Chapter 23.|Eye To Eye At Last|

h.a.r.p.e.r.’.s....p.o.v.

I was still nervous as I made my way down the street, but once I saw the park, all of those butterflies in my stomach simply floated away. In the middle of the park, underneath the big willow tree, were lights. Outside stood Justin, who had a short sleeve collared shirt and khaki pants.

To be honest, he looked nervous, to say the least. The minute our eyes connected from across the grass field, a warm smile lit his face. I walked over to him, across the path until I finally reached where he was.

“You look beautiful,” he said, and I looked up, half expecting his eyes to be roaming over me, just drinking in the sight. Instead, he was looking me dead in the eye, true honesty shining through.

“You don’t look too bad yourself,” I said, a light blush coating my cheeks. Okay, that was a lie - he looked way better than I could have ever imagined.

“C’mon, there’s something I want to show you.” He ushered me to follow behind him as he walked through the leaves of the leaning willow tree. The one thing about this tree was that its branches and leaves acted like a curtain, hiding what was inside.

I wasn’t sure what I had anticipated, since the torches out front were beautiful enough. But I trusted Justin, I always had. Looking in, I gasped and covered my mouth in shock.

He rocked uneasily back and forth on his heels, his face all scrunched up. “Do you like it? It isn’t too much, is it?”

All I could do was shake my head, since it was speechless. The inside of the small tent the tree made was visible in candle light. A picnic blanket was draped in the center with a basket spilling out with foods ranging from salads to pastas.

“I knew that I should’ve toned it down,” I overheard Justin mumble as he scratched the back of his neck.

“Justin,” his eyes met mine as he waited for me to continue. “I - it’s perfect! I couldn’t have asked for anything better.”

A shy smile grew onto his face as he looked down almost bashfully. “I’m glad you like it. Let’s eat.”

And those were the magic words before all the awkwardness left, and I knew I could just be myself around him.

After about a half hour of pure joking around and eating delicious food, Justin got serious. His smile faded slightly and I saw conflict in his eyes.

I sat up straighter as I placed a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, is everything okay.”

He met my gaze with a forced smile. “Yeah.”

I frowned at his short answer, sensing something was off. “Why did you bring me out here?”

Justin gulped before taking my hand in his and staring deeply into my eyes. I couldn’t tear my eyes away and he smiled slightly before starting.

“Look, Harper, there is something I’ve wanted to tell you for a long time. I guess I just never got the chance. I, um... I really like you. Like a lot, way more than friends.”

I blushed slightly, looking down. I wasn’t sure how to reply - I mean, I knew I liked him in that way also, but I hadn’t known he had really liked me. I had only believed that Justin liked me as a younger sister, that’s it!

“When did it start?” I barely mumbled, but it was so quiet that he heard it.

“My feelings? Probably since my sixteenth birthday. And from then, they’ve only grown.” I looked up in shock. He liked me that much? Really? Me, out of all people? I couldn’t believe it.

“I guess I like you too. Much more than just friends,” I said, smiling shyly up at him, which caused a brilliantly bright smile bursting onto his face like the sunrise in the morning. Justin gently pulled me into his chest, where I pressed my hands on. The muscles rippling underneath made me want to melt into a puddle.

“That’s why I was so jealous of you and Toby - I just really wanted that to be the two of us.”

I chuckled at the thought of me thinking it was because he wanted to be my overprotective big brother, as if! He wrapped both arms around me and pulled me further into him, kissing me on the forehead.

“Thank goodness,” he whispered, which I overheard because of our close proximity.

“What, you really thought I was going to reject you? After I even kissed you back?” I asked playfully, before a smirk enveloped in his face and he kissed me.

I melted right then and there, pulling on his shirt to give me better access.

This was where I belonged - right wrapped up in Justin’s arms.

And nothing could be better.