Evie decided that this was going to be the last time she looked in the mirror. What was it, the twenty sixth time or something? Who was keeping count? She had to make sure she looked perfect. Well, she looked good all the time, let's be honest. But even more perfect, for Doug. For tonight.
She had perfected all the flirtatious smiles and looks. But then again, it wouldn't take too much to win over Doug. His eyes had practically burst from their sockets when she first introduced herself. From then on (after she had found out that Chad wasn't truly interested in her) her focus moved onto him, for many reasons.
No, he wasn't a prince - far from it – but she had finally realised that it wasn't in her best interest to find a prince. It had always been her mother planting that idea firmly in her head for years. It wasn't what she wanted. She wanted someone who was interested in her for more than her looks. Of course she took how she looked seriously – another thing her mother had made really important to her - but it would be nice if that wasn't the only thing a guy noticed about her.
That's where Doug was different.
"I'll see you later Mal." Evie called when she had finally decided she was ready to go.
"Ok, have fun." Mal said absentmindedly.
Her mind was clearly focused on whatever she was drawing. Evie didn't care; she had other things on her mind. She clicked the door closed and made her way to Doug's.
She stood outside his door for a solid minute. Not out of nervousness, just pure excitement. She needed to contain and calm herself. For all he knew, she was coming over to study, just like she did every Friday night. Other people told her that there were way better things to do on a Friday, and there probably was, but she liked doing this. She got to spend hours with Doug, with no one else around to interrupt them. There was no one to steal his attention from her and she liked it that way. Sometimes they didn't end up studying (at least not for the whole night.) They would talk for hours, either geeking about school or him showing her new things that she had never seen on the island before.
She lightly tapped on the door and Doug, as usual, was quick to answer.
"Welcome, welcome." He greeted enthusiastically.
He always seemed to be in a good mood on these study nights. Evie knew why, of course.
"Why hello there." She murmured. "Maths homework tonight, right?"
"Yes." He confirmed. "We may have the weekend, but there's a lot to do."
He stood back and gestured for her to come through. She hadn't seen him at all today and now, as soon as she had, her heart seemed to skip a beat. She missed him. He was only in two of her classes: maths and science. For the rest she seemed to be alone, except for the few girls she was friendly with, but they didn't seem to count. Of course Mal was in one of her classes, but she would barely socialise with Evie due to Ben being in the same class. Evie didn't mind though, it gave her a chance to really listen and take information in without Mal constantly chatting to her the whole time. Evie took school seriously, something she secretly thought she needed to thank Doug for.
He led her to the study table, where they would always sit. She dropped her bag beside the chair and took a seat, kicking off her heals. She could always feel relaxed here, with no worries that Doug would judge her in any way. She shrugged off her leather jacket, placing it on the head of the chair. She had picked this outfit purposely, wearing a light blue button-up blouse and skirt.
She looked over at Doug who was sitting beside her. He was pulling out textbooks, work books and pens.
She smiled. This was going to work.
She pulled out what she needed as well. She rested everything on the table and stretched her arms above her head, feeling the satisfying click in her back. Her eyes darted towards him, feeling his stare and her eyes connected with his. He quickly looked away and focused on his work.
Her smile grew; she knew he had a crush on her.
Who wouldn't? She snickered to herself.
She wasn't trying to flatter herself. Every morning her locker would be full of notes from "secret admirers" that weren't so secret. She usually caught them staring from around the corner. Some even had enough stupidity to ask her out. She tried not laugh in their face, as that would be considered the wrong thing to do at this school. She politely declined them all, saying that she has someone else in mind. It's not like she was lieing. Sometimes she almost gave in. If one admirer happened to be a prince, her mother's voice would always ring through her head:
"You just find yourself a prince with a big castle!"
When that happened all she needed to do was think about Doug. He really got her to see past her shallowness. She didn't want to be like those people who only wanted someone for their looks or their riches. She wanted to feel that amazing feeling that those books described. No one was going to have her heart unless they absolutely deserved it.
She was pulled from her thoughts as she noticed how awfully quiet the room had become. The only sound audible was the scratching of pen on paper, as Doug was working blissfully beside her. She noticed he was already half way through the first page of problems, which made her question how long she had been sitting there, lost in thought.
She directed her attention to the math problems she hadn't yet gotten a start on. She couldn't focus, not when Doug was right there beside her. She'd never been kissed, never in her life. Oh how guys had wanted to. Oh yes. Many guys had lined up and tried their luck at winning her heart on the Isle. Or more they had tried to win the right into the bedroom. But no, Evie had more respect for herself than that. But more importantly, as her mother would remind her, none of them were princes; at least not with a big castle or tonnes of money. Her mum would never have approved of them, so therefore Evie couldn't (even if she wanted to) be with them.
