Before y'all punch me in the head, let me explain why I failed to update last night because I really planned to do so. But basically what had happened was: I was on my way home from school yesterday (yay I finished my first year, only 4 more to go!) and my brother was talking to me about Infinity War. He was practically spoiling it for me (I hadn't seen it bc uconn is in the middle of nowhere so the nearest theater is like twenty minutes away driving) so obviously i had to go see it upon my arrival home. But the friend I wanted to see it with has finals today, tomorrow and Wednesday, and I return to work on Thursday, so we didn't have time. Alas, we went last night at 7PM as soon as I dropped all my things off at home. Then I spent the night at her school because it was late. But yeah, here's the update; it's a long one.

Can we get to 400 votes? :) I'll update when we hit 400. If not, expect an update on Thursday :)

"Happy Valentine's Day!" Dominic cheers as he envelops me in a tight hug. He doesn't even allow me to wrap my arms around him and instead, he scoops me up and swings me around a little. He leaves a quick kiss on my forehead, which fills my body with warmth.

I look up at him with a growing smile. "Happy Valentine's Day," I respond back tiredly. He tangles our fingers together and swings them between us as he drags me to the dining hall. I don't want to tell him it's too early to be this cheerful. Seeing him happy makes me happy so I don't complain.

"I wish we could move the holiday to tomorrow," he explains. "With class and everything, it puts a block on what we can and can't do."

"We can always skip," I suggest, which earns a turned head from him.

"Don't you have a math quiz?" he inquires.

"Yes..." I trail as I tilt my head back challengingly. "So?"

"So you need to be there for that," he retorts with an eye roll.

"We get out early enough to have lunch," I shrug with a small pout. I wish I could just take him up to my room and cuddle with him. I may have just woken up but I need a nap.

"I know. I planned lunch," he responds informatively.

"Are we exchanging gifts during lunch?" I ask, feeling a little nervous. My gift might be a little...much.

"Do you want to exchange them during lunch?" he questions.

"No..." I trail. I want to do it privately and at the end of the night so I won't be forced to sit there if things get awkward.

"Okay then we can do it before the party," he responds.

"Can we do it after the party?" I request and he gives me a slightly furrowed brow.

"Sure if that's what you want to do," he says a little suspiciously.

"It is..." I trail as I pick at the fruits on my plate. I am starting to regret the purchase I made the other night but it's too late to do anything about it.

I sit through each of my classes wishing they would just end. By the time 2:00 comes around, I'm rushing back to my room to put my stuff away. I have a half hour before Dominic's last class ends so I take the time to change into something cuter. I try to dress for the day and wear a pretty pink blouse. I also pack and unpack his gift a couple times, arguing with myself over whether or not I should just go for it or refrain. When he texts me that he's outside, I swallow nervously and shove it to the bottom of the bag.

I put the gift bag in the back seat alongside my overnight bag. Dominic greets me with a quick peck on the check, which happily surprises me. I try not to show how much I enjoyed it and instead gaze out the window. "You changed shirts?" he asks and I look down at the frilly blouse and offer him a small nod.

"Yeah," I answer quietly.

"It looks good," he assures me, which makes my heart flutter a bit.

"You look good," I mumble as a response, which gets a chuckle and a thanks from him.

I expect us to stop at our familiar diner for a lighthearted meal but Dominic drives right past it and in the direction of one of the more coastal cities. We cruise alongside the beach front for a few minutes and I stare at the water curiously. I don't bother asking where we're going because I know he won't answer. Instead, I admire the view and wait for him to speak.

"I know it's still a little chilly outside but I figured it'd be nice to have a view," he explains as we pull into the parking lot of a small soup and sandwich place. "Then again, anywhere you are has a view."

I stare at him from the passenger seat with an entertained grin on my face. "You're so cheesy, Dominic, I swear," I giggle as my face goes red.

"Stay in the car for a sec," he insists as he gets out and jogs around the front of the vehicle. He comes to my side and opens the door for me, waving his hand in a dramatic motion. I playfully glare at him and step out of the car. I don't bother hiding the humongous grin on my face as he intertwines our hands and lightly sways them. He leads the way to the small restaurant and I take in our surroundings excitedly.

We order our food and Dominic takes out his phone, aiming it at me. "Smile," he insists. He doesn't even have to tell me because I can't stop even if I wanted to. He grins at his phone as he captions the picture, which makes me smile even harder. I'm suddenly slapped with the realization that this isn't a date and that we're just friends. I feel as though the wind is knocked out of me and my smile falters.

