CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR: i love you
"Talk about what?" adam asked. they were stood in an empty classroom, andreas arms crossed as the boy tried not to look nervous.
"you, me. you haven't talked to me, adam, not really. not since we won the junior goodwill games." she said. "i don't know what i did, but you're supposed to be my best friend adam! if you don't tell me what i did, i can't fix it."
he looked down, sighing. "you... you didn't do anything, okay? it's just me. i just need space."
"i've given you space!" she argued. "and really? it's not you, it's me? cmon adam, just tell me the truth."
"that is the truth!"
"well, why? adam, what could you possibly need space from that happened at the games? we won, you should've been happy! instead you were too busy ignoring me!"
"i wasn't ignoring you, i was hurt, and embarrassed, and-"
she scoffed, crossing her arms. "embarrassed? why, because i took the winning shot? is that what this is? god, adam, it was just a penalty sho-"
she froze. one second, she was talking. the next, he was grabbing her face and kissing her.
it took her a few seconds to process what was happening, to process that her best friend since she was a kid was kissing her in an empty classroom after basically ignoring her for months.
it took adam a few seconds to realize she wasn't kissing him back, for him to pull away. his heart dropped at the shocked, confused look on her face.
"it wasn't because you took a stupid penalty shot, andy." he mumbled. "it was because you kissed him."
"you-you..." she whispered, still in shock.
"i like you." he nodded. "i have since, like, forever. and i know that some part of you likes charlie, but, maybe part of you likes me, too."
"please, don't do this adam." she said, meeting his eyes.
the look in his eyes broke her heart. "face it, andy. the ducks hate us. charlie hates us. we're varsity now, me and you."
"i can't adam, i just can't." she argued. she didn't want to hurt adam's feelings, that was the last thing she ever wanted. why did this have to happen?
"why not?" he pushed.
"because!"
"because why? because you're nervous? because you're confused? just say it, andy, come on!"
"because i'm in love with charlie!" she said, louder than she meant to. the following silence was demeaning as both of them processed what she'd said.
"oh, my god." she mumbled, mostly to herself. she didn't know when she'd realized it, but saying it out loud? all of a sudden, she wasn't that scared anymore. "i love charlie. i have to— i have to go."
andrea turned to leave, her hand grabbing the door handle. adam reached out, lightly holding her elbow to stop her.
she turned, a pleading look in her eyes. she didn't want to hurt adam, but god, all she wanted to do was tell charlie that she loved him. "adam, please—"
"andrea." he said, a soft smile on his face. of course, there was hurt in his eyes. but adam had always been there for her, as she had been for him. he wouldn't let some silly crush ruin their friendship more than it already had. "go get him."
she smiled, pulling adam into a hug. she hid her face in his shoulder, wrapping her arms around him as tightly as she could. "i hope you know, i do love you, adam."
they pulled away, and he nodded. "i know. just... not in the same way."
she opened the door, before turning back to him one more time. "i know you might not think so right now, but adam, any girl would be lucky to have you. you'll find someone who loves you the way you deserve. we're so young, ads, you've got so much time."
he nodded. "thank you. now, go."
she searched the halls for what felt like hours, no sign of charlie. at lunch, she peeked into the cafeteria; the ducks table was full, minus two seats.
charlie and fulton's.
if she were charlie and fulton, where would she be?
she ran, pushing open the school doors as she began down the path away from the building. she knew they'd always wind up back in the alley, where they'd met up on the first day of school.
at least, she hoped they'd wind up there.
by the time she got there, she was sweating and out of breath. she paused, taking a moment to calm herself before turning and walking down the alley.
as she walked in, fulton was walking out. he stopped as he saw her, the two sharing a sorry look. she opened her mouth to say something, but he beat her to it.
"he's pretty upset." fulton warned.
she smiled. though he only said three words, they both knew he meant so much more.
"i'll be fine." she said. he nodded, turning and walking off.
she watched him go, unable to stop herself from calling out. "fulton!" he turned to face her, raising an eyebrow. "thank you." she said.
she wasn't sure if he even heard her, until he gave her a smile. she returned it, before taking a deep breath and turning down the alley.
charlie sat on the upturned recycling can that they had sat on together less than a month ago, before everything had turned into a mess. his brows were furrowed, and it was clear he wasn't feeling good.
she walked forward, nervously playing with her fingers. "hey."
he looked up, rolling his eyes as he saw her approach him. "great. you come to brag? here to make me feel worse?"
"no." she argued. "i need to talk to you."
he stood, looking down at her for a second before pushing past her. "well, if you want to talk to someone, go talk to your boyfriend. man, you sure have a thing for team captains, huh?"
she crossed her arms, following after him. "rick is not my boyfriend! you think i'd date that thing?"
"why should i believe you? you wear that varsity jacket with pride, you clearly don't care about us anymore."
"that's not true, charlie." she said, getting frustrated. "can you stop walking away and just talk to me?"
"why should i?" he spat over his shoulder.
"because i'm in love with you, you idiot!" she cried.
charlie froze in his step. slowly, he turned to look at her, examining her face as if he didn't believe her. seeing no trace of a lie, he walked towards her, pulling her in and kissing her.
unlike the surprise kiss she'd gotten this morning, this time, andrea kissed back. she pulled him closer by his shirt as he held her face both gently and intensely at the same time.
one of his hands trailed lightly down her face, gently holding her closer by her neck. the other slipped ever so slightly under her shirt as he gripped her waist.
his hands were cold on her warm skin, sending shivers down her spine. one of her hands found the hem of his shirt, slipping under and resting on his chest.
her heart was beating out of her chest as she finally let go of the fear she'd carried with her for so long.
charlie pulled away after a minute, even though he really didn't want to. "do you mean that?"
she nodded, her grip tightening. "yeah." she whispered.
and then he was leaning back in, and they were kissing again, standing in the middle of the alley in plain sight of any cars that drove by, but neither of them really cared.
andrea was sure she'd never felt so right in her whole life.
AUTHOR SPEAKS!
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