In the header is a beautiful cover made by my little angel @lustxnight Thank you ❤❤

"Oh! Please! Get a room!" A playful voice complains, interrupting Alex and I's make-out session and making me fall back to reality.

I straighten up a little, as much as I can, given that Alex is hovering over me on the couch and not pulling away. He appears unfazed by his brother's presence, while I feel my cheeks reddening even more, though they have been already burning like the rest of my body from Alex's feverish kisses.

"Hi, Elena," Josh greets me, a playful look in his eyes as he gets closer to us.

"Hi," I reply, shrinking in the cushions of the couch from my quite compromising position.

He looks like he's thinking and then grimaces, faking a shiver. "Though, all things considered, DON'T use our room!"

"You weren't supposed to be here. I thought you had to fix this old beetle?" Alex turns his head to show his annoyance at his brother, yet his fingers are still brushing softly the skin on my hips, not helping me to regulate my heart rate.

"It's done! Mitch found out it was a motor fault, and in no time we've repaired it. We've fiddled something with an old Derby motor, so we've gained time and money!" Josh explains to Alex, a light smile on his lips.

"I'm impressed, bro!" Alex smirks, lifting an eyebrow.

"Oh! It's not me, it's Mitch. She's a genius!" Josh replies serious, not paying attention to Alex's mocking tone.

"Who is Mitch?" I don't know if it's because I'm still floating in a daze because of Alex's touch, but I'm a little lost, and my curiosity is also tickling, even if I haven't understood all their mechanical jargon.

They both look at me.

"Mitchie? It's our best friend since forever, especially Josh's best friend. They're inseparable, and they even work together!"

"You'd love her! You need to meet her!" Josh exclaims, and I must admit his smile gets me intrigued.

"I'd love to."

"I'm sure she'll love you too," Alex whispers, playing with a strand of my hair between two fingers.

My heart skips a beat as his intense eyes focus back on me, catching my gaze and my breath. Their mix of light and darkness is something I think I should be getting used to now, yet they still manage to astonish me with new shades that can't be described, just felt.

"Hey! I'm still here the love birds!" Josh calls, and I jump once again.

Alex rolls his eyes, looking back at his brother. "Yeah, we've noticed, and why exactly are you still here?"

"I've heard that you've cooked some cakes, so I've come during my break to get one or two!" Josh grins like a big Cheshire cat.

"I didn't cook them for you! They are for my girlfriend." Alex retorts, and while he says this like the simplest and most obvious thing in the world, it's like a bombshell for me inside.

The fire rushes to my cheeks, which were still warm; my heart bursts out, and I bite my lip to conceal the big smile that is sparking on my lips.

It's the first time I hear Alex say it: 'my girlfriend'. The word is booming out inside, and I want to imprint it in my memory.

We're at our third date, well kind of – I don't know if today can be called a 'date' – but for me, for us, it is a date, a perfect date. We've just hung out at his house, talking and kissing, and he's even cooked two chocolate fondants, the recipe I've taught him to make, by himself.

In fact, I think our dates will never resemble other people's typical 'dates'; just like us, they're unique.

Even our second date, that I've organized to be quieter and more typical, hasn't gone as planned. We've gone to the 'Melting Cafe' and eaten tons of chocolate. Yet I still don't know what has been sweeter: the pastries or Alex's kisses, and I've surely melted faster than the chocolate! Then later, we've tried to go to the movies, but the line has been too long, so finally, we've ended up going to an old arcade instead. There has been almost no one, and we've had so much fun playing at the pinball machine, pool, table football, video games... It hasn't been a quiet and typical date like he's whished, though it has been so much better: filled with laughs, sweetness and fun, unexpected and unrestrained, really ourselves.

In all of this, we've never really talked about 'us', about our 'status'.It isn't needed; we're just us. It's easy and natural between us. But hearing him say it makes it more serious, more real, and more official. It reassures me on his involvement, and I like the way it sounds, the natural inflection of each word.

The 'ding' of the oven puts an end to my reflections.

I barely have time to notice Alex running to the kitchen area, and I'm only left with the coldness of missing his body against mine.

"Come on! You can give me one! Anyway, you can't eat too much! You have to be fit and ready for tonight!" Josh argues at his brother, who doesn't even spare him a glance.

"I'm sure there will be enough. You can get at least one or two." I smile, finally sitting up properly.

"You know I like you!" Josh grins, sitting beside me on the couch.

"What is it tonight that Alex has to be ready?" I inquire, looking back at Alex who is running back and forth in front of the little kitchen, busy with his task.

"Alex didn't tell you?!" Josh looks surprised. "Tonight, he has a fight, one of his biggest."

"A street fight?! Is it risky?" A pang hits my stomach, like an unexpected punch, the blow harder with a mix of worry for Alex, but also upset that he hasn't told me.

He knows almost everything about me. I've even brought my precious blue notebook today and let him read another part of the story I write. I let him in my world, yet I feel like he doesn't let me in his, like he keeps me away. An unpleasant sensation, like an invisible shadow of doubt and insecurity, comes floating in my mind, making my smile falter.

"No, don't worry! Alex is the best, well, after me!" Josh grins cockily.

I smile, shaking my head. Josh's playfulness makes me forget slightly my doubts, well at least, push them in the back of my head.

"Hey! You can come if you want! You'll see it's not that bad and you'll give a nice surprise to Alex!" Josh whispers cheerfully.

