?LIBIA (Find my confidence)?
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Chapter Fifteen.
Libia was bubbling with nerves as she got dressed that morning. She couldn’t calm herself. She rushed to find a suitable outfit, throwing her clothes all over the place before settling on a white and black shi-t with a lace bottom, a pair of navy blue jeans, and black flats.
“Okay,” She breathed, settling down at her vanity. “Calm down Libs. It’s okay. It’s just his family. He told you they love you. Don’t freak.”
After her little pep talk, she pu-ll-ed her makeup bag closer and began the process of putting eye shadow on.
Not long after her makeup was completed, as she swiped the last wing onto her eyeliner, her phone vibr@ted.
She checked her messages and a smile broke out on her face.
Hey Babe. I woke up this morning and found a miracle – Jack was actually dressed nicely! *g@sp* of course it was Carol’s doing. She told me, and I quote, “Well I want her to think our family at least dresses normally!”
Laughing, Libia texted back a quic-k reply.
I’m just a bit nervous. What if they don’t like me after all?
She stood up, brushing herself off, and left her room, heading for the bathroom. Her brother was in his room, snoring. She smiled, rolling her eyes.
She entered the bathroom and picked up her comb, deciding to leave it down, as she couldn’t think to do much else with it.
When she c@m£ back to her room, she checked her phone, and found a text.
Not like you? Are you kidding? They’re sitting here worrying you won’t like them. I just love teasing them about it.
Libia giggled, and then replied.
Shame on you! And anyway, they have nothing to worry about. I will love them no matter what.
She set her phone down, checking the contents of her purse. It only took a minute for him to text back.
Oh? And why’s that?
Because I love you no matter what. She thought, but shook her head, replying,
Because they sound wonderful, and your sister kicked you in the shin once. Who can’t not love a girl that kicks you in the shin? >:p
A teasing smile was plastered on her face, as she tucked her phone in her purse. She strolled out to the kitchen and gr@bb£d the sticky pads. She wrote a note for Ben.
I’m going out for a little while. Make sure to take your benedril, and if anything happens, you call me right away.
PS; yes, I’m going out with Damon. No, I am not grounded – you have no right to do that. And yes, you are going to have to accept this tattoo on my back. And Damon.
Love, L.
Her phone vibr@ted in her purse, and she pu-ll-ed it out to see a reply from Damon.
Hey now, that’s mean. I’m real broken up. :’C anyway, I’m on my way. I’m still curious as to what I should be proud of you about.
She grinned at the reminder, and bounced around for a second, before replying.
You’ll see! And okay, I’ll see you in a few.
She waited at the front door, trying desperately to calm her racing heart. Would they be loud and boisterous? Or dry humored like Damon? She knew his parents would have their same…cold disposition that they usually exuded, but his siblings actually had personality, and they seemed very nice from what she’d been told.
When the knock c@m£, she had to f0rç£ herself to wait, as she smoothed her jeans down and straightened her shi-t. She unlocked the door, trying and failing not to sound too hasty. The door swung open, and there he stood, his eyes twi-nkling with excitement as a crooked smile made it’s way to his face at the sight of her. He looked dashing in a dark blue dress shi-t, and his regular de-ep blue jeans. He had been shaving, but his chin was back to it’s regular stubble again. His hair was very neat for once, witch made her giggle.
She was rocking slightly on her feet, b!tt!g her l!pas she smiled shyly up at him.
“Hey, Babe,” He greeted.
“Hi,” She replied, stepping out of the door.
She’d expected him to step back to make room for her, but he stayed in place, wra-pping his arms around her w@!st and enveloping her in a hvg.
“You look beautiful,” He uttered in her ear.
Her cheeks flamed, as she wra-pped her arms around him again. “Thank you. I’m guessing Carol dressed you up too?” She tea-sed, pressing a k!ssto his cheek.
“Nope. I did it all by myself, like a big boy,” He said proudly.
She pu-ll-ed back, her nerves melting away as she pat his neat head gently. “Aw, I’m so proud!”
Laughing at his pla-yful glare, she turned and closed the door, locking it behind her. He tugged her over to the BMW, pla-yfully shoving her to the pas-s£nger side. She laughed as she stumbled slightly, calling back, “You big j£rk!”
They settled in, and Damon paused after putting the key into the ignition, turning his head to Libia. “You re-ady?”
“No. And yes,” She admitted. “Your parents…I’m not so jazzed about seeing again,” She said honestly, “But Jack and Carol, I’m thri-lled about meeting – but also extremely nervous.” She shrugged.
Chuckling, he turned the car on, throwing it into drive before reaching over and taking her hand in his. “You’ll be fine, Babe. I’ll be right there, and they’re really not that scary,” He win-ked.
