Look of Love (UC, K/I- ADULT) {COMPLETE}

[jbangelo]

Title: Look of Love
Author: Jenny
Pairing: Kyle and Isabel (Isabel POV)
Rating: ADULT for mild language and sexual situations
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Summary: Set after the gang leaves Roswell at the end of Graduation. Everything that happened in Seasons 1-3 still holds true.
Author's Note: This was my first fanfic which I wrote almost a year ago. I'm looking for some good constructive criticism, so please be honest!



I had lost count of how many days we had been on the road. Each mile that passed was simply a blur. I couldn’t believe that this is what my life had come to. Just living from moment to moment, not staying anywhere for more than a day or two, spending all day cramped in a dusty old van and every night alone, most nights crying myself to sleep. I wanted desperately to be happy for Max and Liz and the new life they were beginning together, but lately all I felt was resentful. Resentful that they could be together, and I had to leave my love behind. Even Michael and Maria were getting closer with each passing hour. Every touch, every kiss, every look was like a slap in my face. At least I had Kyle. Kyle, I could tell, was just as lonely as I was. He had left behind the only home he had ever known because of all the alien chaos. But he took it all in stride, and I admired him for being so brave. I had been living this nightmare my entire life, and even I sometimes didn’t know how much more I could take.

Fortunately, things had seemed to be going pretty smoothly the last few days. We hadn’t run into any trouble, and we had started discussing possible places to settle down, at least for a while. None of us knew if it would ever really be safe enough for us to stay in one place for very long. Deep down, that thought absolutely terrified me. Is this the life I was destined to lead from now on? Always on the run, never being able to form relationships with anyone other than Liz, Max, Maria, Michael, and Kyle? I loved all of them desperately, but there was this void in me that I wasn’t sure they could fill. And did I even want anyone to fill it? The two men in my life who I thought could complete me had been torn from grasp. First Alex, and then Jesse. Granted, I did let Jesse go, but I didn’t feel that I had a choice. How could I ask him to give up everything for this sorry excuse for a life?

Thus were the thoughts the rambled through my head day after day. I knew I was going to have to overcome these inner demons if I ever expected to be happy again. But was that even possible?

After being on the road for what felt like weeks, Max finally came to a stop at a small motel in a town that looked to be smaller than Roswell. Up to that point, we had either been sleeping in the van or camping. I figured he and Liz must have wanted some privacy. Hell, I couldn’t blame them.

“I’m going to get a room for Liz and me,” Max said, turning around to face those of us in the back of the van. “What do you guys want to do?”

When he said that, I caught a glimpse of the look exchanged between Michael and Maria. Great. They obviously wanted some privacy too. Could my life get any worse?

“I’m getting my own room,” I declared, opening the door and getting out of the van. I couldn’t take much more of this lovey dovey shit. I just wanted to get in a bed, snuggle under the covers, and cry myself to sleep.

An hour later, I was just getting comfortably settled in the tiniest motel room, when I heard a knock on my door. “Come in,” I called, even though I really just wanted to be left alone.

Not surprisingly, it was Kyle. “Hey,” he said. “What’s up?”

“Oh, nothing much, just wallowing in self-pity.” I gave him a half-hearted smile. “You?”

“Just bored,” he said. “Thought I’d come see if maybe you wanted to hang out or something.”

“Kyle, it’s after 11:00. I’m exhausted!” I sat down heavily on the bed.

“Come on, can’t we just hang out for a little while? Maybe some of my powers are starting to develop and we can do some fun, like, alien stuff, or something.”

“Please, Kyle, I don’t even want to know what you would do if you started developing powers,” I laughed. Hmmm. First time I’d laughed in days I think. Kyle was good for something. I smiled at that thought. “But, yeah, we can hang out for a little while. But don’t get mad if I fall asleep on you!”

But I didn’t fall asleep. Kyle and I wound up talking for the next couple of hours, about anything and everything. Even though we had known each other for years, it felt like the first real conversation we had ever had. All of the walls I had built up were coming down so very easily.

After a while, the conversation turned to relationships. “Remember how hung up on Liz you used to be?” I laughed a little. “God, you were so jealous of Max.”

“No way!” he defended himself, even though we both knew he was lying. “I was never hung up on Liz.”

“Oh, please, it was so obvious! Everyone could see it.”

Kyle gave me an embarrassing smile. He knew there was no hiding it.

“I’ve always been so jealous of what Max and Liz have,” I confessed. I just had this feeling that I could trust Kyle with my innermost feelings. “I always tried to put out this icy exterior, like I didn’t care and I didn’t need anyone. But the truth is, I longed for it so much, my heart ached. Deep down, I want nothing more than for somebody to look at me the way Max looks at Liz. I thought I had found it with Alex, and then with Jesse, but look what happened. I just feel like I’m doomed to be alone forever. Nobody is ever going to look at me like that again.” I hung my head when I felt the slight sting of tears starting to form in my eyes.

When Kyle didn’t say anything, I looked up at him, and he was just staring at me with the most intent gaze.

“I’m looking.”

To be continued….

[jbangelo]

Thanks for the feedback majikhands, Elf, and Reggie!

Part 2

I didn’t know what to say. I mean, what are you supposed to say when Kyle Valenti, the jock, the jokester, the pal, says something like that? With the most dead serious look on his face?

So I laughed it off. “You don’t mean that,” I said, even though I could feel the color rising in my cheeks. Was he for real? Did Kyle have some sort of…feelings for me? And if so, how long had he had them? We had been friends for so long, and he had never given any indication that he was interested. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it.

“Isabel,” he said, still looking intently at me, “you are beautiful, and smart, and a wonderful person. I’ve always known that. To say that I’ve never thought of you in a romantic way would be a lie.” This time the color rose in his cheeks.

“Kyle,” I started, but he cut me off.

“No, don’t say anything. Let’s just leave it at that.” With that, he rose from his seat. “I’ll see you in the morning, okay?”

I got up from the bed and followed him to the door. “Okay. Night.”

He simply smiled at me and shut the door behind him. I stared at the door for what felt like an hour. What just happened here? Did Kyle Valenti just tell me that he…what was he trying to tell me? Then I kind of laughed at the thought of Kyle and me as a couple. How cliché. The star athlete and the prom queen. With that thought, I crawled into bed and tried to sleep off the bizarre turn of events.

The next morning I awoke to the sound of someone pounding on my door.

“Come on, Isabel, it’s almost 11:30!” I heard Michael shout from the other side. “You were supposed to meet us for breakfast over an hour ago!”

“I’m up! I’m up!” I shouted back. Realizing that I had fallen asleep in my clothes, I got up and stumbled to the door and opened it to reveal a very irate Michael.

“What the hell’s the matter with you? We said we were going to meet in the diner at 10:00.”

“Geez, Michael, chill out.” I headed towards my suitcase to find something to wear. “Why are you so crabby, anyway? Didn’t you get any last night?”

“Shut up,” he snapped, but there was no hiding the sly grin that sneaked across his face. “Just get dressed and come to the diner. Max says we need to have a meeting.”

“Great,” I responded. “A meeting. Can’t get enough of those.”

