Chapter 9 - Erik
“But why is her name Pearl?!” Erik exclaimed.
“Because all of them are named after gems. We've been through this.” she laughed, shaking her head at him. They were five episodes in and that was the thing he couldn’t let go of.
“But that's the thing a pearl isn't a gem! A pearl is a composite of Aragonite and conchiolin. Gems are solely minerals with no organic compounds.” he sighed, pushing a hand through his hair. The door rang, catching his attention. Most likely, the pizza they ordered not to long ago.
“You are putting too much thought into this.” She sat up and went to answer the door. He watched as she walked away, a small smile playing on his lips. He knew he was being ridiculous, but he needed to zero in on something other than the fact he was in nothing but boxers and a robe, alone with Anya. She had insisted on throwing his clothes in the dryer and now was regretting telling her okay. Well half way regretting. He couldn’t say he didn’t enjoy the pink that had found her cheeks when she saw him come back out barely dressed. His phone buzzed for about the tenth time and he decided to finally glance at it. They were mostly from Jess and the team wondering where he was. Another text sent at that moment.
Tatertot: Is Anya okay? Rumors are spreading like wildfire about her right now. And your coach is pissed.
Golden Boy: She's fine. How did you know I was with her? Was it Landon?
Tatertot: Let's see if X = Rumor about Anya losing it + Erik getting the urge to skip (both of them missing)
Tatertot: X= Erik is with Anya.
Golden Boy: Must you be so annoying?
“Is everything alright?” Anya asked walking back in the room, pizza in hand. Erik shut the ringer of the phone off and placed it back in the pocket of the robe.
“Yeah. Just my teammates looking for me.” he lied. He didn't want to but he figured it be best if she didn't know there were rumors spreading about her. He wanted to protect her from that. “Apparently, me skipping was a bigger deal than I realized.” he shrugged moving over so she'd fit easily next to him. She climbed up on the couch, sitting on top of crossed legs.
“People don't like change. It's a proven fact. Skipping a class is one thing but the entire day? Your fan club is probably losing its mind.” she teased him.
“My fan club?” Erik asked opening the box up and taking out a slice and handing it to her.
“Oh please, don't act like you don't know. I've been there two days and I know.”
“Know what? I'm genuinely lost here Sterling.” he pushed, feigning obliviousness.
“Come on, you are way too smart to be this dense. I KNOW you know how much everyone loves you. Everyone thinks you're attractive, talented, smart, the whole package.” she spoke taking a bite of her own slice. Erik watched her and she scrunched her eyebrows together. “What?”
“So...everyone thinks that huh? Even you? ” he asked trying to hold back a grin. She rolled her eyes in response, but the flushing of her face gave her away. “Well I'm not all that golden you know.”
“Oh yeah? Name one thing.” she said pausing the show and turning to face him.
“I’ll show you mine, if you show me yours.” he offered.
“Deal. You first though.” she egged on.
“Okay. You want to know what I'm actually really bad at?” he said putting the pizza down. “Romance.”
“Way to tell the truth.” Anya rolled her eyes.
“I’m serious!” Erik played with the arm of the sofa, as he spoke, “Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had girls interested. Hell, even guys. I've taken a few out here and there for like dances, formals...prom was a must.”
“You were Prom King weren't you?” She interrupted, trying not to smile.
“NOT the point right now” he said rolling his eyes.
“That’s not a no.” She giggled making the teasing more endearing than annoying. He smiled.
“Really though. I just never met that person you know? And I didn't want to just lead anyone on. My life is busy. I never have any idea what I'm doing. People call me the Golden Boy. The All-American Dream. But it doesn't come without work. I barely have free time. I didn't want to ask someone to deal with that without really knowing that I liked them. Without knowing it be worth it.” he stopped talking, waiting for her reaction.
“There's nothing wrong with waiting until you find the right person.” Anya replied, taking his hand. “You put the care of others before yourself. You sacrifice yourself to live up to people's expectations. So you're not perfect? Doesn't make you any less Golden. In fact, it makes you a diamond.”
“Is this about to be a Steven Universe pun?”
“No! I'm being serious. Diamonds form after extreme amounts of pressure. And real, raw Dqiamonds have flaws. And yet we still think they are beautiful.” she explained. “See? I know a bit about geology too.”
“I never doubted it for a second.” he smiled back. “So, what about you? Is there a guy waiting for you back in New York?”
“Well, no. I had a boyfriend once but, we broke up pretty quick. Most people steer cleared from me. ” she sighed softly. Now she was the one who was nervously playing with the couch.
“How come?” Erik asked, turning to give her his full attention.
“Well, when I was younger, weird things used to just happen to me all the time. I'd wake up at the docks every morning. My dad even used to lock my bedroom door but it didn't matter. And I couldn't ever tell them how I'd end up there because I'd be sleeping. And then things of coincidence always happened around me. Pipes bursting or windows shattering. Eventually, people just avoided me. Not that I could blame them. Then one day it all just. Stopped. I thought it was finally over. I could be normal. But then I moved here and it’s starting again.”
