Sweet Somethings 5

At around 6:30 that night, Tom and I stood outside of my hotel room. I leaned against the door frame, looking up at him. "Thank you so much for the tour, Tom. I really appreciate it."

Tom looked down at me, those famous crinkles forming around his eyes as he smiled. "It was my pleasure. I'm glad that you were able to make time for it, though we didn't get to see all of London. I think I hit most of the major places."

I nodded, grinning. "I think so." I looked down at my feet, then, unable to look into his eyes for too long. "I had a great time. You're actually really easy to talk to."

Tom laughed his signature laugh, causing me to look up at the adorable sound. "I'm glad that you think so. I try to be as approachable as possible." He pulled me in for a hug, his long arms winding around my waist. I wrapped my shorter arms around his middle, my head resting against his chest. After a few moments, he drew back, his hands on my shoulders. "How long are you in London again?"

I tried not to focus on the fact that we were so close, instead looking into his eyes. "Three weeks. Kath and I fly out on June 20."

Tom nodded, then let go of my shoulders. "Wonderful. Perhaps we can get together again soon?"

"Of course! Maybe Kathryn won't have a date and can hang too!" I replied, chuckling. Tom shoved his hands into his pockets, laughing with me. I looked down at my phone, noting that it was nearly seven PM. "Well, Tom, thanks again. I'll, um, see you later?"

Tom nodded, then quickly kissed me on the cheek. I was a bit taken aback, but smiled in response to his grin. "Yes, darling. Hopefully sooner rather than later. Have a good evening, Alexa." How in the flipping heck was I supposed to keep my feelings in check when he did stuff like that?!

*************************************

I sat on the bed, watching TV as I waited for Kath to get back. Suddenly, my phone dinged. Finally, I thought, thinking that it was Kathryn. However, when I looked down, I saw that it was actually Will. Swiping the message icon, I read what he'd sent me:

Hey, keep tomorrow open. I have a surprise for you. Pick you up at 11. (:

Raising an eyebrow, I typed back a quick response:

Can I at least have a hint?

Within a short minute, Will replied:

Nope. Or else it wouldn't be a surprise, silly.

Sighing, I rolled my eyes and responded quickly:

Fine. How should I dress?

Wardrobe was important; I could definitely get hints from that.

As you usually do. See you tomorrow!

I texted back a similar reply, wracking my brain as to where Will could be taking me. Maybe a show? Movie? There was nothing playing that I'd recently raved about....so I was stumped.

At around ten, Kathryn FINALLY came in, a grin the size of Texas on her face. "Well, well." I raised an eyebrow at her appearance: black skinnys with a light pink button up and white Vans. Her hair was even down and her makeup was done. "Don't you look nice?"

Kath smirked. "You know I clean up pretty good."

I nodded, grinning. "So how did it go?"

"Eh, it was okay," she replied vaguely. I knew she was doing it on purpose.

After ten minutes, she eventually filled me in on what happened. He picked her up, was really nice and gentleman like, and they talked about sports (mainly soccer) and about their mutual love of traveling. He took her to a sports bar to eat, where they watched multiple games at once. Then he took her on a tour of the city as well, though they went to different places than we did. They were probably the goofballs trying to make the Buckingham Palace guards smile or react. As she spoke, I noticed a tinge of pink on her cheeks; Kathryn rarely blushed. She was a major flirt, yes, but she never got flustered over a guy before. So she was obviously interested in Colm.

I smiled. "I'm glad you had a good time."

Kath chuckled. "So how about your day with Tom?"

I gave a detailed account of the time I spent with Tom, even down to the goodnight hug and kiss on the cheek. "And you think he JUST wants to be friends?" Kathryn asked me, a knowing look on her face.

I shook my head. "Kath, that's just his personality. He's a gentleman and he has old-fashioned manners. And he's just a really nice guy." I sighed, looking down at the patterned bedspread. "I've mistaken niceness for feelings before and it's gotten my heart broken way too many times."

"Then why don't you give Will a chance? He's a nice guy and he really seems to like you," Kath suggested. "And he's sorta hot."

I chuckled. "Yeah, and he's taking me out somewhere tomorrow. Some sort of surprise since he won't tell me where."

Kathryn jumped on my bed. "Then go and have a good time. Don't worry about holding back. Maybe we came to England so you could figure out your relationship with him."

"You know, you're absolutely right. I will."

***********************************************

The following morning, I woke up at around 9:30. After showering, straightening my hair, and doing my make-up, I put on a white baseball style tee with gray, quarter length sleeves. Once I pulled on a pair of tan skinny pants, I put on black Converse and a light blue beanie. To accessorize, I added a turquoise ring on my right pointer finger and a metal knot ring to my right thumb. I also put in some flower studs and hooked some black wayfarers on the front of my shirt, just in case London decided to be sunny.

Kath was already up; she'd been watching soccer highlights and keeping me entertained while I got ready. "So when is Will coming to get you?"

I looked down at my phone, seeing that it was eleven sharp. Before I could respond, a knock on the door interrupted me. "Now," I chuckled. Strapping my bag across my chest, I opened the door to reveal Will. He wore slim black jeans and a red patterned button-up. However, he wasn't sporting his usual glasses, so I could really see the sparkle in his brown eyes.

"Hey," I said, smiling.

Will ran a hand through his messy hair, grinning. "You ready to go?"

I nodded, looking back at Kathryn. "Don't do anything fun while I'm gone."

Kath didn't even look away from the match highlights, only waved her hand at me. "No promises, Lex; have fun!"

I chuckled as I walked into the hallway with Will, closing the door behind me. "She's crazy," I said as we started walking toward the front entrance.

"You two are completely different," Will replied.

I nodded. "Oh believe me, I know. But we balance each other out. She's the wild side and I'm the tame one."

Will looked down at me, raising an eyebrow. "Tame?"

"Well yeah. I'm the one who thinks before I act, tends to stay home rather than party."

Will laughed softly, shaking his head. "Tame is not the word I would use to describe you, Lex."

It was my turn to raise a brow. "Oh really?" I stopped in front of the doors and crossed my arms, looking up at him. "What word would you use, then?"

My friend sighed, lips pursed as he looked deeply into my eyes. "Passionate." He smiled, then and opened the door for me. Then, like a true gentleman, he opened the passenger door of his black Mini Cooper for me, allowing me to slide in. Once he got in, he looked at me apologetically. "Now I'm gonna have to blindfold you."

"Wait one second, I never agreed to a blindfold!" I protested, holding up one finger.

Will chuckled. "Come on, Lex. This has to be a complete surprise. I'll even let you plug in your music for the ride there."

Taking a deep breath, I nodded. "Fine. But let me plug this in first and choose a song."

After choosing a One Direction song (which Will hated), I allowed him to blindfold me. It was quite an unnerving experience. I mean, I wasn't afraid of where Will would take me or anything, it was just disturbing not being able to see. Instead of focusing on my uneasiness, I sang at the top of my lungs. Will laughed at me. "It's a good thing you're an amazing singer," he said. I could hear the smile in his voice.

The drive took about half an hour, then Will announced that we'd arrived. Once he helped me out, he put my arm through his and led me to my surprise. "This better be good, William," I said, listening closely to my surroundings. I could tell that it was busy from the sound of crowds and the bustling street.

"Oh you're gonna love it, I promise." His voice was behind me, hands beginning to untie the blindfold. My heart raced in excitement, my mind racing through the possibilities. When the blindfold was lowered, I gasped.