Elle breathed heavily for a few moments, her head swimming slightly as she tried to make sense of what had just happened.
"What?" She finally managed to say.
"I said, it's you." Jordan repeated softly. He looked into her eyes for a moment before leaning forward to kiss her again. Elle was almost ready to let him, until a thought made her stop and pull away.
"No," she quietly stated as she forced herself to back away from him and put some much needed distance between them.
"Pardon?" He questioned, frowning as she moved away from him.
"We can't…..I can't do this," she firmly stated, shaking her head.
"I think the fact that we just did, suggests that yes we have the ability…"
"This isn't funny, Jordan," Elle reprimanded. "That….that can never happen again, and you know exactly why."
"Because of Willa?" Came the question as he crossed his arms over his chest.
"Yes, because of Willa," Elle nodded, running a hand through her hair.
"Elle…" Jordan murmured as he took a step towards her.
"Willa is one of the top most important people to me. I could never do anything to hurt her…and this….this would kill her," Elle said, shaking her head again and taking a step backwards.
"If she didn't know it wouldn't hurt her." He murmured under his breath. Elle stared at him, surprised by his words.
"…I'm sorry, so let me get this straight, you're suggesting I lie to my sister, my best friend…and in doing so, we in effect lie to everyone else….my brother and your best friend included…..for this?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Jordan sighed, running his hand over his face.
"Elle… Do you even know how long I've wanted to kiss you? To be with you in any way other than just a friend?" He questioned, moving forward. "Because it's been a hell of a long time." Elle's mouth fell open, partly out of shock and partly out of not knowing what to say at that. "So," Jordan continued, taking another step closer to her, "when it comes to lying to Oliver and anyone else about how I feel about you…..I'm pretty much used to it."
"Wh…Why?" She choked out after a few moments.
"Why what?" Jordan questioned.
"Why do you like me?" Elle asked meekly. Jordan looked at her, taken aback that she'd ask such a thing and took a few more steps closer to her.
"What's not to like?" He softly asked, his arms moving around her waist.
"Jordy…" She protested softly as he drew her closer.
"Don't worry about Willa, or Ollie, or anyone," Jordan gently insisted, "just focus on what you want, how you feel."
"I… I don't know." Elle breathed out.
"Don't know what?" He asked softly as he stroked her arm gently.
"How I feel," Elle murmured.
"Give it time then." Jordan offered. Carefully, he let his hand wander up her arm, stopping at her chin to bring her eyes level with his. "I'm not going anywhere." He slowly pressed his lips to hers in a tender kiss. Elle's eyes drifted shut as she let herself sink into the kiss. It took Jordan a moment to pull away from the kiss, and he gave Elle a smile as he stroked her face. Elle blushed and cast her eyes downwards slightly as Jordan smiled at her. "You're beautiful." He murmured. Elle's heart rate quickened ever so slightly at that as her blush intensified. "But I should let you go…" He sighed sadly. Elle was surprised by the sudden cold empty feeling that drifted into the pit of her stomach for a moment when she felt Jordan release her. She nervously cleared her throat and nodded.
"Um…yeah….I should…go back to my room," she stammered slightly. He flashed a grin and kissed her quickly.
"Don't let me keep you." Came his response. Elle took a deep breath to try and regain control of her jack hammering heart and nodded before heading towards the door.
"Bye." She whispered softly as she exited the room. Once she was out in the hall and the door hissed shut behind her, she leaned against it and let out a deep sigh. Elle let her head rest against the wall as she closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths to calm herself down. A few moments later, she stood up from the door and made her way back across the hall to her suite. As the doors hissed open to her room, she spotted Derek lounging of the couch in the living room, while Alana was sprawled on the couch, her head in his lap. "Uh, morning." Elle commented. Alana tilted her head to look at Elle and smiled.
"Hey," she lazily greeted.
"Mornin." Derek nodded.
"So Willa was saying that we should decorate our new abode." Alana commented as Elle moved towards the kitchen. Elle opened up their shared refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of water.
"Okay," she replied, though her mind was elsewhere.
"The boys said that they'd even treat for dinner once we were finished." The blond ranger continued. Elle took a sip of her water and simply nodded along to whatever Alana was saying. Alana peered at her suitemate and fellow ranger, suspecting she was only barely listening to what she was saying. "And I just found out I'm carrying the second coming, I think I might name him Bob," Alana breezily added. Derek quirked an eyebrow and peered down at his girlfriend curiously.
"Sounds good," Elle commented as she took another sip of water. Alana nudged her head towards the door.
"Out babe… I'll see you later." She kissed him quickly before slipping off the couch and moving towards Elle.
"Um, alright," Derek replied as he stood up from the couch. Alana waited for Derek to leave the room, and the doors to hiss quiet before she looked at Elle again.
"What's going on?" She questioned.
"What do you mean?" Elle evasively asked her gaze elsewhere.
"Elle, don't play stupid." Alana commented.
"I'm not," Elle replied with a shrug. The blond ranger paused for a moment.
"Oh my god, it's a boy isn't it?" She asked with a smile. "I know that look." Elle's eyes widened as her gaze quickly shifted to Alana.
"Wh…what? No…of course not," she quickly replied.
"You're lying!" Alana giggled. "Tell me!"
"Where's Willa?" Elle asked, changing the subject.
"I think she fell back asleep? I don't know." Alana replied.
"Ah," Elle said. She let off a forced yawn. "You know what, that sounds like a good idea, I'm going to go take a nap," she commented as she made her way to her room.
"Uh huh… Good way to avoid the questions too." Alana teased.
"I'm not avoiding anything," Elle nonchalantly replied. "There's no guy, nothing to share."
"Y'know… I might not be your sister, but I can keep a secret, and I'm here if you want to talk." The older girl murmured in response. Elle stared at Alana for a moment, weighing her options whether or not to come clean. Sighing she turned back around.
"Okay… You're right, there's a guy… But it's complicated, and not something I can tell my sister… Or that you can tell her either." Elle added as an after though.
"Ooh, I'm intrigued," Alana commented with a grin.
"Can we do this in your room?" Elle questioned, a pleading tone entering her voice.
"Yeah, sure," Alana nodded as she stood up from the couch and led the way to her room.
"Thank god." The shorter girl murmured as the crossed the living room into Alana's room. Once the two were inside Alana's room, Alana shut the door and moved across the bedroom to plop down on the edge of her bed.
"Spill." She commented with a smile. Elle let out a deep breath and nervously wrung her fingers as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other.
"W…um…Willa, she's sort of had this thing for this guy for…well….practically since the day she got here," Elle began. "And….I guess last night she told him how he felt, and he didn't feel the same."
"Oh…poor Will," Alana murmured. Elle bit her lip and nodded.
"Uh yeah….so….this guy, I went to talk to him about what happened and…" She pasued, her voice catching in her throat as her mind went back to Jordan kissing her not to long ago.
"And?" Alana asked. Elle cleared her throat and forced the memory out of her head.
"W..well, he sort of indicated that, he's not interested in my sister, he's interested in me," Elle stated, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly. Alana blinked and nodded slowly.
