Chapter 16

Leo's pov

With my shaking hands, I tasted the sauce.

Decent

I thought to myself as I made my usual sauce for the pasta recipe. While I am very much familiar with the making of the recipe, what I am not at all with is, having the eyes of Sebastian on me unrelently as I did so.

I turn my head once again to check if he's still watching me intently and not to my surprise, he is.

Chuckling to myself, I put off the flame before serving the pasta into plates.

" There you go " I announce placing one of the plates infront of him.

He smiles and hurries to scoop up some pasta to take a bite. "Careful, it's hot." I warn him, but when has he ever listened.

I gulped along with him as he took the first bite in anticipation and another one, followed by another. By the time he decides to speak, I started to sweat.

" They were right. " he states.

" Huh? "

" They were right. Liona's pup can cook very well. " he repeats with an evident mischievousness  making the heat creep up my neck. He really can be a major tease sometimes.I cough awkwardly trying to clear my throat.

" I'm glad- you liked it. " I say, still feeling very embarrassed and he smiles wider in response. Unable to keep my composure any more I return his smile. We complete the rest of the meal in diligent silence except some occasional chatter.

" How old were you when she passed away? " he asks me softly while I am clearing dishes.

" Ten. "

He hums in response, silently making a note of my answer.

" What is she like? "

For a moment, I am startled by the current tense, then I remembered the things I told him earlier. Feeling warm in my chest, I start telling him about all the things I remember about her and some things I can't forget no longer feeling the pity of the world, not when his eyes held all the warmth that was there as he looked at me.

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" You know what we should do, a cooking competition,like a legit one. We should both cook our best dishes and then invite our friends and have them judge the dishes. " Seb says inbetween his bites of the icecream he's currently devouring. His tone is very particular as if he's seriously considering it.

" Sure. " I agree with whatever he's saying before leaning forward to wipe the cream on the side of his lips,the action making his babbling halt. He flushes as his cheeks tinge pink, while he rubs vigorously at the sides of his lips for any leftover traces.

This is the Sebastian I have been introduced to in past few days. After we have opened up to eachother, I got to see a new version of him altogether. This version of Seb smiles a lot, talks a lot or rather blurts out about everything and anything that comes to his mind and also touches me a lot.

I don't know if he does it consciously or not, he is no longer shying away from physical contact, these days he even initiated it, which felt....good.

Really good

Good? I remember you salivating just at the aspect of it - Rex snorts.

As if you are any better - I get back, shutting him up.

"What's your first reaction when you found out your mate is a...guy." Seb asks seemingly out of nowhere, which means it's been on his mind.

I take a moment to think about it with all the emotions that surged through me when I first saw him reverting back to my mind, the initial shock, followed with nervousness, the ultimate need to be close to him, doubting whether he's some other mystical creature with how ethereal he looked and the exhilarating excitement that dominated every other thing. I can't possibly tell him all of that without him considering me crazy.

Probably

" Shocked. " I settle for the less crazier one.

" Shocked? " he repeats my answer raising his eyebrow.

" yes "

" Just shocked? "

" Why? You don't believe it. " I ask him, feeling lost at his reaction.

" No it's not that I don't.... believe you." He stops to think and continues " I thought you'd be more than shocked maybe weirded out? Annoyed? Disgusted? " he whispers the last part.

Disgusted?

The words felt like a whip to my heart making me physically wince, I look at him to check if he's joking but there's no hint of playfulness on his face making it clear that he seriously considered everything he asked.

I remain speechless as a horrible feeling curls around my chest. Is that what he have been thinking all along. The revelation makes the currently forming dreadful pit, more deep, which filled only with guilt. A bottomless pit of unbearable guilt.

" 'Disgusted?' How can you even say that, Sebastian? "

" I mean it's entirely understandable if you felt that way? " he laughs awkwardly as if to make it sound light.

I extend my hand to touch his face but it stops in the mid air when I see him flinch a little at my action. He looked nearly frightened and his eyes are shut closed as a result of that.

What's happening?

Not hesitating anymore, I cup his cheek with my palm to feel it grow hot to my touch. He slowly peers up at me when I don't say anything.

" Seb! I want you to tell me something honestly. " I request him, locking our gazes. He nods as a reply.

" Did I ever, even once give the impression of any of the things you mentioned earlier? "

" No! Not at all. It's just- "

Then it dawned on me, I let it happen again. I let someone so important to me feel insignificant again.

Sighing internally, I turn to him " Then? " I try keeping my voice gentle, to not startle him any further. " Who is putting these things into your head?  Goddess! I can't even imagine being annoyed with you, let alone be disgusted." I tell him how exactly I felt upon hearing the question. That seem to make him less tense and he leans more into my touch.

"And even in the future,if I ever happen to show an ounce of such emotions towards you, feel free to smother me with a pillow when I am asleep. "

Because I don't deserve to live after that.

Even though I meant every word I said with no trace of humor, Seb laughs at them. His eyes are all crinkled and freckles bundled up at his nose,

not being able to help myself at all, I lean down to kiss his nose, just a small one.

That stops his laughter and he looks at me with a scandalized expression trying to hide his blush by hitting my arm, now it's my turn to laugh.

Later, we both settled down. I bring up the question I've been meaning to ask.

