The Way You Loved Me [Under Edit]

"The newbie is a catch.."

"Yo, Spense!" 

As we drew near the bonfire, Spenser's grasp around my waist tightened. Mara and Liam had disappeared after we got out of the truck, sneaking off into the darkness. 

Spenser high-fived random guys and deflected flirtatious girls as we weaved our way through all the couples and a few lonely souls. "I want you to meet somebody," he whispered into my ear, his lips grazing my cheek. 

"Who," I asked, turning to glance at him. 

"You'll see." 

Finally, we reached an old Chevy truck. it was barely visible beside the flickering fire; it sat with its bed open, a few couples lounging in the back of it. 

"Spenser," a male voice cheered. "'Bout time you showed up!" A figure dropped down from the truck, untangling himself from a blonde beauty. 

Peering over Spenser's shoulder, I caught sight of the guy. He glanced my way and our eyes met. With pale eyes and even lighter hair, the guy looked to be about eighteen or nineteen. As he spoke to Spenser, his eyes never left mine. I could feel my stomach begin to twist and knot, this boy was so... intriguing. 

You can't feel like this, my mind whispered. He doesn't belong to you. 

"Cahlan," Spenser called, turning to the side to partially face me. "This is a friend of mine, Niall. Niall, this is my girlfriend Cahlan." Inadvertantly, my hand reached out to take his. As his hand met mine, a tingly ran up my arm. His handshake was warm and firm, a lot stronger than I'd expected it to be. Niall's hand lingered a little too long when it came time to pull away, and the blonde girl was not oblivious to this exchange. 

She jumped down from the truck bed and stretched out her hand. "And I'm Isla, his girlfriend," she sneered, scrunching her nose. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled his head down to hers and smashed her lips against his. Unvoluntarily, a pang ran through my chest. I couldn't be... There was no way... I couldn't be jealous, right? 

Shuffling my feet, I stared at the dark ground. Spenser cleared his throat and grabbed my hand, "Catch you later Niall." 

Following Spenser to a grassy spot on the opposite side of the fire, I plopped down next to him. Leaning on his side, he reached up and pushed a strand of stray hair behind my ear. "I'm glad you came." 

"Me too," I smiled sheepishly, a flush creeped up my neck. "I wonder where Mara--" 

"Probably rolling around in a bush with Liam," Spenser hissed, rolling his eyes. Is it just me, or does he sound a tad...jealous? 

"What's wrong," I asked, brows furrowing. 

"You're always worrying about other people..." For a moment I just watched him fiddling with the grass, my jaw hanging open. Really, I was more worried about other people? Well sorry I have other friends besides you. 

"I do not," I replied slowly, staring into the small, flickering flame. 

"Ever since we got her, you've been more worried about Mara than me." Anger filled his words as he sat upright and ran a hand through his hair. "All I wanted was to take you out for one night." 

"And you did..." I mumbled, pulling my legs closer to me. As I rested my chin on my knees, I sighed and closed my eyes. "I've been in town for a few weeks, not even that long, why are you getting so worked up about this?" 

"You're kidding, right," he asked in a mocking tone. "I haven't seen you in a year--" 

"Don't even go there," I found myself saying. "That wasn't my fault!" 

"You didn't call either," Spenser replied, his voice growing deep. "I know they had phones at Reeves." 

By then I had scrambled to my feet, fury rushing through my veins. He's blaming me for us not speaking, I thought, really?! 

"Well sorry I was in a coma for six months," I shouted, throwing my arms in the air. A few people had been staring by that point, and some were even staring. 

"Drama queen," I heard a girl say. 

"She needs to tone it down," another mumbled. 

"You woke up," Spenser mumbled, voice raising. "You were capable of speaking to me then." 

"As were you. We dated for three years," I spat, "And when one little thing goes wrong, you run away..." 

"What did you expect, Cahlan?" 

My jaw dropped and I shook my head, jaw clenched. "Nothing." I took a deep brath and turned away from him, arms crossed over my chest. "If there was one thing I learned at Reeves, it was to not have any expectations," by then, i was crying from anger. "That way, I would never be disappointed and I sure as hell wouldn't get hurt." 

I had no idea where I was going as I stomped away; I was barely aware of the clapping and hollering towards my words. I had no destination in mind as I wound in and out of people. Where was I? 

Finally choosing to stop beside a random truck parked on the side of the road, I found myself leaning against its hood crying. "Why did I even come," I whispered to myself, when all of a sudden a hand touched my shoulder. I let out a cry before swiveling on the person, my hands raised to shove them away. 

My hands froze on Niall's chest as I realized just how close he really was. Our mouths were only inches... No, you can't think about that, I thought. You have a boyfriend. 

"Are you okay," he asked, his voice low. Peering through thick lashes, his grey eyes were illuminated in the slivers of moonlight that danced across his face. My hands clung to his loose leather jacket, was he from Hazelwood? 

"No," I whispered, swallowing the lump in my throat. 

"Do you want to talk about it?" Niall's voice raised to a normal tone, warm and soothing. 

"I shouldn't have came," I sighed, my thumb gliding back and forth across his jacket zipper. My stomach felt queasy as I took a deep, shuddering breath; he smelled of nature, forests and the great outdoors. Niall's cologne was quite different in comparison to Spenser's Axe favorite. 

"Awe, don't say that." He grabbed one of my hands and led me away from the truck. We walked for a little while before he stopped at a motorcycle hidden in a wooded canopy. He sat down beside the motorcycle and patted the ground beside him. "Have a seat." 

I was hesitant to sit down, but I did it anyway. Spenser hadn't bothered to come after me, and he sure as heck hadn't planned on calling me anytime soon; no matter how many times I pulled my phone out of my pocket, Spenser Cristoffe didn't want to speak to me. As I leaned back onto my elbows, I nodded towards the cycle. "Is that yours?" 

"Yep," he replied. "Got it a few years ago for my sixteenth birthday." 

"How old are you," I asked. 

"Nineteen. You?" 

"Eighteen." Laying back on the grass, I stared at the night sky. Clouds were scattered about, obscuring the constellations from sight. 

There for awhile, neither of us said anything. Rather than it being an awkward silence, it was comfortable. Why was it that lying on the cool grass, in the dark, with Niall felt more comfortable, more natural, than standing in the same room with my own boyfriend?