"Are you okay?" he asks when he notices the change in my mood.

"Yeah, I'm just...happy," I decide to say as I give him a forced smile.

I enjoy the cute, quiet lunch with him in the beachfront restaurant. Despite having had a good time, I find myself growing more and more disappointed as I realize that this is a one time thing. No matter how hard I tried to push that thought to the back of my mind, it kept popping up whenever I'd fall into fits of laughter or whenever I'd smile or whenever my eyes would fall on Dominic in a way that wasn't exactly friendly. I thought this day would make me happy but it's only hitting me with the harsh realization that I am single and alone and in love with my best friend.

"You're sure you're okay?" Dominic disrupts the silence of the car with a concerned glance at me. I tear my eyes away from my lap and look at him, offering a quick nod.

"Yeah, just a little tired," I lie.

"You can go to sleep," he suggests but I quickly shake my head. I'm not going to leave him alone in the forty minute ride back to my house.

"Can we listen to music?" I ask and Dominic's hand is on the dial of the radio. I slap it away and mumble about him keeping two hands on the wheel. I take over radio duty and flip through the stations to find something worthwhile. The last thing I want to do is search around in the glove-box for the aux cord.

"Wait, wait, wait, go back!" Dominic insists as I flip past a pop song. I flip backwards and offer him a curious glance. He nods his head along to the beat and rolls his shoulders.

I stare at him as he starts to sing along. When he notices the grin growing on my face, he points to me and starts doing theatrical gestures. For a second, both of his hands are off of the wheel as he pretends to play the guitar. I laugh loudly but urge him to drive like a law abiding citizen. He laughs too and does as he's asked but taps along on the steering wheel, shooting me a smile every few seconds. I suddenly have the urge to kiss him and I fight it back, turning my attention to the road ahead of us instead. I can't fight off the smile that holds a place on my face though.

I hate how much I like him. I swear it grows and grows everyday; he doesn't even have to do anything. As the song comes to an end, he turns down the radio and glances at me. "Whatcha thinkin' bout?" he questions.

I beam at how he goes out of his way to cheer me up. That is one of the many reasons why I like him. "Only about how good of a concert that was," I compliment, which earns a smug chuckle from him.

"You had a VIP backstage performance," he replies with a wink. "Anything for a dedicated fan."

"I am not your fan," I respond with a playful roll of my eyes.

"Yeah you are," he lightly shoves my shoulder. "You went to all my baseball games and you cheered the loudest out of everyone. Don't think I don't remember." He offers me another playful wink and I scoff at him.

"I did not," I laugh loudly. I would go to most of his games, though. If he asked me, I would attend. Other times, I would surprise him and show up. Every time without fail, he'd spot me in the stands, call my name, and wave excitedly. In senior year, it got to a point where I'd sit with his parents whenever they showed up. "If I recall correctly, you'd be calling my name."

"Yeah, I needed your attention," he responds casually.

"So who's a fan of who?" I retort with crossed arms.

"I'm your biggest fan," he confesses as his mouth turns upward. "I'm not a liar. I'll support you in all your endeavors. All except one, of course."

"Yeah and what's that?" I play into it.

"You ending our friendship," he cackles. "You're never getting rid of me."

"I don't plan on it," I joke back. "In that case, I guess I'm a fan of yours, too."

"Ah, would you like a picture? I'll even sign it for you," he replies as he brushes a curl from his face. He offers me a playful wink as he nods encouragingly.

"Shut up," I giggle. I peer at him and sigh quietly when I think about how at one point or another, we'll inevitably drift apart. Why am I thinking about so many sad things today? "What do you think's going to happen when we graduate?"

He notices the change in my tone and adjusts his to match. "We'll hopefully both have jobs in the field we're studying. We'll probably stay close to home, realistically. We'll have a cute apartment and Nox will live with us," he explains.

"I'm serious, Dominic," I respond and he gives me a quick glance.

"Me, too," he says with a serious facial expression. "I mean, I wouldn't mind living with you. We practically live together now with all the time we spend in each other's rooms. Living alone is expensive anyway and I'm already in debt up to my ass."

"That's really how you envision us in a few years?" I ask, feeling my heart warm a bit. I shouldn't be so negative. Here I am predicting that we'll drift apart and he's making plans about our future apartment.

