The Chronicles of You ✔

⭐︎ 0.7 ⭐︎

        Your brother was so patient with me. He understood that I would slowly start to be ready to move on, and let me take my time. It was barely a 'relationship' for the first year or so. We really only hugged, and occasionally held hands. For some reason, he didn't really care. He was willing to take things one step at a time for me.

        A little less than two years after he gave me the letter, we were graduating from college, and your brother was still right there by my side. He just wouldn't leave. He's so stubborn, your brother. My parents had a college graduation party for me, and Emmett came to it. At some point we decided to go for a walk to get away from the crowd of people, and since the party was just down the road from my house, we walked back there. I think he could see that I had a lot on my mind, and that I wanted to get away from the noise of the party. We ended up on the porch swing on my front porch, and I sat down beside him and leaned my head against his shoulder. And then I remembered what I wanted to say to him.

        I lifted my head up so I was looking him in the eyes, and said, "Listen, Em. You deserve so much better than me. You've kind of gotten screwed over, and I'm only able to give you the short end of the stick. You need to find someone who can give you everything you need. I can't do that. You deserve someone who can love you the way you want her to. And I feel like I can never make you as happy as you deserve to be or be the girlfriend that you want."

        Emmett sighed and said, "You deserve to be happy too, El. And I can see that you can be happy again. I know you can. I'm not giving up on you this easily."

        I looked him in the eyes and said, "I don't understand why you stay with me, why you insist on being with me. Why do you keep wasting all of your time on a sad girl who can never be the girlfriend that you need her to be?"        

            He looked at me for a long time without saying anything, and then he finally said, “Because I’m in love with you.”

         I don’t know what came over me; maybe it was something about his green eyes, but something clouded my brain. I didn’t even think, instead, half a second after he said the words, I leaned in and kissed him. And after I pulled away, your brother just smiled like an idiot at me, and said, “So does this mean that you’re going to let me keep you?” I rolled my eyes at him, and said, "I suppose so." 

        After laughing together for a moment on the swing, we decided to head back to the party, because everyone was probably wondering where we were. I reached out and grabbed his hand, and he intertwined our fingers, so we walked back to the party hand in hand. Emmett turned to me with a grin and a teasing look in his eyes and said, "I'm glad we had this talk." I hit him playfully with my free hand, and we both burst into fits of laughter.

        I guess we had both failed to mention to anyone that we were sort of a thing now, because when we walked back into the crowd together, hand in hand, every single jaw dropped. Your parents were there, and Nick and your sister, with her shiny new diamond ring on her left hand. Elliot and Nick really hit it off after we lost you. It was only a matter of time, I guess. Your family and Nick (and my family) were trying to suppress grins. They were obviously thrilled, but didn't want to say anything.        

         Finally, Elliot spoke up, "Where have you been and what did you do? I've literally been waiting for this to happen ever since you fell alseep on our couch together!" At 'fell asleep on our couch together' everyone turned their eyes to your brother and I. Your sister laughed awkwardly and said, "Oh yeah, you don't know what I mean...oops." She explained what she'd been talking about, how Emmett and I fell asleep on your family's living room couch the night we lost you. And then Nick said, "So where were just at and what did you do? You never answered Elli's question." I just stood there trying to decide what to tell them, if anything, when Emmett spoke up for me, "We went for a walk to talk...and then El kissed me..." Our families just looked at us strangely, and then Elliot said, "She kissed you? We really thought if anything, that you would kiss her first." Emmett rolled his eyes at his sister and said, "Well you thought wrong, sis." I couldn't blame them; I thought he would have to kiss me first too.

        Nick grinned and said, "So when's the wedding?" Emmett hit him playfully, and I said, "Oh shut up, Nick."

        That night I had really surprised myself. It's so strange, because just a few years ago, I never even would have fathomed kissing Emmett.