In Real Life ✓

8. I Can't Believe You've Done This!

My revelation had quite the awkward-ifying effect.

That's not a word. Is it? I don't care. I just invented it.

Gilbert didn't seem to know how to deal with the information, since he kept quiet for about five minutes, until I attempted to salvage the situation by saying, "It was a nice kiss, though."

Honestly, I had no clue if it was, but it wasn't bad, so in my book, that meant it was... nice, at the very least. In any case, I felt like he could use the compliment. Or something. I don't fucking know.

"So," he started, completely ignoring what I said, "does that mean you wouldn't want to... go on a date with me?"

"I never said that."

"Oh, I'm sorry," he sighed. "I literally have no idea what it means for someone to be asexual. I thought it meant that you have no interest in dating."

"Well, that could be a definition, but... I'm not—" I cleared my throat. "Okay, look, me being asexual means I have no sexual attraction, but that doesn't mean I can't like you. Romantically."

"Oh."

"I'm not saying I do, but—"

He laughed. "Do you?"

"I don't know, I barely know you," I replied, chuckling. "Not that you barely knowing me stopped you from kissing me."

"Yeah, I..." He cleared his throat, before explaining, "I always start liking girls way too quickly. And I'm high."

I burst out laughing.

Two seconds later, as if God had answered my prayers, I noticed by the sudden sliver of moonlight that came in through the broken window above us that it was dry again. Now I could finally see something! I got up to run towards the broken window and looked out. "Do you think it's going to be light soon?"

"No idea. I don't know how long we've been out here already. Kinda hard to tell without a phone or a watch. We could start walking again if you want, I guess."

"What do you think is a better idea? I personally don't really wanna go out in the cold again, but who knows? We might still find the place, so we might as well keep moving."

"That sounds like a good plan."

So we continued walking. I was god-awfully tired, but we had to keep going—whether we did it now or in the morning—or we'd never find it. I wondered if we were the only ones that were taking so long and if people had started looking for us. Maybe nobody cared about us and they'd all just gone to sleep, assuming we'd turn up eventually. If that was the case, I was going to stab someone. I hoped at least my friends would be worried about me.

When it slowly started getting lighter—very, very slowly—and when my legs started to scream from overusing them, I finally saw... flashlights? People?! I slapped Gilbert's arm and said, "Look!"

"Eve?!" I heard someone yell. "Gibbs?!"

"Yeah, we're here!" he called back.

"Oh, my God, finally!" the guy called and then I heard Tamara and Leslie screeching my name, too. They ran up to me like hysterical chickens and I was caught in a suffocating hug.

"Eve, I'm so glad you didn't die!" Leslie sobbed in my ear. "We've been looking for you guys ever since that horrible storm passed! And then we thought 'what if Gibbs killed her?' and we got so scared!"

"You can't get rid of me," I assured her, while trying to push both girls away. "And why the hell would Gilbert kill me?"

Quite the contrary...