"That's what I hope for," he replies. "I mean, there's always the chance that a guy will slip past me and make his way into your heart. He might not like the idea of you and I living together. Or he'll want to live with you. Then we'll have to sign a joint custody agreement for Nox, which could get messy. Just know that I'll do whatever it takes to protect my son."

I let out a loud laugh at his comment about the pup. "What about you? What if you have a girlfriend?" I ask.

"I don't think I will," he admits.

"Why are you so opposed to getting into a relationship?" I press.

"I'm not," he retorts. "I just don't see it happening. I've only ever seen it as a possibility a few times. It probably won't happen."

"You're a catch," I assure him. "You're going to find a girl that you'll want to settle down with."

He laughs loudly and nods as if he knows something I don't. "Thanks Nova, it means a lot coming from you," he replies.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I question and he simply shakes his head. The smirk on his lips doesn't clue me in to much else.

"Nothing," he replies.

"You're ridiculous," I complain as I stare at him.

I hate how unobtainable he is. I can kiss him all I want and flirt with him day in and day out but he'll never really be mine. It makes me wonder if doing any of that stuff is worth it in the end. I'm just bound to get hurt. I get the perks of being with him without actually being able to claim him. I should know better than to settle but for some stupid reason, I can't help but desire to do these things. At least I get some kind of pleasure; it balances out with the pain of not being able to have him.

We park at Dominic's house to avoid cluing Mari in on the party. "You realize we're going to have to walk back right?" he asks as he locks the car.

"No, I thought we'd just teleport," I reply as I rest on the hood of his car.

"You know, normally I'd threaten you for sitting on my baby, but I'm going to let it slide," he responds as he stands before me.

"Why?" I press. What I want to ask is what he's going to do about it but that'll just escalate things.

"Because it's Valentine's Day and I'm supposed to be nice," he answers

"Go ahead; be mean to me," I insist as I stare at him.

"Nope," he answers before he looks at his watch. "Do you want to go inside for a bit? We don't have to be at your house for a little while."

"Sure," I reply. He raises his hands for high fives and I clap my palms against his. Using our entwined hands, he tugs me up and off the car. He maintains one of our clasped hands and uses it to guide me to the front door. I duck my head to hide the color change of my cheeks. I can literally sit on top of him and be fine but a small intimate gesture like this sends me into girlish reactions. What's wrong with me?

He unlocks the door and lets me in. "My parents aren't home," he informs me. I glance outside and see his mom's car in the driveway. "They're staying at a hotel tonight."

"Cute," I tease when I see the look of discomfort on his face.

"Gross," he corrects me.

"They want to spice things up," I comment as I nudge him in the side, which earns a glare in response.

"I don't want to think about that," he complains as he locks the door behind us.

"Where's our son?" I ask when I don't see or hear the pup.

"The neighbor's house," he sighs. "I'd go get him but their daughter gets so excited about dog sitting. She has tea parties with him and everything."

I stretch out on Dominic's couch, kicking my shoes off. He joins me and tugs my legs onto his lap. "Thank you for today," I mumble.

"It's not over yet," he informs me. I look at him with a suggestive expression on my face and he tips his head back and lets out a loud laugh. "I hoped you wouldn't catch on to that."

"I always do," I respond.

"Remember the promise you made," he says as his fingers rub circles in my calves.

"I remember," I grumble unhappily. Just the other night I told him there'd be no more slip ups on my part. But maybe I can flirt with him enough to get him to start something. "Is it too soon to go back on a promise?"

"Look, you made the rule yourself. I just follow it because it makes you happy," he reminds me.

"You're not helping," I complain as I lay with my hands over my eyes. He laughs evilly and continues to rub my legs, letting silence fill the room. At 5:30, he pats my knee and tells me that we should start walking. I heave myself up and put on my shoes.

"It's cold out there," he informs me as he grabs one of his sweaters from the coat rack. I look down at it and see that it's the one from the baseball team; it's his most prized possession. He notices my wandering eyes and he points a finger at me. "You can't keep that one."

"You'll just have to take it off me then," I remark and he groans dramatically as he tugs on another one of his hoodies.

"Please don't start that before your little sister's birthday party," he pleads.

I smirk at him and he sighs noisily, rests his hands on my shoulders, and ushers me out of the house. Once I hear the familiar clicking and jangling of the door being locked, I start off down the steps and in the direction of my house. He follows closely behind, taking a long step to catch up with me.

