"Hey," he says, voice husky with sleep.
"Whoops... sorry," I mutter, "were you still sleeping?"
I hear him yawn and then he mumbles a "yeah." Clearing his voice he adds, "It's fine. You good?"
"Uh..." I glance around my room as if someone's going to step out of the shadows and clue me in on what's going on. Something happened to him last night, so why's he asking if I'm okay? "Yes? Are you?"
I hear him yawn again and a smile blooms across my face.
"You know what," I start to say, standing and making my way toward my dresser to change, "I'll just come to you. You like your coffee black, right?"
"Um... yes?"
"Ok," I pull on a pair of jeans, hugging the phone between my ear and shoulder, "dunk your head in some cold water or something. Just be ready for me in fifteen."
He chuckles, the sound raspy and dry as he responds with a "Yes, ma'am."
After brushing my teeth, spritzing myself in a perfume bath, and throwing my hair into a messy bun, I'm out the door. With a coffee and a chai latte in hand, I hurry to Seth's dorm and make my way to his floor. I use my elbow to knock and then wait. My foot doesn't stop tapping the entire minute that I stand there wondering what could possibly be taking so long.
Finally, the door swings open and there he is. Beautiful as ever. He smells incredible and I can tell by the shine of his hair and the way his shirt is clinging to his skin that he must have just stepped out of the shower. He rarely wears short-sleeved shirts, but for once he's blessing me with a full view of the intricate art sewn up and down his arms. My tongue becomes paralyzed at the sight, all energy going to my eyes as they absorb the lines of definition along his abdomen and the muscles straining against his sleeve.
His perfection is disturbing. I swear he's been photoshopped into my life. It's as if someone enhanced all his best features and erased anything I might find unpleasant just so I'd be horrifyingly drawn to him. It's torture... well, unless he's meant to be mine. Then I'll consider it a massive blessing. I would not mind having all of that to myself.
I'm definitely being awkward as I stand gaping at him, but I've lost the ability to care. The only way to cover up an awkward situation is to make it more awkward. That's what I tell myself anyway. So, instead of trying to hide my obsession, I blink and let my eyes trail over him again... and again... and again, until a smile cracks my hypnotized expression. When Seth shakes his head, laughing as he steps aside to let me in, I think that maybe my plan worked this time.
"You're odd," he mutters, letting me pass by.
Okay, so maybe I'll never master not being weird, but Seth seems to have accepted that part of me.
"Thank you," I respond, turning to hand him his coffee before taking a seat on a bean bag near the window.
Seth takes a seat on his bed, pulling back the small tab on the lid of his coffee cup and taking a tentative sip. He hisses when the liquid hits his tongue, shaking his head as he pulls the drink away, clutching it in his lap.
"Hot," he whispers, running his tongue along his teeth—like that's going to somehow reduce the sting.
Smiling, I pull the lid off my drink and blow away the steam. "So," I begin, "care to tell me what happened last night?"
"Oh jeez." Seth runs a hand down his face, shaking his head. "Okay, so first, I think I need to apologize for doubting you."
My face twists into confusion, but he continues talking.