Now that her mother wasn't here, Evie had time to think about what she wanted to do. When she had her first kiss, it was going to be perfect and with the right guy. Doug was going to be that guy.
So how was she subtly going to try and get him to reveal his feelings? She didn't have a clue. Not when she had never done this before. She didn't have a solid plan, thinking that she wouldn't need one because some genius plan would pop into her head when she arrived. But unfortunately, that hadn't happened.
This was going to be hard.
"Are you alright Evie?" Doug asked, seeming to notice her untouched maths problems. He turned his attention to her and leaned that little bit closer.
She suddenly got an idea.
"Of course." She smiled slowly, for affect and he seemed to notice.
He re-adjusted his glasses. A nervous habit Evie had picked up on. She could always rely on her smile, it seemed to be one of her most stunning features, she personally thought. Then again, it wasn't hard to tease Doug.
"Except," She paused, drawing in his attention again, "I can't quite figure out this problem."
He immediately re- directed his eyes to where she was pointing. An algebra question, she noticed when she looked herself. She could have solved that question with no problem.
"Oh, right. So what you have to start with..."
She let his voice drift into the background as she studied him. How was she going to do this? Invade his personal space? That seemed like a good idea.
She shifted closer towards him, until with the simple turn of her head, their lips would touch. Of course he noticed and trailed off with what he was saying. Neither of them said anything, Doug was completely frozen and she could hear his breathing start to speed up. It amused her to think that with just simple closeness, he seemed to lose his mind.
"Keep going." She encouraged gently.
"Uh... Um, the uh, the..." He stumbled with his words.
He tried, oh he definitely tried to get back on track and Evie respected that. He didn't just jump into getting the party started. Any other guy would have picked up on her vibes and made a move by now. But Doug either didn't notice or wasn't game enough to. He was patient and kind and that's what she loved about him.
Loved?
Did she love him?
Did she know what love even felt like?
"Mmm." She murmured, encouraging him to go on.
She really shouldn't torture him like this, but how could she resist?
He just stared at the paper, never moving his eyes from it. Not even when she leaned closer. Not until her lips reached his cheek and planted a small kiss there, did he move. He stopped breathing altogether and stared at her straight in the eyes.
He looked stunned, with his cheeks already heating up.
"Evie... What? I mean..." Doug just couldn't think of what to say.
No girl had ever kissed him before.
"You were in the middle of explaining this problem to me." She acted innocent like nothing had happened and that muddled up his brain even more.
"Well, uh, where was I? I think it was-"" He stuttered, trying to get back on track.
"Hey Doug, can I ask you a question?" Evie interrupted.
Evie had been going over in her head how she would do this for days now. Of course every action had to be slow and meaningful. Well, it didn't have to be, but that's how Evie preferred it. She could control things easier when she was calm, relaxed and in control of herself, (making it easier to then control the other person.) Going about things slow was how she got things done for her. She could make any guy melt into a puddle at her feet just from slow and meaningful words and touches.
But Doug wasn't just "another guy." She cared for him dearly, so just a little flirting and simple touches should do the trick. She wanted him to admit his feelings before she kissed him. It had been three months since Ben's coronation and she was getting impatient.
"S-Sure, yeah, sure." He (almost) seemed to squeak out the last part. "What's up?"
Before she spoke Evie started to lean closer. So close that their foreheads were almost touching and she swore she could hear his raging, out of control heartbeat.
"Do you like me?" She asked quietly, taking his sweaty palms in hers. She didn't mind, in fact, it indicated that her flirting was working. Before he could answer, she lowered her eyes from his, just in case she needed to hide her emotions. She focused on their entwined hands instead and smiled at how nice it was.
She really had gone soft.
"Uh, like as in, what?" He knew what she meant, he just needed her to specify so he didn't make a fool of himself.
"Like," she paused, "as in more than a friend?"
She looked up at him as an embarrassed smile grew on his face. His gaze wasn't directed at her, but instead at their hands.
"Is there a wrong answer?"
She almost laughed. "No."
He pretended to think about it, but as he did, he moved his chair forward until their knees were touching and they were directly facing each other.
He ran a thumb over the top of one of her palms and she found it soothing.
"Ever since I first laid eyes on you, I couldn't get you out of my head." he murmured, "Of course I noticed your beauty, but there is so much more to you than that. No girl in this school has ever talked to me until they needed test answers or someone easy to pick on. Apparently, you guys were meant to be the evil ones, but really you talked and listened to me and I will forever be grateful for that. Seriously I think... I think I love you."
