elysium . michael langdon

chapter ten

Adelaine realized that if Michael was going to stay with her for a few weeks, he would need new clothes. She was lucky that she bought comfortable oversized t-shirts and pajamas to lend the blond boy, but he definitely needs more than that. The ginger decided that she'll probably stop by his house later that week to get some stuff that belonged to him, but she doubted that the Langdon boy would like it. They should probably stop by later, so she didn't have to lie to him. At least he'll be right there and wouldn't worry about her anymore.

The ginger smiled when Michael came out of the bathroom, fully dressed in the clothes she lent him. Biting her lip slightly, Adelaine handed the blond his denim jacket, to wear over his thin shirt.

"Come on, let's go." She offered him her hand, the Langdon boy clasping it without any second thought as they left her room.

The cold morning air blew at them as soon as they exited the apartment complex, but thanks to Michael's unusual body heat, Adelaine didn't seem to mind the low temperature. The blond's hold on her hand tightened when a girl passed by them, staring at him a little longer than needed. The ginger felt the need to glare at the stranger upon tasting the spiciness in her tongue. She couldn't blame the girl though. The Langdon boy was good-looking. But he didn't seem to understand the admiration sent his way. Instead, he felt almost uncomfortable. Adelaine giggled a bit upon glancing at the look on Michael's face, her dimples making an appearance.

"I think she likes you." She teased him a bit, bumping their shoulders together. The blond gave her a look of confusion as he tried to decipher the playful look on her face.

"What?"

"She definitely likes you," Adelaine repeated with a more joking tone. The Langdon boy stopped in his tracks, squinting his icy blue eyes at her.

"What does that mean?"He tugged on his denim jacket nervously, "Do you like me the way she likes me?"

It was the ginger's turn to be nervous, her eyes looking away from the blond's intense stare, "Of course not. It's different. I like you," She finally looked up at him, "As a friend, of course."

"Can she be my girlfriend then?"

Adelaine felt something in her boil at Michael's question. "No. You barely know her. She's a stranger."

She really didn't understand where the feeling of nervousness and jealousy came from. The ginger tried to convince herself that her feelings for him was merely platonic, but the more she spent time with him, the more she questioned what was going on with them. Adelaine knew she should probably stop herself from catching feelings, but it was too late. She knew the blond meant too much to her already.

"Girlfriends are so confusing," Michael admitted, scratching the back of his neck lightly. Chuckling, the ginger pulled him cautiously as they crossed the street. The blond's walking pace slightly slowed down when he spotted his old house coming into sight. Adelaine glanced up at him, noticing the look of fear in his face as his blue eyes remain staring at his home. His grip on her hand tightened but his eyes never met hers. The ginger felt him shaking a bit as he remained frozen on the spot.

"Michael?" She called quietly, tugging on his hand. "Michael, are you okay?"

Adelaine watched as the corner of Michael's blue eyes glistened with tears as he finally looked down at her, as if he was ready to cry.

"Are you going to leave me there?" His voice was small, childlike. Adelaine's heart swelled upon seeing the pain and sadness cross his face. The blond reminded her of a young child that will be given away to an orphanage or to another family. Like she was abandoning him. The ginger couldn't even bear the thought of letting him live alone in that house. She wouldn't leave him in his most vulnerable state. Not now. Not ever.

"Michael," She placed a hand on his cheek, calming him down a bit. "Hey, I'm not going to leave you in that house okay?" Michael nodded his head, sniffling, "I promised you, remember? I'm not going to leave you alone." Adelaine ran her fingers through his soft, curly hair, smoothing it down as he finally calmed down.

The ginger flashed the Langdon boy a soft smile as he clasped their fingers together again. His grip tightened on her hand once more when they stopped in front of the door.

"Hey," Adelaine caught his attention again, forcing his mind away from his apparent fear of being left alone in that house. "We're just going to get some of your clothes and something from your Grandma then we'll be out of here, okay?" Michael turned to her with an unsure look. "Okay, here's the deal. I'm going to buy you two tubs of ice cream after. Is that alright?"

The blond finally gave her one of his grins that made her feel warm and giddy on the inside. But the ginger didn't let it show. Instead, she took a deep breath and pushed the door open.

"You can take some of your things too, if you want," She told the Langdon boy as he trailed behind her. "Or you can stay here and I'll go up there and find some of your clothes."

The blond shook his head a little too quickly like it was the worst thing to do . Like he was afraid to let her out of his sight. His other arm hovered a few inches away from her waist, and she kind of expected him to wrap it like he always did, but instead he dropped it to his side. Adelaine was sure that she felt disappointment fill every inch of her body, even how much she tried to fight it. The ginger let out a shaky breath, forcing all of her treacherous feelings down. Michael was not hers. And she doubted that he'll ever be.

"Come on, let's go." Adelaine forced herself to say as she quickly ascended the stairs.

She hoped she was strong enough not to feel anything about the Langdon boy. But it was probably too late for her. Maybe she had already swam to the bottom of the ocean, and there was no rising to the top, without her drowning first.

_________________________

UNEDITED

This chapter is dedicated to identity-disorder

because she's awesome and i love her story, Black Death!

anyway, thank you so much for leaving votes and comments! It means a lot!

love bela xx.