Drown Me in Love - 24

Chapter 24

*Adriana's POV*

"I love you too." Alexander says, pressing his lips to my hair. I then hear him chuckle. "Where did that come from?"
I pull back and eye him, frowning, "What?"
"Your sudden love?" He asks.
I can see the hint of a smile playing on his lips, "What? A girl can't love?"
He laughs, "Can you?"

I roll my eyes and linking my fingers through his, pull him towards the bedroom door, "Come on, let's see what they're doing."
He follows me into the guest room. "When shall I call everyone?"
I glance at my watch, "They're almost done. I guess now?"
He smiles, "Okay."
I watch the men fix the curtains as Alex steps out of the room to call his family. He joins me a few minutes later, smiling.
The men leave about 15 minutes later and Alexander leads me to the kitchen to show what he's done.

"Have they seen the apartment?" I ask, as we wait for his family to arrive.
He nods, "When I first came across this place, I fell in love with it immediately. The neighborhood's great and the apartment fantastic. I had Mom check it out and she loved it, so I went ahead and bought it. And Dad, Bree, Brittany and Austin came here the day after they arrived."

I'm about to reply when the doorbell rings. I glance at Alex, feeling excited all of a sudden, and head over to the front door. Alexander's standing behind me as I pull it open. Mom's standing in front, a gift-wrapped rectangular box in her hand. Dad's behind her and the girls and Austin at the back. All of them have big smiles on their faces.

"Mom!"
Stepping inside, she envelopes me in a hug. Dropping a kiss on my forehead, she hands me the box. "Congratulations, sweetie."
"Mom, you shouldn't have!"
"You didn't expect us to come without some housewarming gifts did you?"
Dad enters and hands me a bouquet of yellow tulips, my favorite.
"Thank you Dad."

"Congratulations darling." He gives me a hug.
I'm then attacked by Austin, Brittany and Bree.
"Come on!" Bree grins, "Give us the grand tour!"
Alex and I spread the new sheets we'd bought on my bed. He helps me smooth it out and then stands back and watches as I arrange the pillows and blanket before joining him.

"There we go."
"Finally." His arms winds around my waist and he pulls me up close to him. Leaning in, he captures my lips in a delicious kiss. "It's ready. Congrats sweetheart."
"I couldn't have done it without you." I mumble against his lips.

He pulls back and I look up into his beautiful eyes, "So are we staying the night?"
An excited grin spreads across my face, "Why not?"
Laughing he pulls me in for a hug, "We have to call Mom and Dad. Dad wanted to come see it when we were done, remember?"
I nod and when he lets me go, reach for my phone, "What shall I say?"
"That we're done."

Nodding, I dial Mom's number.
"Hey Mom... Yes, we're done... Yeah, okay. Shall I call Dad or...? Okay. Thanks Mom." Just as I snap my phone shut, Alex groans. "What?"
"We should've told Mom to get us a set of clothes and our bags."
I bite my lip, "Crap. I forgot we have school. Maybe we shouldn't stay."
He shakes his head, "It's all right. I'll go once Mom and Dad get here and grab our stuff."

"You're sure?"
"Yup." He takes my hand and leads me to the living room. "I'll probably have to stop by the grocers to get something for breakfast."
When Mom and Dad arrive, Alexander stays awhile before heading out.
"How are you darling?' Dad asks as I sit beside him on the sofa.
"I'm fine. Are you leaving tomorrow?" I ask.

He nods, "Afraid I am."
I blink back tears, "Why?"
I've really come to think of him as my Dad. I really can't imagine not seeing him at least once a day, not getting his hugs, not getting spoiled by him.

"I'll see you soon, not to worry." He reaches over and wraps an arm around me. I glance up to see Mom watching us with a smile.
"But I'll miss you." I whisper.

*Alexander's POV*

I turn on the radio as I drive through the streets, heading home to pick up Adi and my things. Taking a chance, I turn onto Main Street, hoping that the pharmacy is still open.

"Thank God."
Parking my car, I head into the pharmacy. I pick up toothpaste, hand wash, shower gel and both Adi and my shampoo.

