Chapter 46 Master of Kisses.
He stares at her in surprise.
Steph brings her hand to her side and says. "Hi."
He looks behind her and sees Brooke's car parked by the curb in front of his house.
Brooke lets the window down and yells. "Hi, Chris! Bye, Chris!"
Then she winks before she starts the car and she drives away.
Chris returns his gaze to Stephanie and she bites her lip.
"Can I come in?" She asks.
Seeing as he can't avoid her right now without being rude, he sighs. "Sure, come on in."
He steps aside and she walks into the house. He shuts the door and sees that she has taken off her coat. He collects it from her and hangs it on the coat rack. They proceed further into the living room and sit on separate couches.
There's a pregnant pause as they both awkwardly sit in silence. Each person thinks of what to break the silence with.
They both try to speak at the same time.
"What--"
"Can--"
They both stop, waiting for the other to complete their sentence.
"You go first," Chris urges with a blank expression on his face.
Always the gentleman, Steph thinks as she smiles faintly.
"We need to talk."
If she says she isn't a little nervous, she'll be lying. She just hopes it goes well and honestly, she didn't think this through. She just decided she needed to talk to him urgently. It can't wait till Monday.
"We are talking," is Chris' reply.
Steph rolls her eyes -- he always manages to make her do that every time they're together.
Steph finds herself studying him in silence as a biology student would study a specimen in the laboratory. His disheveled hair and the fact that it seems he just got out of bed.
"Did I wake you up?" She inquires.
"Yes, you did."
"I'm sorry."
He just woke up and yet he still manages to look good.
"It's okay."
"What about Emily and your mum?" Steph asks. She knows she's stalling but she's thinking of how to go about this.
"They're still asleep."
Steph bites her lips and fidgets with her fingers as Chris watches her. The tension in the air is only making her even more uncomfortable.
After a few seconds, she decides, It's now or never.
"Christopher?"
"Yes?"
Steph says the first thing that comes to her head.
"Did you mean what you said the other day?"
A few beats pass and Steph begins to dread that he won't answer so she holds her breath.
"Yes," Chris says softly which makes Steph look at him. "I meant every word."
Steph releases the breath she was holding but she can't come up with anything to say to his answer.
"Did you think I didn't mean it?" Chris questions.
Steph nods.
"I never joke with something like that, Hazel."
Steph smiles at the nickname. She hasn't heard him say it for a while now.
Now that she knows he wasn't kidding, does it change anything? Chris wonders.
"I... I don't know what to say," Steph mumbles.
"You didn't also know what to say on Monday," Chris mutters to himself but she hears.
"You didn't exactly give me time to digest the information; let alone say something. You just walked away," Steph points out.
Chris stays silent.
"Look, Chris....." Steph trails off because she doesn't exactly know what she wants to say.
Should she tell him exactly how she's feeling?
"I know what you're going to say --"
"No, you don't."
"I know you don't feel the same way. I wouldn't expect you to --"
Steph cuts him off. "Chris. Christopher... Can you just stop talking and listen to me?"
Chris sighs but nods in agreement. He leans forward, propping his elbows on his knees, and rests his head on his palms.
Steph stands and walks over to the couch he's seated. She sits by his left side, leaving no space.
Chris raises his head to look at her and she smiles. She takes his left hand in her right one and interlaces their fingers.
He tries to ignore the feeling of her hand in his. It feels so good. Their interlaced hands rest on Steph's thigh and she uses her left hand to brush the back of his palm soothingly.
"I won't lie to you and say I feel the same way. I won't do that. But I want you to know that you're important to me. You're very important to me. I didn't realize that until you blatantly started to avoid me. And to be honest, I don't know how I'm feeling right now. Yes, I like or used to like Luke and I was excited about our date. But yesterday on our date, all I wanted to do was leave. I just kept thinking about what you told me," she pauses, absentmindedly still stroking the back of Chris' palm with her gaze on the coffee table.
"I don't know if I still feel the same way I initially felt about Luke. I feel like my feelings for him have changed and I honestly don't know if I have any romantic feelings for you."
"Just give me a chance, Hazel." Chris pleads.
Steph takes a deep breath and closes her eyes as he takes her other hand and changes his position so that his facing her. Steph closes her eyes and crosses her right leg on the couch so that she's completely facing him.
She stares at their joined hands as she begins to speak.
