"You mean, like playing piano?" My eyes dart to him, completely surprised.

"How do you..." I don't complete my question, because I'm too taken aback that he brought this up. I know now that I was actually thinking about playing piano, but I couldn't get my head around it to accept the thought.

This is what I used to do well and love to this point.

"Sometimes you underestimate how much I know you, Alex."

I open my mouth to say something, but nothing comes out of it. I'm completely flattered and astonished that Bennett pays this much attention to me.

I already knew he did, but knowing what I was thinking when I wasn't even sure, that's another level.

It makes me feel so special. Even more than having him taking care of me.

"Come on, let's take a break." He finally says, making me close my mouth and snap out of whatever just happened.

"A break?" I ask, the air shifting to a much lighter one. "Are you taking me to have burgers again, like that one time?"

"No, it's even better." He takes my hand after he throws the experiment away and pulls me towards the door. We go down the hall in the direction where the auditorium is, until I realize that's exactly where he's taking me.

"What are you doing?" I ask, trying to ignore his hand in mine as he continues to walk decisively, pulling me along in a tight hold.

I also try to ignore the fact that it's almost dark in this hallway and if it weren't for him, I'd be scared shitless.

We go inside the auditorium, and we only stop when we're close to the stage, where all the music equipment is. I widen my eyes once again when I see the big piano in front of me and I know what his intentions are.

He sits on the bench in front of it, one leg on each side and pats in front of him, for me to sit as well. I hesitate for a second, but then I sigh and make my way to sit.

I face the keyboard intently as if it's a mystery I need to solve, while Bennett's eyes are focused on me.

"Why are you doing this?" I ask, my eyes still on the piano.

"Because I want to help you." He plays a key and the sound reverberates the entire auditorium.

God, I love the acoustics of this place, but that's not the point here.

"Why?'' He continues to look at me and we fall into silence before he replies. ''Help me with what?"

"Help you do something you love." I nod, not sure how I feel with all of this. "Play."

I stare at the piano, then at him, then at the piano again.

I want to feel the keyboard, I want to have the same adrenaline I used to have when learning a completely new song and getting it right from start to finish for the first time.

"I haven't played in forever." I hesitate.

"I know." He smiles . "You shouldn't have stopped."

"Right, because I was so good." I clearly joke and he smiles. Just my attempt to feel less nervous. It's not working though.

"What? You think people came to see our school play? No, they used to come to listen to you play, except for the actors' parents, obviously." We both snort a laugh.

"That's not true, our play is pretty cool." He nods in agreement, but I can't tell if he's joking or not, but I guess he is.

"Well, that's why I came." He confesses.

"That's also not true." I can't help the redness on my cheek.

I look at him with a playful frown on my face and I realize that he's actually not kidding. I always wondered why he would come to see the annual play as it's not really his scene, but I never understood the reason.

Unless he's not serious. What would anyone come to see me play? That makes no sense.

Also, he's now part of the play staff, so what do I know? Maybe he likes the plays as much as the rest of us do. Why am I even thinking about this right now?

"Go ahead." I look at him and I finally nod.

For some reason, I think that he's right. I probably shouldn't have stopped and I want to play now. I really do.

However, thinking about playing is terrifying me. I guess I decided that playing again was never going to happen, so I turned my feelings into resentment.

He gives me some space and waits until I'm ready. It takes me a couple of minutes, but I finally put my hands on the keyboard and softly start playing the notes.

My palms are sweaty and my hands are shaking, but once I start, it's as if I never stopped. It's like my brain remembers exactly what to do.

So I play. I play like never before. It feels so good that I just keep going and going.

I start playing one of my favorite songs. The Scientist, by Coldplay, is coming naturally and I suddenly start singing at the same time that I play. I'm not embarrassed that I'm not the best singer, I just don't care, a wave of intense emotions feeling me up.

I focus on the words leaving my mouth and I think it's funny how the lyrics relate to me and Bennett somehow. I didn't choose this one on purpose, it just came out.

Come up to meet you, tell you I'm sorry, you don't know how lovely you are...

I had to find you, tell you I need you, tell you I set you apart... tell me your secrets, ask me your questions, oh let's go back to the start...

