-finally!-
There's more, trust me on that
Tuesday!
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Time passed. Late summer became late fall and the weather got colder. We saw each other on an increasingly regular basis. Neither of us said anything, but this was really starting to feel more and more like an honest-to-God relationship.
One night it was bordering on downright freezing. We were perched on his car again, talking about holiday memories, family…that sort of thing. I was trying to hold back tears but just couldn’t. Crap, crap, crap!
“Sorry. It’s just…I was thinking about things I haven’t thought about in a while.”
“It’s alright. Listen,” He sat up, pulled me into his arms, and started rubbing my shoulder with his left hand. “I really care about you. You can trust me, okay?”
“Really?”
“Really. Everything you tell me stays right here.” His left hand gestured towards his chest. “Just say what’s on your mind, alright?”
“Gotcha…” I took a deep breath and talked. I didn’t hold back, but didn’t feel like I was rambling, either. By the time I finished talking I was crying again, but that didn’t really matter. To be honest, all that mattered to me was knowing that he cared, understood.
Neither of us said anything for a while after that. It was enough to enjoy the silence. Plus, let’s face it, hugging him was definitely an added bonus.
“Hey..There’s something I wanted to ask you about.”
“Huh?” I didn’t know what to expect, so I braced myself. Part of me knew whatever he was about to ask couldn’t be bad, but my inner skeptic was more than a little nervous. “What is it?”
“Every December there’s a huge party that honors local athletes…”
Ah. I saw where this was going.
“Aaaand since you’re, like, -the- local athlete everyone expect you to be there, right?”
“Exactly. I was wondering if you were interested in going with me. Y’know, as my girlfriend.”
…girlfriend? GIRLFRIEND!? Holy crap!
“Are you serious?”
“Completely.” One look at that smile and I knew, just –knew-, that he meant it. “So, are you interested.”
“Yes! Definitely. When is it?”
“December twenty first. I think it starts at about eight.”
“Good timing. That’s the day before I have to fly back home for a week of quality family time.” Deep, deep sigh. “Definitely not looking forward to that. Don’t get me wrong. I love my family, but…”
“But what?”
“…but I know I’m going to miss you. A lot. If going to the party means I can spend time with you before I leave, I’m all for it.”
“If you don’t want to talk about leaving, we don’t have to.” With each word his fingers grazed across me cheek. Warm, soothing, and wonderful all at once. Our eyes met, he tilted my chin, and immediately my breath caught in my throat. He kissed me softly, then pulled an arm around me and ran his fingers through my hair.
We turned our attention to the sky…at least until I yawned and felt my eyelids droop. Great, just what I need, I thought with an almost silent giggle.
Almost silent, but not quite. He noticed and looked at me with a cute curious expression.
“What’s up?”
“Nothing. Really. It’s nothing.
“Suuure!” He poked my nose again.
“Okay, okay. I was wondering how you’d feel if I fell asleep again, that’s all.”
“Is that all? I don’t think I’d really mind, to be honest.”
“Me neither.”
“I guess losing track of time is part of being with someone really special.”
As I got into the car I tried to sort out what he had just said, but my head was swimming. His hand brushed against mine and just like that the butterflies were back.
Suddenly his eyes widened and his smile brightened.
“Oh, man! I almost forgot!”
…forgot? Forgot what? Before I had the chance to ask he had grabbed an envelope and placed it into my hands.
“Here. This should explain a lot.”
“Okay…” I was more than a little curious. I opened the envelope and pulled out a photograph, flipped it right-side up and realized exactly what I was looking at. The rose on my wrist was a dead giveaway, but so was his sweet, shy smile. “…wow.”
“I figured you’d like it since you didn’t have any pictures of us.” I wanted to hug him, and wasn’t about to ignore the impulse. How could I? He was such a…a friggin’ sweetheart!”
“I LOVE it! Oops. I mean…Thanks, Apolo.”
“No problem.”
Driving home we talked more, but mostly just enjoyed the relaxed silence.
“Good night, Marlise.” His voice was barely a whisper as he kissed me goodbye, gentle and sweet all at once. “..and good luck.”
“Night, Apolo. Call me if you have time, okay?”
“Trust me. I’ll make time.” He smiled, waved, and we parted ways. Before I fell asleep that night the last thing I thought of was the way my heart pounded every time he held my hand.
…Love? Maybe. If it wasn’t, it had to be somewhere close. The only problem was…well, to be totally honest, I was more than a little afraid to admit it…
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