Drake's POV
I don't know how long Taylor and I had actually stayed away from class but I figured it was probably time to get up and leave. As I glanced down at her asleep in my arms I smile at the turn of events. I'm exhausted from staying awake all night but I knew if Taylor wanted to go another round I would. I wish I could join her in sleep but my mind won't stop whirling. I tried not to let this morning's stupid prank get me but I would be lying if I said it didn't bother me. I can't even go one day without someone targeting me or Taylor or someone I love. Not to mention I haven't told Taylor about what happened with Teri, which I am not looking forward to talking about since Taylor reacted badly to the Zoe situation. I glance over at my watch and see that it's nearly time for lunch. I gently wake Taylor by pressing my lips to her hair and she stirs almost immediately.
"Drake I can't go another round. I'm too tired. Damn you and your alien stamina," she laughs lightly stretching before relaxing against me again.
"I didn't wake you to do that again," I say laughing slightly and brushing her hair away from her face, "I just thought you might want some lunch."
"Umm that sounds good right now," She says stretching again and her stomach rumbles. She curls her arms around her stomach and looks at me in disbelief. I just chuckle and wrap my arms around her tighter.
Taylor raises onto her elbow and looks down at me.
"I think I love you," Taylor says looking into my eyes steadily. I can't help the broad smile that stretches across my face. I lean forward and kiss her soundly.
"I think I love you too. You wanna get up and get dressed?" I ask her hoping she'll say no.
"I probably should but you're lying on my shirt and my bra is swinging from the sprinkler system." I laugh and look beyond her and see her bra on the sprinkler system like she said.
"I may or may not have liked that bra a little too much." I say. It's the truth. The bra was lacy and dark blue and the contrast of it against her skin made me want her that much more so I may have discarded it a little unceremoniously.
"That's ok. I'm pretty sure I threw your pants somewhere near the door and your shirt is probably no longer in the greenhouse. I may have accidentally thrown it through the window of the greenhouse." She ducks her head hiding her blush in my shoulder. I rested my head against hers and sighed happily. I abruptly think back to this morning and what happened with Teri. I groan and Taylor leans up and looks down at me.
"What's wrong?" She asks studying my face.
"I have to tell you about something and you have to promise to let me get it all out before you say anything," I look at her praying for her to agree.
"Ok. I'm gonna go grab your shirt first." I get up and grab my pants while Taylor disappears to get my shirt. Taylor comes back into the greenhouse wearing my shirt and I almost forget what we were doing. Taylor's body is hidden beneath my shirt but her legs still appear to go on for miles. I shake my head to get the images of what I'd like to be doing with her right now and focus on what I know needs to be done. I sit with my back to one of the cabinets and gesture for Taylor to join me. She sits across from me and looks at me expectantly. I take a deep breath, sigh and rub a hand over my head.
"Something happened after you left yesterday," I start slowly looking at Taylor, "Teri came over and yelled at me."
"About what?" she asks gently wrapping her arms around her knees so she can look up at me.
"You. And me. Both of us. Us being together," I say stumbling over my words because I know what I have to tell her next, "Then she kissed me." I pause waiting for Taylor's reaction and waiting for her to hit me or scream at me but she doesn't do any of that. She's silent for a few minutes and I see tears starting to well up in her eyes. She stands up and gathers her clothes pulling them on article by article. I stare stunned at her before I realize she's almost fully dressed. I stand and try to stop her from leaving but she throws my shirt at my face which catches me by surprise. By the time I get the shirt off my face she's gone and I again am left staring after her. I look around the greenhouse and pull on my boots and grab my backpack. I notice Taylor's purse and car keys are on the ground next to her shoes so I pick them up and head to the parking lot where I know Taylor disappeared to.
Taylor's POV
I feel humiliated as I run out of the greenhouse and toward my car. I punch my code into the door and as I get into the driver's seat I realize I don't have my car keys or my shoes. I put my hands on the steering wheel and rest my head against them. I feel the tears I was holding back flow freely from my eyes.
I can't believe Drake would do this to us! I'm outraged that I just gave myself to him again and he still doesn't feel the same way about me as I do about him. I feel like I should be less harsh on myself because I wasn't the only one at fault here. There was a soft knock on my window and I looked out to see Drake. I wiped at my eyes and glared at him. He held up his hands and I saw my shoes and car keys in his hands. I opened the door slightly and held out my hand. He dropped the keys in first and then handed me my shoes. I slipped the keys into the ignition and pulled my shoes on.
"Taylor I'm sorry. You didn't let me finish telling the story though before you ran out," Drake said softly looking at me with his open, honest eyes. I fight over whether or not to let him in the car before I make up my mind and unlock the passenger side door. Drake moves around the car and slides into the seat. He's too tall for the seat so he slumps down and tries to get comfortable. I laugh slightly and reach across him to press the button to lower his seat. He looks at me gratefully and then shifts so he is more comfortable. I wait for him to speak and he does so slowly. "Teri came over and she kissed me, but I stopped her. I don't want to be with her. If I wanted to be with her I wouldn't be sitting here with you."