His fingers lightly brush mine as we walk and I decide to make the move to hold his hand. He's done it multiple times already; how hard can it be? I hesitate for a few seconds, giving him credit for his boldness. I slip my arm around his and slide my hand against his palm. He doesn't say anything and I don't risk glancing at his face. I have a feeling he's staring at me with a knowing look and I don't want to see it. Instead, I relish in the feeling of having his hand in mine yet again.

We reach my house and I make it a point to pull my fingers from his. "Ouch," he mumbles quietly and I turn to look at him with raised brows.

"You want my dad to see?" I ask, which gets a fearful look from him. "Exactly."

We enter my home and are immediately brought into the living room. I only recognize a handful of my sister's friends, even though I'm the one who managed to invite them all. The few who know me personally smile while the rest focus their attention on Dominic, who has taken his place against the wall. I stand beside him and nod at an empty spot on the couch. "You can sit there and I can sit on your lap," I whisper quietly to him and he gives me a long sideways glance.

"Nova," he hisses when I lick my lips suggestively at him. This is fun; I see why he does it.

"Hm?" I respond innocently.

"They're pulling in now," my mom informs everyone and all conversation dies. A minute later, the sound of the door opening fills the house and footsteps follow. When my sister reaches the living room, we all simultaneously greet her and she's pleasantly surprised.

"Wow..." she says as she takes all of us in. "I had no idea."

"That's the point of a surprise, Mari," I retort and she shields her hand from our parents gaze and sticks up her middle finger. They obviously know what she's doing but laugh at the interaction regardless.

I spend most of my time teasing Dominic, flirting with him as hard as I can without being obvious to onlookers. He gives me annoyed looks for the next hour until my sister drags me away from him. "So..." she prompts, which throws me off a bit.

"So?" I repeat as I eat a bite of the red velvet cake on my plate.

"So is he your Valentine?" she hisses.

"Oh...yeah," I answer with a nod.

"Well..." she leads again, which just confuses me more.

"Well what? Just spit it out, Mari!" I retort.

"Well are you guys a thing now?" she hisses quietly.

"No," I clarify, feeling a bit saddened. Just as I was getting over it.

"Are you going back to school after this?" she decides to change the subject when she notes the small frown on my face.

"No I'm just going to sleep here..." I shrug. "Surprise."

"Do mom and dad know yet?" she asks.

"No, I haven't told them," I answer.

"They'll be elated," she laughs. "Just a warning, I'm behind on some chores so they might disperse them accordingly. Especially because I'm having a couple people sleepover tonight so I'll be too busy hosting to bother."

I give her a short glare. "Really?" I grumble. So it looks like I'll be spending tonight washing dishes, cleaning up after the party, and doing everything Mari has been slacking on lately.

"You can't get mad at me; it's my birthday," she insists before nodding at Dominic. "You should go save him."

I look at my friend being forced into a conversation with my mom. I approach and she smiles at me. "I was just telling Dominic the story behind that picture," my mom comments as she nod towards a picture on the wall. I squint at it before sighing and closing my eyes. Great, I was gone for five minutes and my mom's telling Dominic the story about how I broke my arm and was concussed in the 2nd grade because I thought I was Spiderman.

"So her father took her to the park and he's completely clueless as to how to watch a child. While he was playing with Maritza on the swing, Nova here climbs on top of the monkey bars so that she's standing on them. She flicks her wrist at the slide and just jumps off," my mom says, struggling to tell the story through laughter. Dominic is practically keeled over wheezing.

"No one told me it was fake!" I defend myself.

"She hit her head on the monkey bars on the way down and landed right on her elbow," my mom explains. "And when the doctor asked what happened, she said that her web must've malfunctioned."

"I'm so happy you're able to laugh at your 7 year old daughter getting hurt mom," I chide as I cross my arms tightly across my chest.

"You're fine now," my mom waves me off. "You'll laugh too one day."

I glare at the two of them and Dominic looks up at me and does the Spiderman wrist, which sends my mother into more fits of laughter. He follows suit and clutches his stomach as he gasps for breath. The two of them sit there clapping and tearing up while I stand a foot away sucking my teeth. "Y'all done?" I ask when they start to gather themselves. This time, it's my mom who imitates Spiderman, sending them into more silent laughter.

"She tell the Spiderman story?" my dad asks as he walks over already giggling.

"Not you, too," I sigh loudly.

