Chapter 68: A Title Away

Chapter 68: Chapter 68: A Title Away

I let Nicole have her win. The final score was 2–6, and she looked so pleased with herself that you’d think she’d just won a championship.

As the end-of-game statistics appeared on the screen, Nicole turned to face me, her happy expression gradually shifting into a slight pout. She tilted her head a little, looking at me as though I’d somehow let her down.

"It was too easy."

I gave her a look. "Too easy?"

She nodded, completely unashamed. "Don’t make it so easy for me."

I gave her an incredulous look. She’d complained about losing, and now she was complaining about winning? Nicole seemed to catch it, because she immediately leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to my lips.

I narrowed my eyes at her. "Was that a bribe?"

"Did it work?" she asked, still smiling.

I shook my head, trying not to smile. "You’re unbelievable."

Nicole smiled and turned back to the screen. The kiss had been her way of getting out of being annoying, and somehow, it had worked. I wasn’t going to admit that to her, but judging by the little smile she still had on her face, I suspected she already knew.

We ended up playing three more games before Nicole finally put her controller down and got to her feet, announcing that she should probably start making dinner. I headed upstairs to her room, grabbed my backpack, and settled in with my notes. I still had a packed week of tests ahead of me, and a little revision wouldn’t hurt while she cooked.

I managed to get through a decent amount of work before the bedroom door opened.

"Dinner’s ready."

I looked up from my notes and found Nicole standing in the doorway with a cooking spoon in one hand. For some reason, seeing her like that made me smile. Maybe it was the whole domestic girlfriend thing she had going on, but she looked oddly adorable, and I found myself taking a moment to appreciate the view.

I closed my book, got off the bed, and followed her downstairs.

Dinner was a pan-seared salmon fillet with a lemon-butter sauce, served alongside creamy garlic mashed potatoes and some sautéed asparagus. It looked like something you’d expect to find on a restaurant menu, and knowing Nicole, she’d probably put more thought into it than most chefs would.

We settled at the dining table and started eating. The food was incredible, as usual. I told her as much after the first few bites, but Nicole seemed more interested in the reaction I couldn’t quite hide. Apparently, the look on my face was doing a better job of complimenting her cooking than my words had.

My phone buzzed against the table midway through dinner. I glanced down at the screen and saw a message from Chloe.

Chloe: You didn’t reply me ??

I huffed a quiet laugh and picked up my phone to type a response.

"Who’s that?" Nicole asked.

"Chloe," I said, glancing up at Nicole. "She asked earlier if she could spend this weekend at your place, and I forgot to reply."

"Can she?" Nicole asked immediately.

I paused, looking at her. A smirk slowly found its way onto my face.

"What?" she asked.

I shook my head, still smiling. "Nothing. It’s just nice seeing how quickly you’re taking her side."

Nicole took another bite of her food, looking completely unbothered. "She’s my little sister. I’m supposed to be on her side."

That made me smile as I looked back at my phone and started typing. I barely had time to put it down before another message came in.

Chloe: Thank youuuuuu ???? You’re the best!

I smirked.

Dramatic much.

The amusement was still on my face when Nicole spoke. "Can I also take her shopping?"

I looked up at her while chewing, and she continued before I could say anything.

"You know, get her a few things. Clothes, shoes, whatever she likes. I’m sure she’d like that."

I considered telling her that she didn’t need to spoil Chloe, especially since my sister would happily accept it and ask for more, and Nicole would probably be more than happy to indulge her, but I decided against it.

"Sure," I said, swallowing my bite.

I moved my fork toward my plate, but Nicole wasn’t quite finished.

"Can you come with us, too?"

I glanced at her. "Why?"

"Why not?" She gave me a small smile. "You might find something you like."

I shook my head. "Nah, I’m good. Besides, I shouldn’t be spending money on things I don’t really need." I pointed at myself with my fork. "Student, remember?"

Nicole nodded, seemingly accepting that. Then her expression turned suspiciously innocent. "You can use my card, just like you did when we bought the console."

I paused with my fork halfway to my mouth and stared at her. She was looking back at me with her most innocent expression, as though she hadn’t just tried to pull the exact same trick again.

"Nice try."

I returned my attention to my food. Nicole gave me a small pout, apparently accepting that she’d lost that round, before picking up her fork and continuing to eat.

Dinner ended not long after that. As usual, we cleared the plates and did the dishes together before heading back upstairs to her room.

