Chapter 2
Delilah took a part time job working at the school's kitchen after class. She had always thought it was right to earn her way through life, and it was only through the Volturi that she had strayed from doing that. She had worked since she was practically thirteen, doing odd jobs and collecting minimal cash under the table. Now, she felt like she was doing the right thing by working just a short three hour shift after school each day, getting paid nine dollars an hour. Friday night's shift was always six to nine, rather than three to six because there always seemed to be some type of after school banquet or activity.
"Hey Del," Milly Shaw, the head of the school's food industry called, "There's something for you in the back room."
Delilah looked up at the clock, "Okay, thanks Mrs. Shaw. I'll head over there in fifteen minutes when my shift's up."
"Ehh, I'll clock you out," she told her in a raspy smoker's voice, "You can head out a few minutes early tonight. It's almost nine."
She smiled and looked down into the sink where suds crept up toward her elbows, "But there's still all this to clean."
"I've got it," Milly told her with a smile.
Delilah grinned, "Okay. Thank you."
The two of them had developed a great working relationship, primarily due to Delilah's strong work ethic. She never made excuses and was always on time, generally leaving a little late each day to make sure her duties were done correctly. In turn, Milly showed her appreciation in times like this to let Delilah know her efforts hadn't gone unrecognized.
She washed her hands and thanked her boss again before heading down towards the dimly lit back room. A light bulb that wasn't screwed in properly began to flicker and twitch, giving off an almost eerie effect, so Delilah twisted it the rest of the way and glanced over a dozen roses that waited with a card for her on a small bench that sat in the far corner of the room.
A smile crossed her face and she picked up the bouquet, putting them to her face, before opening the card. She smiled instantly as it revealed a home made map that lead to one of the tunnels that she and Caleb had made a frequent spot to make out in to have some sneaky, fun privacy. She couldn't tell from the drawing where the ending spot was. The fact that she had to search a little made things all the more interesting and Delilah felt butterflies in the pit of her stomach.
She unclipped her hair, allowing it drape down the length of her face and took off her apron before beginning her journey through Caleb's mystery map.
The first step led her to the kitchen's basement, where a secret door led to one of the tunnels she had shown him after working late one night. She followed it as far as it went, taking her up a flight of six or seven stairs. Just above them was a door with a small box that sat directly in front of it.
Delilah smiled, still carrying the flowers and the map, then reached down to grab the box. On the piece of paper he'd drawn up, there was a star drawn at the location, and she assumed it was to fill her in that there was a gift left for her at that spot. She opened the box, which revealed a small locket necklace with their picture inside a tiny, silver heart. A smile crossed her face and she was tempted to put it on, but didn't want to accidentally lose the charm trying to fuss with it in the darkness, so she continued on upon placing it back inside the box.
At the next location through the twists and turns of the academy's "underworld", Delilah found a close-up picture of the two of them surrounded by a cute, black frame with the word 'love' written in silver across the top. She smiled wide and knew that one of the girls had probably found the picture frame and set it up for him.
While she still felt like there were butterflies in her stomach from all the unknowns he was leading her through, there was a part of her that was just longing to see if he was waiting for her at the end. Delilah tilted her head slightly to read the last few steps and stopped to make sure she was going in the right direction. An arrow pointed to the right of where she currently stood, and she could barely make out that there was a door there.
I've never been this way, she thought, but pulled it open without hesitation, knowing she had to take that step to find him. A light laugh left her mouth as she broke into a more familiar underground hallway. She was now completely aware of her surroundings; the original tunnel she had found going from the library to the pool. She didn't know there was another door that went elsewhere about halfway up.
Delilah glanced at that map, but she knew she had to take a right. She swallowed hard as she took each step up toward the door that led to the pool. Like always, the familiar smell of chlorine became apparent. She stood outside the door, taking in a deep breath and just barely catching Caleb's scent over the strength of the pool smell. A moment later, she pushed open the door and glanced down at the map, seeing it was where it ended.
Her arms were full of the little gifts he'd left her and she smiled wide when he stood in front of her with another bouquet of roses. Delilah's heart could have stopped from how sincere his gesture was, and how incredibly cute he looked holding the flowers in his light blue button down shirt and jeans.
She laughed a put a hand over her mouth, "Oh my gosh, Caleb."
He shrugged shyly and held a closed-mouth half smile. "Did you find your way alright?" he asked, "I know the map wasn't drawn out so great."
Delilah giggled again, unable to stop, "Yes. It was fine. It was perfect."
Caleb held his hand out with the second bouquet of flowers and she took them, hugging him just after, despite having her hands full.
"Two things of flowers?" she asked.
"Ordinary girls get a dozen roses," Caleb told her, "You're far from ordinary."
Delilah looked into his golden eyes and kissed him once on the lips, taking her time to separate from him. A long sigh left her mouth and she placed everything down on the bleacher nearby.
"Did you find the necklace?" he asked.
"Yes," she nodded, "I love it. Can you help me put it on."
Caleb nodded back and Delilah removed it from the box. He swiftly latched it against the back of her neck before she turned to face him again. "Thank you Caleb," she told him, getting a heavy feeling in the pit of her chest, "I'm so lucky to have you."
"I'm the lucky one," he told her.
She shook her head, "No one has ever done something like this for me before. Aside from my grandmother, I really never felt like anyone cared for me before."