"You're sure?" I ask hesitantly. The knots in my stomach are tickling me with curiosity to know more, yet I'm afraid of maybe being 'too much'. I mean, someone has told me that curiosity has killed the cat...

"Yeah!" Josh replies, totally assured. "Let me give you the address," he adds, grabbing a pen.

Just at that moment, we hear the loud noise of something falling, followed by Alex cursing.

"Do you need help?" I get up instinctively, approaching the kitchen area and trying to see what's happening.

The kitchen is the same small and bright corner of the room than the last time that I've seen it. Yet right now, it looks like it has been ravaged by a hurricane. There are pans, bowl, and plates everywhere, more than I could have imagined would fit on the narrow counter, and I can't even describe the stains of chocolate and flour here and there.

Though I focus more on Alex, which I only see from the side. I can make out the outlines of his clenched jaw, edged like a chiseled rock, sign that he is frustrated.

"No! No, I'm fin– Fuck!" Alex curses as he crushes another fondant trying to remove it from the pan.

I come closer and put my hand on his, feeling it relax instantly as it seems that his tensions run to my fingers in little sparks. "Delicately..." I search for his dark eyes. "Like you're handling your precious science equipment." I smile playfully.

"I got other precious things in mind when I think of handling delicately," he rasps, his intense gaze boring into mine, and here I can totally feel the tension in another form.

I try to ignore the shivers down my spine, and I help him to remove the last fondant.

"You see, perfect!" I announce in front of the immaculate cylinder of brown cake.

He offers me a half-smile. "Yeah, but you were not supposed to help me. You're my guest, and it was your treat."

His tenebrous eyes are clouded with disappointment, and my heart melts more than the chocolate center of the fondants.

"I've just removed one cake from the pan! You've done everything else!" I shake my head, and as I look at the crushed and uneven fondants on the plate, I realize they are the most beautiful and yummiest I've ever seen. But that I don't dare to say him, well not until I've tasted them.

"And I think we make a great team," I add quieter with a small smile.

He chuckles. "I totally agree!"

"Now, how about trying them?!" I suggest, all my clouding doubts forgotten in front of Alex's bright smile.

Josh appears beside us upon those words, his Cheshire cat's grin even wider than before as he spots the plate of little cakes.

***

I clutch my phone as I walk through the dark deserted streets. The night is quite warm, yet shivers keep running down my spine. The thought of turning back is playing on loop with each step, and it becomes even louder when I take a turn into a narrow alley. Cheers and applause come to my ears, slowly overpowering the loud thumps of my heart, and soon, I catch sight of a crowd at the corner of two small alleys.

I get closer, trying to see what most are looking at, yelling and cheering, yet I don't really succeed, being quite small. I pass people, some drunk, some smoking, some making out, some arguing, some doing all of the above. I should probably turn back, but my determination is only growing like the pace of my heart in the bustle.

I remember exactly why I'm here with the skip of my heart as I glimpse Alex in the center of the mob. His handsome face is closed, unreadable, and I immediately recognize his fighting mode, so I deduce that he's currently in his big fight.

Something rushes in my veins; it's electric, warm, and prickling. I need to see him.

But all my blood freezes when a tall figure stands in front of me, in my way to Alex.

"Hi, sexy."

I don't reply, and just try to by-pass him, my heart beating anxiously to see Alex, yet the tall blond guy in front of me blocks me the way.

"Can you let me pass?" I fake a little smile, trying not to be too impolite.

But he doesn't move an inch, leaning closer. "What's the rush, honey?"

I can smell his breath impregnated with alcohol, and I feel retching comes as he brushes my cheek with his cold hand. I push back his hand and step back, trying to by-pass him once again, but with no success.

"Let me pass." I try to sound confident, when all my nerves are actually shaking inside.

"Oh! Fierce! I like that!" He smirks evilly, apparently not getting what rejection is as he wraps his arm around my waist.

"Let me go!" I try to not let him see my fear, like Alex has told me to, though it's not easy as dread is creeping up my whole body.

I punch his chest, but he grabs my hands. Helplessness starts overwhelming me, and all my strength is leaving my body, my muscles and even my brain paralyzed. The only thing moving in my body is my heart racing, almost trying to leave my chest.

He inches even closer, and it's like an electric discharge brings my body back to function when my gaze crosses a tenebrous known one, further behind, acting as a defibrillator. The strength comes back to my body as my eyes don't leave Alex's ones, where I can see shock, worry, but mostly a dark fuming anger.

Our stare doesn't last long though. It's broken when a fist hits Alex's face, making him fall down. My breath gets caught in my throat and my heart stops as if I had felt the punch in my chest.

The drunk pervert, who still stops me from moving, leans slightly on the side, blocking me the view. An incredible strength takes over me. I forget the paralyzing fear; it's replaced by the terrible fright for Alex. He's the only one in my thoughts, and in all my body, which is surely why I easily apply what he's taught me. I get out of the jerk's hold, twisting his wrist and kicking him hard in the stomach – even though I would have gladly kicked him in a more sensitive part, but I don't have time to aim correctly.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see him bent double as I'm already rushing to the center of the crowd, pushing everyone on my way.

Cliffhanger!! ;)

I hope you like this chapter, do you think Alex is fine?... ;)

Please let me know what you think in the comments, vote... Your help and feedbacks are more than welcome! :)