"You sure you don't want to take this upstairs," Noah asked, pointedly stroking her back. Melanie tried to ignore the sparks of lust that shot through her every time his hand stroked her body.
"Yeah," Melanie said, but then Noah kissed her neck, and she wasn't so sure anymore. Wait. Why did she not want to take Noah upstairs? Oh, yeah. She needed to think.
Melanie pushed Noah back reluctantly before she climbed off his lap. "It's for the best," she said, more to herself than him.
"Is it really?" Noah asked as he brushed her hair back. Melanie fixed her clothes back in place and nodded.
"I told you I would think about it, so that's exactly what I'm going to do."
"That's what I'm afraid of," he murmured, and Melanie frowned.
"Well, if that's the case then I won't think about—"
"I'm joking," Noah quickly said, wrapping her into his arms. "Take all the time you need."
Melanie giggled, amused by him. She leaned her head back against his chest, enjoying being near him, and for a while, they sat just like that, without words. They were just finding comfort in being near each other.
"I really hope you think about it," Noah told her, kissing her cheek. "I really want to be with you."
The thing is that deep down inside Melanie wanted to be with him too. But every time she thought about a relationship between them, all she could see was darkness in front of her. It scared her. It felt like she was heading down a foggy road, and she couldn't drive forward with the same precision she had while driving down a clear road.
"I'll really think about it," Melanie promised before kissing him. "I will."
Noah cupped her cheek, smiling as he looked in her eyes. She loved it when he looked at her like that. "Now, hurry up and get inside. I don't think I can hold back when you look this beautiful."
Melanie rolled her eyes. "Good night, Noah."
"Good night, Melanie. Dream of me," he said with a wink, and Melanie had a feeling he imagined her dreaming of an erotic one.
Melanie walked inside her apartment building, and she waved her goodbyes to him, but Noah didn't pull off. It wasn't until she had gotten into her apartment and looked outside her window that he did. He had waited to make sure she had gotten safely inside of her building. It was the little things like that that made her want to hold on. It was the little things like that that made her want to believe they could be together. But Melanie wasn't so sure.
CHAPTER
32
MELANIE
“T
HIS IS SO EXCITING!” ABIGAIL SAID AS SHE PUMPED HER FIST IN THE AIR. The hockey arena was filled with that same cheer as everyone watched the exciting game between Weston's team and their rival team, Hawkins. Apparently, for a long time now, Weston’s team and Hawkins had been long-time rivals, and everyone at the game tonight thought it was important that Weston won to claim their pride after last year’s loss. Noah had been talking Melanie's head off about it for a while now, and though Melanie wasn't a big hockey fan, she promised that she would come tonight so she could support him.
"They're so going to win this. Your boy is going harder than I have ever seen him go before," Abigail cheerfully said as she did a tiny shimmy in her seat. Both teams were playing intensely on the ice, and though Melanie did not care for hockey, she couldn't hide her excitement either. She really wanted Weston to win this game.
"I wish you stop saying, 'my boy,'" Melanie said with a curt smile before she jumped out of her seat and clapped when Noah scored another goal. He seemed tense at the start of the game, but now, he was getting better and better.
Abigail leaned over to her ear, smirking. "Technically, he is your boy now."
Melanie didn't know how her friend was able to drag the truth out of her. She should have never told Abigail that she was thinking about giving Noah a chance when Melanie herself wasn't sure why she told him that. She had been so caught up in the moment that she wasn't thinking straight until she got back to her apartment. But even then, Melanie didn't go back on her word because a tiny part of her knew she wanted to be with Noah.
As Noah skated across the ice, Melanie saw his determination and the hard work he put forward to win this game, not only on the ice but off the ice too. He skated ferociously down the ice, barreling through his opponents, and shot another puck that tangled into the net, and everyone cheered.
They were going to win this game. Melanie knew it. Noah pumped his fist into the air as he skated back down the ice. As he passed her part of the arena, Noah looked at her and winked, and Melanie couldn't help but blush, knowing it was for her as some of the girls in her section yelled and screamed.
After the second quarter, it became apparent that this game was a slaughter, with Weston’s team the lion, and the Hawkins' team its prey, and it wasn't long before Weston won the game and everyone in the arena yelled and jumped in pure utter happiness.
"Let's go to the back again," Abigail said, dragging Melanie out of her seat before she even got the chance to protest. Once again, Melanie found herself somewhat hiding in the back, not wanting any of her students to see her back there being a fangirl, since it was clear that besides the reporters, it was really only the girls hanging out in the back, trying to get a whiff of some of the players, and though Melanie was sure that some of them were the players' girlfriends, there were way too many of them for them all to be.
Though none of the players had come out of the locker room yet, the press was busy having a frenzy as they took pictures of an older couple, who stood off to the side waiting as they spoke to Julie, Melanie's student. Melanie wondered if they were Julie's parents, though they didn't look much like her. She also wondered who they were and why they had the attention of the press as though they were celebrities. But then again, they looked as such. Even with the husband dressed casually in a pair of jeans and a simple blue vest over his sweater, he was well-polished, if the gold watch and rings were enough of an indication. The wife dressed the same in casual jeans and a shirt, but her heels, along with her jewelry, were very telling.