"That's quite the predicament you're in then… Rock, hard place and such." She commented with a wave of her hand.
"No kidding," Elle sighed.
"Well, first things first….are you interested in him?" Alana asked. The younger girl paused for a moment. Clearly, Jordan was highly attractive, with a fairly decent personality to boot. She nodded slowly after a moment.
"I think so..." She sighed and sat down next to Alana. "I don't know, maybe I've liked for a while and just…..not wanting to step on my sister's toes or anything, pushed it out of my head. But…." She let out a sigh as the feel of Jordan's lips on hers entered her mind once again. "The moment he kissed me, it….it felt amazing," she quietly stated.
"Whoa, wait, what? He kissed you!" Alana commented, scooting closer to Elle. "You need to give me full details! Who is this guy?"
"Wh…why does that matter?" Elle asked. Alana sighed.
"It probably doesn't, and I guess I'm just being nosey… I'm not used to having girl friends who don't have ulterior motives." She shrugged. Elle furrowed her brows at that.
"What do you mean, ulterior motives?" She asked. Blushing, Alana glanced down.
"Two reasons for that… Firstly, Derek is gorgeous and that really doesn't go unnoticed here… Granted, there are a few who are better looking, but he's quite a guy… So girls try and get close to me in order to try and interject in our relationship and break us up." She paused and glanced up. "The second one, which I'm sure everyone knows is of who my parents are… They think I got accepted here because of them, and their money… So people flock to me in hopes that they'll be on the receiving end of the wealth, fame and fortune that comes with being a Drake." Elle was quite surprised by what Alana was saying. Sure, in her time at the academy and her seeing Alana as just a passing fellow cadet up until recently, she had passively noticed that Alana was at most just acquaintances with other girls at the academy. But she had always just chalked it up to Alana being a bit of a tomboy at times, and her just in general feeling more comfortable with male friends.
"I never knew that." Elle murmured a few moments later. "The part about them just using you to get to your family and Derek..." She sighed. "But, I can relate, a little. Back when Willa, Oliver and I were younger and we were all at the orphanage….some of the older girls would try and buddy up and try and be 'big sisters' to Willa and I just to get Ollie's attention. When he was around, they'd be all over us and act like they wanted to take us under their wing. But when he wasn't there, they'd act like we were just these annoying kids bugging them. I didn't let it get to me after a while, ignored the girls when they tried to play nice…..but Willie, she was the optimist, thinking that oh, maybe this one's genuine, maybe she really wants to be my friend."
"Sounds like we have a lot more in common than we thought." Alana smiled, a twinge of sadness in her voice.
"I guess we do," Elle nodded. She regretted that after all the years she and Alana had been in the academy together, it took becoming rangers and her current crisis, for the two of them to finally connect. Elle sighed, as she was brought back to the matter at hand. "Since…forever, really, Willa and I have been each other's best friends…..at times, each other's only friend…I…I just don't know if I can hurt her like this," she commented sadly.
"But what about what you want?" The older girl questioned. "I understand that you don't want to hurt Willa… But what about your own happiness?" Elle bit her lip as she considered what Alana was saying.
"I hadn't thought about what I want," she admitted. She sighed and shook her head. "But, even if I put aside Willa's feelings, I don't know if I could do that to the team."
"What are you talking about?" Alana asked, puzzled.
"Well, it…it'd make things weird," Elle replied. "Not just with Willa, but with Oliver."
"What does Oliver have to do with this?" Alana asked. "What…don't tell me, he likes this guy too?" She joked.
"Well… Not in the way you're thinking at least." Elle replied, biting her lip with a smile.
"Okay….you've lost me," Alana said. "Who is this guy?"
"Um…" Elle blushed, mumbling something softly under her breath.
"I'm sorry, come again?" Alana asked, leaning closer to hear her.
"I said it's Jordan." Elle replied with a sigh. Alana stared at Elle, her mouth hanging open and her eyes wide. "What?" Elle questioned at her friends expression.
"Jordan Mitchellson?" Alana choked out.
"Yes..." Elle slowly replied, confused by Alana's reaction.
"Wow… Um… I don't know what to say." The blond ranger replied scratching the back of her neck.
"What?" Elle questioned. "Just spit it out for the love of god." She sighed. Alana glanced down and sighed.
"Jordan and I used to be a thing way back in the day…" She shrugged. "Not that has any bering on anything though." Elle blinked, shocked by Alana's admission.
"What?" She choked out.
"It's not important." Alana replied with a wave of her hand. "I can see why he likes you though."
"What do you mean?" Elle asked.
"You're pretty, extremely intelligent and have a great personality." Alana replied. "Plus, you can hold your own in arguments and fights… Which he likes." Elle's cheeks turned bright red at that. "Look, Jordy's a great guy and he'd treat you like a Queen… But I can see your hesitation about hurting your sister… It's tough."
"…What happened, between you and Jordan….if you don't mind me asking?" Elle curiously asked. "I mean, why did you guys end things?"
"Jordy and I drifted apart… We never really were an item… More so we were fun buddies… Actually it was right around the time that you enrolled here and I met Derek. We both realized that we wanted something more than what we could give each other." Alana shrugged.
"Really?" Elle questioned. "Sorry, it just seems like now that you mention it, you and Jordan would have made a great couple."
"Really?" Alana asked, making a skeptical face. "I don't think so."
"You're both extremely attractive, have similar interests and are goal oriented." Elle replied with a shrug.
"Yeah, but having similarities like that doesn't necessarily mean guaranteed love match," Alana pointed out.
"I guess you're right." Elle replied with a shrug.
"That being said of course," Alana replied, biting her lip. "Should you decide to proceed with things with Jordy, and it progresses far enough, he's amazing in bed."
"Oh…" Elle said, her face turning beet red with an intense blush as she looked away bashfully. "Uh….good to know…"
"Anyway, I think that you should sit down with him and figure things out." She stated.
"I wouldn't know what to say," Elle murmured.
"What do you mean?" The older ranger asked as she rested her hand on Elle's arm. "Just talk to him."
"And what do I tell Willa? Gosh, sorry for stealing your crush away, but you know how it is?" Elle sighed.
"Obviously you can't say that." Alana replied, rolling her eyes. "No, you need to talk to Jordan first and explain everything to him and see if there's even potential for it to go somewhere… If there is, then maybe you tell Willa, or keep it a secret, I don't know!" She sighed, flopping backwards.
"I guess I need to talk to Jordan." Elle sighed, dropping her head.
"Sounds like it," Alana agreed.
"Thanks Alana." She commented quietly after a beat. "I'll let you know how it goes." Alana smiled and sat up.
"Great," she replied. Giving her friend a smile, Elle stood and exited the room, and the apartment, heading back towards Jordan and Derek's suite. Once she reached the door, she simply stood there, staring at it for a long moment before finally gathering up her courage. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door. The door hissed open a few moments later, revealing Derek standing there in a pair of jeans and his button up shirt open.
"Uh, hey Elle." He commented. "What's up?"