" So...What was your version of it? "

He looks at me puzzlingly before making  an ahh with his mouth. " I have always been aware of my attraction to both the genders. " he states honestly.

What... That's news to me.

"I didn't know that. " I admit before thinking twice.

"Well, we never had that exact conversation. Is that a problem? " His brown eyes peer up at me with caution.

"It's not, I just wasn't aware. That's all. " I answer making my lack of concern over the matter, clear.

Nevertheless his answer made the nervous knots in my stomach ease a bit and I thank the gods for proving my suspicions wrong regarding his first impression being similar to what he assumed of mine.

" It wasn't the ' guy ' part that scared me. It was you being an alpha. You know, I have never even dreamt of becoming an alpha's mate. " he says with a deep chuckle, " but I'm so glad that it was you. " he adds later, with a crimson blush.

I couldn't name the jittery feeling I felt in my chest,upon hearing those words. I can only drown in them and let them wash over me with uncontrollable force. I want to kiss him. The thought sudden but not at all surprised wavers over me as I stand up to prevent myself from jumping him.

" it's getting dark, let's get home."

The sidewalk seemed too wider for my walking as we walked. Other than the occasional brushing of our shoulders, he is walking far from me or I'm just too eager to get my hands on him. Kiss him

Squashing those urges, "Are we done with all the questions? " I ask him for distraction.

" I think we have one more left. " he replies with some thought.

" Your turn then, ask away. "

" I can't think of any at the moment." He admits with certain awkwardness. "Oh Wait! I heard there are some websites available online, we should do a really fun one for the last question." He starts cheerfully looking up questions in his phone. I don't exactly understand the legitimacy of these things but I wait, smiling at his excitement.

His excited expression drops and something else replaces it and he shoves the device in his pocket. " Nevermind these are really stupid. " he describes starting to walk faster.

" What's wrong with them? " I ask, catching up to him.

" I told you they're stupid." Came the reply. He's not being honest.

" You did say 'we should do something fun' " I remind with exact words of his.

" Fun and stupid are not same."

" They are not? "

Now he's glaring at me, atleast trying to buy it's not that convincible with the way his ears are going almost red.

" Okay, fine! Let's test them" I coax him.

He opens his mouth probably to state few more protests but closes it again, not saying them. So I wait, patiently.

" What's your favorite part of me? " he asks, rather quotes challengingly,hoping to scare me.

Oh

" Uhm... I, I don't have one. " He looks at me with great interest until the words make him disconcerted. Staring at me in pure astonishment, he waits for an explanation and I try to maintain a neutral expression. He frowns some more at my silence and my face breaks into a grin, giving away my teasing.

He storms off, fuming, " Sebastian! " I try to catch up to him, still laughing, but he never budges continuing his walk with strides getting bigger by each and enters the darker part of the park where there are few lights.

A bizarre idea strikes my mind when he looks back at last to find me, I quickly hide behind the larger tree beside the path. Panicking he makes his way back looking for me. The commotion caused by his footsteps growing louder as he comes closer.

" What the- "

In a minute, he is pinned to the tree nearby with me looming over him.

" Gotcha." I can't help but grin triumphantly.

" What are you playing at? " he shouts attempting to loosen my hold on him. Too late for that

" I was just messing with you, earlier. " I admit surrendering and he continues to pretend to be unbothered.

" What I meant to say was, I don't just have one. " that makes him look up at me, his eyes glaring at me in most adorable way. " I really like your eyes.." his glare sharpens," and the way you shut them sometimes tightly before opening them slowly when you are nervous, like right now. " I point to his now fuming eyes.

" I'm not nervous, you...you-" he claims rather furiously, " And I really like your nose, your freckles, your- " he raises his hand to cover his lips when I lean closer this is fun

Not hesitating anymore, I step closer and move my face to his neck " But more than anything I love this mole on your neck, it's so- "

" Stop! stop... enough please." His words go muffled as he hides his face by tucking it under my chin. Even the residing semi darkness couldn't conceal his flushed cheeks and reddened ears.

His body feels warm in my embrace and his ever so sweet scent feels agitating my nerves to take this further, to tell him how I felt every time I looked at him, how his very being affected me to the core,flipped me off my feet and how that never changed from the minute I first saw him to until now but I can't so I tightened my embrace and held him just cause I can.

" What's your favorite thing about me then? " I ask him just to tease him more.

This time he senses it and buries his head deeper into my chest. Minutes later, when he collects himself, he mumbles " -are tall. " in a barely audible tone.

" is that your favorite thing about me? I'm tall?"  I chuckle unable to react anyway else. He really is something.

" Mm-hmm" he hums in approval as if he is proud of his answer. For the first time in my life I felt thankful for my alpha genes.

Thank goddess.

" I still have one more question left." I lie and he reluctantly separates himself from my hold before looking at me with great interest.

" Go on a date with me." I finally utter the lingering question on my mind for the whole evening.

" That's not even a question. " he says, letting out a breathy laugh, bashfully claiming so. As expected, I'm bad at this.

I manage to rephrase the sentence and rehearse it in my head a million times because apparently my mind can't seem to put it together even after speaking the language for my whole life. Only when they seem perfect I let the words out.

" Will you go on a date with me? "