Two is Better Than One

I woke up the next morning in my bed alone, which wasn’t too abnormal but since Jordan spent the night it was a little different. I rolled over and went over everything that I had to today in my head. I had off from work, so Alaina and I were going to have a girls’ day to get ready for the party tonight. Other than going to the salon and the party later tonight, today was a day for unpacking everything.

I got up and walked out into the kitchen. I noticed that Alaina already made the coffee and had her cup with her at the breakfast bar. She heard me come in and looked up from her phone and smiled at me.

“What’s up with the creepy smile there, Layn?” I asked

“Oh nothing, just the note left on the counter for you.”

“What?” I spun around the kitchen looking for the note. I spotted it next to the coffee maker. My name was scribbled across it in what was becoming very familiar handwriting. I grabbed the note and made my coffee and once my coffee was to my liking I leaned against the counter and read the note.

Allie, Sorry I wasn’t there when you woke up. Eric called. I had a great time last night and again sorry I had to leave. I remembered to make coffee before I left =) Can’t wait to see you tonight –Jord.

“So when did lover boy come over last night?” Alaina asked.

“Um, after you fell asleep.” I smiled when I remembered how I found her last night. “And can I just say how cute I think it is that you and Sidney fell asleep on the phone together.” I laughed and dodged the napkin she threw at me.

“So what did you two do last night?”

I took a sip of coffee and took the seat next ot her. “We sat by the fire and talked.”

“How romantic.” She teased.

I just nodded and suddenly became very interested in my chipped nail polish.

“You’re not telling me everything are you?” I cringed. I hated that Alaina can read me like an open book. She had been able to do it since we met.

I stared at the spot on the wall by the stove and nodded. “He kissed me.” I whispered.

“What?!” She exclaimed

“You heard me, he kissed me.”

“When?”

“Pretty much as soon as he walked in.”

“Did anything lead up to it? Clue you in that he was going to kiss you?” She was practically bouncing in her seat.

“How ‘bout I tell you about everything at breakfast and then we can figure out what it means while we get our nails done?”

“Okay.” Alaina quickly chugged her remaining coffee and made her way to get changed. Alaina has always loved gossip and this was major gossip because it involved me.

At breakfast I broke down my evening with Jordan for Alaina. I told her everything from the texts that we shared and the kiss.

“You pushed him away?! Are you crazy?!” Alaina screeched.

“Yes I pushed him away. Don’t ask me why I did it, but I did.” I sighed.

“Did it not feel right?”

“Oh no, it felt perfectly right. It wasn’t awkward or anything.”

“Well I’m proud of you for not getting caught up in the moment.”

I smiled at her and pulled out my phone, I noticed the time and knew we had to leave now if we wanted to make it to our appointments on time. On the drive to the salon, I thought back to what Alaina had asked. Why did I push him away? Everything about that kiss felt right.

“Hey,” Alaina’s voice pulled me out of my state. “You have that look on our face. What are you thinking about so hard?”

“The kiss and what it meant.”

“It meant that he likes you and is trying to show that to you.” She patted my arm. “Just give it some more time Ally Al.” Alaina was right, I knew I wasn’t the only one having these feelings. I just needed to be patient and wait. Joy.

***

Alaina and I were at the salon and getting our nails done and I was getting excited for tonight’s party. Jordan and I were going together and we were going with Alaina who was going with Sidney.

“Hey Layn?” I asked

“Hmm?”

“How often do you and Sidney fall asleep on the phone together?” I smiled.

Alaina blushed and looked at me. “How did you know that I was talking to Sidney and let alone that we fell asleep?” she raised an eyebrow.

“Because I’m a creeper.” I laughed. " I was checking on you because I hadn’t heard a noise from you. I walked in your room and you were sound asleep and when I picked up your phone to move it, I heard snoring coming from the other side. I looked at the call log and saw that it was him.”

Alaina chuckled. “That was the second time.”

I couldn’t help but ‘aw’ at that. “When are you going to get together with him?” I questioned.
She sighed. “I don’t know. I think I’m going to make the first move soon though.”

“Have you guys kissed yet?”

“No, we’ve been out a few times, but I don’t think you could call them dates.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know.” she sighed.

We sat in silence and listened to the conversations around us. I felt bad for Alaina, she really likes Sid and I know he likes her too. I wish there was something I could do for them, to get things rolling between them. Then it hit me, we were going to be at a Christmas party. There was going to be a ton of decorations so there was bound to be a mistletoe somewhere. I giggled to myself and when Alaina looked at me, I played it off as a text from Jordan. I really hope my plan works.

Later that evening Alaina and I were getting ready in our apartment before the party. We were just about ready when there was a light knock on the door.

“Allie, can you get that please? I have to fix my hair.” Alaina called from her room.

I opened the door and smiled when I saw Sidney shifting in his spot nervously. He was wearing black dress pants, a red button up shirt, and a tie that had Santa on it.

“Cute tie.” I smirked

“Shut up, my sister bought it for me one year.” He shot back.