At home, I grab my black Nike kit and throw my pajamas, a set of clothes for tomorrow and anything else I might need. I do the same, going through Adi's side of the wardrobe. I grab our toothbrushes from the washroom and dump my brush into the kit. Adi usually doesn't wear any makeup to school, but if she feels like it, then it's only eyeliner. I hold it in my hand for a second, wondering if I should take it or not, but then I chuck it in. You never know. I take her brush, a few scrunchies and barrettes and her perfume. Moving onto our school work, I grab our already packed bags. Scanning the room, I'm about to leave when I remember our mobile chargers. One last look around and then I head downstairs, juggling three bags.

After I settle everything in my car, I get behind the wheel and drive to the nearest grocery store.
It's past 11 when I finally pull up in front of Adi's building.
"Hey. I was getting worried." She says reaching for the bags I have in my hands.
I pull away and she follows me to the kitchen, where Mom and Dad are sitting.
"Hey Mom. Hey Dad. You guys hungry??"

Mom shakes her head.
"Nope." Adi answers.
"He's now the man of the house, eh?" Dad asks Adi.
I shoot her a smile. "I'll just get our bags from the car."
Once I've got everything from the car, Mom stands up to leave.
"You two have to wake up early for school. It's late. I better be going."

After dropping a kiss and telling us to go to bed early, Mom and Dad leave.
A pair of arms circle around my waist and I look up from my phone see Adi. She's changed into her pajamas, her hair pulled back into a braid.
"Hey." Taking her hand, I lead her towards the bed and make her sit down beside me. "How are you?" I ask, pressing a kiss on her cheek.

"Fine." She smiles up at me. A yawn slips out and she reaches up and covers her mouth.
"Sleepy?" Crossing my legs, I pull her back so that she's lying over me.
"Mmmm." She snuggles back in my arms.
She's fast asleep in minutes. I smile, brushing a few stray strands from her face, looking down at her beautiful face.

I gently lift her up and lay her down on the mattress next to me. Pulling the blanket up, I settle down beside her, and like iron nails attracted to a magnet, she reaches for me, wrapping her arms around my neck.

"Alexander?" Adi mumbles sleepily.
"Yes, darling?"
"Love you."
I pull her closer and she snuggles comfortably in my arms. I kiss her forehead. "I love you too. More than you can imagine."
"Alexander! Wake up!"
Moaning, I bury my face in the pillow.
"Alexander!"

"Why?" I groan as she pulls back the curtains. I pull the blanket over my head as the sunlight pours in.
"It's getting late. You have to get ready for school."
Groaning, I sit up. Adi's already dressed in a dark purple turtleneck and black jeans. Her hair's flowing down her back, still a bit wet and she's putting on eyeliner.

"Umm.. Your toothbrush is in the washroom and your clothes are here. Do they need to be ironed?" I watch as she pulls my clothes out of the kit.
Smiling, I walk up behind her and wrap my arms around her waist, and pulling her close, I press my lips to her neck.
"What's that for?"
"What? I can't kiss you?"
She chuckles, "Slept well?"
"Yup. You are so cute, you know that?"

She turns around in my arms and looks up at me, "Why?"
"You've taken up your responsibilities already. And you're taking care of me. It is SO cute."
As she blushes, I chuckle. Taking my clothes, which don't need to be ironed, I head to the washroom to shower and get ready.
"So, first day of work, you're excited?" Adi asks, as she snuggles into her coat, sinking down in the passenger seat next to me.
I glance at her after pulling away from the building. "Sure."

Kate's uncle's cafe needed an extra pair of hands and Kate had called me first. I'd accepted happily. Adriana was going back to work at 'The Shack' today and I'd be bored out of my mind, not doing anything. And being away from her.
She laughs, "You'll have fun, don't worry."

Shaking my head, I park the car in the school parking lot. As we walk to the building, I link my fingers through hers.

The school day passes quickly, and soon I find myself behind the counter at Kate's uncle's cafe, taking in the surroundings. As the first customers enter, I grab some menus and my new notepad and head over to the table they're sitting down at.

As the door opens, I look up from, till I see Adi entering.
"Hey there."
"Hey beautiful."
"Flirting with the customers, Alexander?" She frowns.
I shrug, "Is it my fault you're so beautiful?"
She rolls her eyes," When's your break?"
"As soon as Kate turns up."