"That's a funny story," my dad says as my mom lays her head on his chest, still shaking with laughter. "You want to hear a funnier one, Dominic?" Dominic nods, barely able to stand up completely from stomach pain. My father falls into yet another embarrassing story from my childhood.

At 8:30, Dominic and I manage to slip away. I don't bother saying 'bye' to my parents seeing as I'll probably be back around 10:00. I want to spend some time with Dominic after our gift exchange. Once we pass my neighbor's house, he clears his throat. "Is the coast clear? Can I hold your hand now?" he asks.

"I think we're good," I joke back as I hold open my palm for him to take. He does and swings our hands as high as he can without lifting me off the ground. I let him have his fun as we walk back to his house. We arrive in twenty minutes and he unlocks the car and takes out our gifts. When I go to grab his gift, he snatches it away from me and growls like a dog. Like son, like father.

"So how do you plan on unlocking the door?" I ask when I see that both of his hands are painfully full

"You can," he replies. I stare at him, waiting for him to tell me where the keys are.

"Keys?" I ask.

"My pocket," he replies.

"Which one?" I respond before grinning seductively. "Unless you want me to pat you down."

"That doesn't sound too bad, actually," he mumbles. "My left, front pocket." I reach my hand into his left pocket and come up short. "My left, Nova, not your left."

I glare at him before reaching into his pocket and grabbing his keys. I unlock the door, push it open, and turn on the light. He follows me inside and gently drops our bags on the couch. When I join him on the couch, he shoves my gift towards me in an excited manner. I stare at his and feel my nerves tie into a ball. My eyes fall onto the pink bag in front of him. What if he misinterprets his gift? Kat said it was cute but what if he thinks it's too forward?

"You go first," he insists.

I open the bag and remove the biggest object- a box of chocolates. I stare at it as my stomach growls; I'll definitely be dipping into that tonight. I reach in again but Dominic cuts me off. "Oh no, how could I forget?" he calls as he jumps up and grabs his keys off the table. "Wait one second." He jogs outside, leaving the door ajar. I shrug and peel the plastic off the chocolates, popping one into my mouth. Dominic returns a moment later holding a very large teddy bear. He sits it down on the couch beside me and I grin widely.

"That's for me?" I ask as I look at the big brown bear. It's bigger than me.

"Oh, that? No, I got it for Nox," he retorts before rolling his eyes. "Yes it's for you."

"You should snuggle with him tonight," I insist. "So he smells like you."

"That'd be weird to hear if it came from anyone else but you," he replies.

"Now I don't need you to cuddle with me. I'll just use him," I comment as I touch the bears soft fur. Dominic begins patting his pocket.

"Do I have the receipt for him? I'll just run him back to the store," he jokes and I shake my head. "He can't replace me. You can't make out with him."

"I can't make out with you either," I mumble, which gets a loud laugh from him.

"You did that to yourself. Just open the rest of your gifts, Nova," he encourages. I reach into the bag once more and pull out a pack of fuzzy socks. "That ones more for me because your feet are so cold all the time. I don't know why; you should probably get that checked out."

I reach in one last time and find a pink envelope. I take it out and open it, ignoring the gift card that falls into my lap. Dominic laughs loudly when I disregard it but I continue to read his note written inside and feel my chest practically burst.

Nova, I love you and appreciate you more than you'll ever know.

I look up at Dominic and I don't even bother hiding the humongous smile on my face. I move the bag from my lap and lean over to hug him. He hugs me back quickly and I try my best not to seem like I'm trying to seduce him. Inside, I wanted to crawl onto his lap and do much more than hug but I stay strong. I pull away and return to my seat, lifting up the gift card I left in my wake. I open it and read the little note.

You can use this on one condition; you have to show me what you buy.

I glance at the card to find that it's from Victoria's Secret. With a narrowed glance at him, I toss the card back into the bag. "I take that hug back," I playfully complain as I cross my arms. Realistically, I wouldn't mind showing him. Not one bit.

"Let it be known that I felt like a creep walking in there to buy that," he comments.

"Did you feel like a creep writing that card?" I ask, which gets a grin in response.

"No..." he trails.

"Pervert," I whisper and he tilts his head at me as if asking me to repeat myself. I simply grin in response and nudge his bag towards him. "Open your gift now."

He takes out the over-sized, solid chocolate Hershey kiss and stares at it in amazement. "Woah..." he trails as he runs his finger along the pink wrapper.

"A big kiss from me to you," I joke.

