I got very little sleep that night. I replayed the conversation between Eli and me over and over in my head but I can't find the point where it had all gone wrong. He always finds me and asks about me and when I want to know about him he just shuts me out. That is not fair. Not fair at all. Maybe I should give him a piece of my mind. Yeah, sure, because you're always so eloquently spoken around him.

A knock on my door makes me leave my thoughts behind and I go to it. Since I am so tired, I stayed in my pajamas until now and continued to read my book. I open the door to find Bennett looking down at me. "Hey there. Why are you still in pajamas? It's almost noon."

"I know, I know. I didn't sleep so well."

"Bad dreams?" Bennett asks, concern swimming in his blue eyes.

"Something like that. So, what's up?" I quickly change the subject. I don't need Bennett knowing that thoughts about his best friend kept me up all night. And not the good kind of thoughts, if you know what I mean. Anyway, I shouldn't think that much about a man, who's 12 years older than me, at all. It's wrong and even though Tess made comments to annoy me, I don't know if she would approve, let alone Bennett. I just have to forget about it, shut those thoughts out. I'll find someone my age when Tess and I are going out at the end of the week. It's weird though, I never was as interested in or felt as comfortable with a man like I do with Eli. I've only kissed a handful of guys before and it was never good. And mind you, kissing was all I did by now. I know, I know I'm a late bloomer in that department. Tess tells me enough times. I'm pulled from my thoughts when Ben clears his throat and starts speaking.

"I just wanted to let you know that my vacation from work starts now. I'll be home more but maybe Tess already told you."

"Uh, no she didn't. But that's great, you deserve to relax. You really work a lot." I shoot him a genuine smile.

"Thanks, I think so, too. Um, one more thing. I am gonna be out until tomorrow, is that okay with you?"

"Out? Where to? With whom?" I question him, my curiosity getting the better of me once again. A small smile appears in the corner of his mouth. I guess he finds my interrogation amusing.

"I'll just be at a friend's place. It's not that far from here. If you need anything you can always call me and Eli should be here anyway. I haven't talked to him today but I'm sure he didn't plan to go anywhere." When he mentions his friend, his hand goes to the back of his neck, scratching it in a nervous manner.

"A friend, huh? Alright, if you all just want to leave me alone, so be it. I'm an independent woman and I don't need anyone," I jest and stick my nose up in the air while crossing my arms. Ben laughs at my antics and flicks my nose.

"Alright Miss Emancipation, good thing we talked about it. I'll be out of here in an hour and I'll be back tomorrow night. Let Eli know, will ya?" I nod in confirmation.

As he descends the stairs I call after him with a smug grin.

"Maybe you can bring her here one day. I'm sure Tess would like to meet her."

The only answer I get is an annoyed groan and the slam of a door. I guess I hit the nail on the head.

I'm anxious to be alone with Eli. I really like the way he makes me feel and I find him very intriguing, and handsome of course, but at the same time...well, you know my misery. He is too old and too mysterious and too closed off. But I want to get to know him and weirdly enough I don't mind his age that much. I look at him as a person, no matter how much older he is.

A loud noise makes me stop my overthinking and put the spoon into my bowl of cereal. Someone hastily stomps down the stairs. A blond woman with a pixie cut appears in the hallway. She looks mad, very mad. She frantically looks around until here gaze lands on me.

"Have you seen my jacket?" She asks, out of breath and with a red face.

"Uh, no sorry. I could help you look for it, though," I say as I get up from the barstool, slightly sad that my cereal will get soggy now. "What does it look like?"

"Pink leather." Is her short answer. Bold choice I think and look through the jackets on the coat rack. I can't find it. Only now, I start to think about who the woman is and it clicks. She must've come from Eli's bedroom. For an unknown reason, my heart stings a little. You have no reason to be jealous. He is a free and single adult who can sleep with whoever he wants. Still, the sting stays.

Just then, Eli comes down the stairs as well, no shirt on and dark green sweatpants riding low on his hips. He looks extremely attractive even though he obviously just got out of bed.

"Your jacket is in my car." Is all he says. He grabs his keys from his own jacket and steps outside to open his car. I stand in the hallway looking at the woman who seems to be getting more and more angry by the second.

