You Belong With Me | Arthur Leclerc

2. Heart Beat

"I never said that it was a faze."

"No, but all jokes aside, my mom didn't have the heart to change your room after you left." Charles begins to say "Besides, we knew you'd return one day."

I smile in response. When I shift my sitting position, our hands slightly brush together, causing butterflies to erupt in my stomach.

I pull my hand away, avoiding eye contact, fully aware of my red cheeks when Charles leans closer to me, taking my necklace in his hands.

"Oh, you still have this." He states surprised while looking at the necklace shaped like a butterfly that he gifted me years ago as a birthday present.

"Yeah, I still wear it sometimes." I say a little out of breath because of the small distance between us.

I. Never. Take. This. Necklace. Off.

I look at Charles who's now starting at me too. Can he feel this? How nervous he makes me feel? How fast he makes my heart beat? Can he tell that he's all I ever think about...that I can't eat, sleep or breathe properly around him?

He gets startled and stops making eye contact with me when his phone gets a new notification.

"It's Arthur." He says, looking at his phone. "He wants me to help him with dinner."

Charles gets up from my bed and puts his phone back into his pocket.

"I'll let you get settled in." He says when he's at the door.

"Alright. I'll see you downstairs." I tell him and lie back in my bed once he's gone and the door is closed, looking at the ceiling.

                             -——— ❀ ———-

Arthur's pov

I'm preparing dinner with my brothers when I almost cut my finger looking at Mia walk into the kitchen.

How does she manage to do that? Sweep me off my feet every time she walks into a room?

She's wearing a cute, flowery dress and her hair is down in lose curls. She's so beautiful.

"Art, those tomatoes are not going to get cut themselves." Lorenzo, tells me, pulling me back from my daze.

Charles chuckles from behind me when he sees why I got so distracted.

I have never told anyone about my "silly crush" on my best friend, but growing up with two older brothers, nothing ever really goes unnoticed.

"Can I help with anything?" Mia kindly asks, putting her head on my shoulder while standing behind me to get a look at what I'm doing.

I almost flinch at how close to me she's standing.

"It's all good, we're almost done." I tell her a little out of breath because of the close proximity.

"Come here, I've got a job for you." Charles tells her and Mia starts walking towards him.

Fuck, why didn't I tell her to help me with the tomatoes?

"Here, try my pasta and tell me what you think." Charles tells her and raises the fork he's holding to her mouth.

I've stopped cutting the tomatoes long ago now, my eyes on them. Mia opens her mouth while Charles puts the fork in her mouth to try the pasta.

Once she's tried it, she starts smiling a bit, trying to contain her laughter while putting a hand over her mouth.

"What? Is it that bad?" Charles starts chuckling.