Trying hard not to smile too wildly, I turned my head to catch another sneaky look at Mia, who was sat beside me on her sofa.

 Instead of kicking me out as she likely should have since I well, broke into her house and everything, Mia had kindly asked me to stay with her to keep her company. Okay, fine, maybe she didn't ask, and maybe, I might have begged to stay. But details aside, I now had her officially alone and cuddled up beside me on the sofa. 

So, it was basically a date.

Giving her a once-over, I smiled softly as I watched her stare concentratedly at the screen. She was wearing shorts now, to my disappointment, but their presence didn't seem to make her any less distracting. And even more distractingly, a little while ago, she had randomly decided to drape her long, tan legs all over my lap.

 Despite the fact it almost caused me to go into cardiac arrest, I made absolutely no move to shove her off. It abided by my golden rule in life: If Mia willingly touches you, you should shut up, enjoy it, and don't ask any damn question. So, if Mia wanted to rest her sexy-ass legs all over me, I sure as hell wasn't about to complain.

Realizing I've probably been staring too long, I let my eyes drift back to the TV screen. Once I took in the sight, my eyes immediately dullened. Damon fucking Salvatore was on the screen because being the whipped prick I was, I'd let Mia bully me into watching vampire diaries with her.

 Pathetic, I know, but what could I do if it made her happy. And besides, it wasn't entirely terrible; it was fun to watch them go on violent killing sprees...

Rolling my eyes, I watched as Damon-the-fucking-show-off, pulled off his shirt.

"Ugh, Damon is so fucking hot. The stupid main character doesn't realize how lucky she is to have someone as sexy as him fawn all over her," I heard Mia mutter out in a long dramatic sigh.

The second her words landed the air, I legitimately felt like I'd been slapped in the face and jerked my head her way to shoot her a nasty look. Then feeling childish, I shoved her legs off my lap, causing her to nearly swing right off the sofa. 

Letting out a shaky gasp, she caught herself on the armrest before turning back to me with a scowl. "Hey! What the hell is your problem, Ethan? That's no way to treat a sick person!" She huffed. 

Keeping a scowl on my face, I narrowed my eyes. "Well, maybe, Damon can be your footrest," I threw back rudely, speaking his name as though it was venom. "Besides, he's not even good-looking. You have shit taste in guys," I muttered with a scoff.

Mia, clearly thinking I was an idiot, rolled her eyes at me before dumping her legs back into my lap once more.

Despite the fact the action gave me butterflies, I glanced down at her legs, then back at her before raising a quizzical brow.

"I'm not taking them off, so get over it," she snapped. 

My lips twitched a little at her words, finding myself annoyingly turned on by her bossiness.

"Also, I don't have shit taste in guys, thank you very much," she added on. 

Annoyance washed through my chest at her words before I slowly remembered something that made me smirk a little. "Fair point, you did admit that you thought I was the most attractive guy in the room when we played 'Truth or Dare," I chuckled, unable to stop my growing smile. It was a memory that I knew I'd never forget. 

Mia froze a little at my words, and her eyes drifted a little, making her look visibly uncomfortable. But then, at once, she seemed to pull herself together to look over me in an almost bored-like manner.

She scoffed. "Don't flatter yourself, Ethan; I lied. I was only trying to win you back into my good books because you were ignoring me," she explained simply.

My smile immediately slipped from my face as I realized how much that made sense. Mia had made it absolutely clear over the years how disgusted she was by my appearance, so it was definitely far-fetched that she'd think I was the most attractive guy in any room.

 To her, I'd always be the same old bucked tooth, little brat that had purposely kicked a ball at her in middle school. 

"Oh," I swallowed, trying hard to keep the pain out of my tone.

As our eyes naturally drifted back to the screen, a comfortable silence settled back between us, and I let myself sink deeper into the sofa. While I watched the episode, I mindlessly let my hands loosely stroke up Mia's calf to her knee cap. The feel of her skin against my palm felt incredibly satisfying. The warmth of it, along with its smooth, silky texture becoming almost hypnotizing.

As more of the action played out on the screen, I felt my mind drift off slightly in fantasy. I imagined a reality that could exist where I could let my hand drift right up her thigh while drawing patterns against her skin. A reality where I could perhaps even dip my finger underneath the hemlines of her shorts to tease her. Maybe even tug a little at the material...

