I stood perturbed for a second, before my insides melted away, and leaned into him, kissing him back. Our hands clutched to each other's body as we stood on the threshold of my room.

He kissed urgently, leaving me without any breath in my body. I clasped my hands around his neck and pressed myself against him, feeling the warmth of his chest seeping into my body.

We broke away, and I looked at him with a spark in my eyes. We were both a little breathless. He closed his eyes and knitted his eyebrows together, as though he was anticipating a rejection from me.

But something else had taken over my body, and I didn't have the heart to not enjoy this moment.

"Do you want to come inside?" I asked in a small whisper. But he heard it. He opened his eyes and looked at me in surprise. Then he slowly nodded.

I disentangled myself from Andrew and guided him into my room, closing the door. Made him sit on the bed as I climbed on top of him, straddling his waist. Staring at him, I stroked his hair with my fingers, softly. I dipped my head and attached my lips to his neck. He swallowed. His hands lay limp on either side of my legs. I left a line of kisses from the back of his earlobe to his neck, and smiled when I heard him catch his breath. My lips landed on his Adam's apple, which bobbed up and down under my lips, and I left a kiss there.

He groaned and placed his hands on my back, pressing me against him until our stomachs touched. I left his neck and looked at him. I felt his hands travel up my spine and landing on the nape of my neck, when he yanked my head down to his and latched his lips onto mine.

He kissed me in such a way, it made me blush. I felt his tongue lick my lower lip, tracing the outline and I opened my mouth for him, giving entrance. I fidgeted with the end of his t-shirt. Getting the hint, he pulled it off and tossed it somewhere in the room. I traced my palms across his solid chest, elucidating a tiny moan from him. Our kiss picked up pace, our tongues entangling.

He started unbuttoning my shirt and soon, it joined the floor along with his t-shirt. Placing his hands under my thighs, he turned us over, placing me down on the bed as he hovered over me.

"Oh, Andrew," I gasped as he reattached his lips to mine and I pressed his bare back with my palms. His hands gripped my waist tightly as his lips kissed me into a frenzy.

Suddenly, I felt his lips grow hesitant. My eyes flew open to find his pressed tightly together, as if he was in pain. He let out a groan and removed his lips from mine altogether.

"I can't do this," he said, and pushed himself off me, dropping down on the bed with a thud.

My eyes grew wide as I looked at the white ceiling in horror. Utter mortification rushed through my blood. I felt horrified and rejected.

I was about to do it again with him.

Shit.

I chanced a glance at him, and found him lying motionless beside me with his forearm over his eyes, his naked chest ebbing up and down. I looked away immediately, with my fingers against my forehead. "Oh, Christ!" I cursed softly.

My face was completely red and I suddenly felt very exposed, lying beside him in just my bra and pants.

Sensing my restlessness, Andrew slowly removed his hand, and turned his head towards me.

"Keighlah?" Andrew called.

I blew a raspberry and looked at him with uncertain eyes.

"Hey," he got up on his elbow. "Don't feel embarrassed."

For fuck's sake, I thought.

"Andrew," I said, sitting up. "I don't want you to think that I forced myself on you, if i did, I'm really sorry-"

"Keighlah, no-"

"-and I'm feeling horrible right now thinking that I probably forced you, or made you do this-"

"No, you didn't! I'm not thinking so!"

"-and I just wanna say-wait. You don't think so?"

"No!" He said, clutching my shoulders. "Why would I think so?"

I blinked at him, a distressed expression on my face.

"Don't think like that!" He said, shaking me. "I was there too, wasn't I? I was involved too."

I took in a deep breath of air and let it out slowly. "Right."

"Really. It's not you, it's me. I can't do this, and it's not because of you, it's-it's completely my-"

"It's okay, Andrew," I forced out, my voice hard.

Andrew stopped for a second. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," I said. "It's fine. It's-it's okay."

"Oh."

"Yep."

"Okay."

"Totally."

He searched my face for a while, before giving out a deep sigh and flopping back on the bed.

"It's okay," he repeated.

I was sure my face was still burning red. I could feel it. It felt hot.

I felt hot.

"I'm, um-I'm gonna go . . ." Andrew said after a while of suffocating silence.

"All right," my answer came way too fast. He glanced at me once before sighing and getting up. He picked up this t-shirt from the floor and walked towards the door. After opening it, he stopped and turned towards me, as if he was going to say something, but thought better of it and exited my room, shutting door behind.

The second he left, I let out a loud groan of frustration and collapsed on the bed. I laid in the quietness. The atmosphere of the room had changed from loving and tempting to weird and awkward, crazy quick.

I was having conflicting feelings. I was glad that he stopped but I was also mad that he did.

Gradually, I decided that I was going to have to sweep this under the mattress just like I had swept every other feeling, touch, and kiss under the mattress.

But it was getting hard sweeping them.

I got up from the bed and went into the bathroom to take a shower, Andrew's face floating behind my eyes all the while.

• • •

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This is prolly my shortest chapter so far. Thoughts?

Next chapter - next Wednesday at 10pm IST.