#Chapter 45: Beneath the Mask

Olivia I woke up in a dimly lit living room, the remnants of sleep still clinging to my senses. Nathan was no longer sleeping beside me. Instead, a cozy blanket was tucked around me, courtesy of Nathan's thoughtfulness. As I yawned and stretched, a wave of recollection washed over me, reminding me of my afternoon spent with my childhood best friend. I couldn’t help but smile a bit as I remembered spending the afternoon enjoying the foods that we used to love as kids and watching movies, and the memories of Maria’s awful soup and horrible words felt like mere fragments in my mind. The pizza and the movies weren’t the only things that were lingering in my mind, though. I laid there for a moment in the dark living room, smiling up at the ceiling as I remembered the feeling of Nathan’s arm slipping around me. He was so warm and comforting. I couldn’t deny the fact that I craved being caught inside his arms again after we spent that last night together