Michael turned and left, closing the door behind him. I quickly hopped in the shower and got dressed and headed over to the diner that was adjoined to the motel lobby. I found Liz, Max, Maria, Michael, and Kyle all waiting for me. They had already eaten and Max looked very annoyed. “It’s about time,” he said.

“Give me a break. I forgot to set my alarm.” The waitress came by and I ordered a cup of coffee and then turned to Max to find what this “meeting” was about.

“Well,” he started, “Liz and I got up early this morning to check out possible places to stay. We’ve been talking about trying to settle somewhere for a little while, and I think we are now far enough away from Roswell that it would be okay to stop for a while.”

“How long is a while?” Maria asked.

“I don’t know really. A few months maybe. Possibly longer. Anyway, we found a little house on the outskirts of town. It’s three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and it’s reasonably priced.”

“All six of us in one little house?” My jaw dropped. He had to be kidding. That wasn’t much better than being cramped in the van all together.

“We don’t have much of a choice right now, Iz,” he said. “We can’t afford to all get separate places, as much as we would all like that.” His gaze wandered over to Liz and I saw them share a little smile. Ugh.

“Anyway,” Max said, clearing his throat, “the house has two floors. Two bedrooms are downstairs and one is upstairs. The owners are subletting it, so it’s already furnished. Liz and I were hoping we could take the upstairs bedroom and maybe Michael and Kyle in one bedroom, and Maria and Isabel in the other. If that’s okay.”

I was not happy about this arrangement. Not only was I going to have to share a house with five other people, I was going to have to share a room as well. Not that I didn’t love Maria, but I liked having my own space. “Do we even have a choice?” I asked.

“Isabel, this isn’t the ideal situation for any of us,” Liz said sympathetically. “But it’s our only option right now. Maybe things will be different in a few months.”

So that was the decision we came to. If you can call it that. As much as I hated it, I knew Liz was right. Besides, it was either the house, or living out of the van. It was a no-brainer really.

After breakfast, Liz and Max left to talk to the homeowners and get a good look at the place. I was walking back to my room, when I heard someone calling my name. I turned around to see Maria running in my direction. “Isabel! Wait!”

“Hey, can we talk?” she asked.

“What about?” I asked.

“Well, I was thinking about this living situation. I know that Max suggested you and I could share a room, and as much as I would love to do that,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm, “I was kind of hoping maybe I could share a room with Michael.”

“You have got to be kidding me!” I said with exasperation. “I can’t share a room with Kyle!” I couldn’t possibly share a room with him after the truths that had come to light last night.

“Oh, come on,” Maria begged. “Please? Michael and I are trying to start over and we could really use the privacy. Besides, you and Kyle are good friends. You can be adult enough to share a room. It’s not like he wants to jump your bones or anything.” She kind of laughed and rolled her eyes. “Come on, Iz, what do you say?”

[jbangelo]

Thanks for the feedback, lil innocent, magikhands, and Amanda!

Part 3

I knew she wasn’t going to leave it alone until I said yes. “Oh, all right,” I finally gave in.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” Maria squealed and hugged me.

“Okay, okay, no need for that,” I sighed, pushing her away. “But you owe me one.”

“Anytime, girlfriend,” she replied and ran off, probably to find Michael and tell him the good news. Good news for them. How was I going to deal with this? Living in the same room with Kyle? For God knows how long. I could hardly even look him in the eye at breakfast.

I turned back in the direction of my room, and there he was, waiting for me. I could feel my pulse quicken. What was wrong with me? He’s just Kyle. My friend, Kyle. I could do this. Just breathe.

“Hey,” he said when I approached him.

“Hey back,” I said, trying to mask the uneasiness in my voice.

“I was just talking to Michael, and he asked me—“

“I know,” I cut him off. “I just talked to Maria.”

“If this is too weird, I can just sleep on the couch or something. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

Okay. I could do this. Maria was right. We were adults. “No, Kyle, don’t be silly. It’s fine, really. But…um…I’ve got some…uh…laundry to do. So I’ll…uh…I’ll talk to you later, ‘kay?” I hurried inside my room without waiting for a reply. I just needed to be alone for a while, to gather my thoughts. Besides, I really did need to wash my clothes. I sure hoped this little dump had a washer and dryer.

A few short days later (at least I think it was a few days), there we were, getting settled into our new house. Well, settled isn’t really the right word, because it was oddly unsettling. I missed Roswell, more than I was willing to admit to the others. I missed my mom and dad, I missed Jesse, I missed the quasi-normal life I had led there for the better part of my life.

I was in my new room unpacking when I heard a knock and turned to see Max. “Hey,” he said. “How are you hanging in?”

“As good as can be expected, I guess,” I replied. “You unpacked?”

“For the most part. Liz is just taking care of some decorating,” he laughed a little. “Trying to make it like home.” He stopped talking and took a look around the room that I would soon be sharing with Kyle. His eyes came to rest on the picture of Mom and Dad that I had set on the dresser. He tried to hide it, but I could see his eyes get misty. He then looked up at me. “Iz, are you sure you’re okay with all of this? I mean, not just about the living situation,” he said, gesturing towards Kyle’s things, “but everything. You just seem so quiet lately. I’m worried about you.”

“I’ll be fine, Max. It’s just a lot to get accostomed to, y’know?”

“I know,” he said sympathetically and reached out to hug me. I fell into his embrace and for a moment, things felt okay. At least I would always have Max, my brother. He was my home.

He finally released me and wiped the tear that was falling down my cheek. “What do you say we go get some groceries? I’m guessing everyone will be hungry soon.”

****

After a massive shopping trip and a quick look around town (there wasn’t much to see, after all), Max and I came back to the house to find Michael and Maria asleep on the couch in the living room. They must have been watching a movie or something, because the TV was still on. Liz had left a note saying she’d gone for a walk. There was no sign of Kyle.

“Well,” I said after we had finished putting all the food away, “I think I’m gonna go take a short nap before dinner. I’m exhausted.”

“Okay,” Max said. “I’ll take care of dinner. I’ll come get you when it’s ready.”

I made my way to my room very quietly so as not to wake Michael and Maria. I dropped my purse on the table in the hallway and opened the door to my room.

And there he was. Kyle. In all his glory. Every inch of his lean, muscular body exposed to my wandering eyes. Both of us just froze, like a deer caught in the headlights. It seemed like hours passed before he finally grabbed his towel to cover himself.

“Kyle! I’m…sorry…sorry,” I finally mumbled and quickly backed out of the room and shut the door.

OH. MY. GOD.

[jbangelo]

Thanks for the lovely feedback, magickhands, lil innocent, and Asabetha! You all make me smile.

Part 4

Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god. Did that really just happen? Did I just walk in on a naked Kyle Valenti? Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god. As if things weren’t awkward enough between us already. Now we could add peep show to the mix.

“Isabel! Isabel!” I heard him call and he opened the door, this time fully clothed in jeans and a t-shirt.

“Kyle, oh my god, I’m so sorry,” I blushed and looked at the floor. “I’m sorry, I should have knocked.”

“No, no, it’s not your fault. I should have locked the door or gotten dressed in the bathroom.”

