Resisting Ray

Chapter VII

As Hayden drove away I buckled my seat belt.

"So where are we going?"

"I thought we could go to dinner and maybe a movie?"

I couldn't help but compare Hayden to Ray the whole date. Ray would've waited on me hand and foot while Hayden never held the door open for me or pulled out my chair. I had to pay for our food at the restaurant and at the movie because he conveniently forgot his wallet at his house. I'm not saying I'm not an independent woman and that I didn't have the money but it's nice to be pampered and taken care of once in a while.

"I had a nice time with you tonight Kimberly."

"Yea."

"So when can we hang out again?"

"I'll call you"

Before he could say anything else I got out of the car and stalked inside. I went upstairs to my room and wasn't surprised to see Ray laying on my bed watching TV.

"How was your day?"

"Fine."

"Only fine?"

Suddenly an image of him kissing Georgia like she was the love of his life flashed through my head and I scowled as I took off my shoes.

"Actually it was fucking great. Better than anything I've done with anyone."

His face fell and he stood up slowly.

"I guess I should leave then."

"Bye."

He left my house slowly and I watched him walk across the street with his shoulders hunched. I felt my heart clench at the sight and I blocked the image as got ready to go to bed. Later that night I lay in bed unable to sleep and I sat up and looked out of my window that looked directly into his. His lights were on and I could see him doing pushups through his floor length windows. I sighed, knowing he only did that when he was upset and reached under my bed for the box. I took off the heavily decorated lid and smiled as the smell of the ocean hit my senses hard. Flashbacks of Ray and I running up and down the beach laughing flashed through my head. A picture of me and Ray at our sixth birthday party. A picture of us at the beach for the first time together. A picture of the two of us on a roller coaster at the opening of an amusement park, a picture of as at the lake house our families shared, at the ski resort we always went to, in Europe for Spring Break last year, both of us on a beach in Florida laughing our asses off, another with me on his back as he looked up at me with a smile on his face and my favorite, a picture unknowingly taken by his younger sister, Ray and I had our hands intertwined and our foreheads together, both of us with the biggest smiles on our faces as we looked into each others eyes, oblivious to the bustling city of London behind us. I sighed and put the lid back on the box and picked up my phone. I had to call him, I had to follow my heart.