For a second she just stared at him, studying his face to make sure this wasn't a trick or some sort of lie. A habit everyone had on the island. She noticed his whole face starting to turn scarlet. He must have caught on too, because he quickly darted his eyes to their hands in embarrassment. She wasn't expecting something so beautiful and kind to come from him just then. All she ever got from a guy that "liked" her was "you're hot" or "wanna bang?"
"Do you really mean that?" She whispered, feeling a weird warmth spreading through her body.
"Of course I do." He said raising a hand to cup her cheek. "But what about you?"
He shuffled nervously in his seat and she gripped his hands a little tighter.
"Do you like me?" His smile dropped as he tensed up under her stare.
She already knew the answer; it was right on the tip of her tongue and had been for 3 months. But, for her, it wasn't easy to say. Every word that had ever come out of her mouth was flirty, cruel, sarcastic or demeaning. Never had she spoken about how she truly felt, especially since changing her evil ways. How was she supposed to say something so beautiful like Doug had managed to say about her? Would 'yeah, I do like you' suffice?
"In what way?" She joked.
He chuckled, but she could tell it was forced. She knew he just wanted the answer, whether it was positive or not, just to get the embarrassment over and done with. She had felt the exact same way. So she decided to explain it in her own way; how it made sense in her mind.
"I do Doug." Evie confirmed and smiled gently. "It feels different and strange, but I just want to be around you all the time. Since the coronation, when other girls talk to you or make you laugh, I get so angry for no reason. I think it's because I like you. Just... Try and understand that I don't know what love is, but I know for sure, that I feel something so strong towards you and only you. I only want you to hold my hand, be my first kiss, hug me, touch me, whatever boyfriends are supposed to do. I want you Doug. Only you."
He smiled, and it was sincere, but she could tell that something was still on his mind. He let his hand fall from her cheek and ran it through his hair, which hadn't been styled the way it usually was. There was no gel holding it to the side, Evie noticed, and it was all messy but she liked it.
"What is it?" Evie asked quietly, taking the hand he let drop back in hers.
He hesitated for a second before looking at her again. There was real pain written on his face and Evie felt her heart drop. Something was really upsetting him and she needed to find out what.
"There are plenty of better looking guys out there Evie. Are you sure you want me?" His voice failed at the end and she needed to convince him of her words somehow.
There was only one way she was going to do that.
She leaned forward those extra few centimetres and pressed her lips softly against his. He completely froze, as that was the last thing he expected her to do at that moment. He was pleasantly surprised, to say the least. Of course he had wanted this for ages; but never did he think it would happen, maybe in his dreams (literally) but not in reality. Evie deserved nothing but the best.
She pulled back after a second, just to check what his reaction was like.
He almost looked "Starry Eyed" as his eyes opened at the loss of contact. A smile grew on her face. It was a first for her and it had finally happened. She felt relieved that she had finally been able to say what she had been bottling up for weeks. Not even Mal had known about her feelings for Doug.
Feeling satisfied, she reconnected their lips and slowly moved hers against his, seeing what it was like. Finally he seemed to gain some courage and kiss her back, pressing his lips more firmly against hers. She felt his hands gripping onto her waist, like she was his lifeline. She never wanted him to think like that again: like he wasn't good enough for her.
She would definitely show him how right he was for her.
She got sick of the chairs taking up unnecessary space that she could be filling. She got annoyed and hastily pulled back from the kiss only to see the confused, but blissful expression on Doug's face.
She stood up and heavily booted her chair backwards and out of her way. Doug jumped when it landed (somewhere behind her, she couldn't give a shit at the moment.) She quickly stepped forward and lowered herself onto his lap, straddling him, just before he could ask any questions.
"Hi." She said, giving one of her flirtatious smiles.
"Hello there." He smiled up at her, his face glowing.
"Does that answer your question?" She asked, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"Very much so." He laughed and tightened his arms around her waist. "So that was really your first kiss?"
"Yeah." She answered, confused at the question. "Was it not yours?"
"Nope, mine was years ago." He boasted and smirked up at her.
She frowned slightly and felt the heat rush to her face. He's been kissed before. She wasn't his first kiss, but he was hers. Where did all this anger suddenly come from?
"Oh..." She didn't know what else to say.
"I'm just joking." He laughed, interrupting her thoughts. "You were mine."
"Doug!" She shook her head and playfully hit him on the shoulder.
"But, in all seriousness, you've never been kissed? I sort of... I just can't wrap my head around that. I mean, you're so beautiful. You must have had so many admirers on the island. Every guy must have been crazy about you... But you never..?" He trailed off, losing himself in his own thoughts.
