I meet Alex for dinner three weeks after we officially started dating. It's the evening before I have to head back to school.
After our meal, I walk back to Alex's house, hand-in-hand with him. We walk slowly, savoring every step. It's our last night together for awhile.
"Is Jack home?" I ask. Jack is Alex's friend and roommate.
"Shouldn't be," he replies, unlocking the door. My hand is cold after he lets go on this chilly London night. "Jack?" he calls out as he steps inside. We are met with silence. "Guess not," he declares, kissing me on the cheek.
I take off my coat and drape it over one of Alex's kitchen chairs.
When I turn around, he's standing right there and pulls me in for a hug. "I had fun tonight," he smiles.
"Me too," I say into his shoulder.
"You want to stay a little longer? We could watch a movie or something," his voice trails off.
"Or," I propose, "We could just go upstairs."
"I like the way you think, Ella," he grins and takes me by the hand.
"Can I kiss you?" I ask Alex, looking up at him. It's a few minutes later and we are sitting together on his bed. He nods and my lips are on his. I kick off my shoes and he puts his arms around me.
All of a sudden we're going down, down, down. He rests my head on his pillow, so softly, and kisses the corner of my mouth. He's not putting any weight on top of me--he's propping himself up with both arms while our legs are tangled together. I want way more contact than what he's giving me.
He lowers his face closer to mine and leans in to kiss the corner of my mouth again, the tease. At the last second, I shift my head and his lips crash onto mine.
In his moment of weakness, I pull him down on top of me. He comes tumbling down from his push up position, but finally our bodies are touching. I can feel him smile as he kisses me.
It causes me to smile back. I have this huge grin on my face and I can't help but start laughing.
"What?" Alex smiles back, propping himself back up. He shifts all of his weight to his left arm, and uses his right to tuck my mussed-up hair behind my ear and I melt.
"I'm just really glad it's you," I say, looking into his deep brown eyes, "This is just one of those perfect moments."
Alex lies down next to me and pulls me into another kiss. This one is slow and lingering and lasts both an eternity and three seconds. We kiss and kiss until I forget what he even tastes like because he is me and I am him and then he kisses me again.
I'm the one who finally breaks our kiss, as I unfortunately need this thing called oxygen. Lame. I sit up against his bed frame and take a few deep breaths. Alex, meanwhile, has gotten out of bed to bring me his water bottle.
I gratefully take a few sips and allow my breathing to return to normal. "Thanks, Alex."
"Of course," he smiles, taking a sip from the bottle once I finish. We're both silent for a moment, but it's not awkward. We're both just really happy to have each others' company. "Ella," Alex says, finally breaking the silence, "I think we should have sex tonight."
"That might just be the best idea I've ever heard. You got tested, right?"
"Yep, negatives across the board. You?"
"Same here," I reply. Alex puts down the water bottle and lies down next to me. I turn onto my side to face him and kiss his nose. He pulls me in close and brings his lips to mine. It's messy and my hands are in his hair and one of his is up my shirt but the other is wrapped around me, keeping me close.
I roll him onto his back without breaking our kiss and now I'm on top. I straddle his waist, enjoying the friction, and I can tell that he likes it too. I sit straight up and reach for the bottom of his shirt. I take it off, needing to feel his warm skin.
He takes mine off too and tosses it on top of his on the floor, leaving me in jeans and my nude sports bra. I will not be caught dead in anything resembling underwire.
"I like this," he grins, pausing to take in my chest. They're B cups on a good day but Alex doesn't mind. I lean over his face, attempting to brush an eyelash off of his cheek.
Seeing me move closer, Alex props himself up with his arm. He lifts his head up and in one motion puts his mouth over my clothed nipple. I inhale sharply. "Don't stop," I groan.
He continues the pressure, even adding in teeth and it's almost too much for me to handle. "Time to switch," he says, eventually taking his mouth off of me. My nipple is immediately cold and I hate it.
"Wait one second," I say, patting his chest. I scoot down, resting on his legs. I take off the bra, wet spot and all, and toss it off the bed, "I want to feel you on my skin."
Alex nods and sits up straight. He leans in and hugs me. For the first time it's only skin. Wonderful skin!
He lies down on his side and motions for me to do the same. I lie next to him, resting my head on his pillow. He rests his right arm underneath my neck and pulls me in impossibly close. I love the feeling of skin on skin and denim on denim, though if we stay half-clothed for much longer I just might die.