“And that's why you freaked about the dreams.” he said and she nodded solemnly. “You were worried we’d reject you too.”
“I’m sorry I don’t mean to be so this.” she began to tear up, and Erik’s heart crumbled in his chest. No wonder she reacted the way she did. Something like that could be traumatic for anyone.
“Hey, no tears.” He said, wiping one stray drop one from her cheek. “I know what it was like to feel alone, we all do. Even with my family, as close as we are, I always felt like I'm still catching up. Like I must work ten times harder just to fit their perfect family image. Xander's basically a single parent to his siblings. His parents work their asses off all day and night. And Jess well...she's an orphan. A victim of a failed system. We all have felt alone. We all have our demons. That's why we're so close. The worst things about our lives, they are what keep us together. Being a little different won't push us away Anya.” Erik stroked her face lightly with his thumb. “We’re your friends.”
“You've only known me two days Erik.” she said eyes closed, face leaning into his hand.
“Yeah, but it feels like longer doesn't it?”
Anya nodded and opened her eyes. Erik swore his heart skipped the moment their eyes locked. A thick air of tension now laid between what once was an innocent conversation. God, he wanted to kiss her. Correction. Every nerve in his body was fighting the urge to kiss her.
“Anya...” he spoke her name softly, one thumb rubbing across her cheek.
“Yes?” she answered, and his eyes flickered to her lips and then back to her eyes. Those damn aquamarine eyes stole every piece of reasoning and logic he had.
“Would it be okay, if I-.” He stopped talking when she nodded, moving closer to him. Their mouths connected and Sparks flew in every direction, and the world disappeared around them, along with all of their worries, thei troubles and their problems. She made him feel like none of that mattered. It was a small yet warm kiss. Erick honestly never knew a kiss so innocent could be so intimate and electrifying. Their lips were moving in perfect sync, his hands feeling her waist. He pulled her closer, the kiss deeper, more passionate.
He intended to just kiss her once, take things slow. But when she didn't move away, the kiss grew hungrier, desperate. She moved to straddle him fingers running down his spine, pulling him closer until there was no space left between them and she could feel the beating of his heart against her chest. Erik's fingers ran through her hair, causing it to cascade down around her shoulders.
God she was beautiful.
He wanted to slow down, but he couldn’t. No girl ever, would ever, take his breath away that she had. It was petrifying as it was mesmerizing.
The doorbell rang, snapping them out of their passion infused state. They separated their lips, foreheads pressed together as their chests rose and fell, lungs begging for oxygen. The bell rang again.
“I should get that.” she finally said, a smile on her face, lips red and swollen.
“Or we could ignore it?” he smiled back, pulling her back to him. Emboldened by the rush of hormones running though his system he began to kiss her neck and shoulders. She sighed, one hand running through his hair before gripping it and pulling his head away from her body. The bell rang again and Erik let out a frustrated groan. Anya giggled, placing one last kiss on his cheek before untangling herself and walking towards the door.
Erik laid his head back on the sofa, taking deep breaths as he regained his composure. Never had he ever been pulled so strongly to a person. He hoped she didn't think he was lying earlier. That he was just trying to make a move on her. Because that wasn't the case. Anya was different. He knew it the moment she saw her.
The creak of the door echoed and he heard Anya gasp. He quickly sat up to peer into the foyer.
“We decided to skip in solidarity...and bought apology donuts! Please say you don’t hate me?” Jess' voice echoed down. “I'm sorry we pushed all that on you. It was stupid...Can we come in?”
Anya looked over at Erik who shrugged in return. Your choice. He mouthed.
“Well...how can I say no to apology donuts?” Anya smiled. He watched as Jess jumped happily into Anya’s arms. “Okay, okay! Come in.” She took a step back and in walked Jess and Xander.
“We weren't interrupting anything were we?” Xander asked, one eyebrow raising at Erik who suddenly realized how this looked. He pulled the robe tighter around him.
“Not at all. My clothes are in the dryer. Pipe burst remember?” He explained, a nervous chuckle escaping his lips.
“I'm sure there was. “ Jessica smirked and Anya's face turned red.
“ANYA was introducing me to the world of Steven Universe.” Erik changed the subject.
“Help yourselves to the pizza.” Anya said, taking a seat next to Erik. He lifted his arm up and without missing a beat she snugged against him. It made his smile grow into a full-on grin.
“Oh no...they’ve imprinted.” Jess said falling to the ground dramatically. “I can see what's happening. And they don't have a clue. They'll fall in love and here's the bottom line. Our trio's down to two!”
She and Xander continued to quote the Lion King earning a hard pillow toss from Anya,
They all laughed, Anya catching them up on the show.
And just like that it was like that morning had never happened.
