Page 54 of The Other Side of Together

“Mei Li?” Mama’s voice calls from the stairs. “Downstairs, please.”

“Coming!” I whip back around to face him. “You have to go,”I saywith my eyes, reaching to shut the window.

“But I haven’t said it yet.”

“Guess you’ll have to find the perfect time.”

He smiles as he backs down the ladder, patting his hand over his heart before he disappears.

I pull the window down, take a deep breath, and release it in a silent squeal so no one will sense that I was just telling Marcus Miller I love him.

CHAPTER 20

Marcus,

Like how I folded this note? I YouTubed it. Guo Mama shouldn’t be able to open it which means this is my chance to say something really juicy like…continue our game of 3 Random Objects from last night. Actually, from 2 AM. (Shouldn’t I be more tired than I am?) First 3 random objects: Marcus Miller’s smile, Marcus Miller’s laugh, Marcus Miller’s lips when they’re on mine. Your turn.

Itoss my AP chem book beside my lawn chair and scrunch down, my hoodie shielding my face from the crisp April breeze sauntering down the street. Every chemical equation I try to solve comes to the same conclusion: Mei Li Zhang, the element MLZ. And that’s it—there’s not much else in my head. Just her and a whole lot of the last three words she said to me:I love you. Then the three words she texted at 3 AM after our two-hour video chat: See you tomorrow.

It’s tomorrow. Almost 7 PM tomorrow, and I still haven’t seen her. But man, I need to. She texted at 4:45 to say she’d sneak over as soon as she could, and I gave her the green light. Sat on this fire escape. Tried doing chemistry, and it really needs me to pull my head out of last night—Mei’s faceon my phone screen, the questions we asked each other but would never ask anyone else before we signed off way too late as usual—very, very reluctantly, stretching over twenty minutes. Her good night text is lodged in my brain. My reaction to it still burns through me.

My foot taps against the metal, clanging all the way down the building. We need to figure this out. How, where, when…she’s gotta be an everyday thing. We have to figure out more undercover meeting spots, more ways to see each other. I gotta figure out how to keep my hands off her enough that I earn my motorcycle, but the motorcycle kinda feels flimsy now. If I had to choose between the two…

The thought stumbles over itself when Mei finally rounds the corner of her building, I’m out of my chair and gripping the railing, watching her cross the street. Her hands are shoved in the pockets of an oversized coat, her hair tucked inside a beanie to disguise herself as she jogs toward my building.

I sweep the street for any lurkers, then back to Mei who’s watching her feet until old man Huang stops sweeping the sidewalk in front of his apothecary shop. He bows and smiles, adjusting his glasses as he speaks to her.

No, no, no—keep moving. Her disguise obviously didn’t work for him, and it won’t work for Face Eater’s guys either, especially when she smiles at Mr. Huang, exploding the whole world.

Gripping the railing, I watch her cross the street toward my building then scramble back into my living room and dart to the front door before my heart beats twice. I’ve waited almost twenty-four agonizing hours to see her. Couldn’t concentrate in class, thanks to the buzzing in my head, and every time I blink, I see her smile, feel her lips.

I snatch a piece of gum from the cupboard, straighten my jacket, and run my fingers through my hair. Stare at the door and wonder if she got the note I left with Guo this morning.One of my best by far. Had me squirming when I wrote it. It’s like the thought of her split me open and a bunch of feelings hiding inside spilled onto the paper. Big ones. I told her all about them but left out the three words that have been sprinting through my mind. Saving them for face to face, perfect time, perfect place. Not here and not tonight since now, I only have two hours until Dad comes home from his meeting. Hope he doesn’t sense the words I wanna say or the female voodoo. If he just knew Mei, he’d change his mind about all women. I mean, five weeks ago, I was pro-motorcycle, anti-girl, anti-love. Then I met Mei. Now it’s pro-motorcycle, totally pro-girl, completely pro-love. And I like it.

Love it.

Love her.

Love? Really, though.

I smile at the door. Yeah. Really. Definitely.

The intercom beeps and I buzz her in, count to seventeen, then swing the door open before she can knock. “Hey.” I pull her inside and close and lock the door before wrapping my arms around her “It’s been twenty-two hours too long since I’ve seen you,” I say, leaning my forehead against hers.

She wraps her arms around my neck and laughs into my ear before whispering, “Did you mean all those things you wrote in your note?”

My pulse bounces in my neck as I pull her beanie off and smooth the static from her hair. This is the moment. It’s not where or how I pictured telling her, but the words are coming out and—

“It sounded kind of like you might have a crush on me, but I don’t want to assume anything.” She stands on tiptoe and presses against me, pushing me into hyperdrive.

I turn her and pin her against the wall, my mouth finally—FINALLY—all over hers like it’s dreamed of being all day. Mmm…strawberry bubblegum…She tastes like strawberry freakin’ bubblegum. Her mouth’s so warm and it’s telling me things she’ll never have to say out loud. It’s speaking its own language and I understand every word.Mm-hmm…aw, yeah…Comprende, baby…I want you that much too…gotcha…loud and clear…

“You’re the best kind of torture,” I groan against her lips, catching my breath. If she knew what she was doing to me, she’d be scared, because my thoughts are not the purest. I haven’t even told her I love her, but I do, and it makes keeping my hands off her like resisting gravity.

She unzips her jacket without breaking lip contact, and when my eyes snap open and meet hers, I grab her zipper and yank, shoving the jacket off her shoulders until it drops to the floor. Only her jacket. Still safe.

But her hands are in my hair and a hormone tornado rips up my insides, uncovering all my Mei feelings, flinging them through my body. My fingers flex over her hips, urging her closer until she breathes my name and something powerful—like superhuman powerful on a natural disaster scale—has to stop me because my hands are on her thighs, lifting her so she can wrap her legs around my waist, crush my ribs, squeeze the life out of me, kill me in this most heavenly way.

Blood and adrenaline drag race through my veins, flames trailing them, no brakes. Like my hands, lifting off her shirt. My eyes slip and my control follows. Mei. Black, lacy bra. Hints at everything it’s hiding.

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