16. Laid Back Saturday

Next Day

"We've got chicken, fish...we could grill them if you'd like and I'll make some greens to go with them. How does that sound?" I ask, turning to look at Delilah who's carefully packing away some glasses into the cabinet.

"Sounds good." She murmurs, never turning to even look at me as she stretches up to continue her task.

It's the middle of the afternoon on a Saturday and we're basically hanging around. We spent the entire morning cleaning up from the party last night. We finished about an hour ago and now we're working on preparing something to eat. I also have to make sure that the other guest bedrooms are made up since Rachel and Trace are coming in tomorrow.

But, it's nice having today all to ourselves with nothing to do. I hardly ever have these off days.

And, I'm kind of glad that I'm getting to spend it with Delilah.

Ignoring the little argument we had last night, I'm over it now. I hope she is too. I can understand her hesitation about coming out to visit me in California on our summer break but I wish she'd give it more consideration. I mean, we would have a blast. Trace and Rach would make sure of that. But I can't really try to convince Lilah about that again now. I'll have to wait a while before I can try again with her. She's can be weird sometimes.

"I'm going to set up the grill outside...you can just..." I pause when Delilah turns to look at me with a light smirk on her face. "Stay here, continue what you're doing." I mutter nervously while rubbing the back of my neck.

I'm slowly becoming aware of the fact that I tend to feel uneasy whenever she stares at me for long periods at a time. That never used to happen before. I'm not sure what it means, but it's almost like I've suddenly become self-conscious around her. In fact, whenever she looks at me like how she's staring now, I can't help but obsess over what's possibly passing through her mind. Hopefully, it's nothing bad.

"Aye aye captain." She mocks with a salute and I laugh lightly.

"Cute Lilah." I shake my head and quickly grab what I need to fire up the grill outside.

It doesn't take me long to get everything set up.

With Delilah's help, we were able to get the fish and chicken on the grill and now, I'm actually waiting on the last batch to get done.

Delilah went ahead and prepared the vegetables so in a few minutes, we should be eating.

"Damn I'm starving." I growl, rubbing my stomach with my free hand.

"Justin?"

"Yeah." I look up from where I'm standing in front of the grill close to the pool area. I notice that Delilah is holding the cordless phone in her grasp with a light frown on her face. "What's going on Lilah?" I ask cautiously.

"You have a call." She murmurs in a displeased tone before handing me the phone and disappearing back into the house.

I watch her retreating form before I take a step to the side and place the phone to my ear.

"Yes hello?"

"Justin? Who was that who answered the phone?"

Sighing, I pinch the bridge of my nose before moving to rest against the side of the house.

"Jess...hey." I say softly hearing her scoff on the line.

"Who was that Justin?" She questions again and I frown.

"Just a friend." I spit forcefully, hoping she'll get the hint to let it go.

"A friend huh? Ok." She says flatly.

"How did you...how did you even get this number Jess? And what do you want?" I ask curiously.

"Rachel gave it to me because I couldn't get you on your cell." She says timidly and I roll my eyes.

Thanks a lot Rach.

"Uh huh." I mumble, my eyes traveling towards the sliding doors that lead into the kitchen.

I watch intently as Delilah cleans up the kitchen and I smile softly, noting the apparent scowl on her cute face. Hmm, I wonder what Jess told her when she took the call.

"I just wanted to know when you were coming home for your summer break. I know Rach and Trace are coming to visit you for the remaining time you have in New York, but I was hoping that when you came to LA we could maybe catch up?" Jess says hopefully and I quickly snap out of my daydreaming.

"I uh..." I hesitate, not knowing what answer to give her. On one hand, I would like us to catch up and maybe clear things up between us, but, on the other hand, I'm not sure if I really want to deal with her on my break. I know that sounds bad but, Jessica can be a handful. "Sure uh...I should be home in two weeks. We'll see how things go. I'll be in touch." I say distractedly, still eyeing Delilah.

"Ok, because I was hoping that..."

But I tune Jess out when I notice Delilah trip and the stack of plates she had in her hands crash to the floor.

"Shit." I gasp, quickly heading towards the kitchen.

"Justin? Hello? What's wrong?"

"What? Oh um, nothing Jess. Listen, we'll talk some other time ok? I have to go now." I quickly rattle out.

"But I was..."

"Ok, cool, bye Jess." I quickly hang up and enter the kitchen, placing the phone down on a nearby counter. "So, miss clumsy, do you need help?" I chuckle with my arms folded across my chest as I gaze down at Delilah.