“Well, I’m…uh…I’m gonna go help Max with dinner. The bedroom is all yours,” I said and quickly slinked away from him. This could not possibly be happening. Had I just wandered into some alternate universe within the last week? First Kyle admits he has feelings for me, then we end up having to share a room, and now I’m walking in on him in the buff. At this point, things couldn’t get much weirder.

I made my way back to the kitchen and dodged Max’s questions as to why I decided against my nap. As I chopped vegetables for a salad, my mind reeled. I had just seen Kyle Valenti naked. Kyle Valenti. Naked. The words just repeated over and over in my mind. And the really strange this was, I liked what I saw. I reddened at the thought. I had known Kyle for years and always just thought of him as my friend, Kyle. My pal. My confidant. My sounding board. He was the one I went to when I was dreaming of Kivar before my wedding. He was the one I wanted to spend New Year’s with when Jesse was stuck in Houston. He was the one who helped me through the very rough end of Junior year after Alex died. But I had never even looked at him in that way. I already knew how he felt about me, but the question was, how did I feel about him?

Around 6:00, the six of us squeezed all together at the small, round dining room table for our first meal in our new house. I tried to decide where to sit. If I sat next to Kyle, we would be bumping arms all through dinner. If I sat across from him, I would spend the entire meal avoiding his gaze. I finally opted for the first choice and sat next to him. Bumping arms was better than having to look him in the eye. Just as we were beginning to eat, Max tapped his fork on his glass to get our attention.

“A toast, Maxwell?” Michael asked and snickered slightly.

Max laughed lightly. “I just wanted to say a few things now that we’re all here together. I know the past few weeks have been anything but ideal,” he started. “We’re all away from home for the first time in our lives and that’s scary for all of us. But I just want to say that the five of you here in this room mean more to me than anything in the world. Wherever we go, I know everything will be okay because I have all of you. You guys are my home. I love you all.”

No words needed to be spoken after that. We knew, and Max knew, that the rest of us felt the same way. I quickly wiped away the tear that started to fall from my eye, and I saw that Maria and Liz had gotten a little teary too. Liz reached out and squeezed Max’s hand and gave him a light kiss on the lips.

“Well,” Max smiled, “with that being said, let’s eat.”

The rest of the meal was just light chatter—Max telling everyone a little bit about what we’d seen in town earlier, and Maria talking about something funny she’d seen on TV. I stayed quiet mostly, lost in my own thoughts.

After dinner, I decided to take a walk before it got dark. Michael didn’t like the idea of me going out alone, but I assured him that I could take care of myself. I just needed to be by myself for a while, and I wanted to take a look at the neighboring area.

I headed down the sidewalk and just took everything in. The surrounding area was mostly other small houses like ours, very well-kept. The street wasn’t very busy, but then this didn’t seem like a very busy town. I was still torn as to whether or not I thought it was a good idea for us to be staying somewhere as small as this. If whoever tried to kill us back in Roswell was still looking for us, we could easily be found in such a small place. But then again, the town was so small and obscure, that they probably wouldn’t even come across it. All we could really do was bide our time and be extra careful.

I had rounded a couple of blocks and was heading back to the house when I ran into our very handsome next door neighbor. He was out in his front yard with the cutest little black lab puppy. “Hi there,” he said, flashing me a gorgeous smile.

“Hi,” I smiled back.

“I’m Daniel,” he said, extending his arm. “You must be new to the neighborhood.”

“Isabel,” I said, taking his hand and shaking it. “Yeah, we just moved in, today actually.”

I noticed a small U-Haul truck in his drive. “Are you just moving in too?” I asked.

“Moving out, actually. But just to the other side of town. This place was getting too big for just me and Lucky,” he said, gesturing toward the dog, “so I’m moving to a smaller place.”

Daniel and I chatted for a while. It turned out that he owned the grocery store that Max and I had done our shopping at earlier. He had lived in this town his entire life and was aching to get out.

“I know that feeling,” I said.

“Yeah? Where are you from?”

“Just another small town,” I answered vaguely, not wanting to reveal too much to this stranger. Although he seemed perfectly harmless.

“Listen,” he said, “I’m off of work tomorrow, and I would love to show you around town. Maybe take you out to dinner. Are you up for that?”

I thought about it for a minute. Max and Michael wouldn’t like it one bit, I was sure. It was too dangerous to let anyone new into our lives. And what about Kyle? This guy was obviously flirting. But then, why did it matter to me what Kyle thought? I quickly tried to shake the thought of him from my head.

Against my better judgment, I accepted his offer. I told him that I would come over to his place around 11:00, because I knew I would never hear the end of it if he picked me up. I said goodnight and went into the house.

We spent the rest of the night watching a movie in the living room. I didn’t tell anyone about my date with Daniel. I had to figure out how I was going to get out of the house without having to answer too many questions.

Around 10:30, Michael and Maria retreated to their room, and Max and Liz were soon to follow, leaving Kyle and me alone in the darkened room. I was about to get up and go get ready for bed when Kyle called my name.

“We need to talk,” he said.

“I know,” I said, turning to look at him. It was the first time I’d look at his face since earlier that afternoon when I’d walked into our room and gotten the view of a lifetime.

He cleared his throat. “I hate the way things have been between us since that night in your motel room. I’m sorry if I freaked you out—that wasn’t my intent.”

“No, Kyle, I’m sorry,” I responded. “You were just being honest. I’m sorry I’ve been so weird.”

“I just want you to know how important your friendship is to me,” he took my hand in his as he spoke. “I would count myself one of the luckiest guys in the world if there was ever anything more between us, but I’d rather have your friendship than nothing at all. So please don’t shut me out.”

“Your friendship means a lot to me too.” I didn’t know what else to say. I was so conflicted about my feelings for Kyle. Part of me thought that maybe, there was the possibility of a relationship for us, but the other part of me was afraid. Afraid of what, I wasn’t quite sure. I looked up at him, and there was that gaze again. I had never realized what intense eyes he had. It was like he was looking inside me, and could read my every thought. I looked back into his eyes, to see if maybe I could read him. The world seemed to stand still as we both sat there, not speaking, just looking. Our faces were very slowly moving closer together, and then…I did it.

[jbangelo]

Thanks for the feedback lil innocent and magikhands! Your questions will all be answered soon, I promise.

Part 5

I pulled away. Something about the moment just didn’t feel right. I had this feeling in my gut that kissing him would be a mistake. “No, Kyle, we can’t do this,” I said, shaking my head.

He got up from the couch, slightly embarrassed, I could tell. He paced the room a little bit and sighed loudly, running his hand through his hair. “You’re right, you’re right,” he said. “I’m sorry.”

“Kyle, stop apologizing, please,” I begged him. I got up from the couch myself and went and stood in front of him. “Listen, I meant what I said. Your friendship is so important to me, and if I ever lost that…” my voice trailed off.

“Hey, hey! You’re never going to lose my friendship, Iz. I’m not going anywhere.”

I nodded and a lone tear rolled down my cheek. I wasn’t quite sure why I was getting so upset. All the emotions that were bottled up inside me were just swirling up into one gigantic mess, confusing the hell out of me.

