Chapter Nineteen

"Alice," Mike called out as she was on her way to the room.

"Yeah?" she hollered back.

"Can you come into the kitchen for a while?"

"Can it wait?"

"Not really."

She stared at the door, thought for a while and then sighed, turning around to head to the kitchen. Walking in, she saw a pile of dishes stacked in the sink while her father was repeatedly fetching more dishes from the living area to add to it.

"What's up?" Alice asked.

"Can you help me wash the dishes?"

"Sure, I can," she said, rolling up her sleeves. She stood behind the sink and cleared the plates with water before she loaded them onto the dishwasher.

What was Keanu doing? Was he really feeling unwell? What the hell happened just now? He was standing behind her, holding onto her arm from the back, cupping her hand over the remote. She knew he most probably trying to teach her how to play the game, but why did she feel like there was something else going on?

The dishwasher slowly became full and she closed it, turning it on. She looked to the sink and there were still so many dishes, so she had no choice but to wash them by hand and return them one by one to the rack. Some of them had to go back into storage, since it was a while that so many people visited.

By the time she was finished, the living area had only a few people left. Most of the people had gone home and she made a beeline towards Mike's room. When she knocked on the door, there was no response, so she pushed the door open.

Inside the room was a neatly made bed and other familiar furniture, but Keanu was nowhere to be found.

"Looking for something?" Mike said as he was passing by.

"Wasn't Keanu resting in your room?"

"Oh, he left a while ago."

She couldn't help but feel disappointment.

"Why?" Mike asked.

"It's nothing," she said.

"Is there something you need from him? I'm meeting him tomorrow on the weekend, maybe I can help pass it to you."

"It's okay," she said, walking to her bedroom. "Good night, dad."

He smiled. "Night."

When the next day came, however, she was completely unprepared. She was sitting on the dining table as usual, doing her journaling when the front door burst open, with Mike and Keanu walking in.

Keanu was wet from head to toe.

He was dressed in a white tee that was see-through and stuck to his upper body. His hair was dripping with water and hanging across his eyes as he stepped into the home. He bent down to remove his squishy shoes and threw them to the side as he sent her a glance. He quickly looked away when Mike reappeared with towels in his hands to pass them to him. He took them and rubbed his hair with them, the floor where he was standing at collecting a puddle of water.

"Oh my god, what happened?" she asked

"I was watching some stupid fishing show when I suggested to Keanu that we try it out. He accidentally fell into the water trying to snap a picture for a group of tourists because he kept backing up," Mike said.

She let out a laugh that she was unable to hold back.

"You dare to laugh?" Keanu said, chuckling.

"Yeah, I laughed too," Mike said with a grin. "Wait here, I'll go take more towels for you." And he disappeared down the hallway.

She could see too much. His chest was muscled and hard, his abdomen graced with pecs that looked like they had been chiseled with expert workmanship. Who was the carver? Must've been God himself. He patted himself dry with the towel across his body, before he dropped it to the ground and her breath hitched when his fingers found the hem of his shirt.

He tugged onto the hem, pulling it over his head and draping his shirt over one shoulder. He ran the towel across his bare upper body, which was shining with moisture and she felt her throat drying out. The strands of his hair continued dripping water onto the ground and he pushed his fringe back with one hand. She trailed her eyes all over his upper body, and her thighs trembled.

"Alice?"

She jumped in her seat, her reverie broken. She lifted her head, blinking fast, and looked at him. He had a slight frown on his face at first, but it was soon replaced by something unreadable.

She tried to speak but no words came out. She swallowed and tried again. "Yeah?"

"Nothing," Keanu said, looking away.

"What is it?"

"I was just wondering if you were free tomorrow night," he said, leaning against the wall beside the front door.

"I'm free. Why?"

"There is a family gathering that I've arranged. Some friends will be there too, Mike included but we decided no kids. I think I can make an exception for you."

"Oh," she said, trying to keep her eyes on his. "Are you sure, though?"

"Yes."

"Then sure, I'll come," she said.

"Perfect."

She looked down at the materials on her paper, and picked a roll of lace stickers up. She tried to picture where it should go, but her mind was nowhere near journaling. Putting it down, she sighed. She lifted her head to Keanu, who was observing her.

She wanted one thing. And one thing only.

She would have it.

She got up from her seat, stepping towards Keanu, whose back straightened from her nearing figure.