Valerie P.O.V.

During Sunday, Carter had called me, and as sort of promised- I answered. Constantly trying to evade him was making me grow tired... and I had nothing better to do anyway, I told myself.

Yeah rightttt, Val.

"Favorite color?" He asked me as I laid in bed staring up at the ceiling.

"Hmm, probably pink, you?"

"Interesting... mine's blue."

"Wow we're so basic," I chuckled.

"Yeah that's so stereotypical," he laughed.

"What's your middle name?" I couldn't see him, but I could basically hear the smirk in his voice as he asked.

"... it's Eve." I reluctantly admitted.

"Damn, I really wanted to make fun of you. That's actually nice, Valerie Eve Delwood."

I scoffed and shook my head, of course there was some ulterior motive... But nevertheless, I liked the sound of my name rolling off his tongue. It was like ASMR for my ears. I'm helpless.

"Mine's Adam," he said jokingly.

Dead silence rang through the phone as I laid there with a flat look on my face.

"Hilarious."

"Okay, it's actually Lee... kinda matches yours actually if you just switch the E and V, maybe I'll start calling you Vee," he chuckled.

"Hmm you know what, I'm going to start calling you Carlee B then, as in Carter Lee Bryson and Cardi B," I burst into giggles at my ingenius.

"Ha-ha very funny." He retorted sarcastically.

We deep-dived into hours of endless conversation on all sorts of random topics after that. Weird Phobias. Childhood stories. Favorite movies and books and songs. Me finally "admitting" my "attraction" to him because I had followed him back.

I could recognise his talent and he whole-heartedly deserved the millions of followers he had garnered. His profile was filled with some pictures of himself (I silently cheered for the eye candy) or others he had taken himself of scenery. A few funny skits were present, as well as thought-provoking images, captions and quotes on the issues the world faced. He even had a few short IGTV videos of places he visited and time spent with friends.

It was cool to see the incredible variety of content on there. It was also a clever way of letting people see into the life he lived and the kind of character he possessed. Carter had the platform to raise awareness and to create change, and I think he utilised it expertly to spread happiness and positivity. It made me feel for him even more, knowing that the person he was online was like the person I interacted with offline. He was genuine. That was rare.

We bid each other goodnight after a while, as he needed to pack before heading off to Hawaii for a three-day brand collaboration later that night. Despite my efforts to deny the attraction, I really did enjoy his company. With a content smile, I closed my eyes and drifted off into peaceful slumber.

~

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

I kept glancing up at the clock on the wall at Bean Crushers, praying the time would go faster so I could go home and have a good ol' binge session in bed. Only 20 more minutes. Come on stupid clock!!! All you have to do is move your hands to 5:30pm!

It was a relatively quiet evening with only two staff members on, as our rushes were generally in the mornings and lunchtimes. Luckily, I wasn't on close tonight, but I thought I would give Terence a headstart on packing up. I stacked a few of the chairs up for cleaning, before strolling towards the entrance to bring in some of the pot plants and things sitting outside the café. Just before I could pick up the chalkboard sign, I felt two large, somewhat rough hands close over my eyes and a familiar voice whisper shout; "Boo!"

"Hi!" I exclaimed, turning around with a bright smile. I got on my tippy toes and threw my arms around his neck, pulling him in for a hug. He froze in surprise at first, but soon wrapped his arms around my body, giving me a tender squeeze. I felt flushed all over as I pulled back out of his warmth.

"Maybe I should fly out more often," he contemplated, looking down at me amusedly.

Oh my god. I sucked in a breath. I totally just made a move. Something possessed my body and took over I swear! You missed him, that's what... my inner self rolled her eyes at me. I didn't hear much from him when he was down in Hawaii.

"Miss me?" he continued to tease as if he could read my mind clearly.

"In your dreams, Carter." I snorted defensively, after finally gaining control of my thoughts.

"I don't really dream, I prefer the real thing," he said smirking over his shoulder as he moved around me to lift the chalkboard sign, and proceeded to ask me where I wanted it to put it.

Ugh! He always has the perfect line to say. How is he so perfect?!

In the ten minutes remaining of my shift, Carter had successfully bribed me into hanging out with him. With what, you may ask? Well that one's easy.

Ice-cream.

As much ice-cream as I pleased.

I'm guilty as charged.