“Oh, now don’t do that,” Kyle said, reaching up to wipe the tear from my face. “We’ll always be friends. No matter what. Okay?” He put his hands on my shoulders and looked into my eyes. Surprisingly, his touch sent little shivers down my spine. I told myself it was just the intensity of the moment. His deep blue eyes searched my face for some sort of response.

I simply nodded again and said, “I know.” Kyle then wrapped his arms around me into a tight hug. I returned the gesture, and hoped that this meant things could go back to normal between us. Until Kyle pulled away and said, “Ready to go to bed?”

Damn. I had almost forgotten about that. We still had to spend every night side by side in the same bed. That was far from normal. But what could I do? I couldn’t very well make him sleep on the couch. So I sucked it up, nodded, and headed towards the bedroom.

I awoke sometime in the middle of the night to the sound of Kyle tossing and turning. “Kyle?” I mumbled sleepily and rolled over to face him. “Are you okay?”

He looked back at me for a moment before simply responding, “No.”

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

He didn’t say anything and silently reached out his hand to brush a stray strand of hair out of my face. And before I even realized what was happening, his lips were on mine. The touch was soft at first, but became more urgent. To my own shock and surprise, I hungrily reciprocated the kiss. Our tongues intertwined with each other, exploring each other. I felt Kyle’s hand move to my waist and I flinched slightly at his touch. He pulled my body closer to his and moved his kisses down my neck and shoulder. I ran my hand up his smooth, muscular arm and around to his back.

Our kisses became more urgent as we continued to explore each other’s bodies. I let out a small gasp when I felt his hand slip underneath my nightshirt and begin to caress my breast. His touch was mesmerizing. I couldn’t believe this was happening. However, I began to lose all conscious thought when he lifted my shirt over my head and pressed me to his own naked chest. The feel of skin on skin was intoxicating, and I knew there was no turning back.

All of a sudden, I was startled by the sound of a slamming door. My heart skipped a beat and I instinctively sat upright. “What? What is it?” I heard Kyle mumble groggily. It was then that I realized he was still half asleep and we were both fully clothed. It had all been a dream.

[jbangelo]

Thanks for the fb, lil innocent and magikhands! I'm glad you guys are enjoying the story.

Part 6

The next morning, Max, Michael, and Kyle went out early to go see about getting another vehicle—something small and cheap, so we wouldn’t all have to continue sharing the van. They were also going to look into possible jobs. I opted to stay home since I was supposed to go out with Daniel. I was actually relieved that the guys wouldn’t be around, and I wouldn’t have to answer any questions. Liz was still in decorating mode, and when I got up, I found her and Maria rearranging the furniture in the living room.

“Morning, Isabel,” Liz said cheerfully when she saw me. “Hey, can you give us a hand with the couch?”

“Yeah, sure,” I answered and helped them lift the heavy couch and move it in front of the large window that overlooked the front yard. We then moved each of the end tables to either side of the couch, and set the coffee table in front of it.

“I think that’ll do it,” Liz said with satisfaction, placing her hands on her hips. She and Maria then plopped down on the couch, looking tired. I sat down in the armchair.

“How long have you two been up doing this?” I asked.

Liz looked at the clock. It read 10:00. “Oh, I guess about an hour. We just rearranged stuff in here and in the kitchen.” She sighed and looked around the room, then settled her gaze back on me. “Are you okay, Iz? You look a little flushed. Did you sleep okay?”

I felt more color rise to my face as I remembered my dream. I did have a hard time getting back to sleep after that. “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.” I tried to keep my voice steady.

“She’s right,” Maria said, looking at me. “You don’t look so good. What’s wrong?”

I hesitated. Should I tell them? It really would be nice to get some of this off my chest. I mean, they were technically my “girlfriends,” and wasn’t this the kind of thing that girlfriends shared?

I looked around to ensure that we were, in fact, alone. Then I leaned in a little closer to them and lowered my voice. “I had a dream about Kyle last night.”

“What kind of dream?” Maria asked suspiciously.

Geez. She wasn’t going to make this easy on me. “You know,” I said, getting a little flustered. “You know, a—uh—a…” I couldn’t make myself say it.

“A sex dream?!” Maria’s mouth gaped open, and then she giggled.

“You had a sex dream about Kyle?” Liz asked, equally shocked.

“Ssssssssshhhhhhhhhhh! Keep your voices down!”

“Oh, please, the guys aren’t here,” Maria said. “It’s just us girls. Now tell us everything.” She looked like a kid in a candy store. I couldn’t figure why she found it so interesting. Didn’t she have her own sex life to indulge in? I was starting to regret telling them.

“Maria! Don’t be so nosy!” Liz came to my aid, although I could tell by the look on her face that she wanted details too.

“There’s not much to tell really. A door slam woke me up before it got to the—uh—the good part.” I could feel my face turning bright red.

“Oh, yeah, that was Michael,” Maria shook her head. “He was trying to shut our bedroom door and couldn’t get it to latch so he slammed it. You know how these old houses are. Too bad for you, though.” She grinned mischievously.

“Okay, I’m not telling you two anything else!” I got up from the chair and started to leave the room.

“Oh, come on, Isabel, I’m kidding! Come back!” Maria pleaded. “Besides, it’s perfectly normal to have erotic dreams about someone you’re close to.”

“You think so?” I asked. Was she right? Because I sure as hell didn’t know what to make of the dream. I didn’t know if it meant that I was attracted to Kyle, or if it meant I had feelings for him, or if it was just some random dream. Although, I had done enough dreamwalking in my day to know that most dreams were definitely not random. So what did it mean?

“Absolutely,” Liz agreed with her. “It’s nothing to be embarrassed about.”

In order to escape the conversation, I agreed with them. Then I told them that I was going out for a while.

“Where are you going?” Maria asked.

I hesitated again. But telling them I had a date would be a piece of cake compared to what I just shared. “Okay, please don’t tell the guys, but I’m going out with the guy who lives next door. I met him while I was out walking last night.”

“You have a date?” Maria asked incredulously. “We just got here yesterday!”

“Well, it’s not really a date, per say. He offered to show me around town. And he seems perfectly nice, so…”

“Isabel, you’d better be careful. You know what Max and Michael would…” Liz started but I cut her off.

“I know very well what Max and Michael would say; that’s why I don’t want you to tell them. Look, it’s nothing really. He’s just going to show me around town and take me to dinner. It’s perfectly innocent.”

“If you say so,” Maria said, and with that, the subject was dropped. I headed back to my room to get ready for my “date.” Inside, I was kicking myself for telling Liz and Maria. Although, I knew I could trust them not to tell the guys. As I was getting dressed, thoughts of the previous night’s dream crept into my head. It had been so real. It was almost as if I could still feel his hands on me. And God, it had felt so good. I shook my head. What is the matter with you, Isabel? Why can’t you stop thinking about him?

But I couldn’t. And it was more than just the dream I was thinking about. I was starting to imagine what it would be like to be in a relationship with Kyle. I knew Kyle was the kind of guy who would make a girl feel like a queen. But no, it would be too weird. We were friends. Friends. I hammered the word into my brain. I made it perfectly clear to him last night that that was all we were. And he seemed to accept that. So I just had to make these thoughts of him go away. I turned on my stereo and cranked the music up really loud in the hopes that my favorite Sister Hazel song would distract me from my thoughts. It seemed to work as I sang along with the CD while I finished getting ready.

