I swear, this won't happen again!"

"You and I both know that's a lie." I say as I step out of my room. "I'm coming."

I hang up as I step into the living room and walk towards the main door with a bored and exhausted expression on my face. Almost four hours of continuous studies would do that to you.

Wrapping my hand around the doorknob, I pull the door open, ready to curse Dani in every language I know but I am left surprised when the person on the other side isn't a blue-eyed black hair girl but a brown-eyed brown hair guy.

There he stood with a panty-dropping smile on his face and a huge baby's breath bouquet in his hands.

A surprised gasp leaves my mouth as I stare at him wide-eyed, "Ethan..."

⤎❁⤏

Hey guys! Happy Late Update To You!

I sincerely apologize for this ridiculously late update but I can't promise that I'll do better in the near future because a very important event of my life is less than a month away and it needs preparation. So, forgive me.

Anyways, how are y'all?

The next chapter is going to be a little more heated. *wink*

Don't forget to vote and comment if you enjoyed this chapter. Follow me on Wattpad and Instagram (spiicychoco) for more.

QOTD: What's your favorite quote from a TV show/movie/book?

My heart goes out to everyone living in Afghanistan. It's extremely disheartening and daunting to watch everything unfold in this way. I pray for you to find peace, comfort, and safety as soon as possible.

Stay safe, Stay grateful.