Of course, I couldn't and didn't, but it was fun to imagine. And thoughts can't do any harm if they only exist in your head.

Pulling me out of my fantasy slightly, I noticed Mia turn to look at me with a curious expression from my peripheral vision. It made me freeze a little. 

Shit, could she hear my thoughts? No, no, she couldn't; if she could read my thoughts, she would have filed several restraining orders and fled the country.

Figuring it was nothing, I didn't bother to look her way and stared continually forward at the screen. Going back to stroking her knee, I let my mind get lost in my earlier scenario again. I imagined what would happen if Mia parted her legs a little, so I could draw smooth circles against the velvety, smooth skin of her inner thigh. Then, I could drift higher and higher, pausing only to tease before-

My mind was interrupted as I noticed Mia turn to face me once more. 

What was with her? Did I have something on my face? 

Deciding that enough was enough, I turned to face her with furrowed brows. "Why are you looking at me? What's the matter?" I asked softly, my face fanning over hers in concern.

Mia let out an awkward cough and widened her eyes before shooting a pointed look to something below her.

Still confused, I followed her line of vision to see what she was referring to. And the moment I looked down, I nearly died there and then. For my hand was no longer on Mia's kneecap but was instead firmly gripping the upper region of her naked thigh. 

Realizing what I'd done, my eyes sprang open wide, and my face burned hot. Never moving faster in my life, I tore my hand away as quickly as I was physically able to. Avidly avoiding eye contact with her, I worked hard to calm myself down.

 Shit. Shit. Shit. This was so bad! She already thought I was a freak at the best of times, but now she's going to think I'm a freaky pervert who can't control his fucking hands.

As my heart thumped violently away, I shot her a nervous look. "Shit, I'm so sorry. I had no idea," I blurted out, still struggling to maintain her gaze.

To my surprise, the shock soon faded from Mia's eyes, and she looked me up and down in vague amusement. "It's fine; I barely even noticed," she smiled.

Her words instantly filled me with a breath of relief and feeling better, I let myself relax back against her sofa. However, this time as I watched the show, I made sure to not touch Mia at all, and kept my hands rigid in my lap. The little buggers clearly had a mind of their own, so they couldn't be trusted.

Interrupting the slight awkward air, the light jingle of her doorbell soon echoed out through her corridor. Figured it was the postman; I was about to go up to answer it for her, but then a horrifying possibility crossed my mind. 

 Sitting up straighter, I snapped my head Mia's way. "Crap, is that your dad?" I asked suddenly, fear racing through my heart.

 If Mia's dad came in here and saw me alone with his daughter, I'd be quite simply dead. No, actually scratch that, he'd torture me first, then kill me before mounting my bones up on his wall.

Mia's eye's fanned over my likely frightened face with a teasing smile. "Well, for your sake, let's hope not. Just wait here; it's probably just a salesperson," she said as she swung herself up to her feet.

As she made her way out of the room, I cautiously walked my way to the doorframe of her living room door to check who was there for myself. If it was her dad, I wanted a five-second start to run the fuck out of here. I'd jump out the window if it came to it. 

Peeking around the corner, I watched as Mia swung open the door while bracing myself for a potential escape. The moment I saw the flash of blonde hair and lightly tanned skin, my blood ran cold. For stood on Mia's doorstep was none other than Ben, the fucking, walking-talking, malibu barbie.

 What the fuck was he doing here, and why did he know where Mia lived? Feeling my heart start beating faster in panic, I kept my narrowed gaze on his as he greeted Mia with a broad smile.

"Oh hey, Ben. What brings you here?" Mia called out in surprise. I couldn't see her expression, but it was without a doubt she was probably smiling at him.

 Ben shifted in place a little nervously. "I just wanted to check up on you since you called up sick to work," he swallowed. "You're not avoiding me because of what happened at the party, right?" he asked, looking up at her shyly.

 I rolled my eyes at his clear attempt at looking all innocent. The bastard knew he was anything but innocent. I admit, attempting to physically attack him was slightly too far, but he still deserved some kind of punishment. He had tried to kiss my Chubs.

"Oh, no. No! Of course not. I'm actually sick," she laughed. "I've got snotty tissues to prove it," she said as she drew some out of her pocket as a demonstration. 

I bit my lip a little at her, finding it funny that she was making a show of her snot-filled tissues. That was my Chubs, alright, awkward as they came.

