Chapter 22: The Storm Hits
“We’re all a little weird. And life is a little weird. And when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall into mutually satisfying weirdness- and call it love- true love.” –Robert Fulghum
River Quinn
I slung my messenger bag over my shoulder and shoved my camera in the front pouch. It was Monday morning, the birds were singing and I was in a great mood. I hadn’t seen Nirvana over the weekend but today I’d finally get to see her at school or maybe even sooner if I caught her in time to walk together. That was why I’d woken extra early to see if I could catch her before she left. Mom had taken the car today after much insisting on my part and our small argument about her new ‘friend’. She had been telling me she was getting rides from a co-worker but if Mr. Hendricks really did own a car dealership, like Nirvana said, then it was a lie. My mother worked as a journalist for a magazine therefore it was impossible.
It wasn’t that big of a deal but I was pissed at her for lying to me. She treated me like a kid when it came to her dating matters meanwhile I was the adult in the house most of the time.
My mother was known for being fickle and having the worst judgment in the world when it came to guys. A couple months after my dad left she got together with a cop who turned out to be the biggest asshole on the planet. We even had to call the cops on the cop himself. When she’d gotten over him she started dating a lawyer who’d ended up being a married liar. She liked men with money and they tended to be arrogant pricks that didn’t treat her right. She was too blinded by appearances and statuses to see people for who they really were and then when she finally did realize it was too late. She’d been hurt a lot in the past and that was the reason why I was protective and suspicious of any guy she got close to.
This Henry guy didn’t ease my mind at all. I had a bad feeling about him and the fact that he was Tara’s dad didn’t help matters. I was hoping it was just a casual fling and that nothing was actually serious between him and my mom.
After grabbing my iPod and house keys I left the house and walked over to Nirvana’s. But just as I was getting there I saw a black fancy car pull up in front. I stopped walking and observed the scene. I knew the car well. It was Will’s. The same one I’d driven both him and Ana home the night of the crazy party. A couple of seconds later, Nirvana came out and hopped into the car which surprised me a lot. She had told me they weren’t even speaking to each other and now he was picking her up for school? I guess they must have fixed whatever issues they had. I was both happy and disappointed at the same time. If he was back in the picture I’d have to share my time with her with him too now. I also knew he was crazy about her which only complicated matters for me.
Once the car had driven away I started walking towards school. Will already had a big advantage over me and that was time. He and Ana had grown up together. They knew each other well and she was used to him. She trusted him but I, on the other hand, was the new guy and even though we got along great I knew there were things she didn’t tell me. Ana was the type of person who had trouble making friends but she had surprisingly accepted me pretty quickly.
It took me two full Nirvana (the band) songs to reach the gates of school and when I arrived I noticed the place was buzzing. The halls were alive with some kind of gossip that was spreading around like wildfire. Everyone I passed was either whispering or reading the school paper. You would think a teacher was found in the janitor’s closet with a student or something from how excited people were about the latest scandal. There were also various flyers stuck to the walls and lockers. I ignored them, turned up the volume on my iPod and tuned out all the noise. Frankly, I really didn’t care about silly school rumors. I had better things to do with my time than listen to that crap.
When I arrived at my locker I found the same paper taped to it and ripped it off without bothering to read it.
I took out my schedule and checked to see what class I had first today. There were two cycles; cycle A and B and since I was still pretty new to this school I wasn’t used to the routine yet. This week it was cycle B and I had Art class first period. I was both excited for that and a bit disappointed that I wouldn’t get to see Nirvana yet. We only had a few classes together and Art wasn’t one of them.
I headed towards my art class and settled down in front of the wooden easel that was set towards the back of the class. I left my headphones on and started tracing my pencil lightly across the page. I wasn’t quite sure what I was going to draw but I figured I’d realize soon enough. And it wasn’t like this was an actual class where I had the pressure of worrying about grades. This was an elective and the teacher was pretty easy going about everything. His only requirement was that we show up to class on time. Besides that there really weren’t any rules and that was why it was my favorite class. I hated being told what to do and exactly how to do it. I guess I liked my freedom, but then again doesn’t everyone?
“What you working on, River?” Mr. Grey, the teacher, asked. He was a middle aged man who seemed to believe he was still stuck in the 60’s with the hippies. He had a scruffy beard that looked like it hadn’t seen a razor in ages, wild dark curly hair, strange clothes and a friendly pair of eyes. There were several paint splatters scattered across his purple shirt and a pencil was stuck behind his ear. He was a pretty cool guy despite his oddness and we got along alright. I think the main reason why he liked me was because I was one of the few people in the class who was actually interested in art. It was pretty obvious that most of the students were just here because electives were a requirement.
“Not sure yet,” I told him honestly glancing up from the canvas. He laughed at that and patted me on the shoulder.
