One more Night

Lake Sleepover

I hung up after we settled on where to meet. Lake Michigan had been where he took me on our first date and it was our hangout spot ever since. My heart almost burst with joy at the thought of seeing him again. It was nothing like the feeling I got when I was around William. My body almost started shaking from how nervous I became. But as soon as we were off the phone I realized my mistake. William would never let me leave without him. He'd insist on taking me back to the hotel himself. I hurried to the bathroom and waited in there for five minutes before I came back to the table.

If my plan worked I was going to be able to leave here without him. If it didn't, I was still leaving but he was coming with me so I'd have to find another way out. With my heart in my throat, I sat back down beside William. I played with the hem of the table cloth as I thought about what to say exactly. His brother Joe kept on with his stories and I impatiently waited for him to finish before I told Will I was leaving. Only problem is he never stopped. He kept going and no one could interrupt him because he'd just talk over them, like he did with his wife a few times when she tried to give her input. "Will...." I interrupted after a short while.

All eyes turned to look at me. Joe stared at me with annoyance and Mindy glared. If I didn't have to leave I probably would have flicked them both off but stirring trouble when I'm about to tell Will that I'm leaving wouldn't end up in my favor.

William looked down at me thoughtfully and smiled. It was rare to see him this genuinely calm and at ease. Usually, he was so uptight and bottled up with all his emotions that it surprised me that he didn't glare at me with annoyance like his bother did. "What's wrong, Ana?"

"I need to go." He seemed taken aback by what I said. His calmness slowly turning into annoyance but I also could see a little bit of worry in his eyes. "Why? We're having such a good time, Ana."

"I know. And I was enjoying listening to all your brother's stories. But...." I blushed as I looked down on my lap. "But what, Ana? Are you feeling okay?" I shook my head. In reality I wasn't okay at all. My heart was beating so fast that I'm sure if there wasn't any music here everyone would be able to hear it. And I also felt terribly guilty for lying to William. It was hard to look him directly in the eye as I said my lie. "I have really bad cramps. I think I'm about to start my period. It hurts a lot." William stared at me for a second before nodding. "Okay, Joe. I think my fiancée and I are going to call it a night."

I shook my head. "No Will. It's okay if you stay. I don't want to ruin your night over my pain." I forced a laugh and hoped to God that it sounded natural. "I can take an Uber back to the hotel room or a taxi."

Will wasn't having it. "No, of course not. I'll take you back myself. I'm not going to leave you alone at this time of night."

"Babe...don't make me feel bad. Like I said I don't want to be the reason you had to end the night early with your brother. So stay here. Enjoy your time. I'll go back to the hotel and hopefully, Cindy or Jenna will have some Midol or Advil that I can take for the pain. William hesitated but Joe saved the day and convinced him to stay for another round of beers. He accepted but insisted on waiting with me outside until the Uber came to pick me up. "Ana, are you sure you just don't want me to take you? I don't mind..."

I smiled at him. "Of course I'm sure. You don't get that much time with your brother as it is so I don't want to ruin the night. So why drag you along with me if you can stay and enjoy your night." I shivered as the wind started to pick up. "Come here," He said as he pulled me into his arms and embraced me. "Let me at least keep you warm since I can't do anything to help you with your pain." I refused to argue with him over the simple gesture and let myself relax. "I love you, Ana." He whispered against my hair.

Why did he have to say that? Out of all the things he could have said that was the phrase I hated the most because I could never say them back to him. What the hell was I doing? How was this justifiable? It wasn't...