The Kiss Equation ✓

18 | A Forever Kiss - Part Two

Everyone who said I missed a lot of fun boycotting Alex's house parties wasn't lying. They were indeed right. And I had the golden ticket to enter his birthday party. But I felt like an imposter when I finally made my way through the swarm of boys and girls, practically everyone from our grade and a few I had never seen around the town. His party circle was something else. I never got used to it.

The world inside was insanely wild and crazy. The neon light flashes, the steamy mist covering the floor and the loud bass vibrating through my bones were just a few details among the open bar, sweaty bodies grinding against each other, and a crazy crowd pulling me into the mix. I had an urge to rush out of that place in a heartbeat.

But I had already made up my mind. And there I stood at the foot of the long iron staircase that led to the balcony where Alex was chatting with a bunch of guys and a girl sitting on his lap. It was then or never. Everything that had happened the past few days only paved the path for the ultimate showdown.

Running a hand through my strappy black dress, I tugged on the mid-thigh hem to dry my palms on the soft fabric one by one, then curled my fingers tightly around the box in my hand. I put one heeled step after the other and didn't stop until the crowd surrounding Alex moved to the side. I stopped in front of him with the gift box in my hand and a determined look.

Alex looked up as I approached and abruptly stopped talking and stared. He looked shocked as if he had seen a ghost resurrect from its grave, and then his eyes gathered me from head to toe in a surprised sweep. He immediately excused himself from the crowd and pushed the girl off his lap to take hurried steps in my direction. And I didn't know why a sudden nostalgia hit me. The moment I had spent with him over the years reeled in front of me. The secret whispers he used to share with me, the sparkling laughter we lived through and then every moment faded, leaving behind a flash where he kissed Micaela while I watched.

His hold on my elbow made me jerk back from the flashbacks and pull away from his hands. Alex looked handsome, as always, more, with those undercuts and light stubbles decorating his jawline. I reconsidered the thought playing in my mind, but Alex did deserve it.

Alex ran a hand through his hair and bit his knuckles, smiling. "I can't believe you actually came, Daisy. You don't know-"

Before he could say anything more, I held out the gift box I had been carrying the whole evening, shoving it into his reluctant hands. His gaze moved from my blank face to the box, and he frowned. "What's this, Daisy?"

"It's your birthday gift, Alexander Reed. The one I have been putting together since sixth grade. It's all yours now. Happy Birthday!"

"Daisy, what-"

"And there's something else I've been holding back for so long." I clenched my sweaty palms together and forced my nerves to stay under control.

I rolled my shoulder back, raised my chin to look straight into his slightly puzzled brown eyes and took two confident steps towards him.

It's now or never, Daisy Eve. Don't forget it was due a long time and you've all the right to give it to him. He deserves it.

I flashed a sly smirk towards the petite girl walking up to Alex. Micaela. And maybe it was the perfect moment, and even if it wasn't, I made it one as I landed a hard punch on his pretty, handsome, cheating and lying face. The impact took Alex by surprise, and the box fell from his hand(and maybe I had purposefully kept the lid loose so that the things inside the box scattered across the floor). Micaela stopped, her mouth wide open in a shocked gasp, and Alex held his bruised cheek, tilting his head slowly up to direct his fiery gaze at me. "What the fuck, Daisy?"