Ship Happens

Part Six

Part Six

We find a quaint bar, tucked away from the crowds and order salsa we could have made ourselves and two beers before locating a spot outside that overlooks the ocean outside. Grace immediately pulls out her video camera and starts to film.

“It’s ask Grace day,” she informs me.

It’s fine. I’ve waiting this long to tell her. What’s twenty more minutes in the grand scheme of things? Nothing.

I sip my beer and watch Grace set up the feed on her phone while she props her camera on the napkin holder placed on our table and powers it on.

“Hey guys! It’s Grace. I’m so excited right now because we’re in Mexico!” She pans the camera around to show our view before focusing on me. I wave and she places it back on the napkin holder and continues, “I asked you to ask me questions and I’ll do my best to answer them.” She pauses and looks into the camera. “Let’s get started.”

She gaze moves to her phone, “How warm is it in Mexico right now?”

“It’s so hot, I could cook an egg on my stomach,” she says. “We should try that Chester. It might work. Next one.”

“Are you glad you’re there with Chester?”

“Of course. I don’t think I’d want to be here with anyone else.”

“What was that kiss?”

That one stops her dead in her tracks. Apparently someone uploaded our kiss.

“Let’s ask Chester about it.” She spins the camera in my direction. “Chester, what was that kiss?”

Okay, well I didn’t exactly plan on confessing everything on film, but Grace will have the option to edit it, it’s not like a live feed or anything so I look at her instead of the lens. “Did you like it?”

My question rather than answer catches her even more off guard. She seems to forget she’s filming. “What?”

“Did you like it?” I ask again. “The kiss?”

She gives a slow and cautious nod.

I stand from my chair and she doesn’t turn the camera. I walk to her side of the table and crouch down in front of her. I take a deep breath, ignoring the churning in my gut and say softly. “Grace, I have been trying to tell you since we got here but every time I get a chance, it gets torn away from me in some wicked twist of fate.”

This is it.

No going back now.

I’m going to make Grace mine.

She is looking down at me, all the playfulness has vanished from her features.

“When we were filming Side Effects something happened.”

She arches a brow.

“I don’t know when exactly but I do know this, I fell so insanely in love with you.”

She covers her mouth with her hand and I have no idea if it’s a good thing or a bad thing but I can’t stop now. I grab her other hand in mine.

“I don’t want to wake up in the morning anymore and wonder what it’d be like to be with you. I want to know what it’s like. I want to kiss you like that every single day, I want to tell you how incredible you are, how your smile, your laugh can make me lose myself. You consume me and make me want to be a better person.”

“Chester—” she finally says. “Oh my God.”

“You said yourself that I’m your best friend. Let’s be more than that. Two people couldn’t be more perfect for each other than we are. You can’t deny it.”

I wait to see if she will, but she doesn’t.

“Let me be the one who helps you make your dreams come true. Make mine come true. I promise no one will ever love you as much as I do. Let me prove it. I’ll walk the plank for you for an eternity if I had to.”

Grace is teary eyed. She removes the hand hiding her mouth and places it in mine.  Her silence is deafening. Finally, she speaks. “Are you serious right now?”

“Never been more serious about anything in all of my life. I love you, Grace.” I kiss the top of her hand. “You own me.” 

She smiles though those tears. My heart is going to rip through my chest at any second if she doesn’t make with some words, my head is spinning with all the things she could say. Reasons she might push back with things I can’t bear to hear.

“I love you,” she says. “I do. I love you too.”

The weight of the world pressing down on my shoulders takes flight. I rise to my feet, and pull Grace to stand with me. I kiss the palms of each hand before sliding my fingertips to the side of her face. When I kiss her, her she wraps her fingers in my hair and kisses me back with the same kind of crazy passion that I am made of.  

When we part, Grace holds my face in her hands. “You’re crazy,” she says. “So crazy.”

“For you,” I tell her. “You have that effect on people.  Look at Holly Wood. She’s crazy for you too.”

Grace sniffles and laughs. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

I kiss her nose. “Why is it so hard to believe. You and I should know better than anyone. Ship Happens.”

Camera: ON

“Captains log. Seadate Six Zero Zero. I am hopelessly in love with Grace Helbig and I want the whole world to know it.”

Grace enters the shot, covering my face with her hand and playfully pushing me aside before taking my spot in front of the camera.  “The world. Those are some lofty goals, Kiss Stealer Chester See.”

“Wanna talk lofty goals? What about confessing your love to a girl for the first time?” 

“I’m not the first girl you’ve ever loved, Chester.”

“No but you’ll be the last.”

 Grace giggles and pounces on me until we’re out of view.

Camera: OFF

This story was inspired by a new favorite book, "Side Effects" by AwesomenessTV! This book had me captivated from the very beginning and I legitimately could not put it down!

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