ℰ𝓃𝒸𝒽𝒶𝓃𝓉ℯ𝒹

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 23 - 𝐷𝑜𝑟𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑎

Your Pov:

You found yourself stalling by the entrance, an anxious feeling rousing inside of you. You have been standing there for quite a long time, trepidatious flowing through you. You closed your eyes and took a deep breath. You reminded yourself the reason why you came here, reminded yourself it was now or never.

Your shaky hands gripped the door knob, turning it slightly. The door soon opened, and you forced yourself inside. You looked around, searching for a certain pair of eyes. Once found, you smiled and waved at her.

"Well, you do indeed look different," She beamed a smile at you, gesturing for you to sit.

"Yeah, most of the wounds have healed, some scarred but most of them faded over time" You replied, sitting down carefully. "I meant generally," She laughed. "I'm glad the cuts didn't bruise, how are you doing?" She questioned, sipping her drink. "I'm good. I got both my job and my life back—just minus the drama" You laughed, still feeling a bit nervous around her. 

"How's it going with that girl of yours?" A smirk crawled up to her lips as your face contorted in confusion. "You mean, Lizzie?" She nodded. A small smile formed on your lips, remembering the blonde woman waiting for you to come home.

"We're doing alright. Everything has been quite blissful, really. Hadn't had any new action this past few months.." It was the truth. Lately things have been quite peaceful. Just you, Lizzie, your friends, and work. That's it. 

"That's good...she and her boyfriend break up yet?" Caught off guard, you raised an eyebrow at her. "Apologies for my bluntness, things just seemed...off with him and her. Got me wondering if they had broken up" You realized that you had mentioned how things were between Lizzie and Robbie when she called to check up on you last time. 

"Oh well, almost. It turns out, she knew he was cheating all along. She'd kept it hidden, though it hurt her. I can't imagine the pain she must've suffered" You shook your head with a sigh, remembering the night Lizzie barged in your apartment.

"Why didn't she say anything?" She tilted her head at you, "She was waiting for him to become truthful, hoping they could find a way to avoid the falling out" You explained.

"Such a waste. She seemed like a good person—I'm sure she still is. How long had they been together?"

"I'm not quite sure but, at least more than 3 years." She scoffed. "Such a waste of time. Especially when she could have been dating you instead." Your cheeks grew flush, a fluttery erupting feeling inside of you.

"W-what? Don't be ridiculous.." You denied it but the thought really made your heart flutter.

"Whatever you say, sweet pea" She laughed at you, making you turn away to hide the redness of your cheeks.

***

You and Kalisha talked for a bit more, catching up and getting to know more about each other. At some point, the past was brought up; it was bound to happen anyways. A few tears were shed, some were yours while some came from her.

She told you about your parents, told them what they were like. She seemed to know them more than you ever did. It was an absolute delight learning about your parents. It turns out that you looked more like your dad than you did with your mom. You learned that your mom painted, just like you did. Your dad was a photographer for a news company when he was just a teenager. That's how he met your mom. 

She was a model back in her days and he was assigned to follow her and take photographs of her. But he was caught red handed by your mom and things just...bloomed. It was just like you and...Lizzie. When you first saw her..things just..bloomed. 

You ended up talking for a few more hours But obviously, she needed to go back to work. You guys had talked for over 3 hours. You could barely remember what kept or who kept the conversation going. A sound came from her walkie-talkie, indicating she needed to go back to work. She bid you goodbye, demanding that you call her if anything bad were to happen.

You stayed there for a bit more, enjoying the felicity it brought you. You sipped your coffee gently, enthralled by the serenity your surroundings had. The rain had just stopped, petrichor surrounded the air, bits of rain falling from leaves.

It took you a lot of courage to leave, not wanting the peacefulness to disappear. At some point though, you decided to leave, remembering the woman waiting for you back home. You took a stroll down the park, seeing it mostly empty, other than the kids playing in the mud. You used an umbrella, even after the drizzle stopped, not wanting to catch a cold from the rain.

You had your headphones on, 'Used to This' By Camila Cabello played as you walked. Your mind wandered off to the blonde, reminiscing the most previous memories you had together. The mere thought of her made you smile. Something about her brought a different side out of you. There was a need to protect her at all costs, a need to make her feel loved and wanted.

You could only hope she felt the same way. 

***

You arrived home, a certain pair of arms enveloped you as soon as you entered. "I missed you, what took you so long?" Her voice was soft, lips turned into a pout "I enjoyed some time at the park. Me and Kalisha, we had a lot to talk about" She nodded understandingly but the pout remained. You moved towards the counter, a grin capturing your lips.

"I did buy you something though," You watch her face light up, a bright smile replacing her sadness "I got you some ice cream!" She jumped excitedly, running towards you with full force.  Your back hit the counter as soon as she launched at you, grabby hands opening the bag.

Her smile widened when she saw that you got her her favorite flavor. She ran behind the counter, grabbing a spoon to start eating. There was a smile on your face as you watched her. Who knew happiness would be this simple.

Your heart melted and your features softened, Lizzie brought out a side of you you never knew ever existed. She brought out a side of you who wanted to love; a side of you that wanted to love her. You wished that life would always be this simple.

A Perfectly Good Heart.