"I'm so sorry Justin." She whines on her hands and knees, carefully pushing the broken plates out of the way. "I have butter fingers or something." She giggles helplessly.

I'm tempted to laugh as I hover over her, taking in her distraught expression, but I quickly sober up when I notice how easily she could get hurt from cleaning up the mess she caused. "It's Ok. But hey, you could get cut Lilah, get up." I demand before leaning down and wrapping my arms around her waist. I force her to stand and face me and she looks up at me with a pout on her face.

"I'll buy them back." She assures and I laugh at her, brushing some of her hair out of her face.

"It's ok, they're just plates Lilah." I coo, taking in her gray-browns.

"But I broke them Justin. I should buy them back." She argues.

"Lilah, they're just plates." I reassure her but she shakes her head in protest.

"No. You can't make excuses for me every time I do something wrong, mess up or make a mistake Justin. You always brush things off and say it's ok, but it's not ok." She grunts angrily and I eye her strangely, remaining quiet for a while.

"Uh..." I pause in hesitation. "Are we still talking about the plates you broke?" I ask suspiciously.

"What?" Delilah gasps in shock. "Of course we are. Please, let me buy them back Justin. I'd feel better if I did." She divulges.

Somehow, I doubt she would. Plus, I don't want her wasting her money on something so trivial either.

"Would you just take my word for it and let it go?" I say more forcefully and Delilah sighs, clearly not in the mood to debate the issue.

"Ok, ok, fine you win. But I am sorry." She says almost in a whisper and I smile brightly.

"Forget about it." I grin. "Why don't you check the food on the grill and I'll clean up here ok? And then we can eat and hang out for the rest of the day." I suggest and she nods silently before excusing herself to head outside.

Sighing, I stare at the mess on the floor before passing my hands through my hair. Those plates were antics. They cost me a few hundred a piece and she managed to break at least seven.

Yet, I'm not mad. Not even a little. If anything, I was worried Lilah would have hurt herself on the shards when she attempted to clean them up.

Wow.

"I really need to get it together..."

**

Hours Later

"You gotta love the shit they get themselves into. I swear these guys are my inspiration for my bachelor party." I laugh loudly.

"That's so wrong Justin." Delilah snickers, smacking my arm playfully. "Your wife to be would have every reason to be worried then." She laughs.

"Lilah, it's the classic rule. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas." I chuckle. "Trust me I'd know." I quip and she curves a brow at me before shaking her head in amusement.

I grin brightly, shifting in my seat as we continue to watch the movie ‘Hangover' on DVD. This movie is hilarious and so true. It's a testament to the craziness that can happen to you if you get too carried away in Vegas. Yeah, I'm loving it.

Delilah and I are comfortably lazing on the couch in our pajamas after stuffing our stomachs with the food we prepared earlier.

Today turned out to be a laid back Saturday and I'm happy about that.

Ending the day with a movie is the perfect touch.

I'm not sure when it happened exactly, but the more time that goes by, the more I'm realizing that I'd love if Delilah was a permanent fixture in my life like my close family and friends.

I don't want us to lose touch with each other when our time at Higher Heights is over.

Most importantly, I want her to feel the same way.

Sometimes I'm not sure how she really feels about me.

She can be hot and cold and confusing as hell but if there's one thing I'm sure of, it's that we work well together. That's what I figured out about us. We may not make sense and our relationship may be unusual but it's endearing and fits us perfectly.

I'm kind of starting to think that maybe we were meant to meet up like this. I mean, the way everything happened wasn't planned, but I'm glad my life took the detour it did else I wouldn't have the pleasure of knowing the amazing woman sitting next to me right now, laughing her head off at what has to be one of my new favorite movies of all time.

And it finally dawns on me...like a sudden, unexpected, unanticipated slap in the face.

I finally get it now. I get what this is...what this all is, what it all means. I know now why I value this friendship so much to the point where I'm willing to fight and do whatever I can to keep it.

My laughs die out and I turn to look at Delilah closely who's engrossed with the movie again.

I study her intently, taking in the way her face scrunches in disgust or amusement. I watch how her shoulder-length straight hair bounces with each move she makes since it's so light and soft.

And I sigh, shaking my head in disbelief as I look away from her.

It doesn't take long before the words start forming in my mind on what it is exactly that I'm feeling, what I've been feeling for some time now but wasn't able to indentify.

I care about her. I care about Delilah Marshall. I care about her past friendship.

Shit...

That's why I willingly fought her battles for her. That's why I was willing to look the blind eye.

