I fiddled with the napkin on my lap, tapping my fingers nervously on the table. I was out with Elliot for a dinner right now at 'The Goose' and to say I was nervous was an understatement. I've never been out with someone alone, let alone a guy. Elliot put his hand over mine, stopping me from tapping. And, I had never even been to such a fancy restaurant in my life, so I felt severely under-dressed in my burgundy blouse and jeans.

"Are you okay?" He asked, his eyebrows furrowed in concern and I smiled in response at how caring he was. It made me feel a bit less nervous and I smiled at the gesture.

"I'm fine, Eli." I reassured him, giving his hand a squeeze. He grinned widely, squeezing my hand back before sitting and leaning back, running a hand through his brown curls.

"Good. Now show me those beautiful pearly whites." Elliot joked, demonstrating a smile and I laughed at his words.

I laughed, opening my mouth widely.

"Go ahead, but I have a history of biting every dentist." I warned jokingly.

Elliot laughed in response, tutting at the end.

"Well, someone was an aggressive little girl." He teased; waggling his eyebrows tauntingly. I rolled my eyes before nudging him with a swift kick to the legs. His smile widened at this, making me scowl all the more.

"I wasn't aggressive. I just don't like dentists." I huffed, folding my arms in a childish manner. Elliot smiled, amused at my childish behaviour.

"Well, it's a good thing my future occupation does not involve anything about dentistry, right?" He said.

"Why?" I questioned, not knowing what he meant. He smiled teasingly, a glimmer in his green eyes.

"Because I would hate for you not to like me"

I gaped slightly at his earnest response but recomposed myself quickly. Nevertheless, I was still nervous though as it was all still new to me. I was not exactly experienced in this field. His words had sent a rush of blood to my cheeks and I bit my lip as the nerves creeped up.

"Alex?" Elliot questioned, pulling me out my thoughts and bringing me back to earth. Just as I was about to answer, a waiter came to our table.

"Good evening." He greeted with a slight accent and smile as he pulled out his notepad, eyeing us expectantly.

He gestured towards the menu.

"See anything you like?" He questioned, facing Elliot.

Elliot looked down at the menu, skimming it thoroughly.

"Absolutely, could we have the parsnip soup with bread as the appetiser and for the main course we would like the steak?" Elliot finalised, handing the menu to the waiter. I grimaced, slightly at the order, but made sure to hide my expression. It would do no good to hurt his feelings; he had my best interest when he ordered.

The waiter nodded, his eyes briefly glancing to me as he tapped his pen against the notepad.

"How would you like your steak?" He asked in a professional manner and Elliot bit his lip in thought for a moment before glancing to me.

"Rare?" He took a guess and I nodded albeit liking it medium-to-well-done in the fear that I would upset him. He was trying so hard here. His smile widened at this and he nodded in confirmation to the waiter.

"Would that be all, sir?" The waiter questioned, writing down our order on a small black notepad.

"Yes, that is all." Elliot replied, turning towards me and smiling. I watched as the waiter nodded his head towards us before making his way towards the kitchen area. I turned to Elliot with a smile.

"Thanks for taking me out, Eli. It means a lot." I said, tightening my hold on his hand and I meant every word. I really did need to be away from home sometimes, especially when it got heated with my mom and I felt I never had anywhere else to go.

Elliot grinned, looking into my eyes.

"Shut up." He said shortly, making my eyes widen at the command. I stuttered for a moment before answering.

"Excuse me?" I asked, confused, making him laugh and this only made my eyebrows further more.

"From now on, there will be no 'please' or 'thank you's. Understood?" He said firmly. I smiled as I processed the actual meaning of his words before raising an eyebrow.

"Oh?" I questioned, a joking lilt to my voice. "Is that so?"

Elliot nodded firmly, the mirth dancing in his emerald eyes.

"Yes" He put it simply and concisely, making me giggle slightly, but I composed myself.

I grinned widely.

"Please, please, please, please." I taunted, leaning back into my chair. Elliot narrowed his eyes, folding his arms across his chest.

"Alex, you'd better stop that or else." He threatened jokingly.

I leaned forward, my eyes challenging.

"Or else what?"

Elliot thought for a minute, rubbing his chin, before smiling brightly.

"I'll find a way to cover up your mouth to make you stop." He said, his eyes filling to the brim with anticipation. I smiled in response, returning a look that was similar to his own. There was no way in hell that he would shut me up.

"Go ahead, but you won't be able to make me stop" I pointed out.

Elliot leaned over the table, placing his face just a few inches away from my face. The familiar smell of his breath emanated from his lips and wafted around my nose-Coffee beans.

"Let's see if this stops you talking." He whispered, his breath tangling with mine.