"I don't need your fucking help! Just give me damn keys I'll fucking get the jacket myself, you asshole." She screams at Eli and follows him outside. Do I even want to know what happened between the two? Yes, yes I do. Not even a minute later, Eli comes back inside, slams the front door shut and leans against it. Heaving out a long sigh he rubs his face with his hands before standing up straight again.

"What was that?" I ask shocked, almost just whispering the words.

His green eyes snap open and land on me in an instant. They widen a fraction as if he only now realizes I'm even there.

"None of your business."

I scoff. "Why was she so mad?"

"What part of 'none of your business' do you not understand, Romy?" I don't like the way he said my name.

"Don't be so condescending," I tell him, getting angry myself.

"Then don't pry into things that don't concern you." He takes a step closer to me, then shakes his head and disappears into the gym room. I huff in annoyance and go to throw away my now soggy cereal. Great, so much for a nice and relaxing breakfast. I decide to text Tess and ask her how it's going on the boat. She lets me know that everything is going great and she promises to take me out on the boat someday. I smile, happy that she is having an amazing time. I think about letting her know of Ben's potential new girlfriend but I decide against it. It's better to tell her in person. Or just let Ben do the honors. I opt for a swim in the lake and then continuing my book but when I look outside the back door, I see dark clouds beginning to cover the once blue sky and a faint rumble can be heard in the distance. There goes my plan. What an amazing day...

Since it is now a full-on thunderstorm outside, I am curled up on the couch with my book and bowl of salt and vinegar chips. My favorite. At one point, I could hear Eli heavily punching the boxing bag in the makeshift gym. Why is everybody so angry today? After three and a half hours Eli seems to still be working out and I decide to check on him. Leaving my book on the couch I make my way to the room across the hallway and peek inside. The ridiculously tall man is currently on the floor doing pushup after pushup. The muscles on his arms seem even bigger than normal, being swollen from working out so hard. His torso is covered and dripping in sweat, his dark hair sticks to the back of his neck and his forehead. He grunts with every executed exercise and breathes heavily. He looks exhausted but determined.

"Eli," I softly call out to him. He doesn't verbally acknowledge me but I know he heard me by the way his head tilted in my direction for a fraction of a second. "Are you alright?" He ignores me. I should probably just go back to my book and leave him be but something in me compels me to go to him. He's still relentlessly doing pushups as I crouch down next to him and gently lay my hand on his right shoulder blade. Eli stops what he's doing and lets himself fall on his back, his chest heaving frantically. I feel his eyes on me and I look up to return his gaze. His eyes hold many emotions. Sadness, anger, fright, curiosity and something else that I can't quite decipher. I break our eye contact and look around the room, noticing that he has no water with him.

"I'll get you some water," I tell him and quickly make my way into the kitchen, grabbing an ice-cold water bottle from the fridge.

I watch Eli gulping down the entire contents of the bottle before he thanks me and sits up.

"Are you alright?" I ask him again trying to catch his gaze but he just stares ahead at the wall. He opens his mouth to say something but decides against it. Instead, he hangs his head, still a little out of breath and crunches the water bottle in his hand. I flinch slightly, not having expected that reaction but I notice it was solely out of surprise not out of fear. The next thing that happens is just as unexpected but it's the only thing I can think of doing at that moment besides just walking away. I walk over to where Eli's sitting. I stop right next to his left foot and take my own left foot to place it next to his right foot. He looks up in confusion and I start to lower myself down. This forces him to take his elbows of his knees and to lean back.

"Romy, what are you doing?" This time, I'm the one that ignores his question. In two seconds I am situated in his lap, straddling him. I sling my arms around his neck - despite all the sweat - and pull him into a hug. I am aware that the position is a little inappropriate but I didn't want to risk him pushing me away the second he realizes what I'm doing. His whole body tenses for a few moments before he relaxes and encircles my waist with his strong and heavy arms. His cheek rests against the side of my head and he pulls me a little closer into his broad frame.

"You are not alone," I whisper because I know what it feels like to feel all alone in this world, no matter how many people are around you, and I wished at those times that someone would've told me that I am not. Alone.