The Hybrid
Chapter 9 - Twenty Questions

I count down the minutes till the bell rings for lunch in Biology, tired and grumpy. It has been a week and a half since that kiss; since I have seen Vulcan. Clearly that promise to see me tomorrow was a lie. I have no idea why I’m so down about it though, I mean the guy is handsome as hell, older than me and probably has a long line of women desperate for the chance to date him yet he chooses an eighteen-year-old girl.

He probably does have a girlfriend, I miserably think to myself, my mood instantly deflating. Someone could have dared him to kiss me, it could have been just a prank. I feel like crap by giving away my first kiss just like that, to a guy who didn’t even come back afterwards. Well, technically he smashed his lips to mine so, I didn’t really give it away.

Shaking my head clear of the thoughts that seem to constantly be at the forefront of my mind, I smile at Alex and Kayla who turn to look at me from the table diagonal to ours when the bell rings. We had been partnered up yesterday for a group project and are now sitting at different desks.

“Hey, do you want to come over to my place later so we can work on the project?” I ask, nudging Kaden with my elbow.

He sighs, standing and swinging his bag on his shoulder. “If I must.”

I snort, unladylike. “If you want a good grade then yes, you must.”

“Don’t give me cheek, grasshopper.” He waggles his index finger in front of my face making me scowl at him.

“Piss off.” I mutter, picking my books up from the table and placing them in my bag. “I’m a ninja, not a stupid grasshopper. I have skills!”

“Uh huh, sure.” He waves me off, making me swat his arm in retaliation.

Walking out of the classroom, I say goodbye to Kaden as he saunters off to who knows where. Alex pulls me aside in the hallway, watching as Kayla scurries off, saying she’ll meet me in the cafeteria. I look back to see Alex staring in the direction Kaden just went.

“I don’t think you should be hanging around Kaden too much.” He frowns, crossing his arms.

“Seriously? He’s my biology partner.” I deadpan.

I can’t say this is unexpected behavior from Alex, this isn’t the first time he has warned me to stay away from the male population. In fact, Damon, Christian and Alex take the role of scaring away all the boys very seriously. It makes me so mad sometimes.

“I know but, outside of class. You do spend a lot more time with him and I’m just saying that he’s not good to be around. You don’t know him well enough, Rory.”

“He’s my friend.” I murmur, clutching my books to my chest. “Kaden’s a good person once you get to know him.”

“Just...be careful, okay?” Alex sighs, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and leading me to the cafeteria once I nod.

I walk in and throw my keys in the wooden plate on the nearby table, hearing Kaden close the door. Throwing my bag onto the sofa, I turn to him with my hands dramatically outstretched.

“Welcome to my humble abode, fellow ninja!”

He chuckles, mischief in his steely blue eyes as he corrects me. “Master.”

I roll my eyes before running upstairs to grab my laptop. Rushing back down the stairs, I see that he’s sitting on the couch and taking out his books. Placing the laptop on the coffee table, I take out my own before looking at him with determination.

“Let’s do this!”

Two hours later, I’m laying on my back on the hardwood floor, half my body on the soft carpet. I groan and rub my eyes before sitting up and looking at Kaden. Double taking, I snatch the pencil from behind his ear and stare at it before looking up at him.

“You thief! I’ve been looking for this for the past hour.”

He grabs it from me before lifting the cover of my biology book and handing me the same pencil. Blushing furiously, I mumble out an apology before looking down at the textbook. My head is starting to hurt at this stage and honestly, I just want to sleep.

“Do you want to work on the rest some other –”

“Yep, see you in school.” Kaden rushes before packing up his things.

I gape at him with a hand to my chest. “You wound me, Reid. Am I not entertaining enough? Is the world of science not good enough for you?”

He replies with a half shrug, ducking when I throw a cushion at him. Smirking, he ruffles my hair before standing and picking up his bag. I walk him out whilst making plans on our next meetup to work on this project again. But before he’s out the door, he turns around and rubs the back of his neck. I look at him expectantly, waiting for him to speak.

“Um...I heard what Alexander said to you about me after Biology.”

Leaning against the door frame, I cross my arms. “And? Did you hear my reply?”

He nods. “I’m not the good guy you think I am, Aurora. Alex is right.”

“You are, you just tell yourself otherwise. Look, when I said you’re my friend and a good person, I wasn’t just saying that to get Alex off my back. I meant it. I’m not one to listen to the rumours, Kaden.”