"Hey Derek," Elle said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Um…is Jordan around?" She asked.
"Yeah, come on in… I think he went back to bed but go on in and wake him up." Derek replied with a shrug.
"Oh, okay, thanks," Elle replied as she walked into the suite.
"Anytime." He replied heading back into the kitchen. Elle stopped short of Jordan's door and sighed before she opened the door and moved into the darkened room.
"Derek, I'm not hungry, nor am I even suicidal enough to try whatever you concoct in the kitchen. Leave me alone," came a groaning voice from where Elle could only imagine the bed was as the door closed behind her.
"Well, that's good to know, but I'm not Derek." Elle replied, biting back a giggle.
"Wha…" She heard Jordan mumble in confusion before a shuffling was heard from the bed as he reached over and clicked on his bedside lamp. "Elle," he breathed, surprised.
"Hey." She replied lamely as he sat up in bed, the glow from his lamp casting over his naked, well-defined chest.
"Hey," he replied. "What are you doing here?" He gently asked.
"I came to talk… But I can come back if this is a bad time." Elle babbled, taking a step backwards towards the door.
"No!" Jordan quickly replied, making her stop in her tracks. "I….I mean, um…no, it's fine, we can talk," he added, clearing his throat.
"Okay." Came her soft reply.
"Uh….do you want to sit?" Jordan lamely asked, shifting on the bed to make room for her to sit beside him if she chose to.
"Sure… Thanks." She mumbled, moving forward to sit on the bed carefully. Jordan quietly watched her as she moved across the room and sat on the side of his bed.
"What's up?" He questioned once she had situated herself comfortably on his bed.
"We need to talk," Elle said.
"I kind of figured that's why you're here." Jordan replied with a grin.
"Right, yeah," Elle murmured with a slight blush. "Um…it's…about what happened before," she stated. Shuffling slightly, he sat up and leaned against his headboard.
"Okay…" he trailed off, a bad feeling settling in the pit of his stomach. Elle stared down at her lap for a moment as she tried to figure out what to say next.
"Um….your feelings….for me…how long have you been keeping them to yourself?" She asked, stalling somewhat as she tried to find the right words to articulate how she felt about him.
"Uh… A long time." He replied softly. She turned to face him and he held his hand up.
"In order to make me seem less creepy, let's just leave it at that." He stated. Elle frowned, confused by his statement.
"What do you mean?" She asked. With a sigh, Jordan dropped his head backwards with a thud against the headboard.
"I've liked you since you joined the academy." He murmured. Elle stared at him.
"All this time?" She asked her voice barely above a whisper.
"Uh, yeah…" Jordan murmured softly. Elle stared at him, unable to say a word for several long moments. Jordan peered at her closely and was about to say something when Elle shocked him by smacking his shoulder, hard.
"You idiot!" She hissed.
"Hey!" Jordan exclaimed, rubbing the spot she had hit him. "What the…that hurt!"
"Good," Elle said, glaring at him. "Why the hell didn't you say something, or do something, my first year here?" She demanded.
"Why does that matter?" Jordan asked, mildly exasperated.
"Because!" Elle replied.
"Because what?" Jordan asked.
"Because then we wouldn't be in this predicament, and I wouldn't have to be worrying about my sister's feelings," she quietly snapped. "If you had told me back then, then we might've been together and Willa wouldn't have been able to fall for you, dumbass!"
"I apologize that I didn't look into my crystal ball." He grumbled. "How dare I not anticipate all the way back then, that the sister who I hadn't even met yet, would develop feelings for me so I had better pounce on the sister I have feelings for the first moment I saw her." Jordan rolled his eyes and sighed. "Look, I'm sorry if you feel I've put you in a bad position, I didn't mean it. The last thing I would ever consciously want to do is hurt Willa, or put cause some sort of problem between you and Willa. But I can't pretend I don't feel the way I do."
"Really? Seems pretending is something you're pretty talented at," Elle countered. Jordan sighed again.
"Touché," he relented. "But I know now I can't do that anymore."
"Oh? And why is that exactly." Elle demanded. "It's only taken you how many years to figure out that you could act on your feelings, what was a little longer?" Jordan looked away.
"Look, if you came here just to chew me out for keeping all this a secret, you needn't bother," he commented as he swung his legs around the other side of the bed and stood up. "I know that was stupid. So, if that's all you're here for, you can just go."
"Wait." She sighed as he began to walk towards his closet to put on more than his boxers. Jordan stopped but didn't turn to face her.
"What for?" Jordan asked.
"I didn't come here to chew you out." She replied softly.
"Ah," Jordan replied. "Well, it's nice to hear that you hitting me wasn't a premeditated strike," he sardonically added. Elle sighed and stood up from the bed. She wordlessly crossed the room until she was standing right behind Jordan and gently wrapped her hand around his elbow and tugged. Jordan allowed himself to be turned around to face her. Elle looked up at him and brought her other hand up to his cheek as she raised herself up onto the tips of her toes to close the height gap between them and lightly press her lips against his. Carefully, Jordan wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer as she ended the kiss and went to move away.
"So what does this mean?" He asked carefully after a moment. Elle closed her eyes and put her weight back onto the balls of her feet as she laid her head on his chest.
"I don't know," she murmured with a sigh.
"We could always try… And just not tell anyone." Jordan murmured softly as he rubbed her back. Elle tilted her head up to look at him.
"I have this nagging feeling that that'd come back to bite us in the ass at some point," she murmured. She sighed, "but I guess it'd be the only way to avoid hurting Willa, or Oliver killing you, at least for now."
"So… we're trying this?" Came his hopeful question. Elle bit her lip and nodded. Jordan grinned and squeezed her hip gently as he bent down and pressed his lips to hers. Elle smiled against his lips and wrapped her arms around his neck. When the kiss ended, she moved her head to the crook of his neck and snuggled up against him with a content sigh. Instinctively, Jordan's arms tightened around, molding her body to his.
"Now, before some gorgeous young thing walked in here, I was having a great nap… Would you care to join me?" He asked softly. Elle giggled and lifted her head to look at him.
"Gorgeous young thing, eh?" She asked.
"Hey, I call 'em like I see 'em," he replied, causing Elle to giggle again.
"You're a special one Jordy." She smiled.
"Well, I'd like to think you of all people would think I was special," he grinned, giving her a light kiss on the lips.
"Short bus special, maybe." Came her cheeky response as she giggled.
"Hey," Jordan pouted, "you know, if you're going to be mean, maybe I'll take back my nap invitation."
"No you won't." Elle replied with a smile.
"You'd like to think so," Jordan chuckled.
"Okay, well since I'm gonna go over there and have a nap, the only way that you could take it back is if you left… Your choice." Elle grinned as she untangled herself from Jordan's embrace and backed up slowly towards his bed. Jordan was somewhat transfixed as he watched her pull the covers aside and climb into his bed. This was a mental image he had seen quite a few times in the dreams and fantasies he had had about Elle over the years, it was quite enthralling to see it happening in real life.