"I want to be totally honest with you, Christopher. I don't feel the same way you feel about me but that doesn't mean I can't. I've always seen you as a friend but since Monday when you told me how you felt, I haven't stopped thinking about it and even you."
She finally makes eye contact.
Chris doesn't know if it's a good thing that she couldn't stop thinking about him. It could be good or bad news. She could have been thinking bad things about him; weighing the pros and cons of giving him a chance -- the cons are probably greater in her head so he doesn't know if that's supposed to make him feel better. He doesn't know if he has a chance but the good news is that she doesn't seem to like Luke anymore.
"I didn't think it was fair to be on a date with Luke and be thinking about you so I lied to him and he drove me home. I don't know if we can be more than friends, Chris. I just need time. I need time to sort myself out. I need time to process things and know exactly how I'm feeling -- what and who I want. Can you give me time before I have to answer your question?"
Chris sighs but nods slowly and Steph squeezes his hand. "Thank you."
"Can I ask you another question?"
Steph nods.
"Do you regret kissing me?"
For the first time, Chris looks vulnerable to her. The question came out of his mouth with caution and trepidation. She feels like whatever answer she gives will either make him or break him.
The few beats that pass after his question is unbearable for Chris. He watches her staring at their joined fingers as if the answer is written on them. When she looks up after a minute of deliberation, he stares into her hazel eyes -- a beautiful shade of brown with specks of gold and green in them.
Steph smiles. "I don't. I don't regret it. I'm glad it happened because if it didn't, you might have never noticed me and I wouldn't have gotten to know how awesome you are."
Chris has a familiar look on his face as opens his mouth to speak. "But...."
"I called you a man whore but you've changed. I'm not saying it's okay but I understand the circumstances that led you to that; I'm sorry for giving you a hard time when we first started talking."
Chris smiles. "Apology accepted."
"And...." Steph drawls.
Chris watches her in anticipation as she lowers her gaze, somewhat bashfully. He becomes amused when he notices her cheeks turning a slight pink.
"That kiss was the best kiss of my life," Steph confesses.
Chris grins, very elated to hear her say that. So it wasn't just him.
"I'm not surprised," he says in a confident tone, messing with her. "I'm the master of kisses."
Steph pulls her hands out of his and pushes his chest, glaring at him.
Chris laughs boisterously as he rears back, his green eyes glinting. "I was just kidding. Kinda. I felt the same way about our kiss," he tells her on a more serious note.
Steph purses her lips. "I find that hard to believe. You've had a lot of practice."
He bobs his head from left to right, agreeing with her. "True but yours is still the best of all. Why else do you think I was so keen on finding you, huh? I kept comparing other kisses with yours and no one even came close."
Steph smiles timidly. "Is that supposed to make me feel special?"
"Yes. You are special," Chris declares in a voice soft with affection.
Steph groans, using both hands to cover her blushing face. "Stop! You're making my head swell. It's eventually gonna explode."
Chris' little chuckles at her reaction turn into full-blown laughter. His head throbs a little, reminding him of the hungover state he's forgotten about.
"You're adorable," he coos.
"Stop! Stop being cheesy," Steph groans again before removing her hands from her face to see his grin as wide as the Cheshire cat.
"On a more serious note," Chris listens attentively. "If you avoid or ignore me in school again, you won't like what I'd do," Steph says in the most menacing tone she can muster.
"What are you gonna do?" Chris inquires in amusement.
"If you want to know so bad, don't do as I've said."
Both of them, being too focused on each other -- in their little world, fail to hear the sound of footsteps descending the stairs.
"Stephanie!" Emily exclaims in excitement upon seeing her favorite babysitter.
Chris and Steph snap out of their entrancement with each other before turning in the direction of the voice. Steph grins at the sight of Emily in her Frozen PJs and walks to her.
"Hey, Emily!" Steph crouches down to her height. "Did you sleep well?"
"Yes, I'm so happy you're here."
Chris, who's now standing behind Steph smiles.
Kate, Chris' mum finally speaks up. "Steph! What a surprise. What are you doing here?"
"I came to sort something out with Chris. Good morning," Steph smiles politely.
Kate smiles back. She's surprised to see Steph here but she's more excited at the position she met them in when they walked into the living room. They looked cozy and oblivious to their surrounding. It seems like her ship has sailed or at least it's preparing to.
Why hasn't she thought of ship names yet? Kate asks herself.
"Mum, can Steph have breakfast with us?" Emily inquires, holding Steph's hand.
"If she wants to," Kate replies.