~

Leaving my car behind to pickup later on our way home, Carter drove me in his jet black Jeep Wrangler down to Venice beach so we could take a walk and grab food there. Might I just add, that it was the hottest thing to watch him lean back casually in his seat, with one, slightly flexed arm on the wheel, easily manoeuvring through traffic as we blasted tunes.

It was a truly beautiful evening out, rollerbladers, cyclists, happy families and couples were strolling along the famous sidewalks, laughing giddily at the endless amounts of entertainment. Venice was truly a colourful, melting hotpot of crazy characters. The tall, swaying palm trees that lined the streets were my favorite though. If there's one thing I liked about L.A more than NYC, was the fact that the beach was close by and the palm trees simply emanated relaxing, vacation vibes.

"So, what do you feel like?" He questioned, throwing me an easygoing smile over his shoulder.

"You don't have a preference?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Nope." He shook his head. "You can choose. You're the one that's just finished working a hard shift."

"You give me too much credit." I laughed. "To be honest I'm pretty easy with food. I like it all." I admitted.

His smile brightened and his eyes widened a little. "Yeah? You're not on any specific diets?"

"Definitely not. Of course I have my favorites, but if you feed me something, I'll pretty much eat whatever it is." I grinned in return.

"Damn, okay. Good to know." He chuckled, a dazzling smile still plastered on his face.

My insides sighed happily as we continued to stroll side by side. His smiles made me melt. I glanced to the side of the busy street path, skimming over the signs. Just a little further down, I noticed a cute little fish and chips shack. "How about there?"

"Perfect."

They served all kinds of seafood, cooked in all kind's of ways- but I opted to go for a crumbed fillet of fish like the store name suggested and some fries aka "chips" they called it, plus a side of colorful salad. Carter grabbed the same alongside some calamari rings.

"This is goood," he hummed contently, chewing on a bite of food. "Good pick."

"Thanks," I chuckled. "I've never been here before. It looked good though." I shrugged.

He nodded thoughtfully. "So you're always up for trying new things?"

"Generally... I mean, with food- always. With things in life... I guess lately I've been really trying to step more out of my comfort zone." I admitted shyly, tucking away a strand of hair behind my ear.

"I'm glad... thanks for coming today, y'know with me." He tilted his head. "I know you were hesitant, but I'm really glad you finally agreed."

I bit my lip, blushing slightly at his admission of really wanting to spend time with me. Trying to keep my calm during our little hangout so far, I managed to pull it together and responded coolly; "Well I mean, how could I say no to the free food?" I teased. "And the ice cream?"

"You're not wrong there." He laughed loudly, throwing his head back. "But hey! You tried to pay, and I'm having none of that. Don't even think about it when we go for ice cream."

I rolled my eyes playfully. "I swear the girl at the register practically didn't even see me!"

He shrugged, eyes twinkling with mischief. "I'm charming, what can I say."

"M-hmm," I shook my head, chuckling.

"I don't know how she wasn't paying any attention to you though..." Carter tugged his lower lip into his mouth.

"She was into you..." I murmured. Couldn't blame her. He is absolutely gorgeous.

"Well, if I were her, all my attention would be on you."

My heart skipped several beats, and I prayed to god I wasn't an absolute beetroot red right now. "Stop it." I chuckled.

He smiled warmly, ruffling a hand through his messy brown waves. "Ready to get outta here?"

I nodded, swallowing a nervous lump in my throat. This sure feels like a date. And I was loving every minute of it. That was terrifying.

After leaving the little shack, we decided to take a stroll down on the shore before grabbing the aforementioned promised dessert.

"Oh my gosh is that Carter Bryson!!!!"

I whipped my head around at the sudden high pitched squeal and entourage of young teenage girls running across the sand over to us.

"Omg it's him!!!"

"Hi! Could we please get a picture!" his fans greeted excitedly.

I eyed them with caution... they might burst into confetti in like 2 seconds and I'll be caught in the blast for all I know!

"Hey girls," Carter chuckled softly, a big grin on his face. "Yeah sure, no problem."

"Yay!" Their smiles widened, each with a phone prepared in hand.

"How are you all?" he asked politely and proceeded to take selfies with every individual girl, even mimicking a few "couple goals" pictures when they asked.

I watched him as a smile lit up my face at his interaction with his fans, it was incredibly sweet. It was like watching a man playing with puppies and babies, it made you melt into a puddle of sappiness.

