while you were gone .: lrh

chapter twenty five

two months later

mari: ericcccc
1:23am

eri: hey mari
1:24am

mari: hi hi :)
1:24am

eri: what's up love
1:25am

mari: i'm so bored what are you up to
1:26am

eri: texting you is all i'm up to, why?
1:26am

mari: facetime??
1:27am

eri: of course, call me
1:28am

the call rings for a few moments before the word connecting pops up and not a minute later, eric's cute face appears on screen.

"hey," mar says quietly, careful not to wake up her best friend who sleeps in the other room.

"hi, beautiful," eric smiles, eyes twinkling, and mardelle's heart flutters as he speaks. "why are you up so late?"

the brunette can see that her friend is in his pyjamas, sitting at his desk with his phone propped up to capture his face. the lamp next to him casts an orangey light on him, making it seem as if he's glowing.

or at least, that's how mardelle sees it.

"i couldn't sleep," she shrugs, peeling her eyes away from his figure and looking down at her duvet. she, herself, is sitting on her bed, blankets across her lap. "why are you up so late? i didn't wake you, did i?"

"no, no," he shakes his head, running a hand through his messy hair. "i was working on a last minute assignment for uni, and i finished it just around the time you texted me."

"ah," mar grins, playing with the ends of her hair nervously.

her and eric had become close friends after he'd asked for her number; they'd texted non-stop for a few weeks, and then eric showed up at patty's. he didn't know she had worked there, and he had needed money to pay his parents back for tuition, so he got a job there. when they were working he same shift, they were stunned to see each other there. but also, they'd been ecstatic and began hanging out a lot. but mardelle wouldn't even lie – she likes him. she really does, even though she'd only given him her number to get over luke.

which she wasn't. she is not over luke, and doesn't think she ever will be. but somehow, being with eric made her forget her worries, forget the unfortunate breakup that had occurred.

"love, you seem tired," eric's voice is so smooth that it almost puts her to sleep.

"i'm not really," she lies, not wanting to end the call. "i'm alright."

"okay, but do you promise you'll sleep soon? i'm worried about you. you tell me everyday how sleep deprived you are."

"yeah. i'll sleep soon. i just want to keep talking to you for a bit."

this makes him beam, and he bites his lip. "hey, i, uh, had something to ask you."

"ask away."

"okay, um...would you maybe like to go out with me sometime?"

mardelle stops moving, stops breathing, as she thinks over the question. did that actually happen? did he actually just ask her out? a shy smile appears on her face and she nods.

"i'd love to."