Morning with Alex

Ethan wakes up in Alex’s bed, the black-haired girl in his arms.

Blinking, rays of sunlight are beaming into his face, the intrusive beam definitely being what woke him. While trying to shy away from them, he disturbs Alex, her blue eyes fluttering open.

“Sorry,” Ethan sighs, turning enough to avoid the light. “Didn't mean to wake you.”

“It’s okay,” she rubs her eyes, yawning slightly, “waking up next to you beats the dream I was having.” She leans in and kisses him, the sensual lip lock lasting a few long moments before she breaks it. “I’m going to brush my teeth and clean up. You can wash yourself off downstairs if you feel sticky.”

Despite it being long since dried, he decides to take her up on her offer.

A quick whore’s bath in the downstairs bathroom later, Ethan gets dressed, bringing his discarded clothes in with him. He hears Alex moving around, and he decides to take his time getting dressed to think.

The night didn't go as he imagined, but the result was the same. Now there were questions that needed to be asked. {if Heather Affection >70}Serious ones, that might be hard to navigate given Ethan’s uncertain relationship with Heather.{endif}{if Heather Alt =true}Serious ones, that might be hard to navigate given Ethan’s uncertain relationship with Heather.{endif} Not to mention clarification of what exactly is ‘up’ with Alex. That conversation in particular he wanted to kick down the road.

Leaving the bathroom, he looks around for Alex, finding her in the kitchen.

Just wearing simple panties and a spaghetti strap crop top, she makes for an interesting sight. The panties don’t hide her package much, but with everything soft the bulge is modest. Cute even. “Hey,” she smiles, noticing him enter. “Breakfast?”

‘Breakfast’ consists of just a bowl of cereal and some toast, Alex making a claim to not be very handy in the kitchen. Still, it’s better than nothing, and the two sit at the table together eating. Ethan tries to keep his mind clear, but can’t help but stare at Alex across from him. How can somebody be so pretty?

“So,” Alex sips a glass of water, washing down a bite of toast. “Now that we’ve managed to get our hands off each other, I guess we should… talk.”

“Ah,” Ethan’s instinct is to feign ignorance, but he quickly decides against it. “Yeah, I guess we need to sort of decide what happens now.”

Alex nods, stirring her cereal around. “Okay, well… I think I’ve made it very clear I like you…”

“You have.” Ethan watches her stir the cereal. She’s nervous. “And I think I’ve made it clear I like you.”

“You have.” Alex smiles, echoing the words with a small bit of zest. “But…”

Ethan raises his brow. ‘Buts’ in this context were never a good thing. ‘Buts’ were what you used when you had to break bad news, or let somebody down easy, or introduce a new wrinkle in the plan. Ethan knew ‘buts’.

“I don’t think we should rush into anything…” Alex finishes looking into her cereal.

“Ah…” Ethan glances upward. “So what was ‘that’ then if not rushing?”

Alex tosses Ethan a frown, one constructed completely out of mock annoyance. “‘That’ was me letting years of pent-up feelings out.” She scoops a spoonful of cereal into her mouth, chewing it roughly. “You know I’ve had a crush on you since I was eight?”

“I…” Ethan shrugs. “I might have had an inkling…”

“Four years ago. The summer you didn't come to Green Valley? I cried when I found out you weren't coming to visit.” Alex shakes her head, clearly not impressed with her fourteen year old self. “Then when your grandpa died and grandma moved away… I thought I’d lost you forever. I tried to move on, Ethan. I THOUGHT I moved on… But when I heard you were coming to town, and when I saw you in town… SNAP! It all came rushing back.”

“Oh.” Ethan hadn’t properly considered Alex’s feelings. “Wow. Sorry to… put you through that?” He’s not sure if it’s worth apologizing for, but better safe than sorry.

“Except now, rather than being a cute kid with a cute crush, and I’m a super cute barely legal teenager with a still developing brain that just wants to fuck all the time without thinking things through.” Alex sighs. “So, now that we’ve fucked, I can see maybe I took things a little fast.”

Ethan takes a bite of toast, chewing very, very slowly. That was a lot, and he feels like Alex still hasn't gotten to her point. But he had to say something, so swallowing his toast he tried to offer some wisdom. “Nothing wrong with fucking.”

Wisdom isn't Ethan’s strong suit.

“No,” Alex cedes, “But, I don’t know you. And you don’t know me. How do I know you’re, fuck, even a decent guy? You came over to fuck me after reconnecting with me for like twenty minutes.”

“Hm.” She has a point. “Then the opposite may be true too. You invited me over wanting to fuck me after twenty minutes as well.” Ethan doesn't mean it as an attack, merely an observation, careful with his tone as he says it.

“Exactly! Ethan.” Alex takes a deep breath. “This is going to sound odd, but… I think we should be friends for a little bit. See if we even work. I don’t know if what I feel for you is love, lust, or some fucked up childhood fantasy that’ll pop the moment I find out you watch Grey’s Anatomy and I lose all respect for you.”

“Is… Is Grey's Anatomy really that bad?”

“It’s the fucking worst, Ethan.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

“So, how about it?” Alex gives Ethan a smile. “Try playing at being friends for a bit, see how things go?”