All is left is to ring the bell (fruk)

Le reste de nos vies

"A TIE?!"

"I am more surprised than you, trust me!"

Arthur's eyes widened, and we began to take our items off. We had a tie of one hundred shots each. Our time was only thirty minutes. Many of his shots were done stealthily. That doesn't surprise me. However, he seemed awfully surprised. He looked at the board, really confused. "Why so confused?" I asked. We had started walking out of the room together, and he shrugged.

"Well, I was trying to go easy on you, but I got carried away...and even then, we still tied..." He laughed. To him, it seemed almost comical. To me, it seemed really cute. "Don't worry, I was trying to go easy on you, too," I laughed. It was a little true; he distracted me most of the time.

"Oh really?" He asked as if he did not believe me. "Yes, would I ever lie?" I asked. He laughed, rolling his eyes and nodding his head. "It is exactly what you would do," he smiled.

...

Once we left the place, we stopped in front of each other. Since autumn was about to start, it had gotten a bit cold. It was nearly October. Arthur shoved his hands in his pockets and smiled at me. "What now?" I asked. He smiled at me, coming closer. "I figured we could walk together to the restaurant. It isn't anything fancy, but I figured we could use any place to sit and talk for a while," he spoke. It was true. I didn't care where we went as long as we were with each other.

"Sounds fine to me," I spoke. He nodded at me, and we began to walk side by side. I was following his lead, yet he looked like a nervous wreck. Well, maybe on our next date, I could take the lead. However, my end motive might not be as innocent as his. I was positive we wouldn't have sex or anything like that. I didn't care about that, but the next time, I will throw everything I have at him.

"It's a lovely night," I smiled.

"It is! Sorry if I seem a little quiet...I am really nervous! This is my first time doing anything like this!"

"It's okay, I guess you could say this is the first time I've done this too. Officially. After all, I considered the other Friday nights a date!"

"Oh please, they weren't official!"

"Maybe not...but I could dream, can't I?"

"I suppose so..."

It had grown silent again as we walked beside each other. It was getting frigid, and I wished I brought my gloves. "You look cold," Arthur spoke. His voice sounded shaken up but sweet. He was gentle and warm when it counted. "I am; I should have brought my gloves," I laughed. I was sure he didn't bring his gloves.

"That's no good..." he spoke. It was quiet, and he kept his head forward. Leave it to him to point out the obvious!

Arthur suddenly took his hand from his pocket, grabbed mine, and shoved it into his coat pocket. I was unbelievably shocked. So much so that my jaw dropped. He kept his head forward, but it didn't hide the fact that he had turned extremely red from embarrassment.

"Hmmm, are you sure? We are in public—"

"I don't care...I hope everyone sees!"

"Oh...okay..."

Our fingers intertwined, and I could feel how his nerves made his hands clammy. I didn't mind. It only meant that he wanted to make an impression.

And some people would look slightly, then look away. It wasn't a big deal anymore. Most people had feelings like this. It wasn't taboo or forbidden. In fact, most people weren't religious anymore, so it helped. Arthur wasn't anymore on his own choice, but he'd participate if he had to. Me? Well, I think I was the same as him.

"Sorry if that was too forward..."

"No! It wasn't! I like it..."

We continued to walk beside each other, and I squeezed his hand in reassurance. "Thank you...Francis...I know all of this might be sudden on my end, but I'm trying. I'm trying to make it up to you for all my conflicting actions toward you in the past. In a way, I suppose we did play with each other's feelings, but I'm sure of it now! I have only you to thank...this is going way better than I imagined, naturally," he spoke.

We both looked at each other, and our hands left his pocket. Exposing our closeness for everyone to see. "Francis, have you ever experienced heartbreak?" He suddenly asked. I squeezed his hand some more, not knowing what to say. It was an odd question to spring into someone suddenly.

"Ummm...I'm not sure...I think so..."

"Did it change you?"

I began swinging our hands back and forth, and he looked at me, annoyed, as if I were a child messing around. "Hmmm, I suppose it did. I assume for the best...that's all I hope for. If you are wondering if you ever broke my heart, you are correct to wonder," I spoke. He had broken my heart several times, but I had broken his far more and far worse.

"I'm sorry..."

"Don't be! We are strange people...we have so long to get it right, and we somehow fail. We don't know any better because we are scared. I know I have been scared many times. However, I still tried to make a connection. I don't blame you for pushing me away; it was natural. Any of us would have done the same in similar situations. It is scary and can hurt us. Like when you were locked away for so many years after letting me win—"

"You still remember that?"

"Of course! It is...how you say, engraved into my memory. My point is! We were both scared and confused. It wasn't our fault for reacting the way we did. However, don't think I'd let it slide this time," I laughed. He nodded at me, smiling, squeezing my hand back. "Well, you are right about that. Either way, I don't think I want to make it harder for us any longer. I'm not that much of a Twat!"

"So you say....yet you always seem to prove—"

"Heyyyyy—"

"Oh, I'm joking."