Blind Love (Edited)

Chapter 25: The Walk

"I wasn't," he said, smiling as he looked into her eyes.

It was at that moment that Emileigh felt chills going down her spine. Bryan's gaze made her breath catch in her chest. He looked so good. He was handsome and there was a warm kindness in his eyes that she couldn't quite explain. She had to force herself to look away. What was that? she thought to herself.

"You okay?" Bryan asked, bringing Emileigh back from her thoughts.

She turned to him and smiled. "Yes...everything's fine."

"So...." Bryan started.

"So," Emileigh said in response. "Umm....what's your favorite sport?"

"Soccer. Without a doubt. What's yours?"

"I have two. I love volleyball. I used to be on the high school volleyball team and then, it's soccer. It's funny though, because people are so shocked when they find out soccer is one of my favorite sports."

He chuckled. "I'm not. You're definitely the whole package."

Emileigh blushed with all intensity. She knew it was obvious, but if Bryan had seen the blush on her face, he didn't show it.

"Want anything to drink?" he asked her.

"Not really. I'm fine."

Bryan looked uneasy. He was deciding to tell her what he had told Landon. But if she was hanging out with him, she had to know. "I have something to tell you," he said.

Emileigh was smiling but as soon as she saw his face, her smiled faltered. "What's wrong?"

"I've changed. Sometimes I just lose it. Not in the way of getting violent, but I mean I lose the sense of where I am, in what time I actually am. I'm not sure of this because I don't remember but I think it's happened when Landon was around. I screamed out a name. I can't sleep at night, and it's so bad that sometimes I have to take sleeping pills to sleep. I'm going back in two weeks."

At the last sentence, Emileigh's breath hitched in her chest. "You're leaving again?"

"Yes. I have to."

Emileigh looked into his eyes. All that he had told her worried her. It wasn't normal, but she admired the loyalty he had to the country and to his men. "You're leaving after all that you just told me?"

Bryan looked at her. "I've never had these episodes when I go back. I have them here and to my knowledge it's happened once. So if it happens again, I want you to stay away from me. Usually I'm fine. But I don't want to cause you any harm."

Emileigh felt scared. Bryan saw the fear flash in her eyes. He didn't blame her. If it hadn't been for Landon being there, he knew that he wouldn't be so controlled. He wouldn't blame her if Emileigh would leave the restaurant right then.

He looked up at her. "It's okay. You don't have to be here if you don't want me to. I honestly am not sure if I'm okay. I wouldn't want to be with myself either if I were you."

Emileigh kept a straight face as she answered him, "I never said I didn't want to be with you."

Bryan was surprised by Emileigh's answer. He had expected her to just leave without looking back. Instead, she was still sitting in the same place as him. He studied her face. "I'm sorry. Did I just hear you right?"

"Yes, you did." Emileigh explained. "I'm not going to let that scare me away. You're the first friend I have made here. I'll work my way around it."

As he heard these words, Bryan couldn't help the tears that were rushing to his eyes. He couldn't stop the tears that were threatening to fall down. He cleared his throat. She is something else, he thought.