He smiles at me, a rare smile that I do not see as often. I can tell my words mean a lot to him based on the look in his eye. Holding my hands out for a hug, I laugh when he pushes me away, grumbling about how he isn’t some softy. Saying our goodbyes, I watch him cross the street before heading back inside and closing the door.

I power off my laptop and tidy the area before picking up the bowls of snacks and carrying them to the kitchen. Now, what to make for dinner? I think. The idea of ordering takeaway is very tempting as I eye the stack of various menus from restaurants and fast food joints placed oh so conveniently on the kitchen counter.

Before I can ponder further on that thought, knocking sounds on my patio door that leads out to a small deck outside and connects to a garden. These gardens are enclosed with a wall as there is a thick forest right behind the apartments. My heart thuds wildly against my rib cage, an uneasy feeling growing inside me at the thought of whoever or whatever is outside. Pulling the blinds up slowly, my eyes widen when I see Vulcan standing there. Unlocking the door, I pull it open.

“How the hell did you get into my garden?!” I ask, trying to calm my breathing.

His green eyes that I missed are now dark and roaming over my figure. I take him in as he stands there in his navy shirt and grey sweatpants with trainers on his feet. He has a five o’clock shadow and seems tired, as if he has lost some sleep or was up working late. Or maybe he was with his girlfriend the whole time? There’s that damned thought again!

“I’m sorry if I scared you. Have you eaten?” He asks, holding up a bag of takeout food from McDonald’s.

I swoon, both at the sound of his voice and the sight of McDonald’s. Regardless, I stand there and stare at him, keeping my expression void of any emotion. How can he come back after nearly two weeks when I’m just starting to think that I will never see him again. It’s crazy how my heart had ached; how much I had missed him. I don’t know if it’s it normal to feel like this or if I’m completely crazy.

He lowers the bag, frowning at me in confusion. “What’s wrong?”

I scoff, shaking my head. “Please leave.”

Starting to close the door, I struggle when he places his foot between the threshold and forces his way into my apartment. He places the bag of food on a nearby counter before turning to me, eyes blazing as he pulls me towards him.

“What happened?” He almost growls out.

I wrench myself out of his grasp and open the door again, holding it there and gesturing for him to leave. He walks forward and I sigh, finally he will go and let me wallow in pity at the fact that I let a stranger kiss me who had no intentions of continuing whatever it was that we had.

Thinking he would walk out the door and never come back, I was not prepared for him to slam the door shut and lock it before grabbing me by the waist and pulling me flush against him. I wince when I meet his eyes that are alight with fury as he stares down at me. His anger is destructible, something everyone wants to avoid I’m sure.

“Why are you acting this way?” He bites out, tightening his hold when I try to escape.

I look down at the floor, refusing to meet his intense gaze. The thought of him with another woman has my heart aching painfully. I’m also terribly confused as to why I’m acting this way. He’s just a man I met recently, why do I have such strong feelings for him? I barely know him! I blame it on my hormones, the traitors!

“Sweetheart, why are you crying?” He tips my chin up making me close my eyes and letting the traitorous tears slip down my cheeks.

“I don’t know!” I throw my hands up in the air, confused over my emotions. “Just leave me alone.”

“I’m not going to leave you.” He frowns, turning me around by my elbow.

“Well, you didn’t have a problem doing it for a week.” I mutter under my breath as I step away.

“Aurora, I can explain. It’s not what you think.” His eyes express his understanding of the situation, making me frown.

“What I think, is that someone dared you to kiss me and you replace this type of shit amusing so –”

“You’re getting ahead of yourself, Aurora.” He states warningly, reaching out for me.

I stare at him thoughtfully before sighing as I take a seat on the chair. “Okay, explain.”

“I had to attend a business meeting in Australia, it was without notice. I had to fly out an hour after I dropped you back home and I just got back this evening. My brother broke my phone too so, I had no way of contacting you because I didn’t remember your number.” He explains making me groan and hide my face in my hands in embarrassment. “I’m sorry if I made you think that I stole your first kiss just for the heck of it.”

I gnaw at my bottom lip making him growl before he pulls on it. Sighing, I allow him to pull me closer into his embrace. I must admit, I did miss his touch. His cologne surrounds me, invading my senses and making me forget about the world. I only focus on him and his touch.

