Chapter 17: Chapter Seventeen.

Jhelani's POV:

I don't even think I have any ingredients to make a cup of coffee. How would I tell him no now?

"Why are you staring at me like you're going to kill me any moment now? Oh, please don't fucking kill me with those eyes, Foxy. I'm the only gem child my precious mom has," he said dramatically, feigning to be scared.

I rolled my eyes, making sure not to break into a laugh but a tiny smile curled. His antics never failed to earn a reaction from me. Either good or bad.

"Fine. You don't have to make a coffee for this hot guest of yours, but to make up for it—do you mind if we cuddle for a while? Just ten minutes. Us. Alone together while watching the sky view outside?" He said with his arms wide open, smirking.

I shook my head, breaking into a wide smile as I went into his arms and they wrapped perfectly around me like a cocoon. Warm. One of the feelings I've missed having.

If there was something I noticed, I learnt that they were always so warm. And when I say warm, it's just so different from the others I've hugged in the past.

They were warm in a different kind of way that always seemed to console me in times when I cried, or when I felt like I was going to freeze to death.

We went to my balcony, sitting on the small, old rusty swing together, swaying back and forth slowly with our gaze fixed on the sky.

This swing has been here for as long as I can remember. My mom and I usually sat here together, watching the night sky while she read me a fairytale story about a werewolf girl and her prince charming.

We drank hot chocolate teas on this swing. She sang me lullabies with her fingers stroking through my hair as I rested my head on her soft chest, watching the scenery. It was beautiful.

I didn't realize when a tear rolled down my cheek, and I was surprised to feel a hand on my cheek. Then he brought his finger up to my line of gaze.

My teardrop was on his fingertip. Glowing with the moonlight and stars reflecting in it.

"If you're going to keep crying like this, then I don't mind us going back in," he said to me in a concerned voice, and I think I heard him wrong.

This was the first time he sounded like this. I was the only one he showed this rare side of himself. The Loving side and not the annoying fuck ass man that always grated on my nerves.

"No," I shook my head, wiping my eyes. "It's fine. Just some dirt that got into my eyes a while ago," I lied.

"Liar. It doesn't suit you," he said into my ear, stroking through my red hair after flicking the teardrop away.

The moonlight hung in the sky, stars twinkling around it.

It's been a while since I watched the sky like this.

I've been too caught up with everything that's going on in my life and I seem to forget the little things that mattered. The little things that comforted me gave me strength and the motivation to keep going.

Jace yawned in boredom. He didn't even try to hide it and chuckled quietly, mentally shaking my head.

"I think I made a wrong decision coming out here. Everyone says the night sky is beautiful but I don't see anything beautiful about it. Just some moons, stars, and whatever," he vomited out, and I wanted to laugh. Seems he's hanging on his last thread of patience.

Jace has always been the type to love stuff that made adrenaline pulse in his veins, stuff that was amusing to him, no matter how serious and dangerous it may be.

So I was sure as hell convinced that indeed, he's fed up with watching the night with me.

"You're wrong. Everything about the night sky is beautiful. Look right there," I pointed to the sky. "Do you see that? The stars align in a weird shape, but if you look closely and use your imagination, you would see that the stars are telling you something."

Jace strained his eyes on what I was pointing at, squinting and scrutinizing. "Fuck. I don't see anything, Foxy. You're making me look like an old man with poor eyesight," he grumbled.

I hit him on his shoulder and he winced, but I ignored him. "Don't be such a bum. Calm your ass down and see what's beyond. Use your fucking imagination. Or maybe let me help you out there, then you'd see what I'm talking about."

"Oh, that would be fucking great and righteous of you. I feel blind for real," he said in a thankful tone. I laughed in my head..

"See there. There's a horse in a barn and then there's a little girl feeding grass to it with her little hand," I said in a dreamy voice, but when I turned to look at Jace, the expression he had on his face got me rolling on the floor.

He looked so disappointed right now.

"Is that all? Just a girl feeding her horse grass? No, Foxy. I expected more from you," he complained, looking disappointed.

"It's beautiful," I argued.

"No it isn't. It's the dumbest thing I've ever put in efforts to see."

Just then my phone double beeped with a notification in my back pocket.

I pulled it out and checked. One was an email, and the other was a message that I was tagged in the group chat.

I opened my email first, the one that was very important to me compared to the other crap.

"Ahhhh!!!! Yes! Yes! Yes!!," I screamed so freaking loud, jumping on my toes and almost tripping. Good thing Jace had good reflexes and he caught me just in time before my face hit the floor.

It was an acceptance email. From the hospital I applied to earlier. I felt so happy as hell.

"Hey, Foxy. What's got you so happy all of a sudden?" Jace asked, wanting to have a look at my phone, but I hid it behind my back.

"Guess what?"

"I'm not so good at guessing, but let me try. Your 'secret boyfriend' is coming to town? You got promoted at the coffee shop? Hell yeah, I was right. I am so dumb and cringe at guessing," he said.

I grinned, "It's a job acceptance letter. And they say I can start next week. Which means I wouldn't have to work at the coffee shop anymore. Today is Wednesday, so yeah, I can probably drop a resignation letter to Jeanie by Saturday or so," I said in one breath.

I noticed Jace's face paling out for a second before it turned into a really full-on smile.

"Great job, Fox Eyes. I guess I'm one hell of good luck then," he said smugly, brushing his hair behind with his fingers in a swagger.

"I guess so," I shrugged, smiling wide as I sat back down on the swing, then typed in an appreciation response to the email.

After that, I opened the group chat and read through the messages I was being tagged in.

They were planning an outing on a cruise ship and they wanted me to tag along.

Nope. No matter how exciting it sounds or how perfectly planned the outing seems, there's no fucking way I am going there with them after all the bullshit that happened. I thought in my mind, already making the decision not to go.

I quietly exited the group chat without replying to the messages Lisa tagged me in. But I was sure as anything that she wouldn't back off and would still want to persuade me in my DM.

That's until then though.

"Your ten minutes are more than up, Jace. Get going now, shoo," I said pulling him up and shoving him forward from behind, my hand pressed against his back.

"Why are you in such a hurry to get me out of here. I doubt if it's ten minutes yet, Foxy," he complained.

"I've been keeping track of the time, hell yeah, it's more than thirty minutes so you can't lie to me. Outtt," I pushed him out the door.

"At least give me a kiss before I leave," he pleaded then wiggled his eyebrow.

"No. Good night." I slammed the door shut in his face.

"Not fair. But don't worry. I will make sure to appear in your dreams and get that kiss," he said, turning away. I opened the door, pulled him back, and crashed my lips against his in a hot kiss, my hands cupping his face, and then I pulled away before it could last or worse, turn into something more intense.

"Bye," I waved at him and he stared at me in an awes

truck look, speechless. Then silently licked his lips slowly, savouring.

I was also stunned at myself. Haha