At first, I thought I was just being a protective friend, or maybe even brother figure...that is, until we kissed the first time out in the halls a few months ago. Then, I realized it wasn't brotherly, but maybe it was still the overprotective friend in me since I'm that type of guy.

But now, now I've realized that the moment I met Delilah, I was drawn to her...everything about her. She was an intriguing mystery to me. I wanted to know her, wanted to figure her out. And, I loved the fact that she wasn't afraid to tell me exactly what was on her mind when I annoyed her or pissed her off. She may not be my ‘type' per say but that's ok. In fact, she's the complete opposite of the women I go for but again, that's part of her appeal and what drew me to her. Opposites attract right? So, I'm thinking that's the case here...so much so that I care about her a little more than I ever thought was possible.

There were a lot of things I expected and anticipated about Higher Heights and what school life was going to be like.

But I never expected this.

And by that, I mean I never expected to be...to be...falling for any of the students, especially Delilah Marshall.

I cringe in thought, my blues drifting in her direction when she giggles loudly.

Fucking hell, this is bad. This is...this can't happen. This can't happen for two reasons.

One, I'm pretty sure she doesn't even feel the same way and two, she's Delilah. It's a simple statement but complicated and complex at the core.

I have no idea where she stands emotionally with anything really but trying to convince her that we could be good for each other is one challenge I'm not sure I'll even have the slightest chance of winning.

The messed up thing is, I have no idea when this happened; but it did. It happened without me even realizing it.

And I'm totally fucked.

I groan softly, swiping my palms over my face as I try to gather my thoughts and stop thinking about this...about this dilemma.

"Justin, you ok?" Delilah questions, touching my arm softly, causing me to wince.

"I'm fine." I snap, not looking at her. "Why?" I ask, swallowing hard.

"You stopped laughing. You turned unusually quiet; are you sure you're ok?"

I turn to look at her, noting the worry in her orbs and I sigh. I can't tell her what's on my mind. Not like this, not yet.

Before I can muster up some lie, I'm granted reprieve when the doorbell rings.

I quickly jump on my feet, thankful for the interruption. "I've got it."  I state, leaving Delilah to answer the door as I ignore the befuddled expression on her face.

I have no idea who's at the door but it's a welcome distraction.

I quickly unbolt the locks and swing the door open only to be greeted by none other than Ryan, Lilah's cousin.

Ok, scratch what I said. This distraction is not welcome. In fact...

"What the fuck do you want? Leave Ryan. Now." I hiss, about to slam the door in his face but he stops me, blocking my advances with his foot.

"Aren't you the least bit curious as to why I'm here?" He scowls, eyeing me down.

"No." I spit and he scoffs.

"Look Justin, I'm not here to cause trouble. I need to speak to Delilah. I know she's here."

"She's sleeping." I lie.

"Well wake her up then, it's important." He states.

"I really don't think you should..."

"Justin, this is serious ok? It's about Ethan, his dad, and what his dad is about to do to Delilah's dad if you don't let me talk to her. I'm not sure what happened exactly, but Mr. Marshall and Mr. Landing's feud because of their children is getting out of hand. I know for a fact that Delilah will blame herself if Mr. Landing does anything to jeopardize her dad's Real Estate business and good reputation." Ryan hisses and I curve my brows at him in question. "Wait, hasn't she told you..."

"She told me...about her past." I quickly interrupt him and he nods.

"And you're still here huh?" He states more than asks.

"I'm not going anywhere Ryan." I say forcefully and he nods in understanding.

"I know I haven't been the best cousin but..."

"I'm not the one you came out here to talk to." I cut him off.

I reluctantly take a step to the side so he can enter and he gives me an unsure look before stepping inside.

"Thanks." He mutters and I shake my head in acknowledgement.

"She's in the living room. We're watching a movie." I tell him before shutting the door and leading him to Delilah.

"You know, maybe you're not so bad Justin. You sure helped save the team that's for sure." Ryan voices honestly as we make our way into the living room.

I chuckle lightly, giving Delilah my full attention when she notices Ryan and quickly stands to make her way over to us.

"You better not make Ethan hear you say that Ryan. I mean, what would he think?" I mock shock and Ryan laughs uneasily in return.

I watch intently as Delilah asks Ryan what he's doing here and he stumbles over his words.

Well, I guess our laid back Saturday is over. At least, I can safely say that it's not going to be a long night simply because it's rolling into midnight which means Sunday is just around the corner.

And you know what that means? My peaceful time will soon be over because with Rachel and Trace in the mix, nothing is ever simple or laid back.