Chapter 62: Naturally

Chapter 62: Chapter 62: Naturally

By the time Nicole pulled into her driveway, I’d nearly forgotten how tired I was. The drive had been quiet, and with her behind the wheel, I’d been comfortable enough to let my eyes fall shut for most of it.

She parked in front of the house, switched off the engine, and turned toward me with a smile.

"Home sweet home," she announced.

I opened my eyes properly and glanced at the house before looking back at her. "You say that like I’ve been away for months."

"You’ve been away from me all day." She paused to think about that, then tilted her head. "Sort of."

I stared at her. She smiled sweetly, apparently pleased with her conclusion, before unbuckling her seat belt and getting out. I followed, and we walked into the house together.

We’d barely made it inside when she turned toward me, already slipping into the familiar rhythm of getting things done.

"Go shower while I start dinner."

"Yes, ma’am."

The answer came out so naturally that I didn’t think anything of it until a moment later.

I paused, looking at her as I realized how much it sounded like we were already a couple. She’d given me a simple instruction, and I’d answered like this was the most ordinary thing in the world. Like I came home to her every evening, like she’d be in the kitchen making dinner while I went upstairs to shower, like this was just what we did.

And the strange thing was, it hadn’t felt strange at all.

Nicole didn’t seem to notice. She was already heading toward the kitchen, moving with the same easy confidence she’d had all afternoon.

I watched her go, and another thought settled in behind the first.

She was still waiting for me. For all the ways Nicole made her feelings obvious, for all the little things she did that made it impossible to mistake how much she wanted me, she was still waiting for me to decide what we were allowed to be. She could bring me to her house, cook for me, look after me, and make room for me in her life, but she wasn’t going to take that step for me. She was waiting for me to take it myself.

I wasn’t sure I’d have that kind of patience if our positions were reversed. I knew I wanted her, and I knew she wanted me, yet I was still asking her to wait while I figured out how to handle everything that came with being with her.

And she was doing it without making me feel guilty about it, which, unfortunately, made me feel a little guilty about it anyway.

I looked toward the kitchen again. Nicole had dropped her crossbody bag on the table and was opening the fridge, already searching for whatever she needed to start dinner. She moved around the room as though she had a hundred little things to do and no reason to think twice about any of them.

I was still standing there, staring at her, when she pulled something from the fridge and turned toward the counter. That’s when she finally noticed me watching her.

Her eyebrows lifted, and she mouthed a silent, What?

I shook my head.

Her eyes narrowed playfully, as if she suspected I was keeping something from her, but she didn’t press. She just turned back to what she was doing, leaving me to stand there for another second before I finally headed upstairs to shower.

—

By the time I came back downstairs, Nicole was already busy in the kitchen. I went over to see if she needed a hand, but she barely let me get close to the counter before swatting my hand away.

I looked at her.

She gave me a sweet smile and went right back to what she was doing, as though she hadn’t just treated my hand like an annoying fly. I tried again a few minutes later, reaching for something she needed, only for her to gently smack my hand away a second time. When I attempted to help with something else, she blocked me before I could even get started.

I knew I was tired, and I knew she knew it too, but I hadn’t realized she’d taken it upon herself to make sure I didn’t lift a finger for the rest of the evening.

She eventually finished preparing dinner and left everything to cook on the stove. Only then did she entrust me with a task: keeping an eye on the food while she went upstairs to shower.

I settled into a chair at the dining table, pulling out my phone while keeping an eye on the pot as it simmered. It wasn’t much of a contribution, but considering how she’d been treating my hands, I decided not to question my promotion.

—

Nicole came back downstairs a little while later, and dinner was ready soon after. She served everything at the table, then settled into her seat across from me, looking rather pleased with herself as we started eating.

The food was amazing, which wasn’t particularly surprising. Nicole had apparently decided that making sure I ate properly was also part of her job for the evening.

We were halfway through dinner when she looked up at me.

"Test week starts on Monday."

I nodded while chewing.

Nicole watched me for a moment before seeming to reconsider whatever she’d been about to say.

"Are you prepared for it?"