Laughing, she joked, “I don’t know, you can be pretty scary, and if you’re anything to go off of, I might nee-d to be cautious.”
He chuckled and looked at her from the corner of his eye. “You’ve been able to deal with me pretty easily.”
She shook her head, muttering, “Just ba-rely.”
Before he could reply, she reached over and turned on the radio. She switched the stations around for a few minutes, settling on some pop hit that she turned down to a comfortable background noise.
They sat in comfortable silence, and Libia realized after a moment that she’d never seen his house before. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, aware of his thumb ru-bbing circles along the back of her hand. He stared ahead, a small smile fixed onto his face. She was glad that he was focusing on the good p@rts of this dinner d@t£ – instead of dre-ading his parent’s attitudes toward them.
It took a few minutes to reach his house, on a nice big neighborhood with a lot of expensive housing. His was a white colonial, with white pillars going halfway up the tall house, holding up a balcony on the second floor.
“This is beautiful,” Libia breathed, taking in the two white rocking chairs that sat in the shade of wra-paround porch, and the dark mahogany front door that contrasted beautifully with the white trim.
“Thank you. It’s more like a museum than an actual home, though,” He laughed softly.
Her face formed into a frown, and Damon sighed, leaning forward to pu-ll her face around to his. He met her eyes, and his own were twi-nkling with happiness. “Of course, it’ll feel more like a home than it ever has – with you here.”
Her cheeks flamed brilliantly, and Damon smiled. “re-ady?”
Silent, Libia nodded as she swallowed thickly.
“It’ll be fine, Libia,” He breathed, pressing a chaste k!ssto her cheek, before leaning back and opening the door.
She got out, waiting for Damon around the side as she stared up at the home. It was beautiful…and daunting.
He caught her hand in his, pu-lling her forward. “Don’t panic, Babe. This is my family – not the president.”
Her cheeks flamed with embarras-sment, as she reached over to sma-ck his arm. “Fine. Next time, you’re coming home with me for the family reunion – you can meet my cousin Sherry.”
He eyed her as he rang the doorbell. “And I’m supposed to be scared?”
Libia let out a loud laugh, that held an evil tint, before reaching over to l@ya hand on his shoulder. “Terrified,” She answered in a blunt tone.
She didn’t miss his thick swallow, and grinned.
“What,” He began, giving her a nervous glance, “Is she protective?”
Libia sh0t him a mock sympathetic look, patting his shoulder. “She’ll grill you like a raw stake.”
She couldn’t help but bur-st out laughing at his terrified look, and told him, “Relax, it’s not like you’re meeting the president.”
He sh0t her a glare, just as the door flew open.
“Damon! Libia!” A girl squealed, and suddenly Libia was engulfed in a hvg.
“Carol,” Damon gro-an ed.
She ignored her brother, rocking Libia from side to side as she rambled how happy she was to meet her in her ear. Libia looked up at Damon, and he shrugged, mouthing, “Sorry.”
She pu-ll-ed back, exclaiming, “Now let me have a look at you!”
Libia stood with wi-de eyes as she stared at the petite girl with a wrestler’s grip. She had Damon’s blonde hair, but she did not posses his de-ep blue eyes – instead she had large brown ones that anyone would adore.
“Oh my gosh, Damon you’re right! We have the same eye color! We’re soul sisters,” She said in a mystified voice, mouth gaping.
gripping my arm, as I had siezed all movement trying to think of the right response, Damon dragged me into his side.
“That’s all well and good but-,”
“Carol! You were supposed to clean up the cat poop hours ago! Mom and Dad will have our heads!” Called a male voice, before a guy appeared. He was messing with a tie that had somehow gotten crooked on his n£¢k, and his brown eyebrows were furrowed as he tried to fix his dress shi-t witch was somehow wrinkled up to his bellybu-tton.
Libia couldn’t help but let out a snort, and then a laugh. Damon put his face into the palm of his hand, covering Libia’s eyes with the other.
The brown eyed boy looked up at the sound, and a grin overtook his face. “Hey, Damon! Is this Libia? Why are you covering her face?” He asked, walking closer.
Libia was shaking slightly with laughter, as Damon muttered to her, “I’m so sorry.”
“You idiot! What did you do to Dad’s formal wear?” Carol cried.
“Something was itching, so I un-tucked the shi-t but then it got stuck like this and my tie was in the way,” He complained.
gro-an ing, Carol rushed over and yanked his shi-t down, but the bu-ttons were caught on each other. She gro-an ed again as she began to untangle them.
“Um…we’re just going to go inside,” Damon muttered, dragging Libia beside him, who was still shaking with laughter, unable to speak.
“Make yourselves at home! Oh, and Damon, the cat pooped in the foyer so don’t step in it!”
