Sixty-two - A very cheeky Nathaniel

"Man ,I can't believe our house just got flooded," Amir said, his voice sounding drowsy.

"What do you think happened?" Gabriel asked as he looked back to face others. They were presently on their way to a new location in a coaster bus that Chloe couldn't believe they actually had in their garage. It was just really weird to her.

Who just randomly has a huge bus tucked away in their garage?

"Do you know who I can smell around this whole thing?" Amir asked, his eyes looking half shut as he still had his head leaning against the headrest.

"Markings?" Sebastian replied almost unenthusiastically from the driver's seat. Chloe had to admit, Sebastian was useful in so many ways. She just had to appreciate his hard work.

Amir's fingers clicked against each other. "Markings. That guy has just crossed the line if he is responsible for what happened."

"Sebastian, is that tape secure?" Nathaniel finally said something since the beginning of the ride.

"Yes. I kept it in your office."

"Okay." Then he faced Chloe and asked with a low voice, "Are you okay?"

Before she gave a response, she rubbed her back slowly and she could still feel the effect of the fall. "I still ache a bit."

"Really?" He instantly shifted in his seat and reached for her back and began to rub gently. "Is the pain here?" Chloe didn't hear his question as her heart's pounding took over her whole system. As he massaged her back some more with a very serious look, she found it really hard to look away.

It began to feel like some rope was pulling her closer to him so as Nathaniel brought his head up, their faces almost kissed. Nathaniel didn't pass a comment as she immediately had her head flying backwards with her lashes fluttering as hard as they could.

"We should get that treated when we get to our new destination. Will you be fine till then?" His question tickled her ear and she had no choice but to ignore the heat she was suddenly feeling and look towards him.

"Yes. Thank you." Nathaniel wore a smile and she could not look away anymore. "Nathaniel?"

"Yes?"

"I-"

'Achoo'.

Chloe's eyes widened as she realized she just sneezed onto his face. Immediately, covering her nose with her two hands, she began to give incessant apologies. "It just came. I am so sorry."

On opening his eyes which he had shut in reaction, he took out a small blue cloth and wiped his face with it. Gritting her teeth in anticipation, Chloe could not help but apologize once more. As his eyes met hers, he said, "You shouldn't have gone for Gabriel. Now, you have a cold. You are just so dumb sometimes, aren't you?"

"Uh?" Her eyes blinked once.

His lips wore a smile as he leaned forward and took something in a compartment attached to the seat in front of him. As he rubbed what turned out to be a sanitizer on his hands after tossing the blue cloth in a closeby bin, he added, "I had better not have a cold."

"Sorry."

"Don't be. When I get the cold, you will have to take care of me. So..." His smile became wider and Chloe could not help but feel flustered at how cheeky he was at that moment. He seemed like a totally different person. "I don't mind if you sneeze on me some more."

Pouting, she looked to the side and murmured, "That's such a weird thing to say."

Nathaniel moved his face closer to hers and whispered teasingly, "What did you say?"

"Nothing." She muttered something again.

"Hmm." His head buried into her now dried hair and he nuzzled it lovingly. Chloe could not doubt the fact that her heart seemed to fly at that instant. "You are just so cute."

With eyes seeming like that of a doe's, Chloe stared at the man as he sat back with a large enticing smile on his lips. Not willing to look weird by staring so long at him like he were some alien, she soon faced out the window and studied the green scenery that flew past as the bus sped over the long tarred road.

"Sebastian, I thought you said this place is close by."

"Compared to other buildings you have, this is the closest," Sebastian replied Amir almost monotonously as he took a swerve to the right. Right then, he announced their arrival and Chloe could not be more than glad. She had been aching for some bed to lie down on.

"Thank goodness. Is this place clean though?" Chloe stole a look at the structure which stood in the middle of a large span of land in the form of a modern bungalow which made use of a lot of red bricks for the front plan. Chloe could tell there was some plastering done too and it no doubt made the roofless building look very nice.

"Housekeepers came here yesterday luckily, so yes."

"Good. I can't start to bother about dirt. Anyway... see you guys inside."

"Wait," Nathaniel's voice held him back. "You have to take Lucille inside. She is asleep."

"Oh, right." Chloe was sort of surprised that he didn't complain. Once he had the tall woman in his arms in a bridal style, he got down and others followed suit.

"Okay. So this is how this goes. There are three rooms here, so we have to split into twos." Sebastian scanned everyone with his eyes before continuing. " So, Nathaniel and Chloe will stay together. Amir and Lucille then Gabriel and I. Is that fine by everyone?"

"Is it really advisable to have me stay in the same room with Lucille?" Amir asked.

"It's not like you two have a thing for each other. Don't complain and just go inside." Amir scrunched his nose at Sebastian's tone of voice before he walked towards the entrance.

"He is right though." Gabriel faced Sebastian. "You know it has been a while since he had fun."

"Well, he should keep not having fun. It is good for him."

"What's with you man?" Gabriel questioned with a small frown. " You seem edgy."

"I'm just tired. Can we all go in now?"

They all nodded and were all soon settled in their respective rooms after a deliberation or two.

"This is a large space," Chloe commented as she entered the room her and Nathaniel were to stay in. It was at the far end of the house, so it was facing a natural setting which was largely visible thanks to the French door setup opposite the plastered cream coloured wall and the bright lights around.

Nathaniel responded to her statement with a loud slam of the door and Chloe could not help but be slightly startled. As she turned she perceived some kind of intent around him and she instantly hardened.

"This is it Chloe..." His eyes didn't stop dancing in a mesmerizing way. "We are finally alone... again." She had no idea when she gulped hard. " So let's do one thing now."

He dropped the bag in his hand on the floor.

"Wh-what?" Her question was ignored as he moved even closer. Soon, she was moving backwards as his steps didn't show signs of stopping soon. "Nathaniel?" The smirk on his face made her body shake with delight as her mind starting figuring out what would happen from there.

Before her back could hit the wall, Nathaniel held her by her waist and drew her closer into his chest. "Chloe?" his voice huskily called. "Shall we continue what we started earlier then?"