Xia's POV:

"Get off of me, you oaf!" I whined as I felt Rico come closer to me, wrapping his arms around me. It was the next morning and as much as I loved cuddling, I had to wake up to make breakfast for Nico. 

And yes, Emma could do it but he always prefers the food that I make and I want to make him happy. I never thought that I would wake up early in the morning just to make some waffles.

I was laying down on my side while while Rico was spooning me from behind. At first, I tried moving away due to the fact that this seemed too close for me but when he tightened his hold on my waist, I stopped trying.

"I have to get up." I told him, attempting removing his arm that was around my waist.

"But I'm feeling cold." He replied from behind me, nuzzling his face in the crook of my neck; the feeling of his stubble on my sensitive skin sent tingles down my spine.

"Hm...okay." I mumbled, wanting to sleep just a little more.

Around fifteen minutes later, my eyes flickered open on their own accord. I glanced at the clock onto the wall which read 10:30 AM.

'Okay, I can't sleep any longer now' I told myself, trying to sit up on the bed but was pinned down.

Keyword: trying.

As soon as I made a move, Rico pulled me towards him making my back slam against his chest and kissed the top of head.

"You can go now." He whispered, removing his hand. "We can continue this in the night."

I gulped. Audibly. Very audibly. Did he just say what I think he said? He just...

And then Rico started laughing. "You should have seen your face." 

I sat up, narrowing my eyes at him. This man.

"Don't worry, Xia. I won't make you do anything that you don't want to. We can go as slow as you'd like." He confirmed after looking at my expression.

"Alright." I smiled, giving gave him a small peck on his cheek. My eyes widened when I realized what I had just done. Oops. My cheeks heated up in embarrassment.

"Don't be shy, kiss me more." He teased.

I rolled my eyes at him, walking out of his room and into mine. After I reached my room, I strutted into the bathroom to have a quick shower before changing into something else. 

I stripped out of my pajamas and got into the shower. I lathered the soap onto my body and shampoo to my hair. When I stepped out of the shower, I wrapped a towel around my body.

Glancing at the mirror in front of me, I found a bright smile plastered onto my face but I didn't know why. I mean, I am happy but why am I smiling like a goofball? And then it hit me.

Rico and I kissed. Last night's memories floated around in my head, giving me goosebumps as I felt his lips on mine. We kissed. FREAKING kissed.

Okay, calm down, woman. You're acting like you got married to him while you were drunk. My conscience reminded me.

I got into the closet and looked for an outfit to wear that consisted of a gray colored turtleneck cropped sweater and a white-gray pair of sweatpants.

Seeing that I looked good, I paired the outfit with a gold plated necklace and tied a high ponytail after drying my hair. Since I was too lazy to apply more than just moisturizer and lip balm, I took one last look at myself in the mirror and wore my fluffy slippers before leaving the room.

On the way to going to Nico's room, I suddenly thought of Adrian and how he must be doing right now. Oh well, I'll text him later.

I opened the door to his room and peeked in to check whether he had woken up yet but he hadn't. I smiled at how he looked when he was curled up in the quilt and from where I was standing, all I could see was a glimpse of his head.

I walked further into the room and leaned over him, slightly shaking him awake. "Nico?"

He didn't move. Not even an inch. 

"Jellybean, wake up. I'm going to make pancakes for breakfast." I said which made him stir a little in his sleep and crack a lazy smile. I sat on the edge of the bed and kept my hand on his shoulder.

"I know you're acting to be asleep, Nico; you can't keep a straight face." I said, booping his nose.

At my words, his eyes fluttered open, a grin spreading across his face. A grin that was all to familiar. Rico's. Sometimes, he seems like the younger version of Rico.

"I hoped you wouldn't know." He murmured, sitting down and rubbing his eyes. 

"Your smile was too obvious, love." I said, surprised at what I had just called him.

The smile that was on his face suddenly disappeared, an expression of discomfort taking over. "Wait, I have to peeeeeeee!"

He jumped out of his bed that ran to the bathroom, closing the door behind him. I chuckled at his reaction and just then, my phone in the pocket of the sweatpants pinged, indicating that I had a new message.

I took it out and opened the text message app but didn't see what I was expecting to. I don't even know what I was expecting but it definitely wasn't this; my heart almost stopped beating.

My hand swung to my mouth, not being able to contain the gasp that escaped my mouth. The words seemed to cut my soul. I can't risk Nico's life just because my past is catching up to me. I have to tell Rico about this. Now.

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