"This is my friend Val, by the way." He motioned over to me as I stood to the side.

"Hey, what's up!" they all turned their heads towards me as I waved hello. "You're so pretty!" they gushed as I shyly thanked them.

"Thanks Carter!!! We love you so much!"

"Thankyou, take care," he responded with a chuckle as they all hugged him goodbye.

"Wow, they're passionate..." I remarked with curiosity.

"Yeah, they can be super excited, and sometimes other fans are super chill. I owe everything I've built to them from their support," he said with utmost sincerity.

"You're really sweet with them." I complimented, earning a lopsided smile from him in return.

"Ice-cream?" he prompted, taking my hand in his large one as he started leading us off the beach. The feeling of our hands touching made my stomach flutter.

"You don't even have to ask me." I grinned, my heart beating wildly in my chest.

I got a double scoop waffle cone with pistachio and oreo flavour, whilst Carter grabbed one scoop of mint choc chip. The sweet, velvety taste of cream, and crispy, golden crunch of the cone really hit home on the tastebuds. Best decision you've ever made Valerie. I basically finished scoffing mine down as we casually walked back to the parking lot.

"You're an animal Val." He looked at me with a frightened, yet impressed expression, as I had finished my cone with a final lick of my lips.

"I like ice-cream," I shrugged with a proud smile, "and maybe you're just a slowpoke." I added sassily at the third he had left in his hand. He finished up as we approached his jeep, dusting off his hands and swiftly jumping up on top of the hood.

Oh Shit. How was I going to be able to climb up onto there?! I don't know if you've ever seen a Jeep Wrangler... but they were tall. Me? I was of average height. I made an awkward attempt of lifting myself up beside him, my arms desperately trying to cling onto the car with one leg bent up, and one leg left dangling. Carter tried his best to stifle a laugh at my display of acrobatics, but I could see his chest shaking and hear his muffled snorts from my position.

"Shut up," I glared at him weakly, as I slid my feet back down to the ground in defeat, leaning my back against the car. I crossed my arms and pouted, staring out towards the horizon instead.

"Sorry, you were very entertaining." He laughed as he hopped back down to stand in front of me. Gently brushing a strand of my hair away, he smiled, coaxing me out of the little mood I was having, as a small reluctant smile broke out on my face.

"Do you trust me?" he murmured, as his eyes held mine.

I nodded silently.

I surprisingly did, I think. He was crumbling all the walls around me like they were nothing. He made me feel safe. good. happy.

Two strong hands found their way to my hips as he gripped me tightly and hoisted me up onto the hood of his car, lingering there as he stood between my legs gazing up at me.

Kiss me.

The foreign and slightly terrifying thought burst into my mind. I held my breath, my body buzzing in anticipation at the feeling of his body so close to mine. Before I know it, he slowly blinked himself away from our intense eye contact and retreated. He lifted himself on the car again, as we sat there and watched the sunset in silence.

~

Later that night, we arrived back at Bean Crushers, where Carter got out of his car to escort me over to mine.

"Thanks for tonight, Carter." I whispered, turning around to face him directly. "I had a really great time."

"You're welcome Valerie." He whispered back, a million different emotions flashing across his face.

Kiss me.

The thought came up again. What am I thinking?

A pang of disappointment washed over me as he spoke up again; "Drive safely."

I nodded. And with that, he turned around and distanced himself from me, prompting me to go open my car door and end our night.

The sounds of his steps against the gravel paused for a moment before he let out a huff.

"Fuck it."

I snapped back to him at the sound of his voice.

Shaking his head and turning around to me, he closed the space between us abruptly, pushing me against the car as he grabbed my face in both hands and roughly pressed his lips against mine. My mind went dizzy, before I finally started to register what was happening and willed my lips to move quickly. I reached up to grip his bicep in one hand for stability, and the other behind his neck to pull him down towards me. A surge of white hot electricity rushed between us, as he kissed me furiously, sucking on the plump flesh, and giving it a small nip. I gasped at the feeling, my lips moving against his greedily, taking what it's been yearning for.

We soon broke apart for air, chests heaving deeply, desire gracing all our features. He slowly ran his thumb over my swollen lip before departing wordlessly... for real this time. I got into my car quickly and shrunk back against the seat in shock.

That was the best kiss I've ever had.

I'm in deep trouble now.