"You gonna be comfortable in your jeans and that hoodie?" He questioned, trying to keep his voice even. Elle looked at him, her right eyebrow quirked ever so slightly.
"Wow Jordy, that's just a little too obvious," she lightly teased. He felt a blush creep across his face.
"I didn't mean take your clothes off." He mumbled. "I meant that if you're not going to be comfortable sleeping in what you've got on… You could borrow some of my stuff..." Elle continued to look at him with her eyebrow raised. "I'd leave to let you change, of course," he added.
"Um…" She paused for a moment before nodding slowly. "That'd be appreciated."
"Okay," Jordan nodded. "Uh….help yourself to whatever you want," he commented, sweeping his arm towards his closet and dresser. "I'll be back in a few minutes." He turned and exited the room to give her privacy. Once he was gone, Elle climbed out of his bed and moved over to his closet. She shuffled around for a moment, pushing things aside until she settled on a light blue button down. She set the shirt down on top of his dresser before beginning to undress. Once she had pulled the shirt on and had the appropriate amount of buttons secured in place, she began searching for something to wear as a bottom. After some searching, she finally settled on a pair of blue cotton drawstring pajama pants. Just as she had settled back down on the bed, the door opened and Jordan moved back into the room. "Hey," he softly said as he let the door close behind him.
"Hi." She murmured softly as he moved towards the bed. He pulled back the covers at the empty side of the bed and climbed in next to her. Elle felt her heart rate speed up as she felt his leg brush against hers while he was settling into the bed. He gave her a lazy smile as he leaned back into the pillows, tucking one arm behind his head. Elle smiled back at him and turned onto her side as she shifted closer to him.
"Comfy?" Jordan asked a few moments later after she had finished shuffling around and had placed her head in the crook of his neck, her forehead resting against his cheek, and her arm draped over his stomach.
"Hmm, very," Elle contently sighed beside him.
"Good." He murmured softly as he dropped a kiss to the crown of her head. Elle smiled and snuggled closer to him, her fingers lightly caressing his stomach.
"Go to sleep." Jordan encouraged, his tone warm. "I'll be here when you wake up."
"I'd imagine you would be, since this is your room," she giggled, brushing her lips against his cheek.
"Dork." Jordan teased as he tickled her side gently. Elle giggled and squirmed slightly next to him.
"Stop that." She scolded, grabbing his hand.
"Stop what?" He grinned as he tickled her with his other hand.
"Jordy!" She squealed as she tried to squirm away from him. Jordan laughed and kissed the side of her neck.
"Something wrong?" He innocently asked as he pulled back on the tickling.
"I'm ticklish." Elle giggled as he continued to kiss her neck.
"You are?" Jordan asked in a mock surprised tone.
"Yes." She replied glancing up at him. "Don't make me fight back." She mock threatened.
"And how would you fight back?" He asked against her neck before lightly kissing her pulse point.
"Well if I told you, I'd have to kill you." Came her response around a giggle.
"Well, that wouldn't be good," Jordan chuckled against her skin.
"No, it wouldn't." She agreed. "So glad we can both agree." Jordan laughed and tightened his arms around her as he continued to kiss and lightly nibble on her neck. Elle sighed softly as he carefully rolled on top of her, and she arched her neck slightly to give him better access to soft flesh. Jordan trailed kisses up and down her neck before moving to the side of her jaw. He slowly kissed along the underside of her jaw for a few moments, as his hands skirted up and down her sides ever so gently. "I thought we were going to take a nap," Elle quietly moaned as her hands moved up to his shoulders.
"This is much more intriguing and fun though." Jordan murmured against her skin before bringing his lips to hers.
"Mm, true," Elle murmured against his lips as she buried her hands in his hair. He deepened the kiss as one of his hands moved across her ribcage, his fingers accidentally dragging across the underside of her breast. Elle's eyes flew open in surprise.
"Jordy…" Came her breathy comment as she pulled away from the kiss. Jordan's hand stilled as he glanced at her.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to do that," he murmured, afraid he had offended her. He moved his hand down her ribcage until it was on the much safer spot of her stomach. Elle dropped one of her hands from his shoulder and reached down to grab his hand and placed back where it had been.
"I never said you had to move it." She blushed.
"Oh," Jordan breathed out, blushing as well. "Um… Maybe we should have that nap." He blurted out a moment later. Elle blinked, surprised, before frowning.
"Oh….I…..um….okay, if that's what you want," she murmured.
"I just don't want to force you to do go any farther if you're not comfortable." He explained softly. Elle stared up at him for a moment before smiling, somewhat relieved that was his reasoning, and not something like she had somehow suddenly become repellent. She leaned her head up and lightly kissed the side of his mouth, before giving the hand she had moved up a mild squeeze.
"I don't think you're forcing anything," she lightly commented, pointing out she was the one keeping his hand in place.
"If you're sure." Jordan commented softly.
"I am," Elle replied. Ever so carefully, Jordan's hand crept upwards until it rested gently on the top of her breast.
"Just tell me when you're not comfortable anymore." He murmured softly, squeezing both her hip and breast gently. Elle moaned softly, her hip reflexively rolling against his. Jordan bit back a groan as her hips rolled against his.
"You really shouldn't do that," Jordan huskily murmured as he felt his body begin to react to her hips' movement.
"Oh?" She questioned, turning her head to glance at him. "And what will you do if I keep doing it?" As if on cue, Elle rolled her hips again. In response, Jordan let out a low moan as he felt himself begin to harden.
"You sure you wanna find out?" He commented, glancing at her with lust filled eyes. Elle stared up at him, a slight shiver running down her spine from the look in his eyes.
"Yes," she breathed out, her hips rolling against his once again.
"Alright… You say stop, and I'll stop." He murmured before pushing up slightly and quickly unbuttoning the button down. Elle bit her lip, her cheeks blushing furiously as Jordan undid the last button and gently pushed the shirt open. He glanced down at her exposed skin, drinking in the sight of her. Ever so slowly, he ran his fingers along her stomach and across her ribs, before sneaking under the material of her bra.
"I think, this needs to go." Jordan commented huskily.
"I think you're right," Elle replied in a similar tone.
"Sit up." Jordan commented. Elle complied, his button down slipping off her shoulders and down her arms as she did. Jordan's hands glided up her bare arms before he reached behind her back. He rested his forehead against hers, his nose gently bumping into Elle's as he unhooked the clasp at the back of her bra and pulled the garment away.
"You're so beautiful." He murmured softly as he dropped her bra to the floor. Elle's heart rate sped up as she felt Jordan's hands on her naked back once he had removed her bra.
"You okay?" Jordan asked as he kissed her tenderly.
"Uh huh," Elle murmured. Her hands moved to his sides before slipping down to the waistband of his boxers, a cheeky smile forming on her lips. "But I think you need to lose something," she commented.
"We're getting there." Jordan grinned devilishly as he glanced downwards and caught the first sight of her naked breasts.
"Good," Elle giggled, her fingers dipped into his waistband to lightly graze his hipbone.
"Where do you think you're going with that hand?" He teased gently as he moved his hands to cup her breasts. Elle moaned and bit her lip as she felt his hand on her naked breast.