At 11:00 sharp, I was standing on Daniel’s front stoop ringing the doorbell. He invited me in, and we chatted for a few minutes before getting into his truck to head into town. He gave me the grand tour, first taking me down Main Street, which consisted of a drug store, the post office, a beauty parlor, and a few small restaurants. He also took me to some other sections of town—a park, the high school, and some of the other residential areas.

He made small talk as we made our way through town, and I tried my best to hold up my end of the conversation. But it wasn’t working very well because I could not stop thinking about Kyle. Damnit! Why couldn’t I get him out of my head? Here I was, with this perfectly charming, nice young man, and I couldn’t will myself to give him my full attention. I found myself wishing I were sitting in that truck with Kyle, spending the day with him.

I managed to survive the day with Daniel, trying my best to keep the conversation going through our meal. We stopped at a small diner around 4:00 to eat, since Daniel needed to get back home and finish packing. That was really a good thing, since I was ready for this day to be over. Not that I was having a bad time or anything, I just couldn’t concentrate on him.

After we ate, he drove back to his house and I prepared to head home. I saw the van in our driveway, which meant that the guys were back home and would probably ask questions about where I had been.

“Well, this has been fun,” Daniel said as we prepared to part ways.

“Yeah. Thanks for everything,” I said.

“I hate that you moved in as soon as I’m moving out,” he said. “I’ll actually probably be out of the house in a couple of days.” He grabbed a pen and paper from the glovebox. “But here’s my number at my new place,” he said, scribbling his digits on the paper. “Give me a call sometime.”

“Okay, thanks,” I said, and took the paper from him. I was surprised he even wanted to see me again after I had acted so disinterested all day.

We said our goodbyes and I headed inside the house. I walked in the back door into the kitchen and was greeted with silence. Good, I thought, maybe I can get by without getting the third degree. I looked at the piece of paper in my hand with Daniel’s phone number on it. Then I tore it into tiny pieces and threw it in the trashcan. I knew I would not be needing it. I had things I needed to sort through.

I walked through the living room and found it empty. Where was everyone? I headed to my room and found Kyle folding some laundry. “Hey,” he said. “There you are.”

“Hey. How was your day?” I asked him. I was glad he didn’t ask me where I’d been.

“Good, actually. I got a job.”

“You did? Kyle, that’s great!”

“Yeah, at the local mechanic. I just stopped by there while we were out today, and they happened to have an opening. Since I have a lot of experience, the guy hired me on the spot. I start tomorrow.”

“Kyle, I’m so happy for you,” I said, smiling. It would really be good for Kyle—for all of us—to have something to throw ourselves into. “What about Max and Michael?” I asked. “Did they find anything?”

“They filled out a few applications. It’ll be a few days before they hear anything.”

“Well, I’m really glad you found something that you’ll enjoy,” I said, and hugged him, because it felt like a moment that warranted hugging. But his touch sent shivers down my spine. I couldn’t believe the effect he was having on me. Only a month ago, I wouldn’t have given Kyle Valenti a second thought. Now the mere thought of him made me all warm and tingly. Isabel Evans, what is the matter with you?

Surprisingly, I survived the rest of the evening without any questions from Max and Michael about my whereabouts for the day. Liz and Maria must have made up some excuse for me. I made a mental note to thank them later.

That night, after everyone had withdrawn to his or her respective corners of the house, Kyle and I got to talking. Not really about anything in particular—just another one of those long, deep conversations like that first night in my hotel room. I was glad that, for the most part, the awkwardness between us seemed to be gone. But there was no denying that I was definitely starting to develop some sort of feelings for Kyle. But I was so ambivalent as to what I wanted. Part of me wanted a relationship with him, but the other part felt like it was too soon—that I needed some time to myself. I mean, it had only been a month or so since I had left Jesse behind in Roswell—and things were left so up in the air between us. I just didn’t know what to do.

Kyle and I finally turned in shortly after midnight. I fell asleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow, and slept for a peaceful—and dreamless—eight hours.

I woke up feeling refreshed, and headed into the kitchen for some breakfast. Kyle was getting ready to leave for his first day at his new job.

“Morning,” he said. “I was just getting ready to leave.”

“Well, have a good first day,” I said and smiled.

“Thanks. I’ll see you later.” And with that, he was out the door.

As soon as he shut the door, I noticed that he had left the keys hanging on the hook next to the door. I grabbed them and followed him outside. “Kyle! You forgot the keys!”

“Oh, yeah, might need those,” he blushed and chuckled. “Thanks.”

“Sure,” I said, handing the keys to him. Our hands brushed each other and I felt that tingle again. I looked into those intense eyes of his and could tell he felt it too.

“Have a good day,” I said and gulped.

“You said that already.”

“Yeah,” I said, still looking into his eyes.

And then it happened. I leaned into him and touched my lips to his. Our lips softly brushed against each other, parting ever so slightly. The kiss was short but intense. It was everything you imagine a first kiss to be—soft, slow, and just…perfect.

We pulled apart and Kyle simply looked at me with a smile. His whole face was smiling. I think mine probably was too. “See you later,” he said quietly, and got into the van.

I headed back into the house, closing the door behind me and sighing heavily. Wow. That was the only word coming to mind. Wow.

Then, all of a sudden, it hit me like a ton of bricks. I just kissed Kyle. Kissed. Kyle. Me. Kyle. Kissing. And then, I got this feeling in the pit of my stomach that I had just made a huge mistake.

[jbangelo]

Thanks for the fb, lil innocent and magikhands! Also, let me go ahead and apologize in advance for the fact that this fic doesn't really touch much on the fact that Isabel is technically still married. I have a sequel in the works that will deal more with that.

Part 7

My heart was pounding in my chest. How could I possibly have been so impulsive? Kissing Kyle would give him the impression that I wanted a relationship, and I wasn’t sure that I did. What if I ended up hurting him? I didn’t have the greatest track record when it came to guys, and what if Kyle was the next victim in my string of failed romances? I cared about him too much to put him through that. But it was too late, because I had already kissed him. Man, I have screwed up royally this time.

I was jarred out of my thoughts by Liz coming into the kitchen. “Isabel—just the person I was looking for,” she said. She must have noticed the look on my face, because then she asked, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” I said, not quite ready to divulge what had just happened. “What’s up?”

“Well, I was thinking. You seemed to enjoy going to the community college back in Roswell, right?”

“It was okay, I guess. Why?”

“Well, how would you feel about enrolling in the college here? I found some information on the Internet and it looks like they have some pretty good programs.”

“Yeah?” I asked. “Are you going to enroll?”

“Well, it’s no Northwestern,” she replied, slightly rolling her eyes. “But I’d really like to try it. And I thought that you might want to as well…you know, continue what you started. Registration starts in a couple of weeks, and we could start in the fall semester.”

I thought about it for a minute. It actually sounded like a really good idea. Even though we had no idea how long we’d be staying here, it couldn’t hurt to give it a shot. “Okay, yeah, that sounds like a good idea.”

“Great!” Liz looked very excited. “I’ll get some more information on registration and I’ll let you know what I find, okay?”