Running in circles, coming up tails, heads on a science apart...

Nobody said it was easy, it's such a shame for us to part...

I was just guessing, at numbers and figures, pulling the puzzles apart...

Nobody said it was easy, no one ever said it would be this hard... Oh, take me back to the start

Questions of science, science and progress, don't speak as loud as my heart...

But tell me you love me, come back and haunt me...

Oh and I rush to the start...

Nobody said it was easy...

I glance to my side as I play and sing and I find Bennett's eyes focused on me again.

Not just focused, he's looking at me like there's nothing else in the world he would rather stare at.

I feel such an intensity taking over my entire being and it's exciting and so many different feelings that it's hard to put a name to all of it. love this feeling.

Everyone should find someone that looks at them the way Bennett is looking at me.

You know the look of pure admiration? That's the look. His eyes are shining, a different shade and his stare is deep, like he sees my soul.

I stop playing, but I keep my hands on the keyboard, my eyes not leaving his.

Our bodies are too close and this makes it all more intense. Having him sitting so close to me is clouding my judgment and I must say that Bennett has never been more attractive than he is right now.

There's just one thing I can think of doing and not wanting to give it a second thought, I act on impulse and lean forward.

Before I can think this through, my lips are on his.

I press them hard on his mouth as I kiss him, but I feel his body stiffen and he doesn't react. I immediately pull away, but I still keep minimum space between us, waiting to see his reaction.

I stay frozen in place, barely breathing and he seems as shocked as me. If I lean in, just an inch, our lips will touch again and still in this nonsense act, I do just that. I lean once again and quickly peck him on his lips, letting my lips linger for a second too long, but he still doesn't do anything.

I pull away, feeling embarrassed.

I don't know what to do, as that amazing feeling is now turned into rejection, but I don't even have time to think, because before I know it, he brings his hands to my neck in a fast move and pulls me back towards him and this time, he's the one kissing me.

I immediately kiss him back, opening my mouth and passing my tongue on his lips in a bold move and it's like all self-control is out the window.

The moment I do this, his grip tightens and I feel him exploring my mouth with urgency, but still soft and sweet. Gentle in a way that only Bennett can be. It's exactly what I would imagine Bennett's kiss to be, not that I thought about it before, but it's so like him.

Unrushed, but deep and intense.

His hand goes to the back of my head as he pulls me even closer and the moment his tongue goes even deeper inside my mouth, exploring every single part of it, I feel it hit me.

There they are.

Butterflies. Fireworks. All of it. You name it.

I've never considered kissing him like this until right now, but If I knew that it would be Bennett West who would make me feel things I never knew were even possible to feel with just a kiss, I would have considered it sooner.

Finally conscious of what is going on, we both pull away, our lips swollen and our cheeks with a red tint that gives away that he's feeling the same as me.

I'm paralyzed and for a second all I want is to kiss him again. I want his lips on mine, I want him to bite my lips just like he did seconds ago.

I keep staring at him and he keeps staring at me as well, our bodies still so close that I can feel his heavy breath on my face and I can practically hear both our hearts pounding.

Not wanting to get back to reality, I'm about to lean in for another kiss when we hear the loud sound of the metal door of the auditorium opening and we jump apart.

My heart is beating fast, like it's going to jump out of my chest, but I'm not sure why. Is it because of Bennett or is it because someone is here and might kill us?

We then hear Mr. Jones, the janitor, storming in our direction and I relax a little, because at least I know it's not the end of me. I get to live tonight.

Ok, not the best time for jokes.

"What are you two doing here? Get out of my auditorium. Now!" He yells at us, so we both stand up and rush to the lab to get our things, without saying a word to each other.

Once we organize the mess we made with all the equipment and our books, we silently decide it's time to go, so I'm practically running in front of him.

Although I'm walking fast, he doesn't seem in a rush as he walks normally with his hands holding his backpack, and he seems deep in thoughts, his face too serious.

Why does he seem so calm about this?

I'm freaking the fuck out here, big time!!

We get inside his car and I know the way home is going to be tense. I want to run away, but I'm stuck in the car with him instead. I glance to my side and I can see with the corner of my eyes that he's holding the wheel so tight his knuckles are turning white, while I'm playing with my hand and controlling myself not to bite my nails until my fingers bleed.