I sit there thinking about what he said. I look out of my window and see a bird fly past the school building. Another bird follows behind it and they fly around one another and then the first bird flies off with the second bird chasing the first. I want to believe Drake about what he says about the way he feels about me but I can't wrap my mind around the idea that he already has another girl waiting for him back in the Sector.
Teri could easily be with Drake and no one would question it. No one would put dirt in Drake's locker because he was dating someone outside his species. No one would try to split the two of them up because it went against their beliefs. Nothing about that relationship would be complicated, yet I couldn't imagine what giving up Drake would look like. I had grown fond of our shared moments. Those times before we were dating where Drake would pass me in the hallway and walk just a little too closely so our arms would brush even though there was plenty of room in the hallways. I would miss how Drake and I constantly teased each other in biology about stamina. But mostly I would miss the moments where after we made love- or had sex, we're both tired and satisfied and I look up at him and he smiled down at me and I knew I was the only person he wanted to be with. I saw that look today and I want to see it in the future. I want to wake up next to Drake, or wrapped in his arms and see him give me that same look when he wakes up too.
"Do you love me?" I ask turning to face Drake.
"Yes." He said without hesitating.
"Do you want to be with me?"
"Yes."
"Do you have feelings for Teri?"
"Yes," he says slowly, "But not the same feelings I have for you. Teri is a long time friend and that is all I see her as." I accept his answer and hold out my hand palm up. He reaches out and twines our fingers together. He raises our joined hand and presses his lips to my hand while looking into my eyes. I smile at him and turn to start the car.
"Where are we going?" Drake asks turning around to grab the seat buckle.
"I thought we'd go get lunch." I say pulling out of the parking lot and heading toward my home.
"I don't know if I'm allowed to leave school."
"That's why you haven't." I say smiling to myself and praising myself for being clever enough to think about this ahead of time.
"What are you talking about?" Drake asks looking at me like I'm crazy.
"I had Lucas fix your tracker to move from classroom to classroom with the bell schedule and also plan out some bathroom and water fountain trips." I say smugly looking at him out of the corner of my eye.
"You're crazy," he chuckles, "That's why I love you." I laugh too and pull into my driveway.
"Where are we?" Drake says getting out of the car and looking around.
"My house. I hope you don't mind," I say and I am nervous now that I have him at my house. I look around and take in the tan walls and the red tiles on the roof. This place that I call my home is nothing like Drake's humble home. Mine is extravagant and full of unnecessary things that my parents insisted on installing.
"It doesn't look like any other house I've ever seen." He responds
"What do you mean?" I ask tilting my head to look at him better.
"I mean it looks like someone actually lives here. It feels more like a home than Grayson's house did." He says gesturing to the yard. I know what he means when he says that about Grayson's house. It really didn't feel like a home as much as it did a museum. I walked over to Drake and wrapped my arms around him. He did the same to me and rested his head on top of mine.
"No one should be home right now so we'll have the house to ourselves." I say pulling away from him and leading him into my house.
I unlocked the front door and walked inside slipping my shoes off at the front door. Drake does the same behind me and I catch him looking around the house. He sees the family portrait on the wall and walks over.
"Is this you?" He asks pointing at the picture. The girl in the picture looked like me yet it somehow didn't feel like it was me anymore. That picture had been taken almost five years ago when I hadn't been popular and hadn't taken to wearing anything besides jeans. I nod in response to his question.
"Yup. That's me and my mother and father," I say
"It doesn't really look like you. I can't believe you're wearing jeans that don't have some kind of decoration on them," He teases lightly bumping his shoulder into mine. I laugh and wrap my arms around him. He picks me up and spins us around. I shriek and hold onto him tighter. He holds me up by my waist and lowers me until we are eye level. He tilts his head and I see him looking at my lips. I look at his too as I lower my lips to his. It's a simple kiss; one that doesn't promise to lead to anything more than a kiss.
"Oh Miss Taylor I didn't expect you home so soon!" I hear Justine, my housekeeper, say as she enters the room. Drake quickly lowers me to the floor and stands behind me facing Justine.
"I didn't expect you home either," I say, "You usually go home before noon." I say trying to figure out why she's here.
"I had a few more loads of laundry to put through the wash that I didn't get to earlier today. I didn't know we were expecting company." She says looking at Drake with an amused smile.
"We weren't- I mean we… I... This is Drake," I say stumbling over my words.
"He's an Atrian?" She asks and I feel Drake stiffen behind me. Justine just smiles and addresses Drake, "Well don't let me stop you. If there's anything I've learned while working for Taylor's family it's that if Taylor's made up her mind there's no going back." She smiles warmly at me and nods to Drake before ducking out of the room.
