Till There Was You

Till There Was You [ 1 ]

© 2017 Ji Hye. All Rights Reserved.

| O N E |

Three words. Eight letters. Today will be the day I finally say it: I love you.

Never in my twenty-one years have I ever met a girl like her. She is the one that I have been looking for and I am sure of it. It's just a shame that I didn't realize it sooner. Oh, how different my life would be had I just opened my eyes from the start.

"So," a familiar voice calls out, "you're finally going to tell her, huh?"

Peering into the mirror before me, I see my best friend, Claire, seated at the edge of my bed. "Yeah," I say as a faint smile curves my lips. I know that my answer is as simple as it gets, but in my defense, the reality of the situation is just as straightforward. I, James Montoya, am in love and she is finally going to know it.

"It's kind of weird, don't you think?"

Meeting Claire's gaze through the reflection, I arch a brow at her. "Weird?" I ask. She nods, and I go on, "No, not really. No."

Claire isn't the type of person to allow such a plain response to keep her curiosity at bay though—

Nope

Not at all

—and rather than just let the entire thing go, she resorts to what she always does: she tries to make me see things her way. "Think about it, Jay," she says as her dark irises train solely on me. "You've managed to go your whole life without saying those words to anyone—"

I spin around to face her. "My whole life?"

She shoots me a look, like um, yeah? and I roll my eyes.

"That's a bit of an exaggeration, don't you think? I mean, like, c'mon Claire, I tell my family I love them all the time—"

She casts a glare my way. "I'm talking about the people you aren't related to, smartass."

"I—"

"And before you begin to spout even more of your nonsense, I'm not talking about your bromance with Pierce or Elliot either, so quit cutting me off and let me finish, alright?"

I cross my arms and turn back around. Sheesh, woman, get your panties out of a twist. You're the one who keeps cutting in, not me.

"What did you just say to me?" Claire snaps.

Shit. Did I just say that out loud? Judging by the look she's giving me, I did. Damn. "What are you talking about? I haven't said shit."

"Mhm. You sure 'bout that? Because I'm pretty sure I heard—"

"And I'm pretty sure you're hearing things."

"Are you calling me crazy?"

I shrug. "Maybe . . . maybe not? What's it to ya?"

She huffs. "You can be such an asshole sometimes. I swear I don't know how I put up with you."

"I'm still wondering that myself. Actually, come to think of it, maybe it is you. Maybe you really are insane in the brain."

She gapes. "Rude."

"If I am, it's because of you. I was the perfect gentleman before I met you."