"Nowhere," she innocently replied as her hand moved further down his boxers.
"I doubt that." Came the response as he pinched one of her nipple gently. Elle gasped, her back arching slightly. Jordan grinned as his hands moved down her stomach towards the drawstring pants. "Lie back," he softly murmured. Elle instantly obliged to his request and leaned back to let him gently tug the pants down. He carefully peeled away the thin pants away from her body, and tossed them to the floor to join her bra. Jordan sat back a moment to take in the sight before him. There was Elle, the woman he had wanted for years, lying in his bed in nothing but a pair of panties. It took every ounce of will power Jordan could find inside of him to not just pounce right then and there.
"Something wrong?" Elle asked softly, stirring him from his thoughts as her hand reached out to touch his arm. Jordan smiled and her and leaned forward to place a tender kiss on her lips.
"Not at all," he replied.
"Good." She smiled softly against his lips.
"By the way," he commented, his arms moving to her sides and gently caressing her naked skin, "I think you were right."
"About what?" Elle asked. Jordan smiled and gave her another kiss.
"I should've told you how I felt ages ago," he commented, "I think I'm the worlds biggest idiot for waiting all these years to be with you like this," he tenderly spoke. Elle felt her face go warm, and her heart flutter at his tender comment.
"I don't think you're the world's biggest idiot." She replied, biting her lip.
"Well, that's good," Jordan smiled, giving her another kiss. "I'd hate to think my girlfriend thinks I'm an idiot," he joked. Elle giggled.
"I didn't say I don't think you're an idiot," she teased, "just not the world's biggest idiot." She paused a moment as what he had said truly sunk in. "Girlfriend?" She breathed out.
"Well, that's normally what a couple refers to their partner as." Jordan teased. "Unless of course you don't want me to call you that." He commented after a moment, seeing her shocked reaction. Elle looked at him, her expression quickly softening when she realized he had misinterpreted her reaction.
"No, it's not that," she replied, her hand moving up to touch his cheek. "I just…didn't expect that so early," she admitted.
"You're in my bed, almost completely naked, and you…what, thought I was thinking we're just casual right now?" He asked. Elle sighed and dropped her head into his pillow.
"I don't know, maybe?" She replied. "I know people who've done more for less." Jordan sighed and rested his forehead against hers.
"Well, I'm not like that," he stated. Elle blinked and pursed her lips as her conversation with Alana popped into her mind.
"I'm assuming you mean you're not like that now, since you used to be," she murmured, looking away.
"Huh?" Jordan questioned. "What are you talking about?" Elle snapped her gaze back at him, appalled he was acting like he had no idea what she was referring to.
"Alana," she replied.
"Oh… That…" He replied, sounding defeated. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you know about it..."
"She told me," Elle stated.
"She did?" Slowly, Jordan pushed himself backwards and sighed. Elle swallowed thickly, a feeling of dread settling in her stomach as she felt him move away.
"Yeah," she quietly replied.
"Do you want to talk about it?" He offered lamely. Elle felt tears pricking her eyes as she began to wonder if she had caused the end of things with Jordan before they had truly begun. She slowly sat up.
"Is there anything to say about it?" She asked, leaning over to reach for the button down shirt.
"What are you doing?" He asked softly as she pulled it on. "Elle… What happened between Ally and I was a long time ago… I've grown up a lot since then." She shook her head.
"It's nothing." She managed to state as a tear rolled down her cheek as she began to climb out of the bed. Jordan reached out and grabbed her arm.
"Don't go, please," he pleaded. She turned slightly and Jordan caught a glimpse of the tears in her eyes.
"Oh Elle…" He murmured softly as he reached out and brushed away the tear rolling down her cheek. "I didn't mean to upset you."
"I'm fine," she lied.
"No you're not." He murmured softly, shifting closer to her. "Elle… I want you to be my girlfriend. You're amazing, intelligent, beautiful and that only scratches the surface of how much I like you." Elle bit her lip as another tear slipped down. Jordan sighed and leaned forward to place a gentle kiss on her cheek. "Please, Elle," he murmured, "you know me well enough to know I'd never lie to you."
"I'm sorry." She mumbled as another tear dropped onto the bed. Jordan took a deep breath as he wiped his thumb against her cheek.
"Are you saying sorry as in…..you changed your mind and don't want this to happen?" He carefully asked, almost afraid of what her answer might be.
"No." Came her firm reply almost instantly. Jordan let out a relieved sigh and smiled.
"Thank god," he breathed as he drew her closer and pressed his lips to hers. Elle's lips pulled into a smile as he kissed her, and once he pulled away, she rested her head against his shoulder.
"I'm sorry for being a mess." She offered.
"You, a mess? Not possible," Jordan tenderly replied as he held her close.
"Thanks Jordy." Elle whispered softly. Jordan smiled and kissed her forehead.
"Maybe we should have that nap." He offered softly. Elle stared at him a moment and shook her head, a grin forming on her lips.
"I do believe we had been in the middle of something, though," she commented, moving her arms around his neck.
"Glad to see none of this affected your libido." Jordan chuckled as she climbed into his lap and kissed him. Elle simply giggled and kissed him deeply. His hands moved down her body, one slipping between her legs while the other palmed her breast. Elle bit her lip and moaned, her head falling back. Grinning, Jordan nipped at her collar bone as his fingers scrapped lightly against the cotton fabric of her last article of clothing.
"Oh god," Elle moaned, arching closer to him. Ever so slowly, his fingers pulled the fabric aside and Jordan slipped one finger inside Elle. Elle gasped as she felt his finger slide into her.
"Jordy…" She whimpered as he carefully added a second finger.
"Yes?" Jordan grinned, moving in to lightly kiss the side of her neck.
"Stop teasing." She murmured as her head lolled onto his shoulder.
"Who says I'm teasing?" He asked as his thumb lightly brushed against her bundle of nerves. Elle's mouth fell open as a low moan escaped her throat. Jordan grinned and rubbed his thumb over the sensitive bud a few more times as he trailed kisses down her neck and to her collarbone. Shifting slightly, she pressed against his hand and rolled her hips again.
"Oh god," she moaned, arching her back.
"Nope, just me." Jordan commented cheekily as he pulled his fingers out of her.
"Why'd you stop?" Elle murmured as she pulled her head off his shoulder to look at him, her eyes dark with lust.
"Well… I thought maybe we could move onto something else… With a little more motion involved." He commented with a sly grin.
"Oh," she breathed. Jordan's grin widened as he moved his hands to her hips and quickly laid her on the bed on her back before moving on top of her. Slowly, he leaned down and kissed her before moving to push his boxers down. Elle buried her hands in his hair as she kissed him back, brimming with anticipation. Pulling away slightly, Jordan leaned back and pushed his boxers down over his knees before tossing them to the floor and glanced down at Elle's panties. Elle bit her lip as she watched Jordan slowly run his hands up her legs until he reached the waistband of her underwear.
