10 ten » she’s my world

10

World.

In which Mira gets to see Sebastian's world.

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THE GLASSES WERE PERCHED ON HIS nose as he typed away on his laptop, papers strewn across my coffee table. He glanced up at me, loosening his tie as he gave me a warm smile.

After I returned from my morning run with Kale, Sebastian welcomed me with breakfast from Greggs. It was staying warm whilst I took a quick shower and changed into different clothes.

Retrieving my food, I took a seat beside him. My stomach grumbled obnoxiously, earning a laugh from Sebastian.

"Lucky I got you a cinnamon bun and a sausage breakfast roll." He leaned forward to gather all his papers, proceeding to order them.

"Thank you." I pressed my lips to his cheek gently, swiping my thumb across what came from my lipstick.

I pretended to not notice the shade of red that flitted across his cheeks, biting into my cinnamon bun. A comfortable silence settled in the air, Sebastian's cologne encasing me.

"I mean this in the least creepy way possible, but you always smell so good." I sipped on my hot chocolate, watching him take his glasses off.

"I know this one is your favourite, so I always wear it." A grin broke out onto his face before he took a look at his watch. "You finish work at 3, right?"

I hummed affirmatively, thinking about my temporary job as a waitress in a coffee shop whilst noticing how he shifted nervously. Pressing his fingers down, he cracked all of them until I sighed and asked what was up.

"I wanted to know if you'd spend the rest of the day with me and my niece, Avery."

The smile dominated my expression before I could stop it. "You want me to meet your niece?"

His lips parted. "I know it's a bit soon for you to meet my family because we're not dating, but even though I love my niece with everything in me, I don't really know what little girls like to do."

"I'd love to," I gave him a comforting smile. "Just text me."

Finishing the rest of my breakfast, I eased Sebastian into a hug when we were stood at the door. He leaned down to press his lips to my cheek, a lazy grin plastered on his face.

"I'll see you later, pumpkin."

When I had arrived at work, my manager, Leigh, regarded me with a polite smile. "Here's your uniform. We open in 20, and Blake will help you and show you the ropes."

She gestured to the man standing behind her, and he brought his hand up into a short wave.

"I just want to assure you that what happened at your last job won't be tolerated here. Any customer that oversteps a boundary will be asked to leave."

Sighing in relief, I returned the smile before I proceeded to start my shift. The raging nerves had calmed after I left with the first person's order. Kale's presence was slightly calming, and Blake helped me as much as he could when he wasn't behind the counter, but two hours in, I got the hang of things.

"Mira, hey!" the familiar voice sounded through the air and I turned my head to see Lena approaching me with relief plastered on her face. "I didn't know you worked here."

"It's my first day," I responded with a small curve of my lips.

She flicked her blonde hair over her shoulder and her green eyes shone with compassion. "I got Sebastian's text, are you okay now?"

I nodded quickly. "Yeah. I'm sorry I didn't see the night through."

Moments before she made her order, she brought me into a hug. "Well, maybe we can just hang out at my place?"

My arms wrapped around her frame, and her Victoria's Secret perfume wafted to my nose. It was familiar since I used the same one. Pulling back, I mustered up the most real smile I could. I seemed to be smiling a lot lately. "I'd like that."

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"She's 5 and she's obsessed with penguins," Sebastian spoke as he gripped the steering wheel. Instead of being in his usual attire of a suit, he was adorned in more laid back clothes. "She was initially only meant to spend the night with me, but I realised I should spend more time with my family, with Avery. Now more than ever. She's growing so fast."

I listened in interest, my hands wringing together on my lap. His statement had me thinking. I spent very little time with my family. My dad and younger sister lived in Surrey, and I went to go see them whenever I had enough time, mostly during Christmas time.

My sister was 16 years old, born 2 years before my mother was diagnosed with lung cancer. I liked to think that I had a close bond with her. She had once told me that because I resembled our mother the most, she remembered her through me since she was only 4 when she died.

"I'll go get her." Sebastian's voice pulled me from my thoughts, an excited smile painted onto his face. He switched the engine off before opening his door and stepping out.

Moments later, he exited the house with a small girl in his arms. Her grin seemed gleeful and she possessed the subtle dimples Sebastian had, but that wasn't what I first noticed about her.

