Kissed On The Way

Despite having followed the routine of waking up early for school for weeks, I still struggled to adjust. My alarm clock began its persistent ringing at 6 am, but I found myself repeatedly hitting the snooze button. Every five minutes, the alarm pierced through the silence, sending vibrations through the table to my bed, yet I continued to ignore it.

It wasn't until I finally bothered to glance at the clock that I shot up from my bed like an arrow.

"Oh, shoot!" I exclaimed, hastily making my way to the bathroom, realizing I was once again running late.

With just fifteen minutes left before school started, I hurriedly got ready, investing every moment in preparation. Swiftly walking through the living room, I barely noticed Carl's sarcastic remark from behind.

"You still haven't learned your lesson even after spending a night in the hospital," he called out.

Too preoccupied to respond, I didn't stop or turn back, simply slamming the door behind me as I exited the apartment.

As I pressed the 'G' on the keypad to summon the elevator, I noticed the digit '7' blinking yellow. "Who summoned the elevator on this floor?" I wondered aloud.

"Is it Arthur?" I thought, then quickly corrected myself, "Oh, come on, there are other people who live on this floor."

Regardless of who it was, one thing was certain: the elevator would stop at the seventh floor before reaching the ground floor.

The lift arrived, its doors dinging open. I stepped inside, and as the doors closed, I felt a sense of urgency building within me.

The mirrored walls pictured me in them and I couldn't resist to look at my reflection and fix my hair, and gave final touch ups to my make-up.

With a sudden jolt the lift stopped and its door split open. A woman seemingly married of a medium height was standing on its other side with a purse hanging from her arm as she stepped in, with that all of the doubts, and primal assumptions I had been having since I boarded the lift and knew it'd be going to have a stop at floor seven proved wrong. The doors began moving as I turned my head towards my left facing my own saddened reflection when I saw someone hurriedly boarding the elevator.

I, immediately, swirled my head around and faced a young man dressed in the attire of a doctor with a stethoscope curled around his neck standing beside me.

"Good morning!" He greeted me while his breathe was completely distorted because of running.

"Good morning." I smiled.

The woman standing in the middle of us traded her head from Arthur to me and then greeted us together.

"Good morning." Carl and I passed on mockingly stares to each other and pursed our lips in an attempt to conceal our smiles.

"How's you feeling now?" He asked me.

"Much better." I said.

"By the way, when does your school starts?" He inquired as he jerked his arms in front of his eyes and threw a serious glance at his wrist watch.

"Sharp 8 am." I told him.

"So technically, you're late." He said throwing a narrow gaze at me.

"Unfortunately, yeah!" I tsked.

"Carl isn't going to drop you?" He asked me.

"No, I left in a hurry. He would waste time in getting ready so I thought of taking a cab." I explained.

"Ok, ok. No need to take the cab, I'll drop you myself." He said in a manner which seems more like an order than informing.

"No no. I'll manage." I insisted.

He didn't say anything but threw a starr at me which tells that he's not going to listen to me and no more argument as the woman ahead might be getting vexed by us, and keep you mouth shut.

I clipped my mouth and didn't say another word and followed him to him car parked outside the main gate.

He unlocked the car while walking around the fender and sat in it as I sat on the passenger seat.

I won't waste my time complaining about his behavior and his effing attitude as I somehow became used to it and to be honest it didn't bother me now that much.

Moments ago he was talking to me normally. Smiling, and friendly. Though the instant he sat in the car with me I felt a change in his behavior which made me realize that I'm sitting next to a stranger about whom I hardly know a thing. Well, it's true I didn't know much about him, his family, his past life, though he knew pretty much alot of things about me.

'How does this man manage to change behavior this swiftly?' I pondered.

Gearing up the car he took the route to my school, neither us talked. He kept on driving in silence with his eyes darted at the road and his face drenched in seriousness.

It was me who break the shell of silence when I saw him taking a u-turn which didn't led to my school.

"This route doesn't lead to my school, i guess you have taken a wrong turn." I said detaching my back from the seat.

"I know." He said, plainly.

"Then, may I ask where are we going?" I'm already late." I sounded worried now.

He didn't say anything but kept on driving silently. He knew the art of ignoring, I must admit. Whereas, I badly fail at it.

Suddenly, he braked the car outside a bakery and then I realized why he took this route. No matter who weird he was, he never, never let go of a chance to amaze me and melt me.

He stepped off the car and went inside it. I stayed seated in the car for at least five minutes when he returns with a box holding in his hands.

He walked to my window as I slide its glass down and he handed me the box.

He brought my favorite brownies for me.

Then he sat in the car.

"Thanks." I said looking at him.

He turned his head in my direction and smiled. Though I waited for his to say something. But as expected he didn't say anything and turned the keys once again.

On all the way from the bakery to school I could help myself to move my eyes from his face. I kept on staring at him as if he's the brownies I loved and admired him, I felt an instant urge to kiss him, forgetting about everything else. The argument we had between us. I had forget it as both of us had apologized to each other, there's no point in keeping grudges in our hearts.

The fact that he's my brother's good friend and I didn't know him. I just knew one thing, I wanted to have the taste of him. I wanted to kiss him so badly.

No matter how hard I tried to control myself, I couldn't resist myself for doing this act and obliging to my inner urge.

As he was driving with his focus on the road as he pretended to show, I knew he was throwing lopsided grins at me time to time.

The car passed through a road where the rush of traffic was very minimal. Quickly, I swirled my hand around his neck and pulled him closer to me as I put on lips on his before he could say anything to stop me.

We had a quick kiss on the road as the car drove us to the school, I removed my face, when we reached and stepped off the car without looking back at him.