Tessa's POV:
"So...will you be my...girlfriend?" Robert asks glazing his eyes right into mine maybe finding his answers into them.
His proposal makes the hot liquid in my mouth goes straight up into my nose. I cover my mouth with my hand and take the napkin from the steel stand on the table and bringing it in front of my mouth lightly cough on it.
What did he just say? His girlfriend?
"Robert...," I begins, removing the napkin away from my mouth.
"I know you probably wouldn't be ready for any relationship but I was just coming clean with my intentions and my feeling towards you." He waves his hand in between our body.
"Umm...," is the only thing I muster from my mouth that my confused and stunned brain can throw. Looking down at my coffee which tasted like boiled water mixed with sugar to take time to process what he just blurt out right in front of me.
"I'm a bad person asking you straight away. I'm sorry," he apologizes, cheeks are red from the embarrassment when I look up at him.
"No it's nothing like that. I'm just still recovering from my last relationship that's all." Which is over a year now, though I stayed a night with my ex before I left him in his hotel room only a half month ago without saying anything to him.
But Robert doesn't have to know that, I'm over it.
"It's hard for me to open up to date someone right now, you know," I place my hand on top of his and subtly rub my thumb over her knuckles.
"Yeah, I get it." He says politely doesn't remove his hand from my grasp. "You still think about him I understood that." His tone is calm no malice towards my ex but defeat was prominent in his voice.
The second his name comes out in the air I take back my hand from Robert's and wrap it around my hot coffee mug collecting the warm from it into my cold palm due to chilly weather.
"Not really but I'm trying to over him." I shake my head. "We don't even talk anymore, he's moving on with his career and I'm moving with mine." I probably sound like a liar but it's true, I didn't and I won't ever talk to him after I made my mind reading the public reviews toward us and the book.
"I'm happy for you that you're doing great with your life after him. You know I had and still do have feeling for you and I was waiting in the background for you and him to be...separated so I get a chance. I know it's evil to think that but I couldn't control my emotions when it comes to you. Seeing you with him happy a year ago I thought I'd never get a chance with you so I suppress my emotions but now that you aren't with him anymore, my emotions just explode and I just want let you know I'm available for you, Tessa." He looks at my again from his own latte cup after finishing his rant.
Before I say anything back he closes his eyes and I can read his expression like a open book. He must be talking to himself, probably calling himself desparate in his thoughts, wanting to have any sort of relation with me other than just a friend, but in my eyes it's not. He's not desparate.
He's being honest and I know he does have feeling towards me but he was pushing himself away because I was with my ex but now that I'm not, I'm single, he's only giving me the knowledge that he's single too and if I get ever ready to begin to date someone, Robert wants to be that person. Robert wants to be my boyfriend.
"O-okay." I mutter, didn't know what else to say and There's a silence between us, awkward silence while our surrounding isn't, peoples are chattering with their knife screeching on their plate to cut off their food and servers are roaming around to take orders-bringing them in this busy diner.
"I think we should go, there are so many people are waiting outside." He looks around the diner and couple of people are standing outside in cue to get inside. "I'll pay for our breakfast." He offers, tilting his body to his side he take out his purse from his back pocket.
"No, I'd-"
"No, it's okay. I asked you to come with me here so let me." He sweetly requests and I give in. He pays the bills and we get outside through the entrance, he's quite fast getting out like he's running away from me.
"Robert!" I call for him the moment we get outside.
He turns around, standing in front of me, there's a hint of regret in his face saying he shouldn't have said the 'being his girlfriend proposal' to me but it is fine with me, it made me feel...wanted, but I can't lead him that I feels the same about him because the last time I open up to Zed that didn't end well and now we aren't in even talking terms because of my mistakes including his too. And I definitely don't want that with Robert too, he's way better than Zed and more mature than him.
"I just need some time to think your proposal through. You just said all of sudden and it caught me off guard," I chuckle to lighten up the tense air between us. "So don't think I don't think you as boyfriend cause I think you'd a good one but I just need some time to process." I add.
"Of course Tessa. Take your time. It's your call to make in the end." He tells so softly.
"I just don't want to mess up our current friendship because I didn't give you any answers."
"No no. Our friendship is still intact, I don't have any grudges towards you rejecting me. I understand that last relationship could be a hurdle for the next one so don't worry. I'm fine and so our friendship." He puts his hands into his coat's pocket.
"Yeah. Thanks for understanding." I give him a smile.
"It's nothing." He smile back. "Okay so goodbye Tessa."
"Bye, Robert." I state as calmly a could.
...
In my apartment I made myself coffee because the diner one was tasted like a tar and my mind doesn't work until I drink my coffee as good as I needed in the morning. As I take my first sip of the hot black liquid the same time Nora's door opens and come over into the kitchen with a sinister smile across her face, it's hardly there but I can look right through my hazy eyes. "What?" I ask her.
"What? I don't know what you're talking about?" She acts clueless.
"Really? I know that smile, tell me now." I demand.
"Okay, so how was the date night?" She grabs a glass from the shelf and turns the faucet to fill the glass.
"It wasn't a date it was just a simple movie night." I shrugs.
"Seems like something happened-"
"Nothing happened." I interrupt. "I know it's look weird, me sleeping into his arm but nothing happened between us, we happened to watch a documentary together and happened to fall asleep, that's it." I adds, sternly.
"You can told me anything Tessa, I won't snitch to anybody not even my own fiance." She whispers at the name of Landon.
"I trust you but really nothing happened and if something did happen then I would've told you." I continue after I take a sip of my hot beverage. "I promise you'll be the first person to know about my relationship status," I say her and meant it.
"Where Robert go though?" She asks and look around the empty room. "And why are you dressed?" Then she turns head to my proper dressed attire.
"He go back to his apartment after we ate breakfast couple of blocks away at some diner." I inform, sipping my coffee.
"Ah,"
"And he asked me to be girlfriend," I might as well say it.
"Interesting. And what did you say?" She asks, with smug smile.
"I didn't say anything just need time to think it through." I shrug.
"I know it's not my place to give you any relationship advice because mine was just as messy as your baking skills but I think you should try to date Robert." She softly, suggests.
"Nora-" I begins but she butts in.
"I know you don't want to date someone right now but you know it'll get your mind off of him." She tells me, knowing exactly what she's referring to him. "I know you always think about him but you two broke up and now you're not exactly searching for any man but if you do, Robert is quite the suitable candidate, don't you think?" She raises her brow for me to answer but I don't have one. Candidate? Like she's referring Robert as a politician than a boyfriend.
"I'm thinking..." I trail off, watching anything but her.
"Think quickly! Before someone snatches him right under your nose." She says before gulping down the water. "I gotta go for work now. Bye." She tells and turns on her heel, moving out from the kitchen she gets into her room again to get change in her work clothes, leaving me thinking in the kitchen.
...
Three days later...
I've thought so much about Robert in these few days and I think I've the answer ready, so I'm calling him to say it.
Maybe I'm ready to date?
{Please vote ⭐ and comment (☉｡☉)! }
I think she's going to say yes guys...