The Evidence Of Love

Chapter 18. Red Light

Annie stepped into her room around midnight, still wearing Ethan's sweater. She tosses her now booze-soaked dress into her dirty laundry pile and threw herself onto her bed. As she rolled over, she peeked over at her window in hopes that of Ethan were looking at her, he wouldn't notice her looking back at him.

She noticed him laying on his bed, his phone light blaring into his face, but what caught her off guard was his piercing green eyes staring back at her.

Her room was dark, so she wasn't sure if he could actually see her or if he was searching for life in her room. Regardless, Annie steadied her heart rate and layed silently on her bed, drifting off into a deep slumber.

The moonlight casted light on Annie's bed, casting a shadow on the rest of her room. Annie woke up in a slight daze and in a cold sweat at the crisp hour of 3 am.

"What the f*ck," she let out a deep breath. Her dreams lately became more intense, making her chest clench in dread for what felt like hours. Annie held back her tears, releasing a deep shakey breath before she sat up, turned on her moon lamp to a nice green. Dark enough, it shouldn't disturb, light enough for her to see.

Annie pulls out the novel that sat on her bedside table, pulling it open she reads the first two lines when, tap!

Annie looked up to her window and seen Ethans room empty. Standing up, she opened her window and looked down. There stood Ethan with a charming smile, "come on," he waved.

"Shh!" Annie whispered nervously, "I can't, Kyson said something about it this morning."

Ethan smirked as he turned around and left, quickly coming back with a ladder. Annie jumped and turned to change her clothes before she heard him coming up. She quickly closed her curtains.

"What I'm not allowed to see into your room?" He chuckled under his breath with a slightly flirty tone.

"I don't care if you see my room, I'm changing you creep," Annie whisper shouted as she felt her blush heat her face, quickly pulling on a pair of black jeans and changing out of Ethan's hoodie. Annie stopped and thought for a moment, 'I should wash it before I give it back, I did accidentally sleep in it.'- but deep down, Annie knew it was from budding feelings she knew she wasn't ready for.

Tossing his hoodie on her desk chair, she opened her curtains. "Welcome to paradise,"

Ethan let out a low chuckle as Annie moves aside so he can see her room. What Annie didn't think of was Ethan actually coming in. When he started to move forward inside the window, Annie felt a lump form in her throat. Nervous or excited that he was in her room- she didn't know.

Once Ethan was inside her room, his eyes darted around eagerly before saying, "you named your room paradise?" He smirked his eyes meeting hers briefly before he took slow steps around her room, taking each thing in.

"Well, it's my paradise," Annie shrugged.

A tall bookshelf filled with books, no particular loved genre as it seemed with everything. She loved everything equally down to the smallest of subjects. Then his gaze went to her desk, a few sketches, but he wasn't sure of what they were exactly. It seemed abstract.

Then came the wooden, well loved easel holding a pure white canvas, ready to use. Then, below on the floor sat unopened paints and clean brushes. Beside that, a box of canvases that had yet to be put up.

Then his gaze to her bed. The blanket wrinkled from her slumber, but as his gaze turned upwards and saw the painting he had commented on the day she had just arrived.

"Good choice of placement," he smirked.

Annie felt a blush creep up her neck, the warmth filling her entire body, her stomach clenching.

Ethan then looked over at her moonlight, tapping the moon once making the room bath in red.

Annie felt her knees go weak, gazing at Ethan in the red glow of the room. 'Boy had he grown,' Annie thought to herself. Annie bit down on her lip as she broke his gaze to look towards the window.

Ethan was so entranced at the subtle glow that seemed to emit from Annie in the red light, enticing him in. She made him so undeniably curious. He almost missed what she had said in his daze.

"Where are we going?" Annie asked as she gazed out the window.

Shaking his thoughts out of his head, Ethan headed for the window and started going down the ladder.

"Don't worry about that, just follow me," he whispered.

Annie did as she was told, and they walked towards the sidewalk, "figured we'd go for a walk, especially since you like going for those I've come to notice."

"Are you stalking me Hawthorne," Annie narrowed her eyes at Ethan as they walked side by side down the road, the sky a lighter shade compared to the black that it was- but still dark. The night breeze sending a light shiver down Annie's spine.

"Hey, you can run anytime," he holds up his hands in surrender, "no, I'm not stalking you, Doll," he chuckles.

"I don't know, sounds like stalking to me," Annie pokes.

​"Hey, don't blame me for the architecture," he chuckles, nudging her shoulder with his. Tilting his head toward her, he added, "also, it's hard to call it stalking when I've got a front-row seat to your morning routine from my bed, Doll. If anything, I'm just an appreciative audience."

Annie looked down at her shoes, the heat in her cheeks refusing to fade. Her heart was doing a nervous little flutter she tried to ignore. "An appreciative audience for what? Me reading for hours or looking for a matching pair of socks?" she asked with a small, shy smile. She bumped his arm back, her voice softening. "You should find a better hobby, Ethan. I'm really not that interesting."

​Ethan didn't miss the way she bumped his arm, and he leaned into it for a second longer than necessary. ​"A better hobby? Like what- knitting? Golf?" He shook his head, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Nah. I think I'll stick to the window view. Besides, someone has to make sure you don't fall asleep face-first in those books of yours. It's a matter of public safety."