As soon as we got inside, I went over to where I’d left my books and started slipping them into my backpack.

Nicole flopped onto the bed behind me. "You’re done studying?"

I shook my head. "Not yet. I just thought I’d go through the rest of my notes in one of the guest rooms."

"Why?" she whined.

I paused and glanced over my shoulder. She was already pouting, looking at me as though I’d just announced I was leaving the house.

I was beginning to notice how often she did that lately. The pouting, I mean. She seemed to be getting more comfortable letting that side of herself out around me, and I wasn’t sure when exactly it had become so easy for her to be this openly needy. It was cute, admittedly, and I was still just as vulnerable to it.

"I don’t know," I said, turning back to my books. "I figured you’d want some time to yourself."

Nicole stared at me for a moment, seemingly understanding what I wasn’t saying. "I won’t disturb your reading. Just stay here."

I looked at her with a small smirk. "Promise?"

She paused to consider that.

I let out a quiet laugh. "You’re actually thinking about it?"

She shrugged, looking entirely unbothered. "I want to give you an honest answer."

I shook my head, amused. Somehow, that was exactly the kind of answer I’d expected from her.

I slipped my books back out of my backpack and carried them over to the bed, then climbed onto it and settled on my stomach, arranging my notes in front of me. I pulled out my calculator and got comfortable, ready to pick up where I’d left off.

"How much longer are you planning to study for?" Nicole asked almost immediately.

I turned my head to look at her. "Maybe two or three hours, give or take."

Nicole’s expression immediately fell into a pout.

I smirked and watched her shake her head slightly, almost as though she were trying to talk herself out of something.

"No, Nicole. Be good. It’s just three hours," she muttered to herself.

I smiled. "Don’t you usually have something to do, too?"

She looked over at me. "It’s text week, and I’ve already turned in everything I had to yesterday. So I’m free until say... Friday."

I nodded and returned my attention to my notes, figuring that explained why she was so eager to keep me around.

A short while later, she spoke again.

"Can’t you make it one hour?"

I glanced over at her.

"Sorry," she said immediately.

I turned back to my notes, hiding a small smirk.

I studied for as long as I needed to, occasionally glancing over at Nicole. She seemed perfectly content scrolling through her phone, only looking up whenever I glanced her way. Eventually, I got through everything I wanted to review and set my pen aside.

I rubbed my eyes and looked over at her, intending to tell her I was done. The words never came.

Nicole was already asleep.

I smiled to myself. At some point, she’d put her phone aside and drifted off without me noticing. She was lying comfortably on her side, her face relaxed, and there was something ridiculously adorable about how peaceful she looked.

I put my things away, making sure not to leave anything scattered around, then walked back to the bed and climbed in beside her.

For a while, I just lay there looking at her.

She shifted slightly in her sleep, her nose scrunching for a moment before her expression settled again. I couldn’t help smiling. She looked so different like this. No teasing or pouting, or those clever little schemes to get me to spend more time with her. Just her; Nicole, completely at ease and unaware that I was watching her.

It was hard not to think about how much she’d given me already. The way she remembered the smallest things, how readily she made room for me in her life, and how she never seemed to run out of reasons to have me around.

And yet, I still hadn’t given her the one thing I knew she wanted. I still hadn’t made her my girlfriend. Heck, the closest I’d gotten was giving her a nickname, and judging by how happy she was when I finally called her Nicky, that probably meant more to her than...

I breathed out slowly.

The crazy part was that I wanted to. More than I was willing to admit most of the time. I wanted to be able to call her my girlfriend without having to think twice about it. I wanted to do all the things that came with being together, too.

But I knew her. If I stopped holding back and gave her the kind of relationship she clearly wanted, she’d have an even harder time keeping it to herself. She was already having a hard time hiding how she felt, and we hadn’t even put a name to what we were doing yet.

Making things official would only make that more difficult, and as much as I wanted to give her everything she was asking for, I didn’t want her to get carried away and put herself in a position she couldn’t easily get out of. The consequences wouldn’t fall on me alone. Nicole had worked too hard for everything she’d built, and I wasn’t about to let my feelings for her make me careless with that.

So, for now, I was taking my time. Even if it meant making her wait a little longer for the title she wanted.

I reached for the blanket and gently pulled it over her, making sure she was tucked in comfortably. Then I leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead.

"Goodnight, Nicole," I whispered.

I settled down beside her, got comfortable, and closed my eyes.