"Lift your hips." He requested softly. Elle instantly complied and shifted her weight on the bed so she could raise her hips a couple of inches off the mattress. Slowly, Jordan slipped his fingers under the waistband of her last remaining article of clothing and gently pulled it down. Once he had lowered it past her knees, he tenderly picked up her right ankle to get the undergarment past her foot and set it down before repeating the same action with her left ankle. Elle bit her lip gently, a smile dancing her eyes as he tossed her panties on the floor with the rest of their discarded clothing. Jordan leaned down and kissed her deeply as he brushed a piece of hair off her shoulder. "Ready?" Came his tender question.
"Yeah," Elle softly replied, her arms moving to wrap around his shoulders. Slowly, he moved between her legs, nudging her knees apart. Elle spread her legs under him, her heart going off like a jackhammer in her chest. It took Jordan a moment to position himself in front of her entrance. Ever so slowly, he pushed inside her. Elle moaned softly, her back arching ever so slightly as she felt Jordan slip inside of her. Jordan groaned and held her close as he waited a moment to let her walls comfortably embrace him, and internally revel in finally being with her after pining after her for so long. After a moment, he glanced up at her and grinned before slowly beginning to move against her. Elle moaned again and wrapped her legs around his hips.
"Oh god," Elle sighed, lying her head back on Jordan's pillow.
"Close… But not quite." He chuckled in response. Elle rolled her eyes and lightly hit his shoulder.
"Way to ruin a moment," she joked.
"You don't seem to be complaining too much about it." Jordan grinned as he kissed her softly. Elle sighed and chuckled softly.
"I'm pretty sure I just did complain," she teased.
"I heard nothing." He grinned cheekily as he rolled his hips. Whatever sarcastic remark Elle might've had to reply with, died on her lips as his movement lead to him hitting the sensitive spot inside of her and she gasped.
"Holy shit." She moaned as her head dropped back into the pillow. Jordan grinned and rolled his hips again.
"Jordy." Elle breathed as he pushed against the same spot.
"Yes?" He huskily murmured as he leaned down to lightly brush his lips against her neck. Elle moaned, her hips rolling up against his. It took the couple a while to figure out their rhythm, but they soon began to work in tandem with each other, their moans and cries of passion filling the small space. Jordan lowered his head, his lips trailing down from her neck to her collarbone before lightly nipping at her flesh. Elle moved her hands from his shoulders, and slipped into his hair, gently tugging at it. Jordan moaned against her chest, the speed of his thrusts increasing. His hands moved down to her backside, holding her hips closer to his as their bodies slammed together.
"Oh my god," Elle cried out, burying her head in the crook of his neck. Jordan increased the speed of his thrusting as he grunted into her neck. "Jordy," she loudly moaned as her legs tightened around him.
"You're so beautiful." Jordan murmured against her sweaty skin as he continued to increase the pace of his thrusting. Elle arched her back, her toes curling as Jordan's thrusting drove her closer to climax. It didn't take much longer for Jordan to push her towards the edge.
"Jordy!" She cried out as she climaxed. Jordan grunted against her skin as her walls clenching around him drove him to the edge right behind her.
"Oh god." He moaned as his release occurred. Once the two had ridden out their respective orgasms, Jordan careful rolled to his side and slumped beside Elle on the bed like a puppet whose strings had just been cut. "Oh god," he repeated, panting lightly as he caught his breath.
"Agreed." Elle moaned softly as she closed her eyes. Jordan gave her a sleepy smile and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her body closer to his.
"I think its naptime." She sighed happily as she snuggled closer to him, her arm slipping up to his shoulder.
"I think you might be right," he chuckled, lightly kissing the top of her head. Elle grinned and laid her head on his chest, letting the rise and fall of it as Jordan breathed lull her to sleep. Jordan smiled as he heard her breathing even out and she slipped into a deep sleep. He tightened his hold on her and placed a kiss on her forehead before letting his eyes drift shut and joining her in slumber.
(((((((((((((((((((((())))))))))))))))))))))
The rest of the weekend went on without need to disrupt the rangers' relaxation and settling into their new accommodations—and relationships, in terms of Elle and Jordan. Monday morning, Oliver was ready to jump into his role as leader.
"I just want you to know," Alana grumbled as the rangers dragged themselves into the training room in their wing of the academy, "I plan on killing your brother," she commented to Elle and Willa.
"It's 5am, and we're awake, trust me….we'll be helping you with that," Willa replied.
"Is it naptime yet?" Elle mumbled around a loud yawn. "I'm not on patrol until tonight."
"Quit complaining," Oliver sighed as he moved into the room and turned to face his teammates. "Our enemies aren't going to care if you're in need of a nap when they attack," he commented, his tone saturated with authority.
"I think I can say, without a doubt that they won't be attacking at 5am though." Jordan commented.
"You never know, they might deliberately choose to attack when they feel we'd be the most vulnerable," Derek pointed out with a shrug.
"Shut up." Alana commented with a glare. Oliver sighed and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Are you guys done complaining?" He asked. "Because I'd think you'd want to get through training as fast as possible. The sooner we're done with today's training, the sooner you all can nap."
"Sounds good to me." Elle sighed as she stretched.
"Good," Oliver nodded, "once you guys have all stretched, we'll warm up with a jog around the grounds."
"...The whole academy?" Adrian asked. "Dude that's like five miles."
"Shut up before he decides to make it multiple laps around the academy," Willa warned as she stretched.
"I won't make you do multiples… But the person who can give me two laps around the grounds the fastest gets to go back to bed first." Oliver offered. "Think of it as incentive."
"Good to know," Jordan commented as he leaned forward to stretch his hamstrings.
"Don't even think about it." Alana warned with a grin as she bent to touch her toes. "It's mine… I had night patrol last night."
"Alright, if you guys are done challenging each other, let's go," Oliver commanded.
"Last one finished buys drinks at the bar on Saturday night." Alana grinned as she took off.
"You're on," Adrian chuckled as he and the others followed.
By the time the 'finish line' was in sight, Alana had a clear lead over Jordan by nearly 200 feet. She let out a loud whoop as she finished and dropped down onto the ground, breathing heavily just as Jordan slowed to meet her. "Sucks to be you Jordy! I'm going back to bed as soon as I can feel my legs again." Alana laughed.
"Well, we still have a little more training to get through," Oliver commented with a chuckle from his spot by the finish line, having had finished twenty minutes before Alana and Jordan. "But you get to head out after the sparring, everyone else is scheduled for some time in the weight room," he added.
"Ugh, sadist," Jordan chuckled as he flopped down on the ground to catch his breath.
"Guess you shouldn't have given it all away up front." Alana teased as she moved to stretch her legs out.
"Guess I should've known better than go up against someone who clearly wanted the win more," Jordan laughed.
"Yup," Alana giggled as she pointed her toes to stretch her whole leg. Oliver laughed and looked along the track to see how far the others were. He could see Derek in the lead half a mile away, with Elle not too far from him.
"Get the lead out!" Oliver shouted out to those still jogging. It didn't take long for Derek and Elle to finish their run.