Later that afternoon, Liz, Maria, and I sent Max and Michael to the video store to rent some movies while we perused the course catalog for the college that Liz had found online.

“Get something good!” Maria called to them as they were walking out the door.

“We’re not getting any stupid chick flicks!” Michael called back.

“Fine! Just don’t come back here with Braveheart or The Matrix!” She turned to us. “I swear I will scream if he makes me watch either of those movies again.”

We spent the next hour looking through the course catalog. Maria decided that she wanted to try out the college thing too. Liz suggested that we try to take one class all together, and Maria and I agreed that would be good.

It got to be after 5:00 and Max and Michael still hadn’t returned from the video store. “What is taking them so long?” Maria wondered. “It can’t be that hard to pick out a movie.”

Just then we heard the back door open, and my heart leapt into my throat when I saw that it was Kyle. He looked exhausted after his long day at work.

“Hey, Kyle, how was your first day?” Liz asked him.

“Long,” he said. “I’d tell you all about it, but I’m dying for a shower.”

“Okay,” Liz said and smiled.

Kyle’s eyes then caught mine and we shared a momentary look. He simply smiled and said, “Hey.”

“Hey,” I responded, and I could feel the heat rising to my face.

He then headed to the bathroom, and I realized that Liz and Maria were both staring at me.

“Okay, what was that?” Maria asked.

“What?”

“That little look you two just shared.”

“What look? There was no look.”

“Oh, there was definitely a look,” she scoffed. “Liz, you saw it didn’t you?”

“Yeah, Isabel, I saw it too. What’s going on?”

I was saved from the tortuous conversation when Max and Michael finally got back from the store. “Max, Michael, you’re back!” I said, and got up to go greet them. Maria shot me a look that told me she wasn’t through with questioning me, and I knew I’d had to ‘fess up eventually.

“What took you guys so long?” Liz asked.

“Yeah, and what movies did you get?” Maria asked.

“Well, we actually didn’t get any movies,” Max replied.

“Then where have you been?” I asked.

“We got something better,” Michael said, smiling mischievously. “Check it out.”

We followed them outside and I was shocked at what I saw sitting in the bed of the truck.

“A foosball table?!” I looked at both of them incredulously. “Are you insane?”

“What, you don’t like it?” Michael asked.

“We send you out for movies and you come back with a foosball table?!” I couldn’t believe it. This was such typical guy behavior. And I had never really pegged Max and Michael as typical guys.

“All right!” I heard a voice behind me. Kyle had joined us outside and was just as excited as Max and Michael about the table.

“We passed by this pawn shop on the way to the video store and saw it in the window,” Max said. “It was really cheap, and it’ll be a fun thing to have around the house.”

I looked over at Maria and Liz, who were simply smiling and shaking their heads. Then I looked back at the guys and saw them excitedly unloading the table from the back of the truck. They were like little kids. It was almost cute. And I just couldn’t be mad anymore.

They got the table into the house and set it up in a corner in the living room. It was really an eye sore, but, hell, it wasn’t like we were going to be having any visitors. They played for what seemed like hours. I even played a couple of games myself, but we all decided that I officially sucked at foosball.

Later that night, I was in my room trying to situate some of my things—just putting away some things that I had not yet unpacked. I was on the stepladder putting some boxes on the top shelf of the closet, when I felt myself lose my footing. My heart skipped a beat as I started to fall, but right at that moment, Kyle entered the room and ran to my aid. He caught me in his muscular arms and I gasped at the feel of his embrace. I looked at him and stood upright. “Are you okay?” he asked.

“I’m fine. Thank you.”

“You should be more careful,” he said, still looking into my eyes. He reached out his hand and brushed away the hair that had fallen into my face. His hand brushed my cheek, and I could feel the electricity surge through me. Our faces slowly inched closer together until our lips were touching. The kiss was short, just like the one from that morning, but just as intense. We pulled apart and I broke our gaze and looked at the floor. I felt awkward, but I wasn’t really sure why. This whole situation was just slightly weird, for lack of a better word. I cleared my throat and broke the silence. “Well, I think I’m gonna go to bed.” It was a lame excuse, I knew, but I didn’t know what else to say.

“Yeah, yeah, it is getting late, and I’ve got to go back to work tomorrow.”

I got ready for bed and settled under the covers and tried not to think about Kyle lying right next to me, which was very difficult since he was lying right next to me. My mind was swirling with so many thoughts, but mostly I wondered what he was thinking. How did he really feel about me? How did he feel about the kisses we had shared? How did he feel about this whole situation?

And then it hit me. I don’t know why I hadn’t thought of it before. I could dreamwalk him. That could at least give me somewhat of an idea as to what was going on in his head. I waited until I was sure he was asleep and then I got up to get my yearbook and found his picture. I studied it for a moment before drifting of to sleep myself.

Just as I thought would be the case, Kyle was dreaming about me. He was dreaming about our encounter from earlier that morning, when we had shared our first kiss. I saw the two of us standing beside the van. We had our arms around each other in a passionate embrace. The dream kiss that we were sharing looked to be a little more fervent than the one we had actually had. Then I saw Kyle pull away and look deep into my eyes. “Isabel,” he said, “I think I’m falling in love with you.”

[jbangelo]

Thanks for the fb, lil innocent, magikhands, and kitkat405!

Part 8

I awoke with a start. Was it possible? Kyle was falling in love with me? I never imagined that his feelings ran that deep. I looked over at him sleeping soundly, looking so content.

Dozens of thoughts jumbled around in my head. Was it possible for us to be a couple? Wouldn’t that be weird? And what if things didn’t work out? Would it ruin our friendship? What would everyone else think? What if I ended up hurting Kyle? Was I even ready for another relationship? And if I were, would it turn out any differently than the others?

I didn’t get back to sleep until almost dawn, so when I finally woke up, Kyle was already gone for work. When I got up, I noticed a folded piece of paper on the dresser with my name on it. I gingerly picked it up and read what it said.

Isabel,
We’re still in that kind of awkward phase, so I thought I would just write this down. I’m crazy about you. I have been for much longer than you probably even realize. But I know that you’re scared, or nervous, or whatever, and I understand that. But you deserve to be happy, Iz. And if you’ll let me, I will do everything in my power to make sure that you are. If that means us being together, then I would consider myself the luckiest guy around. But if not, I will respect that. Just know that I’m always here, whether it is as your friend or something more.
Kyle

My hands were shaking as I finished reading the letter, and I could feel the tears forming in my eyes. I never knew that Kyle was capable of such beautiful words. When I thought about it, there was quite a bit I didn’t know about Kyle. And I wanted to find out.

Then my insecurities took over. Isabel, you’re crazy. You could never make things work with Kyle. You’re just going to end up hurting him like you do everyone else. He deserves better than you. He deserves better than this life.

I tried to shake the thoughts from my head, but they kept taunting me. I had to do something to get my mind off things. I decided a shopping trip was in order.

I also decided that it was time to let Liz and Maria in on what was going on. Besides, I really needed some advice from the girls. I was finally getting tired of keeping it all bottled up inside. I went and found them and they jumped at the idea of a girls’ day out.