"Not the kind I was hoping for but I'll take it," he replies before reaching back into the bag. He pulls out a red water bottle and nods appreciatively.

"I figured your thirsty ass could use another one for the gym," I explain, which gets a loud laugh from him.

"Well you're not wrong there," he mumbles. He reaches into the bag one more time and takes out the palm sized, square jewelry box. He squints his eyes at it curiously, which makes my heart race. What if he thinks it's too much? He opens it slowly and he takes out the two black, leather cord bracelets. He looks at one of them and notices the small letter charm on it. His fingers adjust it and he acknowledges the letter. From my spot, I can see that it's an N. He grabs the other one and does the same thing, revealing the letter D. "I'm assuming this one's yours."

He hands me the bracelet with his first initial and I reach out to grab it but he simply slides it over my wrist and tightens it. He hands me the one with the N and I do the same for him. I watch as he eyes his wrist with a small smile and I feel my heart pounding in my chest. "Do you like it?" I ask.

"Very much. Is this your way of marking your territory?" he teases with a small smile.

"I saw them and thought they were cute," I explain with a sigh of relief. I was worried he'd think it was too much of a boyfriend and girlfriend gift. "It was either these or a phone case with my face on it."

"Oh I already have four of those," he waves off jokingly. I laugh at the thought of him carrying around his phone in that. He pulls me into a hug and I drag my chocolates along with me, laying my head on his chest as I shove a chocolate square into my mouth. He unwraps his chocolate kiss and bites a large portion of it off. I stare in slight shock at his ability to break through solid chocolate with only his teeth. "So good," he mumbles as he slowly chews it.

We sit in silence and stuff our face with sweets, as we should. When I notice half of the chocolate kiss resting on the table, I risk a glance at him. He smiles largely at me and I laugh, reaching my hand out. "You have some chocolate right there," I say as I wipe the area beneath his lip. His eyes follow my finger as I bring it to my mouth. "That kiss is good." I watch as he swallows and licks his lips.

"Was it?" he asks quietly.

"Mhm," I reply, matching his tone of voice. Kiss me, kiss me, kiss me.

He blinks out of the stupor and turns his attention back to the Hershey kiss. "Want some?" he asks as he holds it out for me.

"Not the kind of kiss I was hoping for but I'll take it," I grumble quietly as I take a bite out of the chocolate.

"Remember what you said Nova," he sings as I chew the treat.

"It's just a kiss," I sing back.

"Now you sound like West," he responds.

"I'm just saying! He's right, either way. A kiss is just a kiss," I assure him.

"Really?" he asks. "You confidently say that after what happened the first time we kissed?"

My face reddens as I remember how fast that escalated. "If we both know that all that's happening is a kiss, then we should be fine," I respond.

"You mean that?" he presses.

"Yes," I say.

"And you're perfectly comfortable with kissing?" he asks. "You're not going to hate me and feel I ruined the friendship if I kiss you?"

I feel my stomach butterflies getting excited. "No, Dominic, I won't hate you," I retort.

"Okay," he says. His hand lightly touches the underside of my chin and he tilts my head upwards. My eyes flutter shut and I shift my head to the side to match his, reveling in the anticipation of what's to come. Delicately, he presses his lips against mine and I feel myself melting into him. His lips part and he deepens the kiss, which sends my body into a frenzy. My heart is beating so loud that I can't even hear myself think. He moves painfully slow, which only intensifies the feelings bubbling in my gut. When he eventually breaks away from me, he smiles smugly at the lost look on my face. I blink slowly at him before inhaling deeply. I want more. I want so much more.

I rest my head against his shoulder and sigh noisily, which earns a laugh from him. I have a feeling we're on the same page. We sit like this for a minute before he breaks the silence. "I don't want to sleep alone tonight," he announces, which takes me by surprise. It's always me asking him to come over to cuddle.

"Are you asking me to spend the night?" I respond.

"Maybe," he starts, "if you're not upset about not spending time with your sister."

"She's having a sleepover of her own," I respond.

"Can we go up to bed then?" he asks. I nod with my head still on his chest. I heave myself up and pull him to his feet. Once he turns his back, I reach for the teddy bear but it only takes a second for him to intervene. "Put the teddy down." I drop the bear, grumbling quietly as I follow him upstairs.

I reach his room and he tucks his hand under his shirt, stretching out tiredly. "Can I take a shower?" I ask him.

He grins at me. "I was going to shower," he comments.