"Okay then."
"What will you have?" I ask as my boss, Kate's uncle walks up.
"Umm..." Adi glances at the menu," A turkey sandwich please."
As I enter it into the system, I glance at her, "And is it for here or to go?"
"Uh... to go."
"All right. Just a moment please."

I take the order to the kitchen at the back and hand it over to the head chef. Once I return to the till, my boss is nowhere in sight. Adi grins at me.
"Pretty good job, Alex."
"Thank you ma'am." I shoot her a wink. Laughing she reaches for her sandwich as one of the guys places it next to me. "Well, I got to go. See you later?"
I nod. "Sure." I blow her a kiss and pretending to catch it, she turns around and leaves.

Half past seven, I step out of the cafe to see Kate and Adi sitting outside.
"Sorry Ri."
"What for?"
"You've had to wait."
She rolls her eyes. "Whatever Alexander. You gonna come home Kate?"
"Some other day? I promise. I'm shattered today."
"Okay. Take care."
The drive home is mostly quiet. Adriana seems a bit fidgety, but I don't say anything. I'm so tired, I just wanna go home and fall into bed, Adi wrapped in my arms.

"What do you want for dinner?" She asks as I help her pull all the grocery bags out of the trunk.
"I dunno. Anything. I could fall asleep in a second Ri."
"Aww... You have to eat first though. I'm not letting you go without dinner."
I follow her into the flat and place the bags in the kitchen. After changing, she starts work on dinner and I head to the bedroom to change and splash some water on my face. After changing into a gray shirt and my black joggers, I join her in the kitchen.

We sit in the living room, the television on and finish our homework after dinner. The news is on in the background as I solve algebra and Adriana's busy reading a book for Literature. Sighing, I write the final answer and close my Algebra book, relieved to be finished with it.

"Done?" She asks, looking up.
"Yup." I stuff my books in my bag and after pulling the book out of her hands, lift her up onto my lap. I hold her close, burying my face in her neck.
"Alexander?" Adi asks after a few minutes of silence.
"Hmm?" When she doesn't reply, I pull back, "Yes?"
"Umm..." She nervously chews on her lower lip.

"What is it, sweetheart?" I ask, gently pulling her lip away from her teeth. "Leave my lips alone."
She smiles before glancing away. " I... I was wondering if... only if you want to that is... uh... if you'd like to move in with me?" Her voice comes out low and only because I'm so close to her I'm able to catch what she says.

In my head, I groan. It's been bothering me for so long. I kind of knew this might be coming. I have no idea what's the right thing to do.
"Only if you want. I was just asking." Adi says, mistaking my silence.
The thing is, I really want to stay with her. A lot.
"Ri, I didn't say I didn't want to. Don't get me wrong, but I'll need to think about this. Give me till tomorrow night?"

She nods and although she tries to hide it, I see the hurt in her eyes.
"Adriana, don't do this to me!" I turn her face towards me. There are tears in her eyes that she's furiously trying to blink away. "Adi, you know what? I've already decided."
She shakes her head, "No. I'm acting stupid. You can have till tomorrow."

"Too bad, I've already decided." I twirl a strand of her hair around my pinkie, my eyes never leaving hers. "Okay. Let me just tell you that I can't live without you. At all. I just can't. So I know it'll be very hard for me if I don't move in. But I don't want you to be completely dependent on me either. I want you to be able to live, function, make decisions without me. So that's why I wasn't sure what to answer. But, I just thought of something. I can't leave Mom and I can't live without you, so we could try a two month thing. You stay by yourself for two months and after that we'll see, yeah? I'll stay over at times, I'll be spending all day with you, I just won't permanently move in. And after two months we'll see if it works out? If not, then I'll talk to Mom and move in with you. Okay?"

She nods. "Okay."
My lips curve into a smile, "Admit it. You only want me to move in so that you can divide the chores in half."
She rolls her eyes, "Okay, okay. You caught me."
Laughing, I pull her close, my lips millimeters from hers, "I knew it!"
A smile crosses her lips as she leans in and closes the distance between us.

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I can't believe Drown Me in Love is coming to an end!! I don't want to stop writing!! But I just wanted to thank you all for your support... couldn't have done it without you! Love you all!