A wail left Libia as she couldn’t contain her laughter anymore, Leaning heavily on Damon for support.
He led her into the kitchen, and sat her down at the tall wooden table. She wiped a tear from her eye, g@sping for air.
“You find this so funny, don’t you?” He asked her, trying not to smile, but losing the fight.
“The cat pooped in the foyer!” She laughed, clutching her stomach as another fit gr!pp£dher.
Chuckling, Damon nudged her lightly with his shoulder, muttering, “It’s not that funny.”
Libia wiped another tear from her eye, lying her head on her arms as she breathed de-eply, smiling up at Damon. “I like your siblings.”
He tilted his head to see from her perspective as he sh0t her a crooked smile. “Me too.”
They smiled at each other for a moment, before the silence was broken by a squeal. “Oh my gosh did I just witness a Damon Smile?” Carol exclaimed.
They looked over, and found both Carol and Jack gaping at them. Damon grumbled something that Libia didn’t hear, and she turned to see his cheeks red, as he ducked his head.
“Damon…I’ve never seen you blus-h before!” Libia said in awe, before a smile curved at herl-ips and she tilted her head. “It’s surprisingly cute.”
He sh0t her a pla-yful glare, marred by a smile that he tried to hold back. “I’ll show you cute,” He threatened with little f0rç£ behind it.
Carol g@sped, breaking their stare once again to swing their gaze to her as she checked her watch. “Mom and Dad will be home any minute!” She shoved Jack out of the room, calling, “Make yourself at home, Libia while we take care of everything!”
Gulping, Libia glanced at Damon. “Your siblings, I love. I’m a little scared of your parents, to be honest,” She admitted.
He slung an arm over her shoulder, sighing. “Believe me – if I could help it, you wouldn’t come within a mile of those two. If you wanted to, we would leave right now, and go spend time with just my brother and sister,” He pressed a light k!ssto her cheek, causing a blus-h to flourish up to the surface.
“But they are family, Damon,” She reminded softly, “And as scary as they may be, I want to get to know them.”
A ti-ght smile pu-ll-ed at hisl-ips, and she knew what he was thinking. You might regret those words in a little bit.
“Gross, Jack! that stinks!” They heard Carol complain loudly. “Hey, don’t come near me with that! What are you-? Ew!” She shrilled, and Libia broke into more laughter.
“Plus, with your siblings and you around, I think I’ll be alright.” She added, wiping a tear from her eye.
He shook his head in exasperation, before he smiled. “Yeah. We’ll protect you.”
“I’m counting on you,” She nudged him in a gentle manner with her shoulder, shooting him a wi-nk and a smile.
He grinned at her, and her breath caught at the beautiful sight.
“Let’s go to my room – we can sit on the balcony until my parents get here,” He suggested, his voice soft.
Her heart jumped to heart attack level, and her stomach exploded with bu-tterflies in a single instant, and then she nodded. “Okay.”
He led her into the foyer, where Damon’s brother and sister were just moments ago, but were nowhere to be found. It was a beautiful room, with large, green plants in every corner, and black and white tile. a large archway led into the living room, where light poured in from large windows. He led her to a large staircase, that wound up and into an open circle in the ceiling – the second floor.
As they ascended, Libia felt her stomach ti-ght£ñ with nerves. Damon’s room. Was she really re-ady for this? This was where Damon sle-pt every night – where he got dressed, did his homework, and relaxed. Would it be messy? Or would it be clean? Would his homework be strewn all over the place, or neatly stacked on a nice wooden desk?
Damon was oblivious of Libia’s thoughts, as they reached the t©p floor. He walked them past their upstairs living area, and down the hallway, st©pping in front of his room.
His smile held a bit of an apology to it. “It’s a bit of a mess – I didn’t have the chance to clean it.”
She only managed a shrug, to which he took as a prompt to open the door. He turned the handle, and Libia watched his hand with teeth clenched, as she tried desperately to reign in her nerves.
The door swung open, and she found herself staring at…
“Damon, you call this messy?” She giggled.
His room was sp©tless, save for a single shi-t on the ground. His backpack sat against his glas-s-t©p desk, and a few papers were spre-ad out, what she as-sumed was homework. His cream carpet was without one stain. The only messy thing in the room was his be-d, which was adorned with a fluffy black and white comforter, matching sheets and pillows.
“It’s hvge,” She murmured as she stepped inside. “I’d always wanted a big room.”
“Why’s that?” Damon inquired as he followed her in, closing the door behind them.
“Because then I’d have the free space to dance,” She admitted.
A smile curved at hisl-ips. “Speaking of that, we haven’t put together a dance yet for Mrs. Vans.”