"Good thing there are two showers," I blurt before realizing my mistake. I should've just played along and maybe I could've gotten lucky.

"Good thing," he nods with a smirk. He takes it upon himself to gather things for me to shower. He hands me a t-shirt and some basketball shorts, which I take from him before slipping into the bathroom. I try to shower as quickly as possible. The last thing I want is for Dominic to be asleep by the time I get out. I avoid my hair and manage to make it a twenty minute shower, which is a record for me. I'm tugging on my clothes when I notice my toothbrush is still in its place in Dominic's cup. I smile and put it to use. Halfway through my brushing, a light knock sounds from the door. I walk over, unlock it, and open it. Dominic appears in sweatpants and t-shirt with wet curls.

"I have to brush my teeth," he tells me. I motion for him to use the sink and he joins me. I finish before him and take it upon myself to use his mouthwash. I lightly pat his back as I leave the bathroom and make my way to his bed. I'm all snuggled up under his blankets when he turns off the light in the bathroom. Then he flips off the bedroom light but it doesn't do much justice. His room is situated right near a street lamp, which shines a dull glow through one of the windows. A second later, he crawls into bed beside me and tugs the blankets up his torso.

I lay there and stare at the ceiling, trying to think of something worth saying. I bite my lip as I exhale quietly. I want to kiss him again. Would it be weird to ask? "Are you tired?" I decide on.

"Not anymore," he sighs. "The shower woke me up a bit."

"Me too," I agree. My phone lights up from the bedside table and I grab it, skimming the screen.

Mari: where are you?

Nova: sleeping at dominic's

Mari: hope your valentine's day ends well ;)

I chuckle quietly as I clear my tabs and lock my phone, returning it to its previous position. "Eli?" he asks suspiciously.

"Mari," I correct him.

"What'd she say?" he questions.

"She says that she hopes my Valentine's Day ends well with a winking face," I relay and he laughs.

"Did it end well?" he asks.

"It did...but it could be better," I confess.

"Really? How so?" he plays along.

"Just another kiss," I reply as I glance at him hopefully.

"Just a kiss?" he asks for clarification. "Same rules we had downstairs?"

"Yes, just a kiss, I won't hate you, yadda yadda ya," I complain. He laughs before flipping on top of me. My heart beats out of my chest as his eyes take in my features in the glowing light of his room.

He leans in and kisses me again only this time, it feels more urgent. It's still painstakingly slow and intimate, but I can tell he's been wanting it as much as I have. He wants to savor every second of it, as do I. I risk it all by putting my arms loosely around his neck, giving him more than enough room to turn away. A few seconds later, he breaks away from me. I make it a point to not remove my arms from around his neck and instead, I stare up at him.

We gaze into each other's eyes for a bit before he sighs in defeat and returns for another kiss. This one is much more passionate and I can taste the desire on his tongue. I trail one arm down his back and pull him closer to me. I anticipate him breaking away so when he doesn't, I decide to take it a step further to see how far he'll let things go. I raise my knees on either side of him. Instead of stopping, he adjusts himself between them and continues to kiss me hard and fervently.

We spend the next five minutes strictly kissing. I don't bother testing the waters any further. We said we'd kiss so that's what we do. He eventually pulls away and flips onto his back, putting his knees up and his arms across his face. We lay side by side, both breathing heavily and noisily. I definitely didn't want to stop but I know things would only escalate from there. It was getting to that point. I bite my lip to keep myself from making the comment threatening to slip out. When I hear Dominic huff quietly, I decide to just go for it. "Screw the rule," I say into the silence.

"What?" Dominic asks.

"The no sex rule. Screw it," I clarify.

"You don't mean that," he says after a moment of silence.

"I do," I tell him. "I was stupid for having initiated it. We could've just talked like grown ups. Besides, I basically slip up every other day."

"I agree," he mumbles quietly.

"So screw the rule," I tell him. "I take it back."

"You won't hate me?" he asks.

"No," I answer. "I won't."

"You're sure?" he asks.

"Positive," I answer.

There's a couple of seconds of silence before he's on top of me and we're connected at the mouth once again. Except this time, it's more desperate and demanding. It's fire and it's good. It's so, so good. We don't waste time in removing clothes and we don't worry about being quiet. We enjoy each others presence in the purest way possible.

+++

"Good morning," Dominic greets me once my eyes blink open. I stare at him as he lays beside me. He has the blanket halfway down his chest, only covering his lower half. His shirt is somewhere on the floor with the rest of our clothes.

