She Could Be Mine || A Malvie Fanfic

XXIX

Evie

Audrey was waiting by my dorm room door when I got back from my last class that day. I gestured for her to follow me, and I led her to the student lounge down the hallway. We sat down across from each other. Audrey sat in silence, so I decided to speak first.

"I've been thinking about this all day," I started. She crossed her arms and gave me a cold look that I was familiar with. It was the look I recieved from her before I got to know her better. "Yes, I'm still in love with Mal," I admitted. "But I can get over it. I want to be with you. I don't want to be with Mal, who left and broke my heart. I want to be with you."

Audrey sighed. "Tell me one thing," she said.

"Okay," I hesitated.

"Do you actually want to be with me because you like me?" she started.

"Yes!" I interrupted.

"...or do you just want to hurt Mal the way she hurt you?" she asked. I paused and looked down at my hands. Audrey took that as an admission to guilt. She slightly nodded her head and pursed her lips in frustration. "Thanks for wasting my time," she snapped.

"No, Audrey," I exclaimed, grabbing her arm as she stood up. I stood up to be on the same level as her. "Please, don't leave."

"Evie, I don't hate you," she smiled. "Actually, I want you to be happy. This little fling was fun, but it was just a fling. You belong with Mal. So stop playing this game, and just go get your girl. I'm sure she's waiting for you."

I sighed and let go of her arm. My head was spinning. I hated to admit it, but she was right. How did everyone know me better than me?

"I'll go talk to her now," I whispered.

"Good," Audrey smiled. "And hey, if you ever want to talk, or just hang out, call me."

"I will," I smiled back.

"Now, go get your girl."

Mal

I was sitting on my bed blasting lovely by Billie Eilish through my headphones when Evie walked into the dorm room. I paused the song quickly and pulled my headphones out. "Hey," I mumbled.

"Hi," she said breathlessly. "We need to talk."

"Yeah," I said quietly. She sat down on the bed next to me. We both started to speak, and then we both shut up. I quickly gestured to her saying, "You first."

"I didnt really want to be with Audrey," she admitted. My heart soared. "She made me realize that I was just doing it because I was hurt, and I was just trying to make it hurt less, or I was trying to hurt you, I don't know... but I didn't really like her as much as I thought I did." She took a deep breath. "Mal, you hurt me. But one thing I've realized is that we only get hurt by the people we love. Otherwise, it wouldn't matter." She paused again, trying to think of how to say what she needed to say. "I love you, Mal. I have for a while, and you leaving didn't change that at all."

I breathed a sigh of relief at her words. I couldn't convey how happy I was to hear those words. I inhaled slowly, preparing myself for what I was about to do. It was drastic and spontaneous, but it felt right in my mind.

"Do you remember when we were five, and your sixth birthday party was coming up?" I asked.

"Yeah," she said. "It was one of my favorite parties."

"I remember that I wasn't invited," I continued.

"I know, and I'm so sorry --"

"No, no, no," I laughed. "Let me finish. I had waited all week for an invitation to your party. I was just as excited as you were. I wanted to celebrate it with you. And the day before the party came, and I still hadn't received an invitation. I was so upset and heartbroken."

"Mal, I'm sorry --"

"Stop interrupting!" I exclaimed, laughing. She cowered like a puppy, and I continued my story.

"I was so mad. I wanted to be invited so badly. It was all I could think of for more than a week. I loved the idea of spending all that time with you. So I was so upset when I didn't receive that invitation."

"But you know it wasn't my choice," she said.

"Yes, I know," I replied. "I was even more angry when I found out it was your mother's fault. I thought, how dare she keep me away from you?" Evie laughed, and I smiled. "E, I loved you, even back then. I didn't know it at the time. But I did."

Evie smiled widely at me. She inched closer to me and leaned her head against my shoulder. I wrapped my arm around her and leaned into her. We sat there for a long time, just being there with each other. Finally, she lifted her head and met my eyes. I leaned in without another thought and kissed her. After a moment, I pulled away, finally remembering what I needed to do.

"Hold on," I whispered. I leaned over and grabbed a small box out of my nightstand drawer. I turned back to her. "I know this is a weird time to do this, but it feels right," I started. Evie gasped in realization. "And I know it's not much, but it's the best I could do."

"Don't tell me you're proposing," Evie gasped. I laughed.

"Um, ouch," I said. "I thought you loved me."

"I do!" she exclaimed. "But we're only sixteen, Mal. We're still young..."

"I'm not proposing, dummy!" I laughed. I opened the box to reveal a small gold ring shaped into an infinity sign. It was accented with small sapphire stones. "It's a promise ring. I know we're young, but this feels like forever." Evie was smiling again, and that made me smile. Her smile was so beautiful, it almost rendered me speechless.

"I want this ring to be a promise for us," I continued. "A promise of forever. A promise to love each other and no one else. A promise to never leave."

"What about you?" she asked.

"What about me?" I repeated.

"You need a ring too," she said.

"I only had the money for the one," I explained. Her eyes lit up and she ran into our closet and started rifling through the jewelry. She came back with another ring in her hand. She handed it to me, and I glanced down at it. It was a small silver ring with amethyst accent stones.

"It's all I had that fit your style," she said.

"I love it," I said. We both smiled, and I leaned back in to kiss her. She kissed me back, taking my breath away. She pulled me onto the bed, smiling at me. I grinned back and kissed her again. I never wanted to let go, and, by the way she kissed me, I knew I never had to.