and, the second it did, his hands disappeared. A sudden urge made me want to grab back onto them, but I didn’t.
“Thanks,” I mumbled, feeling a little breathless now, not from the jump though.
“Sure.” He also sounded breathless, I’m sure I wasn’t that light to lift. I looked down at my feet and it dawned on me.
“We could have just gotten my shoes from my room.” I looked up at Noah and his blue eyes met mine.
“I suppose we could have.” He said this in a way that seemed introspective, as if, like me, he was wondering why he’d only thought about that now.
CHAPTER 14
“Good morning. Good morning. Good morning!” I was awoken by the sounds of Chloe outside my room and, for a moment, when I rolled over and looked around, I didn’t know where I was. But it all came back to me quickly when I looked at the Spider-Man duvet that was pulled up around me.
I climbed out of bed. I had slept in my underwear last night, so as not to crease the only clothes I had. I raised my arm and took a sniff. I was going to need deodorant today, and I was also going to need to try and wash out some of the bloodstains around the collar of my shirt, or else I might look like a serial killer.
The only things I owned in the entire world right now were the few clothes I had on my back, the toothbrush and toothpaste and a strange keyring that I’d placed on the bedside table and was currently looking at.
I slipped my clothes back on and strolled out of the room. The smell of coffee hit me and something inside my brain instantly switched on. Like a Dubai skyscraper, switched ON! I smiled. I didn’t know much about myself, but I knew I loved coffee. I could feel it with every inch of my being right now. I moved a little quicker down that passage to the small kitchen that Noah was busy in, that we had spent half an hour in last night cleaning up.
“Hey,” he said when I came in. There was an awkward vibe for a few seconds, had been since that countertop swing, but he broke it with an upbeat offer of coffee.
“Yes! Please! I think I love coffee!”
Noah poured a cup and then paused. “You know how you take it?”
“Um . . .” I stared at the sugar and milk on the table. “I have no idea, actually.”
Noah pushed the coffee in front of me and then leaned across the counter. “Well, have fun experimenting.”
I sipped the coffee and cringed. “No, definitely not black.” I picked up the milk carton and splashed some in, then took another sip and thought about it.
“More?” Noah asked.
“Yes! Definitely!” I tipped more milk into the coffee and sipped again. “Definitely sugar.” I picked up a spoon, dropped it in and stirred. “More,” I said, after carefully considering the flavor in my mouth. Three spoons later, and it was perfect! Sweet and milky and not too hot.
“Oh my God, mmmmmmmmmm . . .” I moaned as I sipped it, as if this was the thing I’d been waiting for and craving and wanting more than anything. “Mmmmm . . . Sooo good. Aaahhhhh.” I moaned longer and louder this time, but stopped immediately when I saw the strange look on Noah’s face.
“Was that a bit much?” I asked, feeling embarrassed now.
“Well, you officially know one thing about yourself, so that’s positive. You love coffee!”
“Coffee, coffee!” Chloe squawked from her cage by the window, and I jumped.
I eyed her suspiciously for a while, trying to gauge her feelings towards me. She didn’t seem to be showing any signs of aggression this morning, but still, I think it was better I remained on the opposite side of the room. “How long have you had her? African Grey parrots can live for sixty years. Don’t ask me how I know that, though.”
“African Grey. African Grey,” Chloe repeated, and Noah laughed.
“Yes, you are.” He walked up to her and offered up a slice of apple. “I’ve only had her for two years.” He said that with such a sweet tone in his voice. You could see he really cared for this bird. But there was also something beneath that tone, something a little sadder, and I wondered what it was.