And for a second I don't care that's I'm not allowed this. I want it.
I kiss her.
Soft. Careful. Just enough to make the point.
Her lips are warm, pliant, fitting against mine like they've always known how. The contact is brief, but it hits me like a punch to the chest. Like coming home and realising you never want to leave.
"I don't think you're desperate," I murmur against her mouth.
When I ask if she wants to practice kissing, she nods.
The second kiss is slower.
Deeper.
Everything in me screams to take more, but I don't. I keep it controlled, measured, like this is still a lesson and not the most alive I've felt in years.
And then the door bangs.
Time's up.
Reality crashes back in.
I step away first, needing to distract myself from her lips. Force myself not to pull her back and tell everyone outside that door to fuck off.
She avoids my eyes as she slips past me, gone before I can say anything else. The door opens. Laughter spills in. Noise. Light.
I stay where I am.
Just for a second.
Blake leans past the doorframe, smirking. "Damn, Hudson. Seven minutes wasn't enough?"
I don't answer.
I'm still watching the doorway Ivy disappeared through.
I leave without looking back.
Downstairs, the party blurs past me. I find Leon near the kitchen, beer in hand, laughing too loud, arm slung around someone I barely register. Guess his date made its way here.
"Hey," he says when he spots me. "You good?"
"Yeah," I lie easily. "Just not feeling great."
He squints at me, drunk and oblivious to the thoughts in my head of his sister. "Beer pong in five. You in?"
I shake my head. "Next time. I'm going to head home."
He shrugs, already turning away. "Your loss, man. Get back safe."
I step outside, the cool air hitting my face like a reset I desperately need.
I should feel relieved.
Instead, my chest aches.
Because kissing Ivy felt like everything.
