𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚖𝚎; 𝚓𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚗 𝚑𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚕𝚎𝚛

𝐱𝐱𝐱. 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐠𝐞

Cora

"uh-"

"I'm sorry it was probably a really stupid question I don't know what I was thinking holy shit I think I'm going crazy," he keeps rambling, eyes frantically flicking between me and the ground in front of him.

"jaden-"

"jesus christ you're so out of my league and here I am asking you to be my girlfriend what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck!"

"listen-"

"I'm so sorry Cora. I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry-"

"Jaden, stop assuming the worst," I cut in, the tiniest bit exasperated at his endless muttering. "For all you know, I could say yes."

"are you gonna say yes?" he turns to look me directly in the eyes. I can tell he's forcing the courage to act calm in the moment, but his fidgeting hands give him away.

"Jae I want to say yes. I really do. But just this morning I was convinced you had done something with Mads, and to be honest I'm still not sure if you did or not."

"I didn't! I swear I didn't-"

"what part of... this," I wave my hand at the mess around us, "did Mads help you with?"

"she helped set up the tent, along with Bryce!"
"well no wonder it collapsed!"

"she wouldn't sabotage-"
"she was probably hoping I'd be in it when it fell," I comment dryly. His lips quirk up slightly before he continues pressing the matter at hand.

"you talked to her, right? I saw you come out of her room this morning. Did she tell you I did something with her?"
"no, but she could've been lying"
"she wouldn't have gained anything from lying. Trust me, if I'd done anything with Mads, she probably would've bought a loudspeaker just to rub it into your face."

we both chuckle, knowing the last part was true. Now that I've heard Jaden's side of things, my thoughts are even more jumbled up. If I say yes, I would be blindly accepting what he told me, and fully placing my trust in him. If I say no, things are gonna be hella awkward, and I would lose the chance to date the only person I've had romantic feelings for in the past year.

maybe we could wait a bit?

no. I've spent most of my life waiting. Maybe it's time I took a risk, and see where that leads. If anything fucks up, I have people who will support me and an entire fanbase to lift me up.

oh, screw it.

"yes"

his eyes widen in shock, "yes?"

"yes"

"as in you're my..."

"girlfriend. I'm your girlfriend," I say quietly, those words bringing smiles to both of our faces. He's grinning at me, eyes shining with happiness.

"holy- holy- I mean. Yes. Yay! Thank you!" he stumbles over his own words, still smiling in my direction. I shake my head, smiling at his excitement as I lean in and capture his lips with my own. A hand makes its way to the back of my neck, holding me in place. And in that moment, it's just us.