Colors of Us

13| Garrett

She huffed like she wasn't sure whether she should be amused or horrified. He drew her hands to his chest, right above his heart and looked her straight in the eyes. "Let me fill your holes, Arianne."

Her feet dropped to the ground as her laugh floated across the air like a rich melody. "How could a girl resist such a gentlemanly offer?"

"It's a mystery," he said, pleased with himself.

"Holes aside," her lips quirked briefly, "I think if two people who are that flimsy get together, they'd fall apart under the pressure. That's not what I want."

Garrett masked his disappointment. "So what do you want?"

"I want us to go on like we have been. Can't that be enough?"

He rallied behind the fact that she hadn't outright refused him. They could keep hanging out, getting to know each other, and during that time he would prove he was in it for the long haul. That what they had wouldn't fall apart at the slightest roadblock. Besides, she hadn't realized he still had her hands which were resting in between his on his lap. He took that as a good sign.

"Garrett?" she prodded, her concern tender. It might have been a sweet moment if not for the dread clouding her eyes as if she was bracing for the worst. It reminded him of a dog he found years ago chained to a tree in a neighbor's yard. It had been conditioned to expect abuse. How many times had she been conditioned to expect betrayal? To be let down?

He chose his words wisely. He could have sugarcoated things but to not be one hundred percent honest would be another form of betrayal. Arianne deserved his honesty. She deserved his respect. "I won't lie and say I like what you're saying, but I get it. And if that's what you want, then that's what we'll do."

She pressed her lips together in a sad smile of gratitude that broke his heart. "Thanks."

As the night gave way to a new day, Garrett made a pledge. Whatever happened between them, even if they didn't end up together, Arianne could always count on him. She had Morgan, and now, Garrett for life.

"Garrett?" she whispered in the silence.

"Yeah?" he whispered back.

"Are you ever going to let go of my hand?"

He suppressed a grin. "No."

"Oh." A second later, "I thought you agreed?"

"You said to go on as we've been. I think giving comfort falls within those lines."

Garrett prepared for a withdrawal, but it never came. He considered it a point in the win column. Maybe if he scored high enough, she'd change her mind and trust him enough to go on a date with him. He could already see the night in his head.

He didn't have a lot of money so he couldn't take her to a fancy restaurant, but he had a feeling she wasn't into extravagance. She'd prefer a meaningful date like a picnic down by Heartache Lake or something fun like ice skating. Afterward, they'd meander around campus as they got lost in conversation, occasionally stopping to swing on a playground or have an impromptu rock skipping contest on the lake.

Then when they were huddled together under the guise of getting warm, he'd kiss her. Light at first so as not to scare her, but as their hormones ramped up it'd get out of control to the point where they couldn't keep their hands off or under their clothes—

He wanted to slap himself. Was he really thinking about that with her right next to him? Luckily, she was focused on the park below to notice the train of his thoughts. A little too focused. What was going on in that mind of hers?