Letting out a laugh of relief, he put a hand to his heart. "Thank god, I thought you hated me for sure," he said, breathing a sigh of relief.

Feeling myself getting more and more annoyed at how successfully he seemed to be winning his way into her good books, I thought desperately of something I could do to manipulate the situation. Then suddenly, the answer hit me like a ton of bricks as I took notice of Mia's outfit.

 Not only did she have messy bed hair, but she was wearing my hoodie, the hem of which was completely concealing her shorts. So, to a stranger, it might look as though she'd come from bed.

 A bed with me in it...

Slowly, a small smirk pulled to my face as the perfect plan presented itself. Wasting no time, I reached for the hem of my own top and lifted it over my head. As cool air brushed past my skin, I chucked my top near the end of her stairs and edged my way closer to the front door.

 I listened with vague amusement as Ben explained how he now believed Mia and I were together due to the display I'd made of myself at the party. Since he already thought we were seeing one another, this would only be more perfect. Ben was officially going to know exactly why he should back off. 

As I stepped into the light, Ben finally caught my eyes, and the second he did, his eyes grew significantly wider, and he froze.

Mia, completely oblivious to what was happening behind her, snorted. "We're not-"

Mia suddenly cut herself off before slowly turning around to face me, seeming to sense someone was behind her. The moment she saw me, she blinked rapidly before letting her widened brown eyes fall from my eyes to my chest at a frighteningly quick speed. I controlled the urge not to smile too wildly, finding it way too funny how flustered she was by my half-naked state.

 All while staring at my abs, Mia's lips made pathetic shapes as though grappling with the urge to say something. I was hoping the words she was searching for were: God, Ethan, you're so hot, please fuck me. 

But something told me they were more realistically: Why the fuck have you taken your top off, you weirdo?

Eventually, and with much hesitation, Mia finally lifted her gaze back up to mine, causing me to bite back the urge to laugh. Remembering my mission, I let my gaze drift casually over to Ben who was still stood rigidly by the door.

Relaxing my face into as natural of a smile as I could, I dug my eyes into his intensely. "Hey, Ben," I chirped, in way too optimistic of a tone.

Ben, still looking a little wary, gave me a brief smile and nod while eying me up and down very carefully. I felt a little guilty, knowing he was only cautious because of the way I'd cruelly tried to hurt him at the party. But it was fine, today I was going to do better and express my jealousy by being extremely passive-aggressive instead.

Still maintaining the intensity of my gaze, I watched with a small smile as Ben squirmed and fidgeted nervously. From the corner of my eyes, I saw Mia look back and forth between the two of us with a quirked-up brow. 

Before I could second-guess my plan, I snaked both my arms around Mia's waist and dragged her possessively backward. Letting out a shallow gasp of surprise, she fell clumsy back against the surface of my naked chest. The warmth of her pressed to me, along with the rich floral scent of her shampoo, drove my mind near to crazy and it took near to everything in me, not to drag her back into the house and slam the door.

Trying my best to control my racing heart, I placed a lingered kiss to the back of her neck before snuggling my chin into the crook of her neck. Feeling her rising pulse beat against my skin, I brought my lips gently up to her ear. 

"Let's go back to bed," I whispered in an intentionally loud tone.

Having been relaxing into my hold, Mia suddenly stiffened in what was likely embarrassment. Trying to turn her head back to look at me, she scoffed. "We weren't in bed. What the hell are you on about, Ethan?" she hissed as she started to scramble and turn in my hold. 

Widening my eyes a little in panic, I firmed my grip a little around her waist to disguise her struggles.

Hearing the sound of a clearing throat, I lifted my head to find a very awkward-looking Ben shifting from foot to foot. Pressing my lips together hard, I tried with every ounce of strength in me, not to smile.

"Look, Ethan," Ben started as he looked my way. "I'm sorry about the other night. I would never have gone near her if I knew you guys were a thing," he explained apologetically.

Mia turned in my hold. "Bu-"

"Don't worry about it. I overreacted," I said with a smile, cutting Mia off. "I just get a little possessive sometimes," I chuckled rather honestly while pulling Mia closer.

Ben looking a lot more relieved now, laughed. "Great, I'm glad we're cool. I'll see you guys at school. Have a good night, guys."

 Then turning around, he quickly started to head back down the driveway. I watched him leave with a smile, more than happy with the incorrect assumptions he was leaving with.