"Of course, there were a few." She smirked to herself, remembering every single one of them.
It was only the truth, of course.
"But," she quickly added, "none of them were... let's say... boyfriend material. I think you've forgotten what sort of guys live on that island. They're mean and cruel and stupid... Just... Not my type. My mum would have definitely settled for nothing less than a prince."
He blushed.
"In other words, after I changed my mind about all that prince stuff, I wanted to wait for the perfect guy. Who liked me and vice versa." She smiled, lowering her forehead to his. "That just happens to be you."
"I love you." He murmured.
She smiled and, hooking a finger under his chin, brought her lips back down to his. He was very happy to oblige.
...
Ok, so things got heated
They had made their way onto Doug's bed, she had started off on top, but not for long. Doug had rolled them over and Evie seemed to like it better. Something about him hovering over her, it was something she couldn't describe, but it was making her breathless. He was good at this and if he hadn't said that she was his first kiss, she would have been suspicious that he had done this before. Maybe he was just a natural.
She tried to keep things slow, that's what she was good at. Manipulating people was her strong point; she knew how to act and what to say. Just like earlier she knew she had been driving him crazy with her slow and precise movements. When things got fast and heated, that's when she'd start to lose control of the situation.
That's what was happening.
She lost her thought process; she stopped thinking through every action and started just doing.
She grabbed the collar of his jacket and used it to pull him closer. But it was her body acting. Never would she act so fast with things. She didn't think about ripping off his jacket, she just did it. He didn't seem to mind, instead he was more focused on exploring all her curves. He had dreamed what it would be like for months. But that didn't seem to satisfy the hunger he felt. He wanted to rip off her blouse and see her beautiful skin; he could only imagine how perfect it would be. Instead he decided to keep it safe. He would only make a move if she did first.
Suddenly her hands were unbuttoning his shirt. There was no uncertainty or worry about what she was doing and he was very ok with this, which was unlike him. He had never done this stuff with a girl. But he was getting so excited, so pumped up, that he stopped thinking. His nervous thoughts drifted away, besides, he had more important things to worry about.
He helped her pull off his shirt and he threw it away. She traced her fingers from his chest up to his neck multiple times, it was driving him crazy. He managed to untuck her blouse, which he struggled with for a second or two. His hands were shaking as he started to undo the buttons. Just before he got half way, her brain finally started to work again.
She pulled away from him, pushing against his chest.
"No, wait." She said, not realising how breathless she was.
He panicked, thinking he had upset her and instantly slid away, giving her space.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to- I just sort of..." He trailed off not knowing what to say.
"It wasn't you, it's just..." She said breathlessly. "We were just a bit too-"
"Fast." Doug finished with a sudden blush.
She turned her attention back to him. He was on the opposite side of the bed to her, with his shirt already back on, like it was never off in the first place. She almost smiled at how ruffled his hair was and that fact that he wasn't wearing his glasses. He looked different, but a nice different. No one understood why Evie was attracted to him. Of course it wasn't just his personality, she thought he was quite handsome. Of course that sounded ridiculous to other people. With Chad and Ben around, who could compare, right? It was a personal attraction she felt, it wasn't right or wrong, it was just how she felt.
"I think we should slow it down a bit, I mean, we just got together tonight. We have plenty of time to work up to... to that stuff. Right?" She rushed out.
She looked down at herself and she was very ruffled up. If anyone had walked in right at this moment, they wouldn't have to guess what she and Doug had been up to. Her blouse was still half unbuttoned, exposing the top of her cleavage.
"Oh yeah, I definitely agree, definitely." He awkwardly laughed, just as flustered as she was. "Uh, I have new movies?"
"What have you got?" She asked with a smile.
He was definitely something.
Doug went to set up the movie (and to slow down his breathing a little) while Evie fixed herself up. She smiled when she thought of how tonight went. Of course, it went exactly as planned and even a little over-board, but she had finally gotten Doug to admit his feelings.
As the movie started to play Doug stood at the side of the bed, a little awkwardly. He didn't know whether he should sit next to her, cuddle her or give her space. Evie noticed and patted a spot beside her, with an inviting smile. He cracked a grin and settled down next to her. She leaned into him and he rested an arm around her. It seemed awkward at first, but they got back into the usual routine, just with a new added step to their relationship. They talked for hours after that, in the same position. Occasionally Evie interrupted to steal a kiss from him (seeing as he seemed to be a bit hesitant after what happened) and he would kiss her back wholeheartedly, finally starting to grasp the fact that she was finally his.