Two Weeks to Fall in Love

16. Two Weeks to Explore the Heart

Before I could ask him the classic line of, 'What did you say?', and have him repeat himself, he continued.

"It was a wedding gift for my mother. She always loved nature, especially birds. This is probably her favorite place in the world."

"That's so romantic! I can see why this is her favorite place, it's beautiful."

Noah snorted and shook his head, letting go of my hand as he took a few steps forward, eyes focused on the plaque in front of the aviary. He ran both hands through his hair and looked up at the sky before turning to face me with a bitter smile.

"Would be more romantic if love actually lasted."

I frowned, unsure of what he meant by that, and surprised by the sudden bitterness in his voice.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, walking up next to him.

His hand traced the letters on the plaque, drawing my attention to them.

To forever and infinity with you, my love. D.A. + T.A.

"There's no such thing as forever," he muttered, pulling his hand away as if the words had somehow burned him.

"That almost sounds like..." I started, not finishing the sentence as I frowned at him.

"Like what?" Noah asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

"Like you don't actually believe love exists," I stated and waited for him to correct me.

I mean, there was no way that was right. This was the guy that spent the past year trying to find 'the one'. There was no way he'd waste his time looking for something he doesn't believe in.

He stayed quiet, hands balled into fists at his side, gaze focused on the plaque in front of him.

Yeah, not gonna happen, buddy. No way am I letting him just ignore what I'd said. Frown on my face and arms on my hips I stood right in front of him. Not that I was exactly tall enough to actually block his view but seeing as his gaze focused on me, my intention seemed to come across just fine.

"Noah, do you even believe in love?"

Silence. All he did was stare at me. Then, his head tilted to the side, and he shrugged, a lopsided smile on his face.

"Who knows..."

Who knows? Who. Knows?!

"You! You should know!" I blurted out, unable to hide my shock.

Just when I'd almost allowed myself to start thinking this guy might not actually be as bad as I thought, he goes and says something like this.

"Why would you be doing this if you don't even believe in love? What's the point?" I continued, words rushing out of me in a torrent of accusations. Noah's lips opened as if he was about to say something but I raised my hand to stop him.

"Oh, I'm not finished," I narrowed my eyes, waving a finger in his face. "How dare you? How dare you play around with others' feelings when you're not even serious about this! That's... that's some real bullshit, Noah. I knew it, this really is all just a game for you, isn't it? You're nothing but a hypocrite and—" Noah grabbed my hand and pulled me against him so fast that I yelped and stopped mid-sentence.

"I told you from the start, Skyler. This isn't a game," he husked, more serious than I'd ever heard him sound.

I swallowed hard, slightly flustered by the fact that one of my hands was resting on his chest - seeking stability on the one hard surface once he'd unexpectedly pulled me closer - and the other one was still trapped in his gentle grasp.