~âSo why does your pride make you run and hide?â~
Chapter Theme Song: âI Will Wait For Youâ by Elliot Yamin.
^The night of the concert^
THIRD PERSON
Aprilâs phone buzzes against her hip, interrupting her conversation with Tia and Yuna in the auditorium hallway.
The concert wrapped up an hour ago. Harmony went off to chat with her mom, Blaze disappeared, and the night was still young. April had no intention of heading back to the dorms just yet.
Her smile still lighting up her face, she pulls her phone from her silver clutch and unlocks it. A message from ~James~ is waiting for her.
She swallows hard as she reads the words on the screen.
James
Can we talk outside?
She lifts her gaze and scans the room, finding ~him~ leaning against the auditorium wall.
He looks handsome in his dark tuxedo and green undershirt. His hair is messy, but it suits him.
Callum, all smiles, taps James on the arm, pulling his attention away from April. He tells James heâs leaving.
James spent the entire evening entertaining Harmonyâs friend, trying to distract himself from thoughts of Aprilâthe woman he knows he can never have.
Heâs liked her for longer than he can remember, even before their drunken night together. But he knows April doesnât see him that way, and she may ~never~ see him that way.
Heâs been trying to accept this for the past few weeks. But tonight...tonight he wants to be honest with her, even though her words in the hallway that day had dimmed his hope.
~âJames, please, donât take what happened last year at that party seriously. We were drunk.â~
His hope wasnât completely crushed, though. He still wants to try.
He wants to talk to her, to clear the air, to tell her how he really feels. Heâs always been the joker, and she probably thinks heâs joking about his feelings, too.
But tonight, he wants her to know heâs serious. Completely and utterly serious. ~About her.~
Aprilâs stomach flutters as she reads the words on her screen again. ~Talk outside.~ She knows what that means.
âAre you okay?â Yuna asks, poking Aprilâs shoulder to get her attention. Sheâs noticed that April seems distracted.
April nods, blushing. âMm. Give me a moment, okay?â Out of the corner of her eye, she sees James heading outside after saying goodbye to Callum.
She follows him, lagging behind, clutching her phone tightly. April is usually so confident, but right now her knees feel weak.
The look he gave her from across the room told her everything she needed to know. He looked so serious, so intense.
When she steps outside, she sees that James has stopped, his back to her, his fingers running through his hair.
The night breeze ruffles her hair as she shifts from foot to foot. âIâm here now.â
She watches as he takes a deep breath and turns to face her, swallowing hard.
God, heâs cute. Why hadnât she noticed that before these...these ~feelings~ surfaced?
And when did these feelings start? Probably the morning after theyâd seen each other ~naked.~
She regrets what she said that day in the hallway. About them not having a chance. She hates how hurt James looked when she rejected him. It hurt her more than she thought it would.
âHey...,â James says, sounding unsure. He rubs the back of his neck. ~So handsome.~
âHey,â she replies, trying to hide her nervousness. âY-You wanted to see me?â
~Stuttering? April?~ She scolds herself.
âYeah.â James drops his hands to his sides. His eyes are soft but intense under the white lights of the school parking lot. âI...â
April watches him, feeling a blush creeping up her neck and spreading across her cheeks. Itâs a mix of the blush from her makeup and the blush from the feelings James is stirring up inside her.
âApril, listen...I really like you, okay?â he says, his face serious. âAnd Iâm really, really serious about you.
âI know I joke around a lot...and Iâm not exactly the most trustworthy...because, well, Iâm friends with Blaze. But Blaze isnât the same person anymore. Heâs changed, but I...I just...
âIâm really sorry, I donât know what to say or how toââ
April steps toward him, a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips. âTalk slowly,â she tells him softly.
She canât help itâher insides are melting at his words, at seeing him in ~this~ light, opening up to her like this.
James relaxes and lets out a sigh. âI really, really like you...a lot.
âAnd I know you donât feel the same, but...but I just thought Iâd let you know how you make me feel things that no other girlâwoman has ever made meââ
Without a word, April steps forward and kisses James, catching him off guard. Now thereâs barely any space between them, and that space is filled with their shared warmth.
His lips are soft, just like she remembers from the night they spent together. The night before she woke up and regretfully kicked him out of bed.
But tonight, his lips feel even softer. More certain. More ~right.~
As she pulls away, she looks up at him. James is frozen, his mouth slightly open. His eyes drop to her lips before meeting her eyes again.
He canât believe it. Heâs in denial.
âI...â April moistens her lips, a hint of vulnerability in her eyes. Itâs a side of her James has never seen before. âYou were right...â She meets his gaze, her confidence still intact.
âI was just scared. Iâve been putting on a show for everyone else. But the truth is, I like you too, James.â Admitting her feelings takes a lot out of her. âI have feelings for you too.â
A crooked smile spreads across Jamesâs face. He cups her face in his hands, bending down to kiss her again.
Their tongues meet, intertwining, and April canât help but smile into the kiss as he pulls her close to his warm body, pressing her firmly against him.
She feels like sheâs floating, and when he pulls back and looks down at her, she canât stop the grin that spreads across her face.
âWhat?â
âHow are we going to tell them?â James asks, his eyes reflecting his happiness.
April shrugs. âTheyâll find out eventually. And it doesnât matter if they do or not. What matters...is how we feel.â
âYouâre right.â
âMm.â Her sparkling eyes drop to his lips again before she leans in and kisses him.
James surprises her by lifting her off the ground and spinning her around.
April laughs, throwing her head back and holding onto him. Sheâs never felt this sense of belonging with anyone else like she does with James.
She loves his silliness, she loves his straightforwardness, and even though they still have a lot to learn about each other, sheâs ready to take the journey. As long as heâs on board.
And judging by the look on his face, heâs all in.
^The End^