Page 38 of Aftershock

“I just have no idea why I thought the best loungewear for a plane ride was jeans and a sweater.”

“Oh, you can borrow something from my room. I have sweats and t-shirts back there in the drawers,” Lexi suggested nonchalantly while loading up the movie.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” Lexi shrugged while pushing herself off the floor.

“My bedroom is behind that door and straight back.” She pointed to the rear of the plane, where Brian and Andrew had disappeared to.

“Okay, but just know that if I put one of your shirts on, you may never get it back.”

“Better not be the shirt with the skull on it then!” She yelled, sounding quieter as I had put some distance between us.

Walking back, I saw three doors and continued to the one that was directly straight ahead. When I went inside, I was met with a scent of cherry as it wafted through the air. Her room was huge…for a plane. She had a large bed with a gray comforter in the center and two nightstands on either side. There was a gray lamp resting on the right one. Above her bed was a large abstract painting filled with whites, blacks, grays, and golds that all collided in a swirl-like pattern. Scanning the room, I noticed a white dresser perched against the left wall as I made my way over to it. I opened each drawer until I found something I thought would work for lounging around—a gray sweatshirt and green sweats. I took of my clothes so fast, if there was a world record for fastest time to get undressed, I would’ve won it. I sighed in relief as I donned the new, more comfortable clothes. While heading back toward the door, I stopped short of the way there and turned around to rummage through the drawers again. After finding what I was looking for, I exited the room and headed into the main area.

Hope

“You’re back,” Lexi beamed, now curled up on the couch under a blanket while holding a bowl of popcorn.

“You miss me?”

Ignoring my question, she complimented, “You look cute.”

“Well, you always look cute.”

“Wow, look who's getting more confident in their flirting skills,” Lexi gathered.

Was I that obvious? Maybe I should be more subtle. Man, I’m out of practice.

I’d never actually hit on a girl before. Sure, I always knew from a young age that I was attracted to both men and women, but I didn't put much thought into it at the time. I never exactly pictured myself with a female, but I also never really pictured myself with anyone in general. Lexi was everything I wanted in a partner, but I never thought I would actually meet her, let alone that we would ever date. I wasn’t saying that we could date now, but the thought didn't seem so far away anymore. I just wondered if all this time she had been flirting with me, too.

“You're one to talk.”

“I’m always confident when I flirt,” Lexi winked.

She winked.

Did that mean she was flirting with me? Or was she just being nice? I was usually great at reading people, but right now, it seemed like my brain had turned to mush.

“Here.” I chucked a shirt at her.

“What's this?”

“Your favorite shirt,” I responded. “The one with the skull.”

Lexi held up the shirt as she looked at it skeptically. “Why?”

“I didn’t put a bomb in it if that’s what you're worried about,” I chuckled as she examined the shirt. “I just thought you might want to change your top, considering you're still wearing a shirt with chains along the sleeves, which I imagine isn’t very comfortable.”

“Oh,” Lexi said, seeming slightly surprised. “Thanks. That’s nice of you.”

I laughed at her polite confusion. “You don't have to wear it; I just thought you might want to.”

I moved closer and reached to take the shirt back when Lexi pulled her arm away, refusing to hand it over.

“No, I’ll wear it.”

All of a sudden, the shirt she was wearing was ripped off her body as she threw it to the side. My eyes widened at the sight. Lexi Harlow sat in front of me wearing a purple bra, completely naked from the waist up. The blanket was covering her stomach slightly, but it was still low enough that it left her chest in full view. She then straightened her posture as she wiggled one arm through the new shirt, followed by the other, before pushing her head through the top.

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