She blinked. “We haven’t,” She realized, looking at him. “Isn’t the debut in two weeks?”
He nodded, taking a few steps forward and catching her in his arms. “Yep.”
She set her hands on his che-st, her eyes worried as she watched her f!ngerspl@ywith his shi-t. “What are we going to do?”
She hadn’t even had time to worry about her dance clas-s – not to mention when she and Damon were fighting.
He lifted her chin, leaning down to nussle her n£¢k. “We’ll think of something. Two weeks is a long time if we use it right,” He murmured.
She closed her eyes, as his warm breath brushed her skin. She’d never been held like this before – never been so inti-mate. It was so comforting, and it also made her heart pound with nerves. It was all so confusing.
“Why do you make me feel this way?” She whispered to him, as her f!ngersgr!pp£dhis shi-t.
He shook his head, and his nose brushed her n£¢k. “What way?”
“I feel so right here, in your arms, and yet I’m so nervous. Why is that?”
He closed his eyes at her words, feeling her hands tremble and realizing how much courage it took her to admit those things to him. He pu-ll-ed back, and she opened her eyes to look at him.
He smiled down at her, a gentle smile that melted her heart and made her want to turn into mush.
“I don’t know, Libia. I feel the same way, and it confuses the hell out of me.”
She smiled. “Really?”
“Really,” He confirmed, his hand drifting up to her cheek and pressing into the soft skin there. “But I never want it to end.”
She blinked as the earnest doubt in her eyes melted into a soft sea of un-derstanding. “I don’t, either.”
Sighing, he leaned down and pressed hisl-ips to hers. Her hands slid up to cu-p his jaw, feeling the stubble prickle her hands. He gro-an ed as his hands made their way up her back, cu-pping her n£¢k in a gentle embr@ce.
It was gentle at first, theirl-ips moving together slowly and lovingly, and then it de-epened, and Damon pu-ll-ed her even closer, one arm going back down to capture her w@!st. He lifted the other hand to sl!pinto her hair, running his f!ngersdown the length of it in a slow, soft movement.
A soft m0@n left Libia, causing Damon to smile against herl-ips.
He pu-ll-ed back, knowing they both nee-ded air, and Libia opened her eyes to stare into his blue depths.
“You have no idea how much I missed thosel-ips,” He whispered, planting one more soft k!sson her swollenl-ips before her cheek.
Her cheeks flamed red, and she realized her hands still captured his face. She took one hand away, but the other slid up, and she ran her f!ngersthrou-gh his hair. He closed his eyes, a smile curving hisl-ips. Her f!ngerspla-yed in the strands, and it caused tingles to shoot up his spine.
“Libia…,” He trailed off, before leaning his forehead on hers. “I…nee-d to tell you something.”
His eyes slowly opened, and her mouth went dry at the apprehension, the sheer nerves that she saw there in his depths.
She nodded, clearing her throat. “Go on.”
He took a de-ep breath, and did something very unlike him – he broke their stare. He pu-ll-ed back from her grasp, taking her hands in his, and holding onto them for dear life. “Libia…I-”
A knock inturrupted their suddenly serious atmosphere, and Damon’s eyes closed. Libia furrowed her eyebrows as she called, “Yes?”
“Sorry, Mom and Dad just got home. They’re getting out of the car now,” Jack called.
“We’ll be right out,” Libia replied, “Thank you.”
He didn’t answer, so she turned back to Damon. His eyes opened again after a moment, and he looked up at her. “Damon…?”
A small smile lifted hisl-ips, as he leaned down to capture hers in one last, heavy k!ssthat made Libia’s knees wo-bble. “Let’s go.”
“Wait,” Libia protested as he pu-ll-ed her to the door, he didn’t st©p. “What were you going to tell me?”
“Later,” He looked back to wi-nk at her, but his eyes flashed nervously.
She watched his back with furrowed eyebrows as he led her downstairs, but as the front door opened when they reached the bo-ttomsteps, Libia’s curiosity was replaced by the burning nee-d to run and hide.
Damon pu-ll-ed her un-der his arm, holding her close as if he’d s-en-sed her sudden change.
In walked the two that Libia dre-aded seeing – Rich and Lisbon Slain.
Jack and Carol c@m£ to stand by Damon, and Libia s-en-sed a change in all three of them. She watched the light in Jack’s brown eyes, which had been so bright when they’d met, dim down nothing, and his hands clasped behind his back as if he were meeting with a drill seargent instead of their parents. Carol wra-pped an arm around her brothers, holding onto his sleeve, as she stared down at the ground. Even Damon wasn’t as bright as he’d been – tensing up as if for a fight and holding Libia just a little bit ti-ghter.
This wasn’t a home, Libia realized. This was a boot camp.
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Tbc