“I’m sorry I was quick to make assumptions.” I whisper, bunching up his shirt in my grasp whilst my cheek presses against his chest.

He hushes me, placing a tender kiss on my forehead before tilting my chin up and pressing his lips to mine. His lips are warm and soft making me moan softly. I turn to angle my body towards him better and wrap my arms around his neck, hearing him groan when his tongue slips into my mouth.

Soon, I pull away for breath, panting while he nips at my jaw, biting and sucking harshly on the skin of my neck. I shiver when he places open mouthed kisses on the sore spots where he has assaulted my skin. They trail up to kiss the area behind my ear making me groan heatedly.

“Found it.” He chuckles, kissing the spot once more causing me to grip his shoulders before leaning back.

It’s too much to take but apparently not for him as he growls lowly and pulls me back, pressing his lips to mine again. The kiss soon turns frenzied as if we’re both trying to take in the feeling of each other again. However, I still when his hands slip under my shirt and creep up towards my rib cage.

“Vulcan.” I gasp, pressing my hands to his chest and pulling away. “Sorry...I uh...”

He takes his hands out and tilts my chin up. I look everywhere but at him, avoiding his gaze because I’m too embarrassed that I have stopped him from going any further. I’m not ready for that, everything is going too fast when it concerns him and I can’t deny that it’s overwhelming me.

“I’m the one who should be sorry, we’ll take this as slow as you want, Моя дорогая.” He smiles down at me softly before kissing me, taking my breath away. “You’re the only one I want, Aurora. Never doubt that for a second.” (My darling.)

He guides me to the couch and I fold my knees under me just in time to grab the takeout bag from him. Murmuring a thank you, I turn on the TV and flick through the channels, smiling in content when he sits beside me and tucks me into his side.

We eat in silence, with him concentrating on the show playing while I’m deep in thought. Thinking about when we first met to now, I realize I know nothing about him which is not good. This whole thing is so unusual. Do people really fall for each other this fast? Is this considered normal because to me it feels like we are rushing into things yet I can do nothing to stop it. There’s some sort of pull that I can’t resist when it comes to him.

Having absolutely no experience in the dating side of things, I’m totally clueless on what I should do and how I should be feeling. Are my feelings for this man even real or just a silly crush that will pass over in time? Sighing, I take a bite out of my burger, jumping out of my skin when he speaks suddenly.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

Frowning, I turn to him. “Let’s play twenty questions.”

He chuckles, finishing off his chips before placing the plate on the coffee table. My eyes widen in surprise at how fast he managed to finish his food. I’m distracted when he starts trailing his fingertips up and down my arm, lighting up the sparks and tingles.

“You start!” I exclaim, happy that I will finally get to know a little more about him.

His eyes soften as he gazes at me, brushing my cheek with the back of his hand and murmuring something under his breath. They flash gold for a fleeting second before his eyes return to the familiar green. How can he do that?

“Um...okay, what’s your favorite color?” He questions, his face scrunching up making him look cute.

“Blue, like the sky on a sunny day. Yours?”

“Grey.” He smiles knowingly, tucking a stray strand of hair behind my ear. “When is your birthday?”

“22nd July. Yours?”

“16th September.”

“Uh, favourite food?”

“A steak maybe or fried chicken. You?”

“Pizza...and burgers...and fries.” I nod, grinning cheekily when he laughs out loud.

“Pastime?”

“Reading, preferably outside when it’s a nice day with a gentle breeze. Those are the best days. Yours?”

“Coming to see you.”

“Cheesy.” I blush, smacking his chest while he smirks. “Music? Favorite movies? Oh, your most embarrassing moment ever!”

“Old classics like the Beatles, Bon Jovi, Pink Floyd etc. And I don’t really have time for watching movies anymore, only when my siblings force me. And as for the embarrassing moment, it is way too embarrassing to tell anyone.”

I hum, shivering when he plays with a curly black lock. “How many siblings do you have?”

“Three. All younger than me. What about you?”

“Only child.” I smile slightly. “Can I uh...ask you something?”

I’m nervous but it’s now or never, better now than never. He nods, running a hand through his hair to push the stray strands that fall on top of his forehead away. Taking a deep breath, I hope he will tell me. All I want is for him to be truthful. So, with bated breath and dinosaurs wreaking havoc inside my tummy, I ask the question that has been on my mind for the longest time now.

“I’ve noticed that your eyes change colour, why is that?”