"Wait-" Mia yelled as she tried to lunge her way out of my grasp.

  Shit.

In a spontaneous moment of panic, I slapped a hand over Mia's mouth before she had a chance to finish. Feeling her struggle, I felt a bit bad, but in my defense, she had done the same thing to me at Sugar Shake. 

But in her defense, I had liked it...

Catching me off guard, I heard Mia let out a low growl before proceeding to lick the underside of my palm.

Chuckling at her poor attempt at trying to disgust me, I slowly dropped my hand from Mia's face. "Nice try, Mia, but it's going to take a lot more than that to gross me out," I snickered against her ear.

 Once I saw Ben safely starting up his car, I let out a contented sigh and reluctantly let go of my hold on Mia's waist. I would have held on for longer, but I knew Mia was likely pissed enough at me already. 

Then acting as though I'd done nothing out of the ordinary, I turned around and strolled casually back into her house. Once I made it back to her living room, I jumped a little as I heard the aggressive slam of her door.

Oh, shit, she was mad, mad.

Contemplating whether to run or hide, I swallowed nervously as Mia rounded the corner and set her murderous eyes on me. 

"What the hell was that, Ethan? And why'd you take your top off?" she blurted out while unsubtly dropping her eyes back down to my chest. 

 Seeming to forget she was even in an argument, Mia's eyes glossed over a little and stared at every last bit of exposed flesh for an uncomfortably long period.

 Unable to help myself, I smirked and waved a hand in front of her face to gain back her attention. "Earth to Chubs," I chuckled lowly.

Mia snapped her head up at a lightning-quick speed before rapidly looking away once she caught my expression.

Remembering her question, I cleared my throat. "And to answer your question, I took my top off because it's quite hot in here," I lied smoothly while fanning myself with my hands. 

Mia quirked up an eyebrow almost immediately, in a mark of clear disbelievance. "I can quite clearly see the goose-bumps on your arms," she said flatly. 

Well, shit. 

Freezing a little, I searched my mind for some kind of excuse. "Yeah, but that's only because I was standing near the door," I justified.

Mia crossed her arms. "Okay, Whatever, Ethan, but that still doesn't explain why you heavily insinuated that we were dating to Ben."

Maybe because I have a massive crush on you and want you to myself.

Fighting back the urge to say the truth, I let out a heavy sigh. "Well, obviously because I hate him, and I knew he would back off you if he thought we were a thing," I explained, slightly twisted the truth.

Mia, officially fed up with me, took a deep breath in and out as though attempting to maintain her calm.

"For the last time, Ethan, get this through your thick head. Ben, no likey me. Mia, no likey Ben. Ben and Mia are friends," she explained in an overly simplified tone.

I knew I should have dropped it there and then, but for some reason, I didn't. Unable to stop myself, I took a step closer to her, and rather surprisingly, she didn't step back. Her eyes open, searching and beautiful, distracted me from whatever I was about to say next, and I watched hypnotically as they slowly drifted over my face.

The way she was looking at me was so strange, so unlike what I was used to seeing. Her swirling brown eyes: bold and doe-like, seemed to be calling me closer, egging me to do something that would get me in trouble.

My hand was reaching out to cup her cheek before I could figure out how to stop it. Then swallowing harshly, I let my thumb trace teasingly over the corner of my lips. It was almost as though I was taunting myself over what I couldn't have. Of what I knew, she wouldn't reciprocate.

"Do you not realize how amazing you are?" I whispered as my eyes finally pulled back up to hers. "If he doesn't like you already, then it's only a matter of time before he falls to his feet. It's an incredibly easy thing to do, trust me," I admitted with a bitter laugh.

Still, as intense as ever, Mia's eyes danced back and forth between mine, swimming with shock and something else quite strange. Something that I didn't have a name for. 

Abruptly, like a sharp slap in the face, I realized exactly what I'd said and how I'd said it. Ripping my hand away from her, I backed away several steps in horror.

 "I'm sorry. That was...that was weird. I just...I just need to erm...I just need some air," I mumbled weakly.

 Then without so much as sparing her another glance, I rushed my way out of the room. 

-------------------

Author's note: 

I hope you enjoyed chapter Sixteen since it included one of my favourite jealous Ethan moments XD

I know jealousy's bad and everything, but nobody can tell me it's not a really funny and humiliating way to embarrass my characters ;)

Hope to bring a new chapter soon xx