Emily looks up at Steph expectantly and Steph turns to Chris who raises an eyebrow.
"Sure."
Emily jumps excitedly. Kate smiles and heads for the kitchen. Emily tugs Steph in that direction and Chris follows behind.
"Why didn't you come here with your friend on Monday?" Emily questions innocently.
Steph's eyebrows scrunch in confusion. "Huh?"
"She's talking about Brooke. She came here on Monday," Chris explains.
"You're kidding." Steph gives Chris an incredulous look.
"Nope."
It's Monday and Steph and Brooke just arrived at school. Steph has already told Brooke what transpired between her and Chris on Saturday. She also didn't fail to ask Brooke why she went to Chris' house without informing her. Steph told Brooke how she has been feeling, leaving nothing out. After her revelation, Brooke said she believes Steph already likes Chris but she still respects her decision.
When Brooke asked about Luke, Steph said she will probably tell him how she feels so as not to lead him on. She doesn't want to cause him another heartbreak after what happened between him and Ivy. She has to tell him now before his feelings for her get too strong.
Who knows? Maybe he'll get back with Ivy because it's obvious Ivy still wants him and she's doing everything she can to make him forgive and take her back. Ivy hasn't been causing much trouble since the breakup but every time Steph sees her, Ivy glares daggers at her -- like she was the reason for their breakup and it's annoying.
That being said, the most important thing for Steph today is to talk to Luke.
"Do you think Chris will ignore you today?" Brooke asks as they walk through the school doors, heading for their lockers.
"He wouldn't dare!" Steph says it in a tone that makes Brooke laugh.
Just as they reach Steph's locker, Chris walks into the hallway. He halts his steps at the sight of her and grins widely. He has felt better since their talk on Saturday and he feels like something has changed between them.
No, she didn't say she likes him or even better -- proclaim her undying love for him -- but he's okay with how things turned out. It went far better than he had imagined.
Chris forces himself to stop grinning like he's just seen the love of his life and starts heading in their direction. But when he's close enough, instead of stopping, he walks right past them, pretending not to have seen them. His lips twitch as he sees them staring at him from his periphery.
A few steps away, he halts in his steps and walks back to them.
"Oh, hey. I didn't see you there." He grins, obviously lying.
"You're an idiot," Brooke smiles, shaking her head.
"Just wanted to mess with Hazel here."
"Ha ha! Very funny," Steph says dryly.
Chris chuckles, spreading his arms wide with wiggling eyebrows.
Steph raises her eyebrows at him while Brooke watches in amusement.
"Come give me a hug," Chris croons. "You know you want to."
Steph glares at him for some seconds before giving in and walking into his arms. They hug each other and stay like that for a moment.
Cole and Luke walk overs and stare at them bemusedly. Cole swings his arm on Brooke's shoulder and whispers, "What's happening?"
"They're hugging," Brooke whispers back in a duh tone.
Chris and Steph separate to see three pairs of curious eyes staring at them.
"Hey guys," Steph speaks first.
Cole and Luke reply. Then Brooke and Cole announce their departure, leaving the rest to head to class.
There's a moment of awkward silence before Chris speaks up. "I'll see you at lunchtime and drive you home after school."
Steph smiles. "Sure."
She and Luke watch Chris walk away before Steph says, "We need to talk, Luke."
Luke sighs as if he already knows what she's about to tell him. Luke knows something has changed between Steph and Chris -- it's pretty obvious to anybody. He can already guess what she's going to say.
peaks first.
Cole and Luke reply. Then Brooke and Cole announce their departure, leaving the rest to head to class.
There's a moment of awkward silence before Chris speaks up. "I'll see you at lunchtime and drive you home after school."
Steph smiles. "Sure."
She and Luke watch Chris walk away before Steph says, "We need to talk, Luke."
Luke sighs as if he already knows what she's about to tell him. Luke knows something has changed between Steph and Chris -- it's pretty obvious to anybody. He can already guess what she's going to say.
"Let me guess, you and Chris are dating," Luke says in despair.
Steph shakes her head. "No! No, we're not. What made you think that?"
"Well, it's obvious something has changed between you two. I should have seen it coming."
"I'm sorry, Luke. I really am. If it's any consolation, I used to like you even before you broke up with Ivy; but my feelings have changed."
"I understand," Luke says sadly.
"Can we still be friends?"
Luke seems to deliberate for a while before nodding, just as the bell rings. "Yes. Friends."