“Chill,” I chuckled. “Come on in, Alaina is just fixing her hair.”

“You look beautiful tonight Allie, wait until Staalsy sees you.”

I blushed at his compliment. “Wait until you see Alaina, she looks way better than me.”

“Always have and always will!” Came her voice from her room. “Be out in a second Sidney.”

“Take you time, I’m actually early.” He called back.

“Make yourself at home…” I looked around the room. “Well with the few chairs we have.” I said a bit embarrassed.

“You’ll get furniture don’t worry.” Sidney smiled.

“Haha, thanks. I’m going to go finish getting ready. If Jordan knocks can you let him in please?”

Sidney nodded as I disappeared into the bathroom. I was putting on my make-up when I heard a knock on the door and Sidney answer it. As soon as his voice hit my ears my stomach flipped and I smiled. I quickly finished my make-up and went into Alaina’s room.

“You ready chickadee?” I asked

“Yeah, does my hair look okay?” She asked

“Your hair looks fine, come on. I know Sid will just die.” And I’m sure he almost did, Jordan too. When we walked out into the living room, both guys gasped and their eyes filled with lust. Sidney’s was a mixture of lust and hunger, like he had to have Alaina now. Jordan’s was pure lust and it made me blush. Alaina and I looked at each other and smiled, we picked good dresses.

I walked over to Jordan and stood in front of him. He didn’t say anything at first, he just kept looking me up and down. Finally he cleared his throat and pulled me into a hug.

“You look absolutely beautiful.” He whispered.

I pulled away and looked him up and down. He was wearing simple black dress pants, a simple white shirt, and a black tie. It was a simple outfit, but he looked handsome in it. “You don’t look so bad yourself.” I whispered.

He chuckled and kissed my cheek softly, then turned to Sidney and Alaina who were standing a whole lot closer than Jordan and I were. Oh yeah, my plan was going to work.

“You two ready to go?” Jordan asked

They both nodded and grabbed their jackets and Alaina tossed me mine, but Jordan caught it and held it open for me. I thanked him and made my way to the door. Alaina followed Sidney to the front of our building where I assumed he was parked and I followed Jordan to the garage where residents parked.

The entire ride to the party Jordan held my hand and I wanted to cry. He was being so sweet and I all I wanted was for him to kiss me again. Once we were at the party we stayed near each other, but not near enough for people to think we were dating. Alaina and I were talking to Sandra and Vero when Jordan came up behind me and kissed my neck. I knew he was a little drunk because he hadn’t put a drink down since we got here.

“Do you ladies mind if I steal Allie for a bit?” Jordan asked.

Vero smiled at me before answering Jordan. “Not at all Jord.”

He pulled me away from the girls and led me to the dance floor where a slow song was beginning. He wrapped his arms around my waist and I wrapped mine around his neck. He pulled me closer to him and I rested my head on his chest. I could hear every breath he took and every beat of his heart, I sighed. I didn’t want to move from this position, but to my dismay the song ended and Jordan dropped his arms like I had burned him. I slowly removed my arms from around his neck and gave him a confused look. He just looked at me with those blue eyes of his and walked to the bar. I was so confused and still trying to figure out what happened when I joined up with the girls again.

“What’s wrong Allie?” Sandra asked.

“Not sure. Jordan’s acting really weird.” I said. “Layn, can you get me a drink?”

“Yeah, what do you want?” She asked.

“Surprise me.” When Alaina was out of ear shot, I turned to Vero and Sandra. “Okay, so there is a mistletoe by the dance floor. I’m going to grab the table by it and try to get Alaina under it. Then I want one of you two to bring Sidney over. The sexual tension between those two is almost visible.” Vero and Sandra chuckled and nodded in agreement.

Alaina came back with two drinks in her hands and handed one off to me. I took a sip and sighed, rum and coke. That helped calm my nerves. After we finished our drinks, the girls and I made our way to the dance floor. Soon our respected dates joined us, well except for Sidney who happened to be standing right under the mistletoe. I moved over next to Alaina and tapped her on the shoulder.

“Go get Sidney, he’s standing over there all alone.” I jerked my chin in his direction. She excused herself and made her way over to him and I smiled. “V, Sandra change of plans. Look where they are.”

Vero, Marc, Sandra, TK, and Jordan all turned to look where I was looking. The girl laughed while the guys looked at us confused. I turned to Jordan,

“Go over there and point out what they are standing under.” I said

At first he didn’t understand, but then he noticed the green plant and chuckled. He grabbed my hand and pulled me with him.

“So Layn, why aren’t you kissing him?” I asked as we walked up.

Sidney had a shocked look on his face and Alaina blushed. “Allie, what the hell are you talking about?” She all but hissed at me.

I laughed and pointed above their heads and watched as they both looked up and blushed. I rolled my eyes at them, “Oh just kiss him, you know you want to. I know you want to.” With that I turned on my heels and walked back over to the little group I was standing with originally.