Was he trying to kiss me again?! Did I want it or not?- that was the main question. I contemplated the pro's and con's of going through with it. His face inched closer, his eyes shutting gently.

To heck with it.

I didn't have enough time left. I've always dreamed about my first kiss and yet my first kiss was with someone who only associated with me for the sole benefit of himself. I had given it to him in a drunken stupor and he had danced the night away, grinding with that girl from the party. I had always wanted my first kiss to be with someone who cared for me and treated me well. That was not Aaron. That was Elliot- the boy who, at this very minute, was leaning over a table to kiss me.

I leaned towards him, closing my eyes and awaited the feel of his lips against mine. I felt the warmth of his skin come closer and I knew he was right in front of me.

The warmth did not last for long.

"Here is your food." The waiter interrupted, placing plates on the table. He then stood up straight, smiling to himself. I smiled back to him kindly, my heart still thudding in my ears now from what nearly occured. I let myself have a brief think about what happened and how hastily it had happened. Of course, I wanted to get to know Elliot more and, perhaps, if I hadn't given myself up to Aaron's favour, I would have pursued the chance. Yet, now I couldn't. I had made a promise and I had to keep my word.

Elliot turned to glare at the waiter, his nose scrunching ever so slightly and I watched intently at the uncharacteristic action.

"Thank you. That is all. You may leave." Elliot said sharply, waving the waiter off with a few shakes of his hand. I opened my mouth to oppose, but the waiter left and silence descended upon the table, leaving us in silence as Elliot turned to me, a recomposed smile on his face that reminded me of the warm-hearted male before me.

"So..."I drawled awkwardly, fidgeting in my seat. The silence that had descended upon us was making me uncomfortable. I coughed nervously, looking around the posh restaurant, amazed by all the different glitz and glam people that entered. This, indeed, was a different world than what I was accustomed to. But, it was nice to play pretend for a while.

"How was your day?" Elliot broke the silence, smiling as he dug into his food. I eyed mine in distaste but fiddled around with it for the sake of Elliot, actually only eating the bread. I processed his words and my mood soured as I thought about the argument I had with my mum. My mum and I had always been very close but have met with a few differences, in the most recent year, since we had differing views on what I should do. She wanted me to keep up home and continue the donor search, despite the fact that doctors had given me a 15% chance, all while I drained us of house and home. Meanwhile, I had since accepted that the small 15% was not worth straining my parents. I wanted them to live in peace, be that with or without me. I had learned to be fine with it.

"It was just peachy. "I said sarcastically, thinking back to the encounter that had occurred between me and my mum just hours ago. I exhaled slightly, putting a cool hand to my face. Elliot frowned, clearly noticing the sarcastic tone that I used in my sentence. He leaned in, his arms bent at elbows on the table.

"What's wrong, Alex?" He questioned sincerely.

I bit my lip in contemplation as I thought about what I should tell him. I definitely was not going to share the actual reason; I had kept in me for so long that I had long since forgotten how to extend and confide in people. It was a skill that needed experience and, seeing as I had no friends, I was out of practice.

"Alex?" Elliot questioned, pulling me out of my thoughts. He lay his hand over mine, his frown deepening.

"Are you okay? What's wrong?" His voice was deep and sincere, making me smile.

"Don't worry." I reassured him. "Just had a small argument with my mom." I said nonchalantly, shrugging my shoulders like it was no big deal, but the truth was that, well for me, it was a big deal. I hated getting into arguments with my mother, especially when both of us are on completely different pages. Elliot's eyes widened, his lips parting slightly. He retracted his hand from mine and gave me a 'scolding' look.

"You had a fight with your mother? What did you do?" He said, folding his arms across his chest.

I gaped at him. He didn't even know what the fight was about, yet he was already siding with my mother? I blew a huff of breath, giving him a grimace.

"Are you serious?!" I questioned, folding my arms in the same manner. I knew now that I did the right thing by not telling him. He would have only sided with my mother and I didn't want that. I wanted him to accept what was going to happen. It was inevitable. Elliot looked at me, his face deep in thought before he finally began to speak.

"Are you angry at me?" He said, stating the obvious, his eyebrows were furrowed in confusion and I scowled at him.

"How could you tell?" I asked sarcastically. It was as though every boy I knew had the IQ compatibility of a rhesus monkey. Elliot motioned towards my hands that clutched the knife and fork in a tight hold.

"That's how I can tell." He stated. I rolled my eyes, putting my knife and fork down onto the table.

"You can't tell I'm angry by that because I always hold my knife and fork tightly like that." I said defensively, frustrated that I could be read that easily. Elliot smiled, showing all his teeth.

