A/N: Hi guys! I am soooo sorry this chapter has taken me so long to get up! I was going through some major writer's block. I hope you enjoy! Please review! :)

I barely remember the drive home, or the blundering stumble up the front steps, or the fuss to unlock and get through the front door. It all happened with a blur similar to the rush of headlights and houselights on the hurried car ride to his house. Henry's intense focus on kissing me caused him to fumble with unlocking the door. After falling through the doorway and into the foyer, I felt my back collide with the wall and Henry's hands grabbing my waist. My arms draped around his neck as his lips made their way from my mouth to my neck. I moaned as his hand brushed my shirt off my shoulder, and he placed his kisses hastily on my newly exposed skin. I drew my hands along his back and shoulders until they came to rest on his chest, occasionally grasping his shirt and releasing it again. My head fell onto his shoulder, and my face nestled into his neck. Before long, our lips found each other again, each kiss leaving me breathless. "Henry," I gasped.

"It's okay, you're alright," Henry reassured between kisses. His hands ran up and down my sides, eventually tugging at my shirt, enticing me to follow him as he backed away from the wall. We continued to kiss as we awkwardly found our way through the house. His lips melted into a smile as we occasionally tripped and laughed and kissed our way to his room. Henry pushed me toward another wall while he helped to wriggle me out of my shirt.

"This is so crazy," I exhaled with a smile.

Henry succeeded in removing my shirt and threw it hastily at the ground. He gazed at me with a complete sense of prurience before stating, "Crazy is perfect." His hands slowly gripped and caressed my arms as he kissed my collarbone. "You're so beautiful," he breathed into my skin as he twiddled the silvery strap on my left shoulder. Needing to see his face, I lifted his head and admired the libidinous stare from his deep brown eyes before kissing him, hard, pushing him back toward the edge of his bed. Henry's hands cupped my face as we sat on the corner of the mattress. We pulled away, gazing into each other's eyes for what seemed like an eternity. Henry slowly moved one of his hands to my waist while the other kept a hold on my face, his thumb brushing past my cheek. My hand reached for his arm as my eyes flickered away from his stare. "Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked softly. "I know everything's going fast, and I'm sure it's been crazy at your house, and—"

I cut his sentence short by kissing him swiftly but gently. I knew I didn't deserve any of it, but being in the middle of the salacious desires made it hard to decline. Our eyes locked as we pulled apart, and we both could easily read the lust in the other's face. Without hesitation, I threw my arms around Henry so hard that he fell over, and I kissed him as many times as I could while pulling his striped shirt off his warm body. He hastily tugged at the sheets until they covered both of our bodies. The sheets danced about as we tried to help each other take off our jeans. Laughter and lust and desire filled the room as the covers quietly fell over us, cradling us as we enveloped each other longingly.

Feeling both euphoric and slightly fatigued, I turned onto my left side to get a good view of Henry. I took in every detail of his warm body glistening with sweat, his deep chocolate hair even messier than it usually was, his lazy brown eyes gazing into my mine. As his hand gently caressed my arm, I suddenly remembered Gabe. Henry could tell something was wrong immediately. His hand stopped and gently grasped my upper arm. "Natalie, I know something's wrong. Why can't you tell me?" he questioned. Feeling the slight sting of newly formed tears, I blinked rapidly and tried to roll over onto my back. "Natalie, you can't keep avoiding this," Henry quietly advised, pulling his body closer to mine. "Is it something with your mom? Your dad?" My body shivered and tensed up at the thought of the familiar chill, my familiar chill. Henry stared at me for a long time before softly asking, "Is it about your brother?"

My once silent tears suddenly burst out of my eyes, making my vision blurred and my face red. Henry's arms shot around me, and he helped me inch my way up to a sitting position. His soothing hands rubbed up and down my back as he cradled my shaking body. "Shh, it's alright," he comforted. "It's okay, I've got you." I fell into his embrace while I forced myself to gain some control of the tears. I grasped his arms as I pulled myself together. My words unexpectedly flew from my mouth like a stuttering tornado.

"I can see Gabe now. I didn't used to—he was only just there, like a slight chill in the air, but I can see him now and touch him and—" Afraid I'd said too much when I mentioned the touching aspect, I shut my mouth and grabbed Henry tighter. "I'm losing my mind," I whispered into his skin. Henry's hands continued to slowly brush up and down my spine, giving me chills, as he rocked me back and forth. He laid his head lightly on top of mine, fully encompassing me. I don't know how long we sat like that, but it was one of the few times I enjoyed not being in control. Henry was one of the very few people who could ever even come close to taking me over completely like that. Eventually, one of Henry's hands lifted my face to meet his eyes.

"If anything ever worries you or frightens you or anything, you tell me, and I'll make it go away," he softly assured. "I promise." He lightly kissed my forehead and I gently leaned back into his chest, taking in the moment. The warmth from his skin, the faint smell of his cologne, his chest rising and falling slowly but rhythmically all intoxicated me and lulled me into a deep sleep.

I awoke at the break of dawn, lying on my side but still fully encircled from behind in Henry's gentle grasp. He sighed as he scooted slightly closer to my back. His arms wrapped around my waist possessively, warding off anything he felt could hurt me. Even though we were both awake, we didn't talk. I wanted everything but this moment to disappear. No ghost brother, no crazy mom, no useless dad, just Henry's embrace. After lying motionless on Henry's bed for what seemed like hours, we both heard a faint noise.

Henry's parents were unlocking the front door.

Our heads shot toward each other as we both realized what was happening. I flew off the bed to gather my clothes while Henry sat there giggling like a moron before he came to assist in hastily putting my clothes on. As I kept angrily whispering, "Shit," over and over again, Henry just laughed while occasionally trying to touch me or kiss me. "How the fuck am I gonna get out of here?" I quietly barked at Henry.

"Window," he replied with a smirk and a toss of his head in the direction of my exit.

"You're fucked if you think I'm jumping out a window!"

Henry's finger shushed my lips. "Look, there's a ladder we keep out there in case of a fire or something, just climb down that and you'll be fine."

"Fine," I growled, rolling my eyes at this lovely end to one of the better nights I've ever had. Footsteps slowly climbed the stairs as I raced to the window and Henry jumped under the covers on his bed. Henry caught my gaze as his head peeked out from under the covers. "Goodbye, Prince Charming," I flirted sarcastically before leaning out the window and reaching for the ladder. Only seconds after my leave, Henry's mom walked in, and I made my escape.

Again guys, I'm very sorry this chapter took so long. The next one will be up asap! :)