"So I remind you of your grandmother?" Caleb joked, then kissed her as she was about to explain herself. He smiled and snickered, "I'm just teasing."
Delilah laughed, catching up to his joke and pulled him to her again. "I'm sorry," she said, looking down, "For lying to you in the beginning."
Caleb tilted her chin up to meet his stare, "It's okay. We're past that. Way past that."
She sighed and hugged him, leaning up against his chest. "You smell so good," she told him.
He took in a deep breath, thinking the same thing of her. He stroked her hair and kissed her forehead before she looked back up toward him and kissed him again, this time more forcefully.
"I love our little meeting spots," she told him, smiling as they simultaneously broke off the kiss.
Caleb chuckled, "Me too. The tunnels are the only places we have where no one bothers us."
"And now the pool," Delilah said. "This is where we had our first kiss."
"And you ran away screaming," he teased with a laugh.
Delilah laughed back, "No I didn't."
"Well, not the screaming part." He took her back in his arms and Delilah felt like she could keep her lips locked with his forever.
"So, are we going to get in trouble for being in here?" she asked him, looking around the large pool area. Her eyes focused on the lights that were strung along the perimeter of the place, which provided the most lighting in the otherwise dark, oversized room. The only other lights were beneath the water, giving the pool itself an almost tropical, aqua glow.
"Custodians already passed through and cleaned up in here. They'll be gone for the rest of the time," Caleb assured her, "Not that we wouldn't be able to hear them coming from a mile away. Plus it's Friday, so they're short-staffed since half of the crew comes in Saturday morning to clean."
"How do you know all this?" Delilah asked him with a laugh.
"Oh, this was a carefully thought out plan," Caleb told her with a smile, pointing to his temple to indicate how intelligent he was.
She laughed and locked her hands behind his neck. "So what is the carefully thought out plan?"
Caleb's eyes roamed around the empty space, then met hers again, "Well, this is pretty much it," he laughed.
"I see, I see," she went on, "You brought me here to get me alone?"
He shrugged, "Perhaps."
The two of them stared at each other for another moment before they started laughing at the same time.
"What do you say we take a dip?" she asked.
Caleb smiled and looked toward the water. He snickered, "I don't have my bathing suit."
"Wearing boxers?" she asked.
He laughed again shyly, "Uh... yeah."
Delilah shrugged, "Well I have to admit that I have a pink sports bra on under here," she fiddled with her sweatshirt, "And I guess the underwear I have on everyone calls "booty short" or "boy shorts", whatever."
"Hmm..." he laughed with a slight hint of nervousness that echoed out of his chest.
"Basically what I'm saying is, everything covers the same as a bathing suit... probably more actually."
Caleb's eyes looked toward the water again and the looked back at Delilah, who smiled eagerly at him. The thought of swimming around with her excited him and he briefly broke their contact so he could step out of his shoes.
Delilah smirked and did the same.
Caleb felt his jaw tighten and butterflies develop in his stomach when she tossed her sweatshirt to the side. The feelings intensified when she took the initiative to unbutton his shirt.
Without warning, she had pushed herself away from him, removing her jeans in the same motion and had slunk into the pool without so much as a splash. He stared in her direction in mild awe, then decided he should waste no time. For a moment he was reluctant to take off his pants, but decided to go with it and found the courage to slide into the water in his boxers. He was secretly thankful that he had chosen black rather than white earlier that morning.
Delilah called him from across the pool, where she finally came up for an unnecessary breath and brushed her hair back. "Come on Caleb!"
He stood with a smile in the shallow end of the pool before taking a deep breath and going under. When he popped back up, he was right beside her and Delilah laugh, entwining her legs with his beneath the water.
Caleb sighed and kissed her, attempting to lightly pin her between him and side of the pool.
Delilah smiled amidst their playful kissing and decided to play a flirty game with him, ducking away and making her way to the other side of the pool. She laughed when he opened his eyes in surprise and she wasn't there.
While he wanted her to be in his arms, the nervous feeling he had in the pit of his stomach allowed him to equally appreciate the distance she created so he wouldn't be put in the position to make a move that he wasn't sure he was ready for. From the way things carried on, it appeared as though Delilah was on the same page, and the two of them enjoyed each other's company for the rest of their time in the pool with innocent touches, half-heartedly intense kisses and lots of conversation that allowed them to continue to find out more about each other.
When they parted for the evening, Caleb walked Delilah toward the window of her room and smiled.
"I had so much fun tonight," she told him sincerely, unable to hide the happiness that radiated out of her expression.
"Me too," he told her.
Delilah stepped up onto her toes to reach his lips and kissed him more intensely than she had all night. A sigh left her mouth when she stopped and she looked at him, "Call me when you get home."
"Okay," he told her, "You know, you can come over whenever you want."
"I know," she said with a nod, "I just don't want to impose on your family all the time. I feel like I'm there all the time."
"In the morning then?" Caleb asked, "My mom will sign you out to come by."
Delilah nodded, "Okay."
"And if you feel like sneaking out, then let me know and I'll help you." He smiled at her again and took her lips with his.
"Sounds good," she said, fiddling again with the collar of his shirt. "I love you."
"I love you too."
The two of them took another few minutes, not eager to part, before Delilah scampered up the side of the building and into her window.
Caleb smiled and waved before making his way back home. He felt a strong need to talk to his brothers, and the other guys in the house.