Max and Michael wanted to go out too, mostly to look for more job opportunities, so they agreed to drop us at the mall. Well, it wasn’t really a mall—more like a shopping center. It was tiny, just like the rest of the town.

We first stopped for lunch at a trendy-looking little café, and I decided it was time to spill the beans. I told them about the kisses, and the dream, and the letter…everything. I told them how confused and insecure I was. I think it was the most information I had divulged to them since we had met.

“So, what do you think I should do?” I asked them after I finally finished.

“Wow, Isabel, I really don’t know what to tell you,” Liz said. “I mean, I think it would be great if you and Kyle could make it work, but getting involved with a friend can be tricky.”

“Yeah, but it can also lead to a really great relationship,” Maria pointed out. “Think about it—you’ve already got that foundation. If things didn’t work out, that bond would more than likely still be there.”

“Or it could be ruined,” Liz said.

“I’ve already considered all of that,” I told them. “And it’s gotten me no closer to figuring all this out.”

“Isabel, we can’t tell you what you should do,” Liz said, giving me a sympathetic look. “You have to figure that out on your own. I know that’s no help, but you’re just going to have to do some soul searching and decide what you want. But you know that whatever you decide to do, we’re behind you—one hundred percent.”

“Yeah, and we’re always here to listen,” Maria said, nodding. “I mean, come on, what are girlfriends for?”

I smiled. They were right, I did need to figure this out by myself, but it was nice to be able to talk openly about it. “Thanks guys,” I said. “And listen, I know I don’t say it enough, or even at all really, but I love you.”

“Right back at ya, girl,” Maria said, and Liz nodded in agreement.

After lunch, we browsed around the shopping center and found a couple of nice stores. Maria actually came across one clothing store that was looking for help, so she filled out an application and convinced me to complete one too. Liz declined, saying she wanted to be able to concentrate on school once it started. The manager on duty told us that we would probably get a call in a couple of days, after the applications were processed.

We got back home later that afternoon and I was pretty tired. I decided to go lay down for a little while since I had gotten so little sleep the night before. I walked into my room and dropped my shopping bags on the floor. I then noticed a small movement out of the corner of my eye. I looked up and nearly fell over from shock when I saw who was sitting at the foot of my bed.

[jbangelo]

Thanks for the fb, lil innocent and kitkat!

Part 9

“Alex!”

“Hi, Isabel,” he said and smiled.

“What are you doing here?”

“You should know,” he said matter-of-factly. “I am merely a representation of your subconscious. I come when you need me.”

I sighed heavily and sat down next to him. “I just don’t know what to do, Alex. I mean, part of me feels like this is all happening so fast. But I can definitely feel something there—like something is telling me that this is right.”

Just then Kyle entering the room startled me. “Hey,” he said. “Were you talking to someone?” he asked, looking at me curiously.

I looked over at Alex, knowing that Kyle couldn’t see him, and shook my head. “No, I’m just…no.”

“Oh, okay,” he responded and didn’t question me further. “How was your day?”

I suddenly felt uncomfortable standing in that tiny room with Kyle and Alex. I don’t know why I felt that way, because I obviously knew that Alex was only a figment of my imagination. And even though I was developing feelings for Kyle, there was a small part of my heart that would always belong to Alex Whitman.

“Um, it was good. Maria and I applied for jobs at a clothing store in the mall.”

“Oh, that’s good,” he said. “I wanna hear all about it, but first I’m gonna go take a shower.”

“Okay,” I said. I could tell by the look on his face that wanted to hear about more than just my day. I remembered the letter from the morning.

After Kyle left the room, I turned back to Alex. “Come on,” I said. “Let’s go talk out on the porch.”

Alex followed me outside to the front porch and we sat down in the two plastic lawn chairs that were there.

“So what’s the problem, Isabel?” Alex asked me. “Kyle is obviously crazy about you. And I know you feel it too.”

“It’s not that simple. Alex, look at me. I’m almost twenty years old and I’ve never been able to make a relationship work. What if I end up hurting him?”

“Isabel, you and I both know that’s not what this is about. You’re not afraid of hurting him. You’re afraid of getting hurt yourself. You’re afraid that if you truly let someone in, you’re just going to be let down. And it’s okay to be afraid—but you can’t let it keep you from being happy. And I think you know that Kyle would make you happy.”

“But…” I started but he immediately cut me off.

“Isabel, why are you fighting this? Why do you do this to yourself? And most importantly—why are you so afraid to let yourself be happy?”

I sat in silence when the realization of his last question hit me. Why was I so afraid to let myself be happy? Alex was right (as usual), I knew that Kyle would make me happy. I don’t know how I knew—I just did.

“So what should I do?” I asked.

“I think you know what to do,” Alex said simply, and flashed me one of those adorable smiles that I remembered so well.

I returned the smile and was interrupted from my thoughts when Max came out on the porch. “Hey, are you okay?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” I said. “Just wanted to enjoy the evening breeze.”

“Oh, okay. Well, we’re gonna order a pizza for dinner. You want some?”

“Yeah, sure,” I said. “I’ll be in in a minute.”

“Okay,” he said and went back inside. When I turned back around, Alex was gone.

[jbangelo]

Thanks for the fb, magik, Kari, and Reggie!

Well, this is it, the final part. I apologize if the ending feels a little rushed, but when I was finishing writing this, it was right at the beginning of my final semester of college, and I was trying to get this thing finished before school took over my life! But I want to thank you all for reading faithfully and leaving such wonderful responses! You make me blush. I do have a few ideas rolling around in my head for a sequel, so I will hopefully start getting that down soon. So thanks, and I hope you enjoy the conclusion!

Part 10

Later that evening, after we had all eaten and everyone was getting settled in for the night, I decided I should probably go talk to Kyle. I found him in our room watching TV.

“Hey,” I said.

“Hey,” he replied. I noticed that he was rubbing his neck with a frown on his face.

“Are you okay?” I asked him.

“My neck and back are just really sore from work, that’s all. I’ll be fine.”

Without even thinking about what I was saying, I offered to give him a backrub.

“Really? That would be great,” he said.

It was when he took his shirt off that the awkwardness of the situation hit me. I had gone in there with the intent of talking about us, and was going to end up giving a massage to a very shirtless (and very sexy) Kyle. All of a sudden, the image of him naked popped into my head. To take my mind off of it, I asked him to tell me about his job while I rubbed his shoulders.

But while he talked, all I did was think about what it would be like to just throw him down on the bed and ravish him. Damnit Isabel! I chided myself. Stop it. Stop it. Stop it. But there was no denying it. I wanted him. And not just physically. My talk with Alex earlier that afternoon had pretty much helped me make up my mind. I wanted to be with Kyle. I just didn’t know how to go about telling him.

“Wow, that feels really good,” Kyle commented after I’d been rubbing his back for about twenty minutes or so.

“So when is it my turn?” The words left my mouth before I even realized what I was saying. Oh my god. Was I flirting?

Not surprisingly, Kyle took me seriously. “Switch,” he said.

I simply turned around so that my back was facing him. I didn’t say a word—I was speechless. Then I felt his hands on my shoulders and my whole body shivered. His touch was amazing—firm but tender. I closed my eyes and allowed myself to fully relax beneath his hands.