I look back at Drake and he's staring after Justine. I reach up and take hold of his hand and lead him further into my house. He follows me hesitantly into the kitchen.
"So she's not going to call your parents is she?" Drake asks finally breaking his silence.
"I don't think so," I pause thinking of Justine and the things we've been through. I don't think she would say the thing she had about me making my mind up and then go and tell my parents. "I think we can trust her."
"Okay." Drake says walking into the kitchen a little more confidently. He walks over to the fridge and opens it. I walk over to him and wrap my arms around him from behind burying my face into his back. "What do you want to eat?"
"I don't actually know what you can and can't eat," I say looking past him to the caffeinated soda in the door.
"Let me show you." Drake pulls out a soda can and holds it out to me. "If I drink this I'll die, but I can have this one." he says pulling out a different soda, "We have this in the Sector. This… I have no idea what this is…" Drake pulls out a tub of yogurt. He looks at the list of ingredients and then hands it to me. "I could eat this but I would have to drink like a gallon of water with it. There's a lot of sodium." I look at the ingredients as Drake turns back to the fridge.
"What about this?" I open the freezer and pull out my favorite ice cream and chocolate sauce. I hand them both over to him and he scans the labels.
"I can definitely eat ice cream. It's one of my favorite Human foods. And I'm pretty sure I can eat this." Drake opens the jar and sticks his finger in pulling out a small amount. He licks the sauce off his finger and then waits. He doesn't react the way Sophia did but rather looks like he enjoyed the food. "I like this." He says taking another scoop of the sauce. I walk deeper into the kitchen and reach into a drawer and pull out two spoons handing one to him. I then pull out some bread and offer him a slice. He takes it and spreads the sauce onto the bread. He offers me the first bite and I lean forward over the counter to accept the food. I take a small bite and Drake laughs at the chocolate that's spread over my lips. I smile at him and go to reach for a napkin but Drake stops me.
"I've got it." Drake leans forward and licks the leftover chocolate from my chin. I laugh at first but then moan as Drake's lips meet mine.
Drake's POV
I find Taylor sitting alone in her car so I knock softly at her window and she turns to look at me. She wipes her eyes and glares at me. I hold up my hands in an attempt to get her to relax a little. I show her I have her keys and shoes and she opens the door slightly. I pass her the keys which she puts in the car, and then I pass her her shoes which she puts on. It breaks my heart to see her this way but I have to let her know she didn't let me finish my story.
"Taylor I'm sorry. You didn't let me finish telling the story though before you ran out," I say softly looking at Taylor with an open honest expression in my eyes. Taylor appears to fight with herself about whether or not to let me inside the car but she appears to make up her mind and unlocks the passenger side door. I move around the car and slide into the seat. I'm too tall for the seat so I slump down and try to get comfortable in the cramped car. Taylor laughs slightly and reaches across me to press a button. My seat begins to lower and I look at her gratefully and then shift so I am more comfortable. Taylor looks at me to speak so I do, "Teri came over and she kissed me, but I stopped her. I don't want to be with her. If I wanted to be with her I wouldn't be sitting here with you."
I sit there silently as she thinks about what she wants to do next
"Do you love me?" she asks turning to face me..
"Yes." I say instantly.
"Do you want to be with me?"
"Yes."
"Do you have feelings for Teri?"
"Yes," I says slowly, "But not the same feelings I have for you. Teri is a long time friend and that is all I see her as." I feel nothing for Teri like I do for Taylor. She holds out her hand palm up and I reach out and twine our fingers together. I raise our joined hands and press my lips to her hand. I look at her lovingly and she started up the car.
"Where are we going?" I ask reaching for my seatbelt buckle.
"I thought we'd go get lunch." she says pulling out of the parking lot.
"I don't know if I'm allowed to leave school." I say thinking back to all of the rules Gloria had gone over about us being in this program.
"That's why you haven't." Taylor says smiling widely. I look at her like she's crazy. Clearly we have turned off school are headed toward the town.
"What are you talking about?"
"I had Lucas fix your tracker to move from classroom to classroom with the bell schedule and also plan out some bathroom and water fountain trips." she says smugly looking at me out of the corner of her eye.
"You're crazy," I chuckle, "That's why I love you." She laughs and pulls up to a house.
"Where are we?" I say getting out of the car and looking around. I take in the tan walls and the red tiles and the grass and the brightly lit windows.
"My house. I hope you don't mind," I shake my head no and turn to look at her.
"It doesn't look like any other house I've ever seen." I respond.
"What do you mean?" She asks tilting her head to look at me.