"Who won?" Elle asked, panting slightly as she worked to catch her breath.
"Me," Alana said a Cheshire grin on her face.
"Figures." Derek grumbled good naturedly. Alana merely laughed as Derek moved over to plop down on the ground beside her. "You wouldn't want to pass the rewards along to someone else would you?" he teased.
"Hmm," Alana replied, pursing her lips as she seemed to think about that. "Nope," she giggled.
"Unfair!" Came the response as he laughed.
"Oh well," Alana shrugged with another giggle. Oliver rolled his eyes and looked out towards the jogging trail to try and see the remaining team members.
"Did you see Willie out there?" He quietly asked Elle, his concerned older brother side overwhelming his team leader side.
"She was keeping up with me until the halfway point of the second lap." Elle replied as she rolled her neck. "I think she was starting to tire out." Oliver sighed and shook his head.
"Great," he muttered. Elle shrugged.
"Go easy on her," she commented.
"Easy for you to say." Came his response.
"What do you mean by that?" She asked.
"You're not in charge of the team." Oliver replied with a shrug. Elle rolled her eyes.
"Please don't tell me this whole red ranger thing isn't going to give you a big head all of the time," she muttered.
"It's not that." Her older brother stated. "All it means is that I need to be responsible for this team, and ensuring that everyone is safe, and whatnot."
"You make it sound like we're all a bunch of know nothing five year olds and you're our dutiful babysitter," Elle pointed out.
"Again, I say it's not that." Came the reply, Oliver paused trying not to loose his temper with his younger sister. "Think of me as 'big brother', I just keep a watchful eye on everyone and everything."
"And, out of curiosity…..will this universal 'big brother' be in addition to the big brother intrusive…..Sorry, I mean watchful….eye you've had on Willie and me since forever?" She questioned.
"So how about them Ravens." Jordan commented loudly enough to draw attention away from the brewing sibling fight. Elle and Oliver glanced over at Jordan.
"What?" Elle asked.
"If you watch closely, Jordy is attempting what most would identify as, a distraction… And failing horribly." Alana stated in a mock whisper. Derek chuckled beside Alana while Jordan rolled his eyes.
"Thanks for that, Alana," Jordan sighed.
"Anytime." She giggled. Elle rolled her eyes and moved away from Oliver to sit under the shade of a nearby tree.
Out on the track, Willa was panting heavily as she fought to get through her second to last lap. The first lap had gone extremely well for her, but just shy of halfway through the second go around, she began to lose her steam.
"Pick up the pace, Wiley," she heard Adrian tease behind her as he started his final lap.
"Screw off." She hissed out between pants, wiping the sweat off her forehead.
"Aw, be nice, Wiles," Adrian joked as he managed to close the distance between them. Biting her tongue, Willa continued at her labored pace, ignoring Adrian. "Hey, how about upping the wager going on here?" Adrian grinned. "Last one at the finish line has to buy drinks and dinner for the whole team, sound good?"
"Adrian," She huffed. "Please do me a favor and just go away, alright? I'm really not interested in anything you have to say." Adrian frowned, not liking being brushed off by Willa.
"Just trying to make this little race more interesting," he muttered, dejectedly, subtly pulling back to let Willa jog ahead of him. Willa ignored him and continued powering forward. Sighing, ever so slightly over the course of the next half of the run, Adrian dropped back even further, giving Willa more of a lead over him. Adrian had managed to give her enough of a lead that she was on her last lap when he was still a quarter mile away from the finish line.
"Congrats!" Elle beamed as her little sister finally crossed the finish line, huffing and puffing loudly. Willa resisted the urge to collapse on the ground right then and there and simply hunched forward, bracing herself against her knees as she caught her breath.
"Tired?" Oliver questioned as he stepped towards her.
"Just a little," Willa commented, coughing between sucking in a lungful of air.
"Here, have some water." Alana stated as she stood up and moved towards the younger girl.
"Thanks," Willa replied as she stood up straight and drank some water just as Adrian reached the finish line.
"Looks like you're buying drinks." Derek laughed as Adrian came to a stop beside Willa.
"Yeah, looks like it," Adrian sighed, feigning grave disappointments.
"I believe he's buying drinks anddinner," Willa commented after swallowing a big gulp of water. She looked over at Adrian and smirked. "That is what you said, right?" Slowly, Adrian opened his mouth, then promptly closed it before nodding.
"That I did." He agreed after a brief pause.
"Oh really?" Alana asked, grinning.
"Huh, suddenly I have a craving for a huge steak," Derek chuckled.
"Figures." Adrian chuckled.
"Alright guys, rest for a bit, then we're going to the weight room," Oliver instructed before turning to Alana, "except for you, since you won, you get a reprieve," he added.
"Back to bed for me!" She laughed happily. The others groaned. "Have fun." Alana giggled as she stood and moved away from the group.
"I hate her," Willa grumbled as she took another sip of water.
"No you don't." Elle laughed. "She won, fair and square."
"Exactly why I hate her," Willa said, "she gets to go back to bed while we have to keep on killing ourselves," she paused a moment, "actually, no, I don't hate her, I hate our dear brother."
"I heard that," Oliver gruffly commented.
"Excellent." She stated. Oliver rolled his eyes.
"I'll be in the weight room, bring your butts in their as soon as you all catch your breath," he authoritatively stated before walking off.
"Yes mom." Jordan chuckled under his breath. It didn't take long for the group to collect themselves and continue on with their day. The five rangers filed into the modest sized weight room in the officer wing of the academy to see Oliver waiting for them at one of the bench press machines.
"It's about time," he commented.
"Whatever Ollie, you said to join you when we were ready." Elle commented, rolling her eyes.
"I didn't realize it'd take you this long to be ready," Oliver replied.
"Get over it." Willa stated grumpily. Oliver sighed and rolled his eyes.
"Alright, I want you guys to work in here for at least an hour," Oliver stated, "work on whichever areas you think you need to."
"What no further direction?" Elle grumbled under her breath as she moved towards the free weights. Oliver rolled his eyes again.
"Well, I was going to go easy on you guys for the last half of today's training, but if you want, I can dictate something more strenuous," he replied. His younger sister fixed him with a glare as she picked a weight up.
"Its fine," Willa interjected as she moved over to the row of treadmills. The group lapsed into silence shortly afterwards, working out for the majority of the hour without words being exchanged. As the hour was coming to a close, Willa slowed down the pace of her treadmill as she cooled down, before stepping off to get some water. She was steps from the water cooler when she bumped into Jordan, who had come over from the leg weights at the other side of the room for the very same reason.
"Oh…sorry," Jordan apologized.
"…its fine," Willa quietly mumbled, her voice tight as she looked away. Jordan frowned as she looked away from him.
"Hey Wills… How about a movie night later?" He questioned softly. "Just us, sound like fun?" Willa bit her lip and forced her heart not to skip a beat at his invitation. A week ago, she might've jumped at the chance to be alone with him, but after the other night, it only made her want to cry.
"Why?" She bluntly asked.