"Is that so?" He questioned teasingly. I felt the smile stretch at my face and I couldn't hold it off before letting out a laugh.

"Yeah. You probably were not aware of this, but cutlery is a very sneaky species. Who knows? One may slip and land in someone's eye. We wouldn't want that now, would we?" I threatened sweetly, looking to him with a mock-innocent expression. Elliot's eyes lightened at my words vefore let out a laugh.

"Species, huh?" He questioned, smiling affectionately. With that, he began to laugh again and my cheeks reddened.

"Shut up!" I exclaimed, kicking his leg again, but this didn't stop him in the slightest.

"It's not funny" I said with a scowl, folding my arms across my chest. Elliot carried on laughing, leaning back into his chair. I huffed at his lack of recognition of my words.

"Shut up or I'll cover your mouth with something to make you stop." I teased, knowing I had him now.

Elliot stopped laughing, looking at me curiously. He then smiled and leaned forward in his seat.

"And, out of curiosity, what would that something be?" He questioned lazily, yet his eyes filled with anticipation.

I leaned closer.

"Something warm." I said, making my voice as sultry as it could be, just so I could joke with him although I was finding it hard to even find the right tone. Elliot's eyes lit up at my words and he raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah?" Elliot questioned leaning closer.

I leaned closer.

"Something nice." I hinted, trying to hold in the laughter that now threatened to escape. It was proving difficult, but I was faring far better than I thought I would.

"Yeah?" Elliot continued, his voice a quiet murmur and I grinned as he closed his eyes gently, leaning closer.

I leaned in so close this time that I could feel the warmth of his skin and I fought the blush that threatened to come, keeping in mind what I was planning to do.

"Something tasty." I teased, landing the final blow to which I could see him tense visibly, his eyebrows raising a fraction.

"Yeah?" He questioned, his voice deepened notably and I nodded despite the fact that he had his eyes closed.

I smiled to myself.

"Something like this."

I picked up a piece of steak from my plate and squashed it to his lips, laughing as I did so. Elliot opened his eyes, his lips still on the steak, yet instead of moving away, he smiled and carried on his 'intimate' ministrations with the steak, making me laugh even more. He finally moved back, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

"My my, Mrs. Steak. You sure know how to move your lips." He spoke in a deep voice, licking his lips repeatedly in a perverse manner.

"Ew!" I laughed, dropping the piece of steak onto my plate.

Elliot looked at me smiling before he leaned in on his elbows.

"Well, truth be told, I would have preferred if the kiss came from you."He told me bluntly and I stilled at his words which he seemingly noticed, placing a warm hand against my own.

"Maybe another day." He muttered.

*****************************

Elliot and I walked out of the restaurant and I shivered as the cool air hit me like a brick, sticking my hands into my hoodie pockets as I shuffled closer to the warmth of Elliot's body. He noticed this and smiled, moving closer to me in a bid to share his heat.

For the remainder of the dinner, Elliot talked about his little brother and how his dad passed away. I also told him about how I only lived with my mom for the time being because my dad was away on business a lot.

"I had a nice time with you," Elliot said, smiling as he nudged me playfully and I nudged him back with a teasing smile.

"Are you sure? Because it seemed as though you enjoyed the steak's company more than my own." I joked, puckering my lips to remind him of the events that happened previously last night. Elliot laughed, snorting shortly at the end.

"Very funny. "He looked back at a house.

"Well, this is my house. Are you sure you'll be able to walk yourself?" He questioned concern obvious in his voice. I put my hand on his arm.

"I'll be fine. Don't worry, get inside now." I reassured him and he looked unsure to which I nudged him towards the garden.

"Okay okay, I'm going." He relented, putting his hands up in surrender.

"See you later." I said, before walking away. I watched as he waved back before going into the house.

I walked through the cold street, wincing as the wind howled loudly in my ears, but my thoughts flitted more to the events of tonight. I knew I was fond of him, that much was definite. And, I knew that he was fond of me also; why else would he try to kiss me? I had spent the duration of 1.5 hours with him and it still felt so surreal; I didn't know what to feel. My stomach growled loudly and I looked down as it sounded out in the, otherwise, silent streets.

I rolled my eyes at this, knowing all too well I hadn't eaten much from when I was with him, but the company compensated for that. Deciding to grab something when I got home, I carried on down the road, thinking about the events of tonight.

I was so engrossed in my thoughts to even know where I was walking until I bumped into something hard to which I let out a small 'sorry'. However, it wasn't until I looked up that I realised how sorry I actually was.

That midnight hair; striking blue eyes and lean body as he looked down to me. It could only, after all, be one person because God loathed me. I looked up with tepid eyes at him.

Aaron fucking Walker.

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