Chapter 323: Movie II

Chapter 323: Chapter 323: Movie II

The cinema was on the upper floor of the mall.

Christopher led Vivienne toward the ticket counter, glancing over the movie listings.

There were several films showing that afternoon.

A comedy.

An action film.

A romantic drama.

And a horror movie.

Vivienne stopped.

Her eyes lingered on the horror poster.

Christopher noticed.

"Which one?"

She pointed.

"That one."

He looked at the poster.

Then at her.

"The horror film?"

Vivienne nodded.

"Yes."

There was a brief pause.

"You like horror movies?"

Vivienne smiled shyly.

"Sometimes."

It was a lie.

A complete lie.

She hated horror movies.

She couldn’t stand them.

But that wasn’t the point.

The point was that horror movies had scary parts.

And scary parts gave her a perfectly reasonable excuse to cling to her boyfriend.

She glanced at Christopher.

He was still looking at her.

Vivienne felt her cheeks grow warm.

Was she being too obvious?

She hoped not.

She gave him a tentative little smile.

"Is there something wrong?"

Christopher’s expression didn’t change.

"Nothing."

Vivienne let out a soft laugh despite herself.

She looked away for a moment.

Maybe she was being a little obvious.

Probably.

But Christopher didn’t seem bothered by it.

If anything, there was something faintly amused in his expression.

He bought the tickets.

They didn’t get popcorn.

Vivienne shook her head when Christopher glanced toward the concession stand.

"We just ate."

"True."

"And if I get popcorn during a horror movie, I’m afraid I’ll spill it."

Christopher looked at her for a moment.

There was the faintest pause.

Then he smiled and shook his head.

"All right."

She wasn’t entirely sure he believed her.

But he didn’t question it.

They made their way toward the cinema.

It was a Wednesday afternoon, and the mall wasn’t particularly crowded.

The cinema was even quieter.

Only a few people were scattered around the lobby.

Vivienne glanced around.

She smiled.

No friends.

No classmates.

No one they knew.

Just the two of them.

They entered the theater.

The room was dim, cool, and almost empty.

Vivienne looked around as they found their seats.

There were only a handful of people sitting farther down.

Their seats were toward the middle.

She sat first.

Christopher settled beside her.

Advertisements were already playing.

Vivienne looked toward the screen.

Or tried to.

Every few seconds, her eyes wandered sideways.

Christopher was sitting comfortably beside her, watching the advertisements.

She looked back.

Then again.

His profile looked unfairly good in the dim light.

She quickly turned toward the screen.

Why was she suddenly so nervous?

They were boyfriend and girlfriend.

She could hold his hand.

She wanted to hold his hand.

Actually—

She really wanted to hold his hand.

Vivienne shifted slightly in her seat.

Her fingers rested on the armrest between them.

She glanced at Christopher.

He was still watching the advertisements.

She looked at the screen again.

Then finally spoke.

"Christopher?"

"Hm?"

"I’m actually a little afraid of horror movies."

He turned his head.

There was a knowing look in his eyes.

Not surprised.

Not worried.

Amused.

"A little?"

Vivienne bit the inside of her cheek.

"Maybe."

Christopher almost smiled.

There it was again.

She had chosen the movie herself.

She had insisted on the horror film.

And now she was admitting that she was afraid.

He had a fairly good idea what she had been hoping would happen.

But he wasn’t going to embarrass her by saying so.

Instead, he turned his hand over on the armrest between them.

Palm up.

An invitation.

Vivienne looked down.

Her heart fluttered.

Then she carefully placed her hand in his.

His fingers closed around hers.

Warm.

Steady.

She smiled faintly at the screen.

Much better.

Christopher glanced down at their joined hands.

Then at her.

The little smile she was trying to hide made something warm settle in his chest.

She really was shy about this.

That was the amusing part.

She clearly knew what she wanted.

She just became terribly embarrassed whenever she realized she had shown it.

He liked that about her.

More than he probably should have after only one day together.

The advertisements ended.

The theater darkened.

The movie began.

Vivienne tried very hard to watch.

For the first few minutes, she managed.

Then the music changed.

Something moved across the screen.

Her fingers tightened around Christopher’s.

A moment later, something suddenly appeared.

Her heart jumped.

Her eyes squeezed shut.

And without thinking, she turned toward Christopher, leaning into him.

Christopher chuckled softly.

"I thought you were just a little afraid."

Vivienne opened her eyes.

Her face was already warm.

She bit her lip.

"I underestimated how scary this is."

Christopher couldn’t help smiling.

She was adorable.

She had chosen this.

And now she was practically hiding against him.

He wasn’t complaining.

In fact, he was enjoying having her this close.

He shifted slightly.

The armrest between them suddenly seemed inconvenient.

He reached down and pulled it upwards, leaving nothing between them.

Then he drew her closer.

His arm settled around her shoulders.

Vivienne immediately relaxed against him.

Her head rested against his chest.

Much better.

It worked out exactly as she had hoped.

She tried to hide just how pleased she was.

She really did.

Unfortunately, Christopher could feel the little change in her posture.

He smiled to himself.

She was not subtle.

Not even remotely.

Vivienne tried to focus on the screen.

She could still see it from there.

Technically.

Her hand rested lightly against his chest.

She felt the solid muscle beneath his shirt.

Oh.

Her eyes widened slightly.

She looked down at her hand.

Then up at him.

Christopher was watching the movie.

She swallowed.

Very solid.

She quickly looked back at the screen.

For approximately ten seconds.

Then she looked at him again.

Christopher continued watching the movie.

He could feel her looking at him.

He didn’t turn immediately.

He let her.

There was something strangely pleasant about knowing she was there beside him, warm against his side, apparently far more interested in him than the film.

--

Tbc