The day I told Alaine how I felt
It's been three days since Sabrina has spoken to Alaine, she told me that she doesn't forgive her and wants to hear Zach's side of the story. I supported her through it and told her that she needs to do what's best for herself, she and I were meeting today at the cafe across from her place.
When I arrived at the coffee shop, I already saw her sitting down by the table near the other side of the counter, she wore a white buttoned down blouse and a black high waisted shorts, she looked sad as she placed her eyes on me.
She stood up, hugging each other, I didn't wanna let her go, I just wanted to hold her, after sometime, we sat down but this time beside each other, she had her hands on her lap, looking down at them, I leaned back waiting for her to speak.
It took awhile but she looked at me and smiled. The sadness she had on her face validated how affected she was by the situation.
"She and I spoke a few days ago." She says, finally breaking the silence between us
"And?" I said, sitting up on the couch
"She apologized. I told her that I couldn't forgive her just yet because I needed to know if Zach was the one who initiated it and she told me that it was never her intention to hurt me."
"Do you know when you are seeing Zach?" I ask, feeling a slight pang of jealousy, I know I'm not in the place of being jealous but the last few days of us just comforting each other through call, made me like her even more.
"We're seeing each other next week at a cafe in Eastwood." She says sighing, feeling as though it's a chore to go all the way to Eastwood for some guy who isn't worth her time
"Is Madeline taking you?" I ask
"Yes. She is, she told me that she'll be in the area because her friend Jackie wants to go shopping since they have new clothing shops."
"Just be safe okay?" I say, putting her hand on top of hers, she didn't fidget but instead she held my hand that was on top of hers smiling softly
"I will." She says letting go but still keeping my hand in hers
"Do you want something to drink?" I ask, slowly standing up
"Yes please." She says
"Coffee or tea?"
"Camomile tea please." She asks
I nod my head, heading to the counter and lining up in front of an older lady with her grandson. When it was my turn, I turned to see Alaine who was staring at the window. It hurts to see her like this, I knew that I wanted to make her feel loved, I wanted to make her feel a love that will make her believe in love again. I ordered our drinks, walking towards the table to where she smiled at me.
Her smile. My favorite thing about her, her eyes brightens, her smile showing off her dimples. She looked so adorable yet pretty. At that moment, I wanted to give her a kiss.
I placed her cup of tea down along with placing the teapot in front of the cup. I sat down, putting my Iced Caramel Latte in front of me, I opened the packaging that had my straw inside and took a sip.
Meanwhile, Alaine was enjoying her drink, taking in small sips because of how hot it was. More people started walking in, seats being filled up by couples and families. We decided to head out to the mall's courtyard, sitting down in one of their vacant benches, facing the big mall sign.
Alaine crossed her legs leaning in and drinking her camomile tea, while I sat down watching people walk past us. The joy in their faces, the conversations they were having, how life is making them experience things to make them grow stronger. I was brought back to reality when Alaine placed her cup beside her, sighing with her hands on her lap.
She looked up at me, then looked back at her hands, she glanced up and saw me looking at her. Her face of contentment, admiration, happiness, and safety whenever she is around me.
"Alaine." I say, "I have to tell you something."
Feeling nervous, I didn't want to make her feel I was rushing her into something we're both not ready for. I didn't want her to have more trust issues, so I wanted to make her feel that I can wait, I can wait until we're both ready.
"Yes?" She asks
"I like you." I say, the words rolling out of me like it was an easy three words for me to say but I felt nervous.
She looked at me, eyes wide open, shocked she was, but her face slowly softened, putting her hand on mine, she squeezed it.
"Elijah! I like you too but I know we can't rush into something we both aren't ready for and what if we break up? Our moms would have to end their friendship too, that's why I want us to be ready."
"I can wait!" I say, assuring her that she is worth the wait
"But what if you get tired? What if you find someone else who is ready, when you're ready? What if you're fully healed when I'm not?" She dropped questions that was rolling out of her mind, I don't blame her for being this skeptical but I wanted to make her feel like she can trust me. Trust me with her feelings, trust that I won't commit the same stupid mistake that Zach did.
I held both of her hands, this time shifting to look at her, she looked into my eyes and I felt that spark.
