บท 17: Relaxed and comfortable

They took the elevator to the second floor in the same building.

When elevator opened, Sarah was surprised to see that they entered an arcade. There was countless number of different machines and games, and it was very noisy. Besides them, only few teenagers were there.

Aiden looked giddy, like a kid in a candy shop. He went to the cashier and got two game cards with credits. He gave one card to Sarah, "What do you want to play?".

She was a bit overwhelmed, "Hmmm... I don't know yet. You pick first, I will observe".

Aiden was happy to hear that. He took her hand and led the way toward the back. It took Sarah a second to realize that they are holding hands. She felt as if her hand is burning in his and wanted to pull it out of his grasp. But his grip was firm, gentle, but firm and unless she struggled, she could not pull out her hand. Sarah looked at his back, 'Is he not aware that we are holding hands?' Her gaze lowered to the point where their bodies connected, and Sarah realized that her hand is not limp in his anymore, but her fingers moved on its own and now she is holding his hand as well.

Aiden stopped in front of one machine, and it didn't seem he has any intention of letting go of her hand.

Sarah was embarrassed thinking about them holding hands and squirmed her hand out of his while avoiding his gaze.

Aiden was visibly disappointed by her action and did his best not to frown.

Sarah was too consumed in her emotional turmoil that she didn't pay attention to the changes in him. Trying to hide her shocked expression, she looked at the machine, and was relieved to see that it was a formula-racing game, something she is very familiar with. Her eyes lit up when she observed realistic formula interior and controls, and it was a two-seater, so two players can play at the same time! Aiden showed Sarah the controls. She is familiar with them, but she didn't interrupt Aiden's explanation. They were so close that Sarah was again able to smell the familiar woody flowery fragrance, and she was dazed. Without thinking she leaned towards him and took a deep breath with her eyes closed. She held her breath and opened her eyes, just to see that he is looking at her with an amused expression, smirk on his face. Her cheeks burned again. 'The best that can happen now is for ground to open up and swallow me, so I can escape this situation', Sarah thought. Aiden didn't say anything, he just had a wicked smile, and looked at Sarah to see what she will do next. She snapped out of it, "Can we start?"

He nodded.

They inserted their game cards and started the game. Aiden took the lead right away; he had no intention of going easy on her because she is a girl. It took Sarah no more than few seconds to get used to the controls, and then she was on fire. She skillfully overtook computer opponents and was right behind Aiden. In last lap, she overtook him with an outside maneuver. He helplessly watched how she increased distance between them and won the race. In second round, Sarah took the lead right away. It was a complete dominance from her side.

She enjoyed this very much, and looked towards Aiden with a wide smile, "What's next?".

Aiden was happy to see that she is having fun. At the same time, he didn't like that he suffered such a defeat… from a girl. But this is not an ordinary girl, so it's not a complete loss. Seeing her bright smile cushioned the blow his ego got with this loss.

They moved onto a game with shooting zombies. First round Aiden had the highest score, but next two rounds Sarah won. Then they went to the next machine, and another one, and another one. She would get immersed into the game so much that she would curse and squeal while playing without care of who is around her.

After some time, Aiden didn't pay attention to games anymore. He observed Sarah and savored every expression and sound she made.

It took Sarah a while to realize that he is not interested in playing games anymore but that he is focused on her. She felt her cheeks burning again and hoped that her blushing is not betraying how fast her heart is beating. She composed herself and asked: "Are we done here?"

He nodded and they went towards elevator.

They went to the underground level and got into the car. It was late December afternoon, and it was getting dark already.

He drove for some time before stopping at a grocery store. He got into the store, and she followed. Aiden picked up various groceries and went towards the register. Sarah was just observing while keeping two steps distance from him. "For dinner", he explained, and she nodded.

They went back to the car and after about 5 more minutes of driving, parked at a residential building. They took the elevator to second floor, and Aiden unlocked door to one apartment, opened the door and gestured to her to go in.

Sarah didn't move, "This is...?"

"My place. We can discuss UI* design and have diner"

Sarah hesitated for a moment, and then went inside.

He followed and closed the door behind them.

Sarah observed the apartment. She was standing in the living area, on her right side was kitchen with dining area. On the left and at the back she saw a total of three closed doors, which she can imagine are bathrooms and bedrooms. Everything was clean, there was no clutter. It had only necessary furniture, and no extra decorations.

"I come here when I need some peace." Aiden explained. "My brother stays here when he visits, which is not often. Other than that, this apartment is empty."

He turned on PC** which was on the desk in the corner of the room. He logged in and opened one document. "Come here and read UI design while I make dinner. We will talk about it later."

"Can I help with dinner?", Sarah asked.

He shook his head, "Read the document, OK?"

She nodded and sat in front of the PC.

Aiden got busy in the kitchen and soon mouthwatering aroma filled the apartment.

She was trying to focus to finish her reading, but the smell was so appetizing that she gave up and went to the kitchen.