I swallowed before answering. "I mean, is anyone ever really prepared for test week?"

She nodded slowly, looking down at her food. I picked up my fork again and was about to grab another bite when she spoke.

"Do you need my help?"

My hand stopped halfway to my plate. I looked up at her, and there was something in her expression that made me hesitate. She wasn’t exactly worried, but she was watching me a little too carefully for this to be a casual offer.

I put my fork down. "I’m top of the class, remember?"

"My questions are extremely difficult."

"As they should be."

We stared at each other for a moment, neither of us quite willing to look away first. Then Nicole’s expression softened, and she leaned forward a little.

"How about I just study with you tomorrow?"

I paused. For some reason, that made me wonder just how difficult her questions were going to be if she wanted to help me this badly. I quickly shook the thought away before I could get carried away with it.

"You can help me if you want," I said.

Her face brightened immediately, and I picked up my fork again before adding, "But I won’t talk to you for the rest of the semester."

Her smile fell so quickly I almost felt bad for saying it. Almost.

She immediately put on the most exaggerated pout I’d ever seen, looking at me as though I’d just informed her I was moving to another country.

I stared at her for a second, finding the whole thing far cuter than it had any right to be.

"I’ll be fine, Nicole. Promise."

She held my gaze for another moment before giving me a small nod. "If you say so."

I went back to eating, and she did the same, although the slight pout remained on her face for the rest of the meal.

Once we’d finished, Nicole started gathering the plates, and I got up to help her. This time, she let me, although she still gave me a look when I reached for more than she thought I should be carrying. We cleared the table together and took everything into the kitchen, where she washed while I dried and put the dishes away. By the time we were done, the kitchen was clean again, and I was beginning to feel just how tired I actually was.

I dropped onto the couch in the living room and pulled out my phone to check the time. 8:37 PM.

I stared at the screen for a moment, wondering why I was suddenly so sleepy when it wasn’t even that late. Then I remembered I’d spent half the day working at Tanaka Auto. Apparently, my body had been waiting until I was somewhere comfortable before reminding me of that little detail.

Nicole came over a moment later, having just finished wiping her hands on a dish towel. She stopped in front of the couch and looked down at me.

"You look tired."

"Yeah." I let my head fall back against the couch. "I should probably start—" I yawned, cutting myself off before finishing the sentence. "—going home."

Nicole’s expression changed immediately.

"There’s a room upstairs. Actually, there are several." She tilted her head, looking at me as though the answer should have been obvious. "And you look like you’d fall asleep halfway through the drive."

I opened my mouth to argue, then closed it. I could insist I was fine, but I had a feeling I’d regret it about ten minutes into the drive. She wasn’t wrong, and the thought of getting up, driving home, and then having to get ready for bed sounded exhausting.

Still, I pointed at her.

She immediately raised both hands. "I promise not to do anything to you."

I couldn’t help smiling. She’d said that so quickly that I wondered if she’d been waiting for me to bring it up.

She smiled back at me. "Come on. You need to sleep."

I let her pull me up from the couch, and we headed upstairs together. She led me to her bedroom, telling me how much more comfortable her bed was and how I would sleep better there. I was too tired to argue with her about it, so I let her have her way and settled into the bed with a tired sigh, letting the comfortable mattress do most of the work of convincing me that staying had been the right decision.

Nicole sat on the edge of the bed beside me, watching as I shifted into a more comfortable position.

I glanced at her through another yawn. "Aren’t you going to bed?"

She shook her head. "I have something to work on."

"All right."

I didn’t have the energy to ask what it was. I closed my eyes, figuring I’d rest for a minute before falling asleep properly.

I was just beginning to drift off when I felt her lean down and press a soft kiss to my lips.

My eyes opened immediately.

Nicole straightened up with a smile, looking entirely too pleased with herself for someone who’d just interrupted me trying to fall asleep.

"I’ll be in my study," she said, getting to her feet.

Then she walked out of the room, leaving me staring at the closed door.

I stayed that way for a few seconds before letting my head sink back into the pillow. I closed my eyes again, but this time, I was smiling.