Sue woke up in the morning feeling refreshed and happy. For the second night in a row, Sean and Sue had fallen asleep together in her apartment. She still couldn't believe that they were finally together. She especially couldn't believe that he had spent the night twice. After a big stretch, Sue rolled over to face her new boyfriend, but only saw a pile of pillows. Concerned, she sat up quickly and worried that he regretted staying there. Her mind was set at ease when she noticed a note on her nightstand. Went out to pick up coffee. Be back soon. xoxo. She smiled and held the note up to her chest. She wondered how a girl like her could be so lucky to get a guy like Sean. Sue got out of bed limped over to her bathroom. Her ankle was still sore, but the sprain didn't seem to be as bad as she thought. She looked at herself in the mirror and took a minute to brush her hair and wipe off the smudged makeup from the night before. She brushed her teeth and put on a fresh pair of jeans and a sweater before heading into the living room. She heard keys being inserted into the deadbolt and she was instantly excited. A familiar face came into view.
"Lexie?" Sue asked.
"Why do you sound so surprised? I do live here don't I?" Lexie replied sarcastically and shut the door behind her. She was pulling her rolling suitcase and Sue realized that she was coming back from her winter vacation with her family. Sue limped over to her and gave her a hug. "What happened to you?" Lexie asked, pointing at Sue's foot.
"It's a long story." Sue replied with a laugh.
"Suzy Q! I'm back! Rise and shine..." Sue and Lexie heard as Sean opened the door and stepped inside. Sean had an embarrassed look on his face.
"You're back? But it's only 8 in the morning...oh...my...gosh!" Lexie shouted excitedly.
"I told you it was a long story." Sue laughed awkwardly. "Sean and I fell asleep here last night...after going on our first DATE." Sue said, suddenly cheerful. Sean smiled and put two coffee cups down on the kitchen counter.
"You finally told her?!" Lexie asked Sean.
"What? How did you know?" Sue had a confused look on her face.
Sean laughed nervously and started backing away towards the door. "You know what? I only brought two coffees. I'll go get another one. How do you like yours, Lexie? Cream? Sugar? I'll surprise you." Sean said as he stepped out of the door and closed it behind him.
"That was...weird. What's going on?" Sue asked her roommate.
"Remember that night when you, Axl, Sean and I were having dinner and then Sean and I went off on our own?" Lexie started. Sue remembered that night all too clearly. Up until then, she never noticed that she even had feelings for Sean, but she couldn't help but feel jealous when Lexie went out with him. "When Sean and I were having coffee, he kept talking about you and I kept talking about Axl. We kind of made an agreement to keep it a secret. I'm so sorry I didn't tell you! I didn't know you liked him!" Lexie said.
"Wow. I can't believe he liked me all the way back then. Well, I guess it doesn't matter. We're together now!" Sue said.
"I'm sooooo happy for you!" Lexie shouted and hugged Sue. "So have you told anyone yet?"
"Oh no...it's only been two days." Sue laughed and nervously pulled on a loose thread on her sweater. "I guess I probably should, huh."
Sean reopened the door with a cup of coffee and stepped inside. He handed the fresh cup of coffee to Lexie.
"Thanks!" Lexie happily took the cup of coffee and started to walk toward her room. She turned back to look at Sue, pointed at Sean and mouthed "He is so sweet!" Sue smiled and Lexie stepped into her bedroom and closed the door.
"So...what did you ladies talk about?" Sean nervously asked. Sue could see that he was nervous and wanted to comfort him.
"Just about how jealous I was when you and Lexie went out...and how you wouldn't stop talking about me on your 'date'" Sue laughed. Sean looked surprised.
"You were jealous?" He smiled and pulled her in for a hug.
"So what? Weren't you jealous when Aiden showed up on New Year's?" Sue asked playfully.
"Too soon." Sean said with a smile. He grabbed both cups of coffee in one arm and took Sue by the hand, leading her back into her room. Sue got back into bed and sat up against the headboard. She took a few sips of her coffee which was already starting to get cold. Sean turned on the small bedroom TV before climbing into the bed next to Sue. He turned to her and smiled, opening up his arms to invite her in. Sue crawled in between his legs and leaned her head against his chest. He put his arms around her and kissed her on the head. They stayed that way in silence for a while, watching morning cartoons. Neither of them were really paying attention to the TV. They were just enjoying being together. After a while, Sean broke the silence.
"Do you know what I wanted to happen on New Year's Eve?" Sean asked, not expecting a response. Sue turned around to face him and eyed him questioningly. Sue leaned forward first to press her lips to his, catching him off-guard. He responded by instantly deepening the kiss. He ran his fingers through her hair and down her back. Sue began unbuttoning his shirt and pulled it off of him. Sean broke away for a second to pull his undershirt off over his head. He returned his lips to hers and explored her mouth. Sue lightly bit his lip, remembering how he responded last time, and Sean pulled her closer and kissed her harder. Sue lightly touched the bare skin of his back. Sean's breath quickened and he slipped his hands under the back of her shirt. Sue gasped a little bit at the sensation, experiencing this closeness for the first time. Sean felt her hesitation and broke a away to ask "Are you okay?". She nodded and continued the kiss. Sue slowly moved her fingers toward his belt and began to loosen it. She felt Sean suck in a deep breath as he grabbed at the bottom of her sweater, lifting it off over her head. Sue momentarily felt nervous, having her well-worn bra exposed, but quickly remembered who she was with. Sean loved her and knew almost everything about her. He knew where she came from, what her life was like, her family. Family. Suddenly, Sean's phone began to ring. Sue was startled and shook a little. Sean noticed and broke away. "It can wait." Sean said as he went back to kissing Sue. After his phone stopped ringing, Sue noticed the sound of her ringtone. This time, Sue broke away. Sean was breathing heavily and he looked at Sue's shirtless body for the first time. He placed a gentle kiss on her bare collarbone and pulled her in for a hug, gently stroking her back. The phone continued to ring and Sue put her forehead on Sean's shoulder, breathing gently onto his chest. Her phone stopped ringing and she quietly whispered "finally." She raised her head to kiss Sean on the neck. She slowly brought her lips back up to his face and kissed him on the chin, then on his cheek, then his nose, and finally on his mouth. That's when Sean's phone began to ring once again. Sean pulled away, frustrated, and muttered "What is it?" under his breath. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone to read the display. Axl. Sue narrowed her eyes in confusion and reached over to the nightstand to grab her phone. Axl had called her too. A quick wave of guilt crossed Sue as she thought of her family.
"I think we're being punished for not telling anyone yet." Sue said.
"I think you're right." Sean said as he shoved the phone back into his pocket. He leaned back against the headboard and let out a sigh. He reached for his button down shirt and placed it over Sue's bare shoulders. She smiled and slipped her arms through the sleeves. Sue turned around once again to face the TV and leaned against Sean's chest. She began to dial Axl's number into her phone when she was interrupted with a text message from him. Mom wants you to come home tonight for family dinner. Sue showed the text to Sean.
"Let's tell them tonight." Sean said.
"Tonight." She replied.