"I mean it looks like someone actually lives here. It feels more like a home than Grayson's house did." I say remembering that night and remembering all the events that happened that night. I look at Taylor's house and it really feels like a home and not as much of a museum that Grayson's house felt like. Taylor slowly walks over to me and wraps her arms around me. I did the same and placed my head on top of hers.
"No one should be home right now so we'll have the house to ourselves." she says and smiles at me. I realize the implications of that fact and I smile and follow her inside.
Taylor walks inside and pulls her shoes off and places them at the front door. I do the same and take a quick glance around the house. I see a large framed picture of a family which I guess to be Taylor's.
"Is this you?" I ask pointing at the picture. The girl in the picture looks like Taylor but the girl in the picture doesn't seem to have the same fire within her. The picture looks kind of outdated because Taylor's not wearing any makeup and her face isn't as angular as it is now.
"Yup. That's me and my mother and father," she says answering my question.
"It doesn't really look like you. I can't believe you're wearing jeans that don't have some kind of decoration on them," I tease. I bump her with my shoulder. Taylor laughs and wraps her arms around me. I pick her up and spin us around. Taylor shrieks and holds onto me tightly. I hold her up by her waist and look at her deciding to lower her until we are eye level. She tilts her head and I catch myself looking at her lips. Taylor looks at mine too so I lower my head to hers and our lips meet. I start to lose myself in her and just as I'm about to take this kiss somewhere I hear a voice from behind us..
"Oh Miss Taylor I didn't expect you home so soon!" I quickly lower Taylor to the floor and stand behind her facing the newcomer.
"I didn't expect you home either," Taylor says unconsciously pulling her shirt lower, "You usually go home before noon."
"I had a few more loads of laundry to put through the wash that I didn't get to earlier today. I didn't know we were expecting company." She says looking at me with an amused smile.
"We weren't- I mean we… I... This is Drake," Taylor says stumbling over her words.
"He's an Atrian?" She asks and I stiffen behind Taylor ready for her to attack me in some manner. She smiles and addresses me, "Well don't let me stop you. If there's anything I've learned while working for Taylor's family it's that if Taylor's made up her mind there's no going back." She smiles warmly at me and nods to me before ducking out of the room.
I stare after the stranger as she leaves the room. Taylor reaches up and takes hold of my hand and leads me further into the house. I follow hesitantly behind Taylor as she leads me to what I assume was the kitchen. I can't help but think about the expression the lady had given me. She didn't seem hostile but I have been betrayed by someone who first seemed nice to me.
"So she's not going to call your parents is she?" I ask finally breaking his silence.
"I don't think so," Taylor pauses, her face turning thoughtful, "I think we can trust her."
"Okay." I accept her answer walking into the kitchen a little more light hearted. I want this day to be a good one after all the horrible days we've had. I walk over to the fridge and opens it with the intent of making Taylor lunch. Her fridge is full of foreign foods that I don't recognize. Taylor wraps her arms around me from behind and she buries her face into his back, "What do you want to eat?" I ask her trying to figure out what was where so I would know what to grab.
"I don't actually know what you can and can't eat," She says removing her face from my shoulder.
"Let me show you." I say pulling out a soda can and handing it to her. "If I drink this I'll die, but I can have this one." I say pulling out a different soda. I try to make this topic informative without it being a boring biology lesson, "We have this in the Sector. This… I have no idea what this is…" I pull out a tub of something and look over the ingredients list. At first glance the food item isn't going to kill me until I look at the sodium levels. "I could eat this but I would have to drink like a gallon of water with it. There's a lot of sodium." I hand the tub of what I find out if yogurt to Tylor and turn back to the fridge. As I see a couple of other things I can eat Taylor interrupts me.
"What about this?" She opens the freezer and pulls out another tub and a jar that I see is called chocolate sauce. She hands them both over and I scan the labels.
"I can definitely eat ice cream. It's one of my favorite Human foods. And I'm pretty sure I can eat this." I definatly thank the Humans who developed icecream but we don't often get it in the Sector because a lot of our fridges don't have a freezer aspect to keep icecream cold enough to be icecream. I've had chocolate before; we have it in the Sector, but usually our is bitter because we have to process it straight as the bean because we lack the technology to make it sweeter. I open the jar and stick my finger in pulling out a small amount. I lick the sauce off my finger and then wait to see what it would taste like. I catch Taylor looking at me. "I like this." I say taking another scoop of chocolate. Taylor walks deeper into the kitchen and reaches into a drawer and pull out two spoons handing one to me. Taylor pulls some bread off a shelf and offers me a slice. I take the piece of bread and spread some of the sauce over it. I offer her the first bite to be polite, and she leans forward over the counter to accept the food. She takes a small bite and I laugh at how the chocolate sauce spread everywhere on her lips. Taylor reaches beside us to grab a napkin but I stop her
"I've got it." I lean forward and playfully lick the leftover chocolate from my chin. She laughs at first so I take that as an invitation to kiss her.