The Opposite Of Negation | Editing Slowly

29 | ≠ hate

"You said no four times today," I reply, blinking my eyes a couple of times and sniffling slightly.

She rolls her eyes and nods, "No thanks to you."

"Hey! It was my idea!"

"I had to endure it though!" she replied back with equal fervour.

"But it worked," I say smugly. She rolls her eyes yet again, but this time a beautiful smile is forming on her face.

"Yeah yeah, don't go too crazy about those no's," she says, but I know that she feels equally accomplished to have done what she has done.

"You respected each person, despite them telling you not to," I point out, and she smiles in her cute way, telling me without words that she feels proud of herself.

"My favourite was the last one, don't you think?" she teases.

I smirk, "I don't think I recall anything you said. Could you repeat everything?"

"You missed your chance buddy," she says, patting my chest and moving away from me. I pull her back in, and she laughs.

"Nay, your Mom is probably wondering why we're just standing here like fools for so long."

"Grasshopper, you just made her dream come true. She's probably fangirling over it with Dad."

She laughs and waits patiently for me to continue, but I decide to tease her just a little bit longer. She keeps looking at me, and I keep looking at her, and when a few seconds later I refuse to say anything, she sighs dramatically.

"Fiiine. Don't say it back. Not like I care," she looks away, pretending to be mad.

"Alright," I shrug, and she looks at me with narrowed eyes.

"Alright," she nods and moves away, this time me letting her out of my hold pretty quickly. I feel genuine disappointment radiating off of her, and I control my urges to pull her back.

Because I know what I'm gonna say next is gonna make it worth it.

"Alright, I won't tell you that I'm truly, deeply, madly, passionately in love with you."

All those movie nights watching Letters to Juliet paid off.

She stops walking but doesn't turn around. I watch as she lets her head dip down, her hands moving from her sides to her face. I hear a muffled scream from somewhere inside the house, and I look up to the window of my room to find Mom and Dad just spying on both of us. I roll my eyes and shoo them away, which obviously leads to no avail, making me give up, trying to focus on my girl's reaction.

She still hasn't turned around, and I take this opportunity to look back at the window and call out to dad, "Dad! I found the 8th wonder!"

And that makes her turn around.

"You took your time," she sniffles. I notice her watery smile and take two big steps and pull her into my arms again, never to let go.

"I was gonna stretch it even more," I joke as she slaps my arms repeatedly.

"God, I could've easily found someone else to love," she says, and I tilt my head to the side sarcastically.

"Sure you could've."

"What was it about the 8th wonder?" she asks, and I sneak a quick look up at my Dad, who's holding my Mom to his chest, pecking the top of her head, and my heart swells.

"Why don't you ask Dad?"

⋈ ⋈ ⋈

"I remember the first time I saw your mother laugh openly at one of my pathetic jokes. I had said to myself that there should be a personal wonder for each man, and I've somehow managed to find it," Dad recalls as we sit around the dining table.