Chapter 31: Finally His
JADE:
I sighed. It has been three days since I last saw Kix the dog. I missed him a lot…
Ever since he ran out of me that night, I didn’t see him again. Did he feel bad because he hit himself by the door, or was he embarrassed by what happened?
I shook my head. Sometimes, I forget that he’s just a dog. The way that he sometimes acted or looked at me felt like he was almost human.
The truth was that particular dog felt oddly familiar. I tried to wrack my brain to remember where I had seen him, but I just couldn’t put my finger on it…
Then last night, it dawned to me when Kix’s name suddenly popped out of my mouth as I called the dog…
The person I was reminded the most of with that goofy dog was Kix himself...
In high school, Kix always came to my rescue whenever I was having a hard day. He was always the first one to cheer me up and tell me that all would be well.
I sighed yet again. I miss that fluffy, white dog…
Anyway, maybe he wouldn’t come since it’s still Saturday morning. Just in case though, I left my balcony door half-open.
All of a sudden, there was a soft knock on the door. Who could it be?
“Liam? What’ up?”
“You’re not preparing to go out yet, right? Can we talk?”
I led him into my room and pushed a seat on him on the kitchen.
“About that kiss the other day… I’m sorry,” he said softly.
My face instantly colored up. I had almost forgotten what happened three days ago. To be exact, I deliberately pretended the next day in class that it didn’t happen. Although there was some awkwardness between Liam and I, I had almost convinced myself that that incident did not take place.
Why did he have to bring it up now?
“You probably don’t want to mention it, but, Jade, I couldn’t pretend I no longer care… I lied to you…”
I looked up at Liam’s face. He was serious.
“What is it,” I said. “What did you lie about?”
“I lied when I said I will wait for you… I really can’t wait for you. I can’t wait to be with you, Jade Sy.”
Just like three days ago while I was still speechless when Liam told me he was jealous, he quickly went across the table before I could react. He clasped my shoulders gently upwards towards him, and he bent down and kissed me.
Oh my gosh, he was kissing me again! Why? Why didn’t I try to push him back?...
The truth was maybe I really didn’t want to stop him at all…
Who was I kidding? I had a secret crush on Liam since I laid eyes on him on the campus. After two years, he and I had finally become classmates, and we’ve managed to become a bit closer.
I would be lying if I say I didn’t dream of the day that he’d like me back even just a little bit.
And so before reason could take hold of me, I did it. I parted my lips and kissed him back.
It was the first time I had been kissed in that manner – soft yet sweet, light and exhilarating.
When it was finished, I lowered my head in utter shame, but Liam tilted my chin up, so I could face him.
“Jade, I don’t care about your past. What I care about is the girl I see before me. You’re very beautiful. I don’t need to know what happened before. I love the person you are now, Jade Sy…”
Tears started to fill my eyes. Love was such a traumatic thing for me that the mere mention of it would usually send me into fits of panic. Thankfully, it was Liam who filled the silence between us.
“Maybe you couldn’t say it yet, so I would do it for you… For us… Is the feeling mutual, Jade? Do you feel the same with me?”
I would be a fool to deny what was obvious from the very start.
“Yes,” I replied breathlessly. “Yes… I feel the same way.”
I couldn’t tell him properly that I love him, but I hope he could feel my sincerity as I utter this response to his question.
As such, he understood, for in a second, he responded back with another kiss, which was longer and more languid than the first two ones.
He tilted my head back and pressed his lips into mine, his tongue exploring wildly inside me, his fingers twining themselves into my hair.
That kiss felt like it would go on forever, and when he moved back afterwards, we were both out of breath.
“Thank you, Jade… Thank you for becoming my girl.”
He reached into his back pocket and produced a red jewelry box in his hands.
“This is for you,” Liam said, grinning sheepishly. He opened the box and from it, I saw a thin-strapped, golden necklace with a small, heart-shaped pendant on the center.
“How?... Why?”
I couldn’t blab a single coherent thing as Liam wounded the necklace around my neck. It looked really pretty.
“Sorry… I assumed you’d say yes, so I got this in advance,” he replied to the unspoken question in my mind. “Now, you’re officially mine.”
I tapped at the pair of hands that had wrapped itself under my bosom when he hugged me from behind.
That’s right. I was finally Liam’s girl.
I was still in suspended bliss when another knock came to my door. I pulled away from Liam’s embrace and opened it.
I was greeted by a young man with ponytailed locks in a formal suit.
“Miss Jade Sy?”
“Um, yes?”
“My name is Edril Luhan. You have fifteen minutes before we leave. We need to follow a strict schedule for the preparation, so we need to go now.”
“I’m sorry,” I uttered, completely taken aback, “who are you again, and what do you want?”
“I am Sir Kix’s personal assistant. He sent me here since he said you needed to prepare for tonight’s ball. I will take you to the designated places, so please come with me, and let’s begin.”
At that point, my mouth hung so low that it could have reached the floor.
