Nothing else mattered in the moment but finally feeling him touch me again. This was fate, both of us running into the other in this darkened, smoky hallway. He’d been looking for me. I’d been searching for him.
And here we were.
I ran away that night, left him sleeping without so much as my number scribbled on a sheet of paper.
I opened my mouth to say something, anything, but words failed me, became lodged in my throat, desperate to escape.
Oliver stared at me as if he’d just found the one thing he’d been frantically searching for.
I’d assumed he’d be here tonight after finding out he’d come to Lyrics just last night. I hoped, prayed, begged to whomever would listen that destiny would have its way with us again and draw us together.
And here we were.
“Adele, girl, you’re up.”
I heard the words but couldn’t process them, not until someone was pulling me away from Oliver, from the light I desperately needed in this darkened world. I actually found myself stumbling, reaching out, my mouth opening as if I were about to call out to him. God, this was like a scene in a movie, a chapter in a book. Not real, fiction, but emotions and chemistry wrapped up in the moment, it felt like nothing else could be reality.
And then we were being swallowed by the bodies, the crowd. Why were there so many people here? Had there always been this many patrons at Lyrics at an open mic night? Maybe it just seemed like I was suffocating because Oliver was the only air I needed to breathe, because I was being pulled away from my source of life.
God, I was sounding insane, but I couldn’t help it.
And just before I was completely swallowed by the sea, I watched as Oliver started moving forward, pushing people out of the way, this fierce, feral, determined look on his face. He was a predator charging forward for his prey, starving, not about to let that meal go.
And I was that meal.
I pulled out of the grasp that held me, heard someone talking to me, asking what I was doing, yet all I could focus on was Oliver and getting to him.
And then I was the one pushing people out of my way. It was like this tether was between us, pulling us together, and the closer I got to Oliver, the more alive I felt.
And when I was only a foot from him, everything slowed as I watched him reach out to me. His hand cupped one side of my face, his palm big and warm, slightly calloused. He pulled me forward, and I braced my hands on his chest, feeling how hard and fast his heart beat under my palms. I curled my nails into the fabric of his shirt, rose up on my toes at the same time I watched him lean in close.
And then we were kissing, nothing else mattering but that one moment where we were finally together again.
I tangled my hands in his hair, keeping him pressed to me, afraid this was a dream and he’d disappear. He slid his other hand around me was, his forearm spanning my lower back, the force of him keeping me to his body so pronounced I knew without a doubt he was afraid I’d drift away too.
And in that moment I was Alice once more, falling down the rabbit hole. But unlike her, this was all I’d ever wanted.
7
Adele
We found ourselves back at my apartment, the emotions, the heat so pronounced I felt like I was drowning and breathing all in the same breath. We’d barely been able to keep our hands off each other on the cab ride over. It was like we’d been chained up, locked away without light or air, food or water.
But now that we had each other, we were kings, feasting.
We were a mess of tangled limbs, uncoordinated movements, and matching arousal that couldn’t be doused even if we wanted to. We tumbled through the front door, and I haphazardly kicked it shut with my foot, not letting go of Oliver, not wanting to break the spell that surrounded us.
“God, I’ve been dreaming of this moment,” he murmured against my mouth, and I swallowed the words. He moved us backward, and he ran into the kitchen table, the small glass vase that housed a single daisy tipping over. I was vaguely aware of the sound of water dripping on the floor, but I didn’t care. I only cared about this moment.
But I found myself breathing heavily, sucking in great lungfuls of air. My body felt hot, my skin on fire. My city apartment was tiny, one area that housed the living room and kitchen, the dining room too. The bedroom and bathroom were down an equally tiny hallway, and all I could think about was going in there, tearing off our clothing, and getting lost in each other.
“I can’t breathe,” I said, or maybe I shouted it in my head. I couldn’t tell because I felt so drunk on desire.
“Come here, Adele.” His voice was low, hoarse, and there was a touch of dominance in it. A part of me hoped he couldn’t help it, that he was too far gone in this moment to try to control himself.
Being with Oliver felt right. It had from the moment I looked into his eyes as I sang that song onstage. That feeling was solidified when I heard his voice, when I felt his touch.
And I knew he was my soul mate, the person I was meant to be with, when I saw him again just hours ago looking into my eyes with that same passion as before.