“There, are you happy now?” he said jokingly.

I froze when the realization of his words hit me. Alex’s words from earlier echoed in my mind. Why are you so afraid to let yourself be happy?

“Iz, are you okay?” Kyle asked. He must have felt me tense up.

I slowly turned around to face his questioning eyes. I looked at him and said plainly, “Yes, Kyle, I am unbelievably okay.”

Without a word, I reached out and touched his cheek. His hand immediately came to rest over mine. I moved my body closer to his and our lips met in a slow, seductive kiss. I parted my lips to allow his tongue to explore the inside of my mouth. His hand moved to my hip and I trembled at his touch. I ran my hands through his soft hair and our bodies moved closer together. Our kisses became more urgent. I knew there was no turning back. And I didn’t want to.

Our kiss broke and we looked into one another’s eyes. No words spoken between us; he knew exactly what I was thinking. “Are you sure?” he asked.

I nodded. I wanted him. I needed him. I had finally found what I was looking for. Someone to fill the void that had been in my heart for so long. He had been right under my nose the whole time.

He crushed his lips to mine in a kiss to end all kisses. Our hands roamed each other’s bodies with an urgency I had never before experienced. His hand slipped underneath my nightshirt and softly touched my breast. I gasped slightly at his touch, but then relaxed and allowed myself to succumb to his gentle touch. I ran my hands down his back, feeling the curve of his muscles and the softness of his skin.

The room seemed to heat up as we slowly began to undress each other. When the barrier of clothing had been removed, I leaned back to lie down on the bed. Kyle lay down beside me, pressing his lips to my neck. I could feel his hands all over me, softly caressing my legs and my thighs and my stomach. My hands explored his body as well, as he trailed kisses down my neck to my breasts. He softly flicked his tongue across my nipple, and I sighed in pleasure. At the same time, I felt his hand come to rest between my legs, and I arched my back when I felt him slide a finger inside me. I raked my fingers down his back as the intensity increased. He continued his motions until I felt like I couldn’t take it anymore. I moaned loudly as I felt the orgasm rush through me, and my whole body trembled.

Kyle looked into my eyes with that intense gaze that I had come to know so well. I smiled at him and captured his lips in another kiss. He moved so that he was on top of me. I ran my hands up and down his body, memorizing every part of it. Things once again began to heat up, and I moaned in anticipation. “Kyle…” I said breathily. He simply moaned in response and continued to kiss me. I moved my hand to his penis, and slowly guided it inside me. We both gasped at the initial feeling. I wrapped my legs around his waist, as we slowly found our rhythm.

“Oh god, Iz, you feel so good,” Kyle whispered in my ear. Hearing him say my name was such a turn-on, and our pace quickened slightly. I traced the outline of his ear with my tongue, and he trailed kisses down my neck and shoulders.

We both climaxed about ten minutes later. Kyle moaned in pleasure and my body once again trembled all over. He remained on top of me for a few minutes, breathing heavily, until he finally rolled over next to me, lying on his back. We lay in silence for a bit, waiting for our breathing to return to normal.

Kyle finally spoke. “That was…amazing,” he said.

I looked over at him to find him smiling. I smiled too. “It was,” I said, snuggling up next to him. He wrapped his arm around me and kissed the top of my head. We lay contentedly in each other’s embrace, eventually drifting off to sleep.

I awoke early the next morning to find Kyle’s arms still around me. I felt an amazing sense of security waking up next to him. I slowly got out of bed, being careful not to wake him, and headed to the bathroom for a shower.

As I was in the shower, my mind started to race. What were the others going to think? Liz and Maria already knew what was going on, so they wouldn’t be surprised, and I knew they would be happy for us. Max and Michael, on the other hand, were a different story. I felt quite certain that they wouldn’t object to our relationship—I mean, obviously Kyle already knew everything about us, and had been through the best and worst of times with us. But I wasn’t sure what their initial reaction would be. They knew nothing of what had been going on between us, so it would probably come as a big shock to them.

I finished my shower and got dressed, and headed back to my room to find Kyle up and awake. “Morning,” he said, smiling.

“Morning.” I felt like a schoolgirl the way my heart fluttered upon seeing him. I greeted him with a soft good morning kiss and sat down on the bed.

“So I was thinking,” I told him, “we’re gonna have to tell the others.”

The color rushed to his face, and I realized what that must have sounded like. “Oh, no, not about last night,” I said, giggling. “I mean, about us. You know, that we’re a, uh, couple now.”

“So then we are a couple now?” he asked and smirked.

I hit him playfully on the arm, and we decided that it would be best to just come right out and tell everyone else right away. With all of us living in such close proximity, there was no use trying to hide it. I told Kyle that I would try to get everyone together for dinner that night, and we would tell them then.

Kyle had to go into work for a few hours, so I spent the afternoon thinking about what I was going to say to everyone, and how they were going to react. I was startled by the sound of the phone ringing.

“Hello?” I said when I picked it up.

“Hi, can I please speak with Isabel Evans?” a female voice asked.

“This is she,” I responded.

It was the woman from the clothing store where Maria and I had applied for jobs. She wanted me to come in for an interview as soon as possible. “But really, the interview is just a formality,” she said. “Your application was very impressive. I feel very confident that you will get the job.”

I thanked her, and handed the phone off to Maria, so she could schedule an interview as well. Maria chatted with her for a few minutes, and excitedly hugged me after she hung up. “Looks like we both might have a job!” she squealed happily.

I smiled with content. It felt like things were finally starting to go my way. I more than likely had a job, I was going to go back to school, and I had Kyle, and four other people who meant the world to me. I felt happier than I had in a long time.

That night, the six of us sat down to dinner together, and I gathered my wits so that I could make the announcement. “So, um,” I said nervously, and glanced over at Kyle, “Kyle and I have something we’d like to tell you all.”

They looked at us expectantly. I saw a smile cross Liz’s face, and I could tell she already knew what our news was.

“Well, what is it?” Michael asked.

“Um,” I cleared my throat. “We’re—uh—we are together now,” I said quickly, and reached over to hold Kyle’s hand.

Max and Michael both just stared at us, neither of them saying a word. Then Michael finally spoke. “When the hell did this happen?” He didn’t really sound upset—just confused.

“When isn’t really important,” I said. “But we are together now, and we wanted you all to know.”

Michael looked like he was about to say something else, but Maria interjected quickly. “Well, I am so happy for you two,” she said, winking at me.

“We are too,” Liz piped in. “Right Max?” she asked, nudging him. He still hadn’t spoken a word.

Max looked at me, then at Kyle, then at me again. “Iz, if you’re happy, then I’m happy,” he said and smiled.

Michael cleared his throat. “Yeah. Same here.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. That had gone a lot better than I thought it would. “Thanks guys,” I said. “That really means a lot to me. To us.”

“Thanks.” Kyle echoed my sentiment.

I looked at him and we shared a smile. Then I looked around the table at Liz, Max, Maria, and Michael and smiled at them. They were my family and I didn’t know what I’d do without them. I looked back at Kyle, meeting his ever-intent gaze. He squeezed my hand, and for the first time in a long while, I felt like the world was mine.

<center>THE END</center>