Joined with her right thigh was a prosthetic leg. One eye held the same colour I presumed all the Harringtons had whereas the other was a deep azure. Her differences were what made her so beautiful to me.

Sebastian was enthralled with his niece, his lips pressing to her temple before he opened the back door and buckled her in. Avery's eyes widened in curiosity as she leaned forward with one hand holding her seatbelt.

"You're very pretty." She uttered, pulling a laugh from Sebastian as he seated himself back in his seat.

"Bubba, this is Mira, my friend."

She stuck her hand out. "Hello, Mira."

I was slightly shocked at her politeness, reaching behind me to grasp her hand gently in mine. "Hi, Avery."

A small squeal fell from her lips. "She knows my name! Were you talking about me, Uncle Seb?"

"Of course I was, princess." He started up the car and began to pull out of his brother's driveway. "You know how much I love to talk about you."

I glanced at Avery one more time, seeing her leaning back in her seat with a content smile on her face. Just like I expected, the car journey was anything but quiet since Avery had a lot to say. She was mainly filling Sebastian in on what happened during her day at school, but occasionally she would ask me questions.

She gripped her stuffed penguin to her chest as Sebastian parked in a field amongst other cars. I quickly picked up on the fact that we were at a funfair. The grin that graced Sebastian's face almost rendered me breathless.

The first thing Avery did when her seatbelt was unbuckled was throw her arms around Sebastian's neck, hugging him so tightly that he let out a small groan in protest, meeting my gaze over her shoulder.

He pressed his large hand to the small of her back, shutting her door before locking the car. He had chosen one of his less flashy cars, which was probably a good idea.

Through my peripheral vision, I noticed Sebastian's bodyguards at a small distance from us when Sebastian proceeded to lead us to the entrance.

"It's on me." He murmured, placing an excited Avery down on her feet to pull out his wallet. "Can I have four adult tickets and one child ticket?"

I guessed he had to buy his bodyguards tickets as well even though I doubted that they would actually go on any rides.

There was a smell in the air, one that I could only associate with fairgrounds. Cotton candy and popcorn. There was a crowd of people waiting to get in, and Avery reared her head back to look at me.

"On school trips, we all have to hold hands to stay together," she nudged Sebastian. "Uncle Seb, you have to hold Mira's hand."

Sebastian peered down at her with a short laugh. "Do I?" he questioned, turning to me with an outstretched arm and mirth filled eyes. "Your hand looks heavy, let me hold it for you."

I laughed at his well-timed pickup line, sliding my hand into his warm one. I did my best to ignore the shiver that rippled down my spine, my teeth sinking into my bottom lip.

My heart was beating a mile a minute.

After going on most of the rides, Avery had made it her mission to go on the teacup ride as many times as she could. Sebastian had kept her entertained, but after the tenth time, he groaned quietly.

"Mira, please take over. The ride goes so slow, but I swear I'm starting to get dizzy."

I lowered the Nixon camera Avery had given me to document the day and pulled it from my neck before passing it to him. "She's so cute, though."

"Yeah," Sebastian grumbled. "Let's see if you feel the same after multiple goes on that thing."

When I proceeded to wait in line with Avery, Sebastian stopped me with a relieved expression. "Thank you so much."

I dismissed it with a nod of my head, initiating a conversation with the five-year-old. "Are you sure you don't want to go on another ride, Avery?"

Her long, dirty blonde hair that was kept back in two Dutch braids shook with her head. "I and Mr Snuggles like this ride."

"Aves!" Sebastian called out when we sat down in a teacup, Avery picking the blue one since the pink one was taken. "One more, and we're getting some food."

She pouted and at that moment, I could see the resemblance between her and Sebastian. After the ride had made its round, Avery grabbed onto my hand whilst she looked around for her uncle.

"To stay together." She mumbled, bringing her walk to a fast pace, well as fast as her legs could go whilst walking when she located Sebastian leaning against a wall with his phone pressed to his ear.

My heart fluttered when he gave me a soft smile, tucking his phone away to bend down and press a kiss to Avery's forehead. "Do you want a hotdog, princess?"

"Please." She begged, releasing my hand momentarily to adjust Mr Snuggles on her chest after linking her arm with Sebastian's forearm.

He ordered her a hotdog with mustard, to her request, with a side of potato fries. And once he saw me digging into my bag, his hand gently curled around my wrist.