He had an apron on and was mixing ingredients in the pot.

She thought that he looks cute, and wished to snap a photo with her phone, but she held that urge back. Sarah thought that if she can have this picture of him, she can blackmail him, something like: 'HOTTEST GUY ON CAMPUS, ALL DOMESTICATED! That would ruin his image, if leaked... Or it might increase his popularity more.' Sarah realized that this thought bothered her more than it should. She got pulled out of her imagination by his voice: "Did you finish?"

She shook her head, "No".

"How come you are here then?", he asked.

"It smells good, I can't focus", she honestly replied.

Aiden laughed, "Go and finish, otherwise no food for you".

Sarah frowned, and pouted her lips in protest, but still went back to finish reading the document.

By the time she finished reading the document, food was ready.

"Hmm, very tasty", she praised him.

They talked about UI design while eating, and a soon after, they had all requirements decided.

"The only thing left is for you to tell me how much money you want for your part", Aiden said.

"$200", she didn't hesitate.

"Deal", he extended his hand, and she shook it. "You are not doing this for the money, right?" He concluded, because she asked for much less than he thought to give her.

Sarah shook her head. "Not really. I like working on these, it keeps me busy." She stood up to wash dishes. He protested, but she explained, "You fed me, at least let me wash the dishes". He watched her collect dishes and take them into the kitchen, focused on what she is doing.

"I will start working on my parts tomorrow. My schedule is free so I can spend the day working on it", Sarah said from the kitchen. "I hope we can stick to the schedule, and finish by end of next week"

Aiden walked in the kitchen. "Don't push yourself, we have time" He wants to drag on this project, to have more chances to interact with Sarah.

"If we don't finish by end of next week, it will get dragged on until after New Year. I'm not available from 22nd to New Year", Sarah explained.

"What do you have on 22nd?", he frowned.

"Christmas party", she clarified.

"Christmas parties are usually on 24th."

"But this is THE Christmas party organized by my sister. She is the boss, so it's a company party, and I'm going to support her", Sarah explained, and then continued. "After that party I will spend Christmas with my family, and we stay together until New Year. I will be back on campus after New Year."

Sarah noticed that Aiden was thinking about something intently, and she concluded that he is thinking of their course projects. "I will be absent for 2 weeks. We agreed to work as a team on projects for classes, but if you want to work by yourself or with someone else, instead of waiting for me to come back, I will understand."

He frowned. It took him some time to process what she said before he responded, "I was not thinking about that. We will start working on class projects when you get back".

Sarah looked up at Aiden, smiled and gave a small nod. She liked the idea that he will wait for her to start working.

They moved to the living area, and she checked the time. "Can you drop me off back now? It's late. Or if it's inconvenient, I will get a cab".

"Why don't you stay here? There are two bedrooms, you can take one.", he said like it's a totally normal thing. However, he knew that he is pushing beyond her limits. This young lady is evading his charms so skillfully that he feels irritated.

She was stunned for a second before she responded. "To be honest, I feel very relaxed and comfortable around you. And that is the problem, I don't know you very well, so relaxed and comfortable is dangerous."

Aiden looked at Sarah in amazement and realized that she really meant what she said. He already concluded that she is different from most of the girls who would gladly accept to spend the night alone with him in his apartment; so, that was not an option. He expected various responses from her, but not this. 'Relaxed? Comfortable? It seems I'm making better progress than I thought.'

He smiled, "I understand. Come on, I will take you back".

...

Aiden parked close to Sarah's dorm and insisted to walk Sarah to the entrance of her dorm. She said it's not necessary, but when he mentioned Mimi and Megan, she gave in.

They walked to her dorm entrance without talking. When they reached, he looked at her, and said "I had fun today". Part of him wanted to pull her in embrace and kiss her, but other part was confident that it's too early. 'Be patient.', he told himself. '…and soon I will be able to do that…'

Sarah lifted her gaze, and their eyes met. She felt her heart pound in her ears, and her cheeks burned for hundredth time that day. 'Why am I this nervous? Why am I thinking about his lips?' Sarah's mind was a mess. She replied, "Me too", and made mental effort to break eye contact, turn around and rush inside.

As soon as she entered her room, Sarah headed toward the window to pull down blinds and saw him standing outside. She waved, and he waved back. Sarah pulled down blinds and curtains and laid on her bed staring at the ceiling.

Aiden does not know how long he didn't move after blinds on Sarah's window went down, but eventually he slowly moved towards his car, and went back to his apartment.

...

When Aiden reached his apartment, he remembered what Sarah said about her Christmas plans, and decided to make a phone call: "Hey big brother, I know it's late, but I want to ask something... Last time you mentioned Christmas party organized by our partner company on December 22nd... what company is that? ... do you know who oversees the party? ... CEO? Do you know his name? ... Oh, it's a woman CEO... is it too late to change my mind? ... yes, I feel like going now... no, I will not change my mind again... thank you... "