The Forever of Ella and Micha

excited me, but I smothered the feeling. “You have no right to try and stop me from doing anything, when you do whatever you want and whoever you want all the time and I don’t ever say a word.”
    He glared at me and I scowled back, before backing away into the crowd with my chin held up defiantly.
    About an hour later, I was pretty drunk and dancing with some guy with brown hair and bloodshot eyes, who smelled like pot. He was cute, but I wasn’t into him. Every time he tried to touch me, I inched out of his reach with panic soaring through me.
    Finally, he grabbed my waist, digging his fingers into me roughly, and forced me to get closer to him. Anxiety had seized my throat as his fingers spread around his hips and I was just about to knee him in his special place when he was yanked away from me.
    “Get the hell out of here.” Micha shoved him back, then clenched his hands into fists.
    The guy stumbled into a few people, regained his footing, and came back at Micha with his fists out. But the threat in Micha’s eyes made him rethink it and he shied away into the crowd.
    When Micha aimed his gaze at me, I was thrown off by the intensity. “Go into my room and lay down, before you end up doing something you’ll regret.”
    “Fuck you,” I replied, hating to fight with him, but he was being possessive and it was getting on my nerves. “You’re acting like a controlling asshole.”
    His expression softened and he offered his hand to me. “I’m just trying to protect you from stuff. You’re drunk and you’re dressed like…” His eyes strayed up my body and then he shook his head, blinking his eyes. “Just please come lie down with me.”
    I snatched hold of his hand and he steered me up in front of him to walk behind me with his hands on my hips. He didn’t let go of me until we reached his room.
    He shut the door and he sucked on his lip ring, appearing uneasy, which was very unlike him. “Do you want one of my shirts to sleep in?”
    “You’re acting really, really weird.” I sat down on the bed, unfastened the strap of my shoe, and wiggled my foot out, before starting on the other one. “What’s wrong with you tonight? Did a girl blow you off or something?”
    “I never get upset over a girl, unless it’s you.” He released his lip ring from his teeth and began unclipping the bands on his wrists. “I think I should be the one asking you what’s wrong. I’ve never seen you dress like that.”
    “I’m fine.” I slipped my foot out of the shoe and turned around to climb into his bed. “I just wanted to do something different.”
    I turned around to get under the covers and when I faced him again, he had an amused smile on his face.
    “What?” I asked, pulling the blanket over me. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
    He signaled for me to scoot over as he slipped his shirt off. “It’s nothing. I just can’t believe you showed up wearing that.”
    Fuming, I rolled to my side and put my back to him. “What’s-his-face from the dance floor seemed to like it.”
    He got into bed with me, pressing his body closer to mine than he normal did. “I didn’t say it was a bad thing… it’s just surprising. That’s all.” He placed a hand lightly on my hip and my stomach fluttered, which it had never done before.
    A loud breath escaped my lips and I winced. Sealing my lips shut, I crossed my fingers he hadn’t heard it. He edged nearer, so his chest was touching my back and his warm breath feathered my skin.
    “Ella?” He sounded choked up.
    It took me a second to compose myself enough to speak. “Yeah.”
    The silence that followed drove me crazy.
    “Sweet dreams,” he finally said and kissed the back of my neck before rolling over.
    Looking back at the memory now, I can’t help but smile, realizing what was really going on.
    Stuffing the dress and shoes into my bag, I hurry downstairs and run into Caroline in the kitchen. Her black hair is sticking up all over the place and she has a set of striped pajamas on. She pours herself a cup of coffee, yawning, and when she sees me, she smiles.
    “Oh, I thought you were in bed,” she says. “Are you an early riser too?”
    I swing the bag onto my shoulder. “Not usually. This morning was just an exception.”
    She collects her cup of coffee and pulls out a chair at the table. “Did you want some coffee?”
    “Sure, why not.” Setting the bag to the floor, I pour myself a cup and join her at the table, breathing in the