15
He looked stunned as she pulled back from him and he snaked an arm around her waist as he yanked her against him and bent his head to kiss her, melting her into him as his fingers tangled in her hair and her mouth opened to his.
The smell of his perfume, of the soft, peachy scent of his conditioner, was dizzying, butterflies dancing in her stomach. But warmth consumed her as she leaned into the kiss, Demir's lips impossibly soft against her own.
He looked surprised when she suddenly pulled back, having noticed her savor for the moment and raised her index finger to her lips.
"You smell of alcohol." She raised her head to whisper and he smiled before he leaned forward.
"Should we continue after I brush my teeth?" He asked as she lifted her head.
"What?"
She had enjoyed the kiss but she couldn't be obvious. He'd probably think of her as a cheap girl. "The others must be waiting...Let's go back." He said.
“Everyone’s gone home, you should as well” She said and left him to go on.
She had done it. She had finally kissed Demir, she said to herself on her way in.
"Something seems to be going on between Tahti and Demir, right?" Jennie asked the next morning, as Sol looked over assignment projects in the QSR (quick service restaurant) closest to the school.
Jennie had suggested they had breakfast together that morning as they wouldn't be able to have lunch as she had a date later that afternoon.
"Why do you say so?" She asked and Jennie leaned close in eager conspiracy. "When those two disappeared for a while last night...and it seems like something happened between them and it bothered Tahti obviously."
Sol finally tore her eyes off her project to sip her drink thoughtfully as Jennie continued.
"I could tell from her expression, I saw them clearly through the worry and all. I just couldn’t say exactly what it meant”
Sol took out her straw from her lips to ask. "Seems you’re the only one that saw them?"
"Yes. I didn't tell April...Good thing I didn't, right?" She asked, looking like a child asking for a prize for doing something good.
"Good thinking." Sol replied
"I'm starving." Jennie said as she rubbed her stomach, which sent Sol smiling as their meals arrived.
"Your meal is ready." The waiter said and Jennie poked out her head to have a view of the Chinese noodles as he lowered it.
"It looks so good."
"Enjoy."
"Thank you." Sol said to the waiter as he turned to leave before she returned her eyes to Jennie. "And don't say anything to Tahti."
"Don't worry." Jennie smiled and picked up a chunk of meat from Sol's plate. "I'm going to steal this from you." She replied and Sol smiled as she watched her eat. "Would it be okay though?"
She laughed. Jennie was always concerned about her diet. "What? Your belly fat?"
"No. I mean Tahti. She's probably having a hard time after breaking up with her ex....She could get involved in gossip by hanging out with him. I don't think she should be seeing Demir."
"Really?" Sol sucked in a breath as she looked out through the window for a minute. "I think Demir is better than her ex."
"What?...Really? How?" Jennie asked as Sol dropped her spoon with a shrug.
"I don't know. I can just feel it...They look good together."
Meanwhile, Tahti kept sighing as she combed the internet, searching for published articles on drunken kisses before dating that morning as she sat beside her piece.
None of them seemed to have an answer to the question she had in mind and she was about to drop her phone when her eyes fell on the response of one of the articles.
We never talked about it after. Was it just a drunken mistake?
There's no turning back once you've touched the first base. You'll end up becoming SP or drifting apart.
"SP?" She blinked. "SP? As in... Sex partners?"
"Tahti."
Her head wound round to see Sol walking towards her and she sighed. "You scared me."
"What were you looking at?" She asked and Tahti hid her phone.
"Just looking for some references." She replied, drumming her fingers on the table as Sol slid into the seat in front of her.
There was no way her relationship with Demir would still be the same. The previous night kiss had been a ticket out of their friendship zone. But what kind of relationship would they have from then on? She pondered.
She had kissed him because she liked him, but did he feel the same way too?
She needed to ask someone.
"Sol." She called and Sol turned to her.
"Yeah?"
"If you want to kiss someone,...does it mean you want to sleep with them as well?" She asked and Sol paused for a minute to think.
"Are you asking about me?" She asked with a smile. "Or is it about you?"
"What?...Me? No, it's not about me. I mean... Generally, I just want to know how people usually feel. I'm trying to come up with an idea for my assignment."
Well, that came smoothly.
Sol slowly angled her head. "I'm not sure. I guess it'll depend on who the other person is."
"The other person?" She asked.
"You may want to kiss and have sex with someone, or you might just kiss and not want to go further...So in the end, it will depend on the other person." Sol said and her finger drumming increased.
If that was the case, what kind of person was she to Demir? A one night stand?
She shook off the idea and took out her phone. She would probably message him first.
‡Shouldn't we talk about yesterday?‡ She typed before clearing the entire message. He would probably think of her as clingy if she texted him first.
Sol rose to head back to work and Tahti raised her head to see April walking in with Derek. "Hey."
"Hi."
"Hey, Tahti."
"Hi." She replied and April plodded into her seat.
"My battery's dead again. Maybe I should get a new phone." April said and Tahti was surprised Jennie wasn't with them.
"Where's Jennie?"
"She's meeting someone." April replied and dug a hand into Derek's already opened cross bag.
"What are you doing?"
"I need a charger." She replied as she took a charger, before plugging it in. "She's watching a movie with her date. She doesn't care much about school...Let's see..."
Tahti lowered her head with a sigh, wondering what she could say to get Demir to open up to how he felt about her.
"Do you really like that guy?" Derek asked and April kept swipping back and forth her phone. She was probably looking for another guy to get hooked up with.
"Yes."
"You don't look that way."
"Do you dance excitedly whenever you like someone's post?" She asked, not shooting him a glance.
"That's different though." Derek paused to clear his throat. "Why would you sleep with someone you're not even dating?"
That got Tahti's attention and she slowly leaned to hear more. April had more knowledge when it came to relationships, even more than Sol, so she had to know a couple of things.
"Isn't that meaningless?"
April dropped her phone to roll her eyes, a pissed look on her face. "Gosh. Why do you always associate sex with dating? Are you that old fashioned?"
"Watch your mouth. Lower your voice." Derek said
"Someone might hear you." Tahti whispered.
"I'm not saying anything wrong. I can say it even louder. Should I?" She retorted.
One of their professors walked in with his assistant and Tahti fell back to her chair with a loud sigh. She still had more questions to ask but she couldn't let anyone know it was about her relationship with Demir.
"Let's begin class."
"Yes, professor."