"I feel really bad for what happened the other night." He admitted carefully. "And I don't want that to ruin our friendship." Willa snorted quietly and moved around him to get some water.
"As much fun as hanging out, because you feel bad, sounds….I think I'll pass," she muttered.
"Wills…" he murmured.
"I'm busy tonight anyway," she lied as she took a sip of water.
"Oh, alright." Jordan conceded after a brief pause. "Another time, maybe?" He offered.
"Oh yeah, let me check my schedule and get back to you," Willa icily replied before moving away from him. He frowned deeply as she walked away from him.
"Maybe you should just leave her alone," someone commented behind him with a low stern voice. For a moment Jordan worried it was Oliver who had somehow found out about everything and was ready to lay down the law regarding his sisters. Jordan was surprised to see it was in fact Adrian, not Oliver, standing behind him and glaring daggers in his direction.
"I'm sorry?" Jordan questioned.
"You heard me," Adrian replied, crossing his arms over his chest as his glare intensified. "You hurt her once already, I think you should just back off and leave her be," Adrian lowly added. "Otherwise, someone may have to hurt you," he quietly threatened. Slowly, Jordan's eyes narrowed, fixing Adrian with a glare.
"You don't know what you're talking about." He warned.
"I don't?" Adrian challenged. "Because I'm pretty sure I saw you shooting her down and breaking her heart after she confessed how she felt about you," he lowly commented, doing his best to hide his contempt and envy towards the other ranger for being the receiving end of Willa's affection.
"I didn't realize that turning someone down, because you don't return their feeling, was wrong." Jordan replied snarkily. Adrian's eyes narrowed.
"If you're dumb enough not to realize how…" He paused mid quiet rant and shook his head. "Just leave her alone, alright?" He demanded.
"Fine." Came the terse comment as Jordan stepped away.
"Good," Adrian replied as he moved away as well. After that, the rest of the work out went off without incident, with Oliver saying the others could leave if they wanted after the hour was up, while he himself continued exercising. Derek, Elle, Willa and Jordan excused themselves from the weight room once Oliver had given them permission to leave.
"Wow, this place sure cleared out fast," Oliver joked after they had left. He glanced over to see Adrian sitting at one of the weight benches. "I won't be offended if you clear out too, you know," he commented. Adrian shrugged before adjusting the weight level where he sat.
"It couldn't hurt to get a little more training in," he replied.
"And it has nothing to do with our being roommates and you worrying I'd rag on you day in and day out if you didn't, right?" Oliver joked.
Adrian grinned and chuckled slightly. "Maybe." He offered. Oliver laughed as he adjusted the weight on his machine.
"Wise decision," he kidded.
"I have them occasionally." Came the response. The two fell into silence as they continued with their workouts.
"So," Oliver grunted out as he lifted his weights over his head after nearly twenty minutes of silence, "what's the deal with you and my sister?" Adrian nearly dropped his own weights at the question and cleared his throat.
"Uh, what do you mean?" He cautiously asked.
"You're always yanking her chain, what's up with that?" Oliver asked. He kept his tone casual, but Adrian could tell there was an underlying element of Oliver being protective over his little sister. Adrian was quiet for a moment as he thought of what to say.
"It's nothing….just playing around," he replied. Oliver set his weight bar down and looked over at Adrian.
"Just playing around?" He asked.
"Yeah…you know, just good natured ribbing," Adrian quickly replied. Oliver's eyebrows raised as his eyes narrowed slightly.
"Uh huh…" He murmured. He was quiet for a moment as the corners of his mouth turned up into a smirk. "You know, when she was in kindergarten, there was a boy in her class that did some good natured ribbing towards Willa, too," he nonchalantly commented.
"Oh?" Adrian replied, not sure what he was getting at. Oliver nodded.
"It was before our parents'…." Oliver paused a moment, still struggling with the loss of his parents after all these years, "had their accident," he added. "Willie would come home, crying because the boy would put sand in her hair, or buried her toy in the dirt. I was all ready to give the kid a beating, or at least an intimidating stare down," he chuckled, "but my mom just smiled and said the boy wasn't being mean to her."
"Oh, what was it then?" Adrian asked, with a gulp, as he had a feeling where this was going.
"The boy liked her," Oliver stated. Adrian let out a noise akin to a strangled cough.
"Oh really?" He managed to comment once he'd regained his composure.
"Uh huh," Oliver said, his smirk getting wider. "Now, you haven't dumped sand on her head, and she doesn't really have toys for you to bury, but I think the same sentiment still applies to your 'good natured ribbing'," he commented. The remaining color in Adrian's face slowly began to drain away as he slowed loudly.
"Uh…" He trailed off.
"'Uh…' what?" Oliver asked.
"Nothing!" Came the all too fast response. Oliver chuckled.
"Nothing my foot," he replied. Adrian fell into silence as he shuffled his feet nervously. After a brief pause Oliver shrugged. "Look, I'm not going to bust your balls over it since she is my sister. But I'd like to see her happy." He offered cryptically. Adrian looked over at him as he took in his words.
"So would I," he quietly admitted. He sighed and looked down. "But I…I don't think I'm the one that would make her happy," he murmured, a tone of defeat clear in his voice. Oliver frowned.
"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked.
"Just that," Adrian sighed as he got up and wiped his sweat covered face with a towel. "She doesn't have feelings for me."
"And how exactly do you know that?" Came the retort. "Did you develop mind reading abilities as a child?" Adrian sighed as he momentarily thought about telling Oliver everything, even Willa kissing Jordan the other night. After a moment he realized he couldn't do it. As much as he envied Jordan for being the object of Willa's affections, and as much as he hated Jordan for hurting her, in the end he couldn't rat on them like that.
"I just know, okay?" He replied in a tone that said he had no plans to elaborate further.
"Alright." Oliver conceited after a moment, holding his hands up in defeat. He stood up and grabbed his own nearby towel. "Okay, I'm beat," he said, officially done with his own training for the day. He placed his towel around the back of his neck and held it on his shoulders.
"Yeah, same here," Adrian agreed. The two began leaving the room to go back to their shared living quarters when Oliver spoke up.
"Look," he said, "I don't know anything about who my sister may or may not have feelings for," he commented, causing Adrian to suppress a small groan as he realized they hadn't dropped the subject. "But, if you really care about her, and want her to feel the same, I think it couldn't hurt to well….quit being the kid dumping sand on her head in the schoolyard, if you know what I mean."
"Somehow I get the feeling that to her it won't matter." Adrian replied quietly with a shrug.
"Maybe, maybe not," Oliver shrugged, "but it couldn't hurt."
"Yeah, I guess." Came the dismissive reply. Oliver smiled and clapped his younger friend on the shoulder as they continued on their way.
AN: Hey guys, its "Z" (aka Becky). "Syd" and I have noticed that though there's been quite a few listing this for story alerts or putting it in your favorites, only one of you lovely people is actually reviewing. Which, hey, awesome, we love that, but…..well, what can I say, reviews are nice haha. So, yeah, please if you enjoy this little tale we're weaving please drop us a review, it'll make us feel all warm and fuzzy :D