I turned back around to watch Alaina and Sidney. I could tell they were talking, but I couldn’t make out what they were saying. Slowly Sidney started moving closer to Alaina and I held my breath as he continued to do so. He said something to her and I swear she blushed and then nodded. Then Sidney kissed her and me, Vero, and Sandra all started clapping and you could hear cat calls coming from everywhere in the room. Alaina turned around and her face was beat red. When she spotted me, she popped me the finger and I just waved at her. She was going to thank me for this eventually

For the rest of the night Alaina and Sidney were inseparable. When I went looking for her to tell her that I was leaving, I found them in a dark corner making out. I suddenly felt very lonely, my best friend got her guy, my other friends all had theirs, and here I was still trying to win mine. I was sitting in the car on the way back to the apartment with Jordan and I wasn’t focused on trying to win him. I was in one of my moods. I sighed and Jordan looked at me.

“You okay?” He asked

“Yeah, I’m just feeling a little left out.”

“Left out of what?”

“The dating scene. Alaina now has Sidney, Vero has Marc, Sandra has TK, and now Kris has been seeing that Leah girl. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for them but when I am around them I feel like a third wheel.”

Jordan parked the car and turned in his seat to look at me. I didn’t meet his eyes because I didn’t want him to see how vulnerable I was feeling at the moment. I also didn’t want him to see the feelings that I had for him. Why? Because I was a big chicken.

“What about when you hang out with me? How do you feel then?” He finally asked.

“I feel extremely happy and I feel like I’m not invisible.”

“You’re not invisible, Allie. You are so beautiful and a blast to hang out with. Any person can see that.” It sounded like he was describing his best friend and I felt my heart break. I knew something like this would happen. I quickly got out of the car and made my way to the elevator. I heard Jordan slam his door and run after me.

“Allie, wait up. What’s wrong?”

You just broke my heart. I’m falling in love with you. “Nothing” I said quietly. The doors opened and I walked in, leaning up against the back wall. I waited impatiently for the fourteenth floor to come up. I closed my eyes and took deep breath after deep breath, trying to keep my tears from falling.

“Allie,” Jordan said quietly.

I slowly opened my eyes and saw that he was standing right in front of me, his blue eyes filled with worry. I took another deep breath and bit my tongue to keep myself from blurting out my true feelings.

“Allie, what’s wrong?” Jordan placed his large hand gingerly on my cheek. “Why does it look like you’re about to cry?”

“Because I’m an idiot.” I said quietly.

“What? No you’re not.”

I just nodded my head and moved away from him. Finally we reached my floor and the doors dinged open. I made my way to my apartment, glad that I still don’t live with Jordan. I pulled my key out of my purse and went to unlock my door, but Jordan blocked my way.

“Dammit Allie, talk to me. Why are you all of a sudden acting like this?”

“How do you feel when you hang out with me?” I asked, avoiding his question.

“How do I feel?” He took a deep breath and lowered his voice. “I feel alive. Allie, hanging out with you makes me so happy. What I said last night about missing you wasn’t a lie. I loved waking up to hear your soft singing. I miss falling asleep with you while we watch movies. I miss the way you and Alaina fight about he stupidest shit.” He chuckled and took a step closer to me. He lowered his voice again and made it softer too. “I miss you”

I smiled up at him. “If you miss me, than why do you treat me like I have a disease sometimes?” I asked

“Can we talk about this inside?”

I didn’t answer him, I just simply unlocked my door and flipped on the lights. I quickly took off my shoes and took my hair down. I went into my room and stripped my dress off and put on an oversized shirt and some shorts. I grabbed all the pillows and blankets off my bed and took them to the living room. Jordan was sitting at the breakfast bar with his shoes off, his jacket off, the top few buttons of his shirt undone, his tie loosened, and his sleeves rolled up to his elbows. My mouth went dry and I swallowed loudly. I turned away from the amazing picture and went into the living room.

I threw the pillows and blankets on the floor and began rearranging them to make a comfy spot to lay down on and talk. I signaled for Jordan to join me on the floor. “Okay.” I said once we got comfortable. “Please explain why you’ve been acting the way you have been.”

Jordan took a deep breath and let it out. “I’ve been acting that way because I was trying to hide my true feelings.”

“And those would be?’ I asked, my heart doing little flips in my chest as my stomach filled with butterflies.

“I really like you Allie, I really do.”

I smiled “I really like you too.”

Jordan smiled and then closed the little space that was between us. He attached his lips to mine and unlike last time I didn’t push him away. No, I kissed him right back with the same force and passion he was kissing me with. We only broke apart when the need for air was a necessity. Jordan rested his forehead against mine when we finally did break apart.

“How could you not tell I had feeling for you? Didn’t all the little notes, staying up late with you, hanging out, and the little kisses mean anything?”

“Honsestly, I thought you were just being really really sweet. All those things you did drove me absolutely nuts, I kept telling myself that I was just reading too much into them.”

He kissed me again. “You weren’t. I like you.”

I kissed him back and I was jumping for joy on the inside. I was a huge step closer to winning my guy over.