We still don't say a word, not even the radio is on. It would make it even more awkward with some nice music on, so I'm glad he didn't turn it on.

He stops the car in front of my house and turns off the engine, but we don't move. We just sit there in silence for what feels like forever. Even wanting to run, it's like I'm frozen.

I finally decide that there's no point in staying here and not even talking about it, but I also don't know what to say, so I make a move to open the door and he does the same.

"You don't have to walk me home, really, please don't do it." I plea.

I know it doesn't make any sense, but I just want to get out of here as fast as possible. Which is stupid, considering I was frozen in place second ago.

If he walks me to my door, it will be just more difficult than it already is, like we're getting back from a date, which is so not the case.

Although, we ended up kissing.

God, I kissed Bennett. What the hell was I thinking?

He eyes me carefully before stopping himself and closing his door again.

"Can we at least talk about it?" He asks before I get the chance to leave.

I sigh. I close the door too and we're back to the heavy tension and silence.

I should leave, I know and I want to, but for some reason, I don't. This is so messed up. Is it just hard to breathe or is it me having a nervous breakdown? Probably the ladder.

"I'm sorry." He says and I look at him, to find his eyes fixed on the steering wheel, his brows furrowed together. I read it as a mix of confusion, sadness and anger, I guess. I can't read him that well, so I'm not sure.

"It wasn't your fault." I say, looking away for a second.

"Yes, it was, Alex." His eyes meet mine and he raises his voice a little, before he's back to normal.

"No, I kissed you." I firmly state.

"Well, I kissed you back." He remarks back, sharply.

"Can we just forget this happened? I don't want to mess things up.''

''What things?'' He asks, finally looking at me.

''I don't know. I don't want to mess with our... friendship and my relationship with Dylan, I guess.'' Why is this so hard? I feel so confused right now.

"Dylan?" He seems even more confused than me, before it all turns into hurt, like realization hit him. "Right, you have to think about Dylan. It's always about Dylan, of course, so we should fucking forget about it."

"Isn't that what you want too?" I ask in a low voice, barely a whisper, because I feel my throat dry.

And also because I'm afraid to ask this. What if he says the same, that we should forget about it? I mean, he will say the same, he should say the same.

"It doesn't matter what I want, does it?"

I feel guilt taking over me, because this is all my fault. I started it. I leaned forward and kissed him. I felt so overwhelmed playing piano again, with how he was looking at me and it just happened.

I wasn't thinking straight.

I felt bad for what happened, especially when Dylan just sent me a text saying that he was looking forward to seeing me tomorrow at his game.

Not to mention that Bennett has Kate to think about as well. I made him cheat on his girlfriend. I cheated on my boyfriend.

With his brother.

What have I done? I'm such a freaking monster.

"Let's forget about it, Alex." I nod, but I'm not sure this is what I want, even if I suggested it.

He's back to staring at the road in front of him. Bennett is the type of guy that always looks me deep in the eyes, so having him not being able to face me, breaks my heart.

Well, I deserve it.

Without another word, I open the door and this time I'm quick to leave the car and practically run to my house. I feel like I'm running away from him, but what if I don't want to?

I open the door with shaking hands and I run to my bedroom. I receive a text from my dad right after, asking me if I'm ok. He said hi, but I didn't reply, I just passed by him like a hurricane to my room.

After I text him that I just needed to use the bathroom, I throw myself on my bed and scream into my pillow.

I can't believe that I kissed Bennett! I mean, it's Bennett we're talking about.

I can't kiss him.

I'm freaking out and I have to admit that the reason is not really because I kissed my boyfriend's brother.

It's because I liked it.

........................

Hello Lovely Readers,

Well, it happened. Bennett and Alex kissed! Holy freaking shit AND there were FIREWORKS!

What do you think will happen next? Knowing Alex personality and how much of an overthinker she is, I don't think it will be easy for her.

It's been a rollercoaster and emotional chapter for me, I don't even know what to say here, so just share your thoughts, PLEASE!

Looking forward to reading your comments!

Love always,

Me