"Hey, I was wondering if we could get something to eat later. Avery gets pretty tired after she eats."

Closing my bag, I nodded. "Sure."

Once Avery had finished most of her food, she was leaning heavily against Sebastian and her eyes were droopy. He smiled knowingly at me, hoisting his niece into his arms as I collected the trash.

Sebastian was so gentle with her, and it made me see that he adored her. As if reading my mind, he smoothed down her hair. "I love her so much. She's my world."

"Do you want kids of your own?" I asked as he unlocked the car, easing Avery into the seat before securing the seatbelt over her.

"I'd like to have children, but it's not something I see in my future." There was a silence that drifted upon us before we climbed into the car, Sebastian tilting his head towards me. "Italian or Thai food?"

I picked the latter, appreciating my choice when we were lying in front of his fireplace, eating and talking. Simply taking Sebastian in, I watched the reflection of the flickering embers in his deep oak eyes as he spoke about his childhood.

"My parents would take us camping every month, and we had a dog, a husky, named Potter. I named him that because I always had one of the Harry Potter books with me. I would read it over and over again."

"But you know, happiness can be found even in the darkest of times—"

"If one only remembers to turn on the light." Sebastian recited with me, a grin lighting up his face before he finished his plate. "What about you? What's a fond childhood memory?"

I sipped on my drink, pushing my empty plate away from me as I tucked an errant strand of hair behind my ear. "When my younger sister, Oakleigh, was two, we started this family tradition. Every Friday, we would take turns in choosing a place or meal to eat. It wasn't much, but it gave us the opportunity to bond and try new things."

"Oakleigh is a pretty name," Sebastian murmured, his eyes gazing into mine as he leaned his head on his fist. "What's your favourite name in the world?"

I thought long and hard, surprisingly feeling at ease with his unwavering gaze on me. "Iona."

He acknowledged my answer with a tip of his lips. He rolled his bottom lip into his mouth before he raised his hand to rest on my hip. It was a simple touch, but I suddenly became aware of everything around me.

The heat from the fireplace warmed the air and his eyebrows were low on his face. "Have I ever told you that you're beautiful?"

Warmth quickly spread across my cheeks, but my skin tone readily hid the blush. "Couple times, yeah."

The silence that encompassed us only lasted a few moments before Avery padded to where we were, the blankets dragging behind her. A deep pout rested on her face and she proceeded to seek comfort in Sebastian's arms.

"What's the matter, princess?"

"Bad dream," she murmured into his chest, looking up at him with wide eyes. "Can we watch a movie, Moana, please?"

He glanced at the time and slightly grimaced but her facial expression had him melting into her. "Fine, but only if you promise not to tell daddy that I let you stay up this late."

Her fingers imitated the action of sealing her lips. "Pinky promise."

Their pinkies linked and I almost let out an 'aw' when he stood up and placed himself and his niece on the couch. Clearing the food away, I put the leftovers in the fridge before Sebastian held out his hand for me.

"You're tired too," he muttered when he finally got the film playing. "I can hold both of you." He adjusted Avery's small body on one side of him. I suddenly noticed how wide his couch was and almost blushed at the thought of us cuddling with his niece.

He eased me in front of him, my thoughts roaming when Avery fell asleep halfway through the film. Sebastian moved to put her in his bed before he came back to me. "Do you want to sleep over here tonight?"

Tiredness weighed down every bone in my body, which lead me to nod my head in response. He slowly lifted me into his arms, as he did to Avery moments ago, tucking me into the bed in the guest room.

"I'd let you sleep in my bed, but I doubt it'd be comfortable since Avery likes to hog the blankets all the time."

A soft laugh escaped me when he gathered me into his arms, a deep sigh leaving his lips. His fingertips traced my eyebrows, his hand gently moving to hold my chin as my eyes opened to meet his intense gaze. He slowly leaned forward, but only to rest his forehead against mine. "I want you to know that if I could, I would be more than just your friend. But I can't put myself through the whole process. I'll only end up breaking your heart, and I never want to hurt you."

The words left me reeling, I was left slightly dumbfounded, but by the look on his face, I knew that he wished I would forget everything he said.

Feeling more than vulnerable, I allowed my eyes to flutter closed. "I understand that we're just friends, Sebastian. Don't worry." I groggily spoke, knowing what I was thinking contradicted what he wanted.

I had to break down his walls.