"Morning," I mumble. "How long have you been up?"

"A half hour," he replies as he puts his phone on the table beside him. I almost move to kiss him good morning before I have to stop myself. Woah, we're not on that level, I quickly remind myself.

"How are you feeling?" he asks curiously.

"Hungry," I confess, which gets a laugh out of him.

"I was going to make you breakfast but didn't want you to wake up alone," he admits, which makes my heart flutter a bit as I stare at him.

"Go," I insist with a grin. He dramatically sighs and shamelessly gets out of bed, revealing his naked body once more. I immediately cover my eyes and he lets out a loud laugh.

"Really, Nova?" he asks.

"This is a platonic situation, Dominic," I say from behind my hands.

"Sure," he replies. "Come downstairs whenever you're ready."

I listen to the door close and I get out of bed, quickly pulling on the pajamas he so gracefully removed from me last night. I go to the bathroom and take my time with my morning routine. Once I look half decent, I venture downstairs. "Whatever you're making smells good," I say once I  join him in the kitchen. I stare at his muscular back as he stands before the stove with his head slightly turned.

He glances back at me and grins, which only makes me want to walk up behind him and wrap my arms around his stomach. I swallow nervously. The same thing happened last night as it did a couple weeks ago: I almost slipped up. The words 'I love you' were threatening to roll off of my tongue in the midst of everything but I managed to exchange it for other words. He didn't seem to notice my internal conflict.

"I'm making breakfast sandwiches," he tells me as he bounces between the two pans on the stove. "There are drinks in the fridge because I know you're thirsty." I mock him childishly and he cackles in response.

I take it upon myself to start setting the table, which includes the plates and drinks. Eventually the food is finished and I take a seat at the table and wait excitedly for the meal. He comes over and places a sandwich on each plate and my mouth begins to water. Once he takes the seat across from me, I dig in and sigh in delight when I practically inhale half of it.

"Do you want another one?" he asks once I make my way through the sandwich. I slowly shake my head, patting my stomach in a satisfied manner.

"You're such a good cook," I compliment after I take a long sip of my juice.

"All the more reason to make a husband out of me," he responds and when I scoff, he tilts his head. "I think I'd be a great husband."

"You don't even want a committed relationship," I quip, which gets an eye roll out of him.

"No, no, no. What I said was that I don't see myself getting into one. It doesn't mean that I don't want one or wouldn't be willing to be in one. I just don't see it happening anytime in the future," he clarifies, which turns my stomach a bit. "I have to really, really like a girl before I get into a relationship with her."

"I bet you do," I comment before slowly sipping my juice.

"Did you know," he leads, "you're the only person I've slept with more than twice?"

This fact throws me off a bit. "Really?" I ask, which gets a thoughtful nod from him. He takes both of our plates over to the sinks and starts to wash them.

"I've always been one to think that the idea of sleeping with the same person over and over again would get boring but it gets better every time," he confesses. My entire body fills with heat as he continues to explain. "It's less of doing it for yourself and more of doing it for your partner. I'm already starting to catch on to what you like."

I stare at him in a frozen, horrified state. The way he speaks about this so casually is a little shocking. It's like he's talking about going shopping for groceries. When I don't respond, he turns to look at me. I blink a few times as I hold my head between my hands. My face is probably bright red and I look like a joke.

"Are you okay?" he asks with a small grin.

"You talk about it so...nonchalantly," I fumble. He offers me a weak shrug as he turns off the water and dries his hands.

"We should probably talk about it in this manner more often. Also we should have the conversations you pointedly avoid," he says as he leans against the counter.

I decide to feign confusion as I stare into my cup of juice. "I have no idea what you're talking about," I lie.

"Avoiding it again, I see," he laughs. "We have to talk about it at some point."

"I know," I respond in a defeated slump. "Can I just get a day to think?"

"Sure," he answers. "A day."

"Until Monday," I plead with him.

"Sure," he repeats before pushing himself off the counter. "We should probably get out of here soon. My parents are coming back in an hour and I don't think you feel like explaining why we're here the day after Valentine's Day."

I stand up and he takes the towel off the counter and slaps at me with it. I squeal and run in the direction of the stairs as he chases close behind me, scooping me up and running up the stairs with me in his arms. I smile when he does this and feel my heart sink in my chest. I wish he was my boyfriend.