"I won't get tired because Alaine, you are worth the wait. I can wait for as long as you want me to wait because I care about you and your feelings. I know that when you're fully healed that our relationship will have a strong foundation because I see the future in your eyes. Cheesy, as it may sound but I never felt this happy in my entire life, so I am willing to heal together, to process what ever hurt we still have."
She gives me a smile and a small nod
"I'll give us a try, but there's something I need to do first which is to end things with Zach and make sure he won't message me again." She says
"Okay." I say, feeling the sudden urge to kiss her but I knew it wasn't the right time
"We also need to let our parents know after all we are still family friends." She added, giggling softly
"I think it's time to plan that big family dinner again." I laughed
"And Elijah?" I say
"Promise you won't break my heart because I am sure that I won't break yours." She says
"I promise." I say, knowing in my heart and soul that I will never cheat on her
We both hugged, feeling each other's heart beat, letting the emotions we have for each other flow, after moving away from each other. She gave me a kiss on my cheek, I turned red, she giggled at how fast I blushed, I kissed her back but gave a small peck on her lips. She covered her lips, feeling kilig by the way her cheeks turned red.
We both laughed, savoring this moment as people who have a mutual understanding for each other, we walked back to the car hand in hand. It felt good holding her hand, feeling her warmth, I closed the door behind her, and drove her back to her apartment.
"Goodnight." She says
"Goodnight."
She gave me a kiss on the cheek, before walking down and heading to the elevator, I drove off feeling happy that she feels the same way as me. I headed home to tell my parents the news and they were happy for me, dad being protective still gave me his full support while mom was cheering me on.
I closed my bedroom door behind me, feeling happy, I changed for bed while waiting for her message. My phone vibrated to two messages from her, one being that she arrived safely home and two that she was able to get people on her guest list. I felt so happy for her and for us, but mostly, happy that I get to share my passion with her, also happy that she'll be there at my launch party where I can introduce her to all of my friends who will absolutely love her.
The next day, me, Eliza and Julie went golfing in our usual driving range spot, a two hour drive away from home. They asked me about my podcast, the launch party, and if I met someone, I told them that I told Alaine how I felt, they were happy for me. Giving me hugs and telling me how excited they are to meet her, I told them I was gonna introduce her in one of our family dinners. They happily accepted, reminding me how happy they are for me, we continued golfing until the driving range closed, it was a good driving range day for all of us.
We ended up eating in their local restaurant located in the clubhouse, they served members only so the place wasn't full. While we were waiting for our delicious food, I saw a waiter serve a family of four that was seated on the right side, I looked to see who it was and it was Zach, his older sister, and his parents. My cheeks immediately turned red, but I knew that it would be best for me not to make a scene, so I ignored him the entire night our families were eating.
On the drive home, I listened to "Vegas Skies", thinking of Alaine and how we relate to this song. I knew that I wanted to make a mixtape for her to show my gratitude and my genuine feelings for her. When I reached home, I saw someone sitting on my porch. Driving closer, it was Nikki, she looked sad, as if something was wrong.
I immediately parked my car, walking up to her. She quickly walked towards me, bawling tears out of her eyes.
"What's wrong?" I ask
"My parents are separating." She says, crying
"Ohh!" I say, as she hugged me
"They just told me during dinner and my dad and I had this huge argument because I wanted their relationship to work out but he immediately told us that he's been seeing someone through mom and his marriage." She says
"Where is your mom now? How is she feeling?"
"She drove to a hotel but dropped me off, she brought our stuff with her so we will be staying in the hotel apartment for a week or two. I also wanted to let you know that I'll be dropping out of the event because I'm not in the right headspace to do it."
"It's okay. I understand that what you're going through is difficult but just know that the group and I are here for you okay?" I say, rubbing her back when she hugged me
"Okay!" She says, still crying
We were in this position for awhile until she got picked up by a hotel driver that she picked up for her. I waited for her to get into the Mercedes Benz before heading into the house. I went towards the living room to see my parents watching "The Bucket List", a movie that has always been on their list of films they wanna watch. I headed to my room, closing the door behind me, realizing how drained and tired I am.
After I went under the sheets, I closed my eyes, and dozed off thinking of Alaine and at the same time thinking of the event and how we will handle it without Nikki.