Love Stories - A Collection

Happier

Allison was having her worst day ever. Too bad it was also the day of her friend's wedding. And she was a bridesmaid. And her ex, Jonah, was a guest. She tried to convince herself she was happier without him. So far, that hadn't been working out too well.

This is my entry for the Romance Sparks Love Song contest, inspired by Ed Sheeran's song, Happier.

~~❤️~~

Of course.

Not only had I consented to being a bridesmaid in Natalie and Damian's wedding, which led to being forced to wear the most hideous green dress I had ever seen, I was now holding the remnants of her bridal bouquet. Single women are vicious when it comes to garnering good juju for a future wedding.

I, on the other hand, had no desire for such luck. My heart had already been broken once, and I had no intention of ever going through that again. Natalie could care less about my personal plan, it seemed, because the bridezilla threw the damn thing right at me. I could have let it drop like the plague covered flower bomb it was, but my instincts from years in softball took over and I palmed the floral monstrosity like a pro.

The surrounding female vultures were pissed, to put it mildly. Which would account for the fact that they tackled me the moment I caught it. That wasn't the reason I was mortified, however. The male who caught the garter would be my dance partner in about thirty seconds. My lucky streak was running the wrong direction, because the very man who caught it was also the very man who had broken my heart a year ago.

Jonah.

This would be painful. Hopefully more for him than for me. I intended to let my two left feet work their magic all over his toes. It was the least I could do after he left me a year ago. One minute we were doing okay, or so I thought at the time, and the next he said he needed space and left.

Still, those last minutes with him haunted me. I tried to put on the happy face at first, going on a few dates in an effort to move beyond the pain. Who was I kidding? It didn't work and I always ended up miserable by the end of the night. I couldn't get Jonah out of my heart. So I swore off dating and men, determined to find happiness on my own.

Now was my chance to prove it.

"May I have this dance?" a very familiar voice said from behind me.

Rather than the indifferent, "Why not?" I had planned on responding with, my unlucky aura continued as I said "um, uh huh," while half choking, half squeaking the words out.

Smooth, Allison. Way to make him suffer.

"How have you been?" Jonah asked as he took my hand, sending traitorous tingles up my arm, and led me to the center of the dance floor.

"Fine," I barely whispered.

"You look happier now. Aren't you?" he asked as he pulled me into his arms for the slow, romantic dance everyone expected.

My stomach knotted up immediately. The fake smile plastered on my face, "I'm happy, yes." I couldn't be honest with him, of all people. Honesty meant vulnerability as well. He had already ripped my heart out.

"Well, I'm glad then. Maybe someday I'll feel it too," he said as his cheek brushed against mine.

What? He was the one who left. Why wouldn't he be happy? I pulled my face away from his to look him in the eye. He met my scrutinizing gaze with one of his own. No. It wouldn't go down like this, leaving little word grenades for me to diffuse. It was time to have out what should have been had out a year ago.

"Then why did you leave me?" I said only loud enough for him to hear, the fake semi-smile still glued in place.

Rather than answer me, he took the hand he had been holding for the dance, kissed it, and turned to walk us out of the reception hall. A few smiles on guests and "aww"s could be heard as we passed. My shock kept me from correcting any misconceptions in the room.

Jonah continued walking until we reached a garden with a lovely little fountain. He turned back to face me and took a deep breath.

"There's something I need to tell you, Allison. I should have told you then but I was too ashamed. So I took the coward's way out and left you. But my love for you never stopped. I'm still in love with you."

My head was spinning. I didn't understand what he was saying, and it must have shown on my face.

"I didn't leave you because I needed space. What I needed was rehab for the drinking problem I was hiding from you. That's where I went. And it's taken almost this entire year of sobriety to be ready to face you again, to say that I'm so sorry I hurt you.

"But you look happier now. And I don't want to ruin that. So I thought I owed it to you to tell you the truth, and let you go."

He loves me. He always loved me. I thought...

Without letting another word pass his lips, I took a step closer to him and wrapped my arms around his body, pulling him even closer. His hand went to my hair and his face nuzzled my neck. My heart raced as I pulled back just enough to angle my mouth over his. His lips found mine easily, kissing me with a hunger that matched my own. Our mouths moved in unison, remembering the rhythm from the past, soaking it in as if the other was an oasis in the desert.

Barely able to breath anymore, I pulled away from him, bringing the most adorable pout to his face. But I had to say it...

"I was happier with you."

^^^^^

Thanks so much to RomanceSparks for hosting this love song contest. I've had song hangover from this one for weeks and now I've worked it all out. 😘