“Well good luck with it, whatever it turns out to be,” he said sincerely and left to check up on other students. I let the pencil glide over the paper without worrying about what the final outcome would be but the more I drew the clearer the picture became. It was a portrait of a girl and I was embarrassed to say not just any girl but Nirvana herself. Jeez I was so absorbed with her that I was even unconsciously drawing her beautiful face. I traced her oval face to great accuracy, her big captivating caramel eyes were framed with long lashes and her nose was straight. I added swirls of her wavy hair and focused on drawing her lips. For some reason they were the hardest to draw. I just couldn’t get it quite right.
Damn I was so whipped and she wasn’t even mine yet. It really was scary how hard I was falling for her. I just hopped that I didn’t hit the ground just as hard when I landed. It made me feel vulnerable and open which was something I wasn’t comfortable with. I was familiar with this feeling because I’d fallen for a girl once upon a time ago. Unfortunately it hadn’t ended well at all.
When the bell rang I folded up the drawing and placed it in between the pages of a notebook, hiding it away from the world. I didn’t want anyone, especially her, to see it but it was too good to throw out. If she found out I was drawing her it would probably freak her out and make her think I’m obsessed with her or something and I definitely didn’t want to scare her away like that.
I checked my schedule and noted that I had math with Mr. Freeman now, which was an ironic name for him considering he was the strictest person I’d ever met. I still recalled how he’d gotten all worked up and yelled at a student on the first day for getting up to sharpen her pencil over the trash can, all because she hadn’t asked ‘permission’. The guy was undeniably a bit extreme and a bit neurotic if you asked me but then again he was a math teacher and when were they ever normal?
The buzzing from my phone signaling a text interrupted my thoughts and I took it out of my pocket to check. I opened it up to find that someone had sent me an image from an unknown number. I touched it to make it bigger and was shocked to find a badly taken picture of Ana…and Will? They were seated across from each other in front of what looked like a beach and they looked very content together. Questions rushed to my mind; Who sent this to me and why? When had this photo been taken? Were they on a date together? And why was I feeling an intense jealousy burning in me?
I was a liar if I said that it didn’t bother me to see how happy they looked together. Was something was going on with them? That could be why he’d picked her up this morning for school. But then I told myself it was normal that they would be hanging out together. They were best friends after all I just hoped that was all there was between them, friendship. It was stupid and selfish of me to be upset over a photo but I was. I shoved my phone in my bag and tried to forget all about the stupid picture.
The rest of my class passed uneventfully and as hard as I tried focusing on the boring lessons I just couldn’t get my mind off Ana.
I walked to my locker feeling agitated but stopped in my tracks when I spotted a tall, dark haired girl leaning against it. Once I got closer I saw she had smooth, olive skin, tight jeans on and looked as if she were waiting on me. It was then that I noticed with utter shock exactly who it was. Tara Hendricks was standing proudly against my locker with crossed arms and an impatient look. When she saw me arrive she put on a playful smirk and batted her eyelashes at me. Well this day just got better. Not.
“Hey River,” she said sweetly looking all innocent but her outfit said otherwise. I couldn’t help but wonder what she wanted from me because obviously she wanted something. People like Tara didn’t just talk to others just to be friendly.
“Tara.” I replied unenthusiastically displaying my best poker face. She kept smiling up at me in a very amused manner as if she knew all the secrets in the world but refused to share them. “You’re blocking my locker” I told her when she didn’t move.
“Well aren’t you rude. But it’s okay, I like bad boys.” She purred flipping her hair over one shoulder. Was she really trying to be sexy right now?
“You should go look for some. Now if you’ll excuse me I need to get to class,” I announced more persistently. Tara hadn’t personally done anything to me yet but I didn’t want anything to do with someone who’d hurt Ana in any way and she most certainly had.
“I’ve already found one” she smirked again this time stepping aside from my locker only to step even closer to me. God, hasn’t this chick ever heard of personal space?
“I don’t know what game you’re playing but I really don’t have time for it so for the last time. Move.” I said with finality in my voice to show her that I was serious.
“Gosh here I am trying to be nice to you because you’re new and all and that’s how you repay me? Do you know how many people would kill to even talk to me? Everybody! and here you are wasting my friendship,” she was getting exasperated now I could tell.
“Well I’m not everybody and I’ve got enough friends, thanks”
“Oh yeah like who? The freak?” she laughed sarcastically but I could see the hint of annoyance glinting in her eyes. “What do you even see in her? She’s ugly, boring, a freak and a complete looser. Will only hangs out with her out of pity. You could do so much better than her, River. You’d fit right in with our crowd” she proposed pissing me off until I reached my limit.
“Nirvana is ten times a better person than you’ll ever be and I don’t know what your problem is with her but don’t ever insult her in front of me-” I started to say when she cut me off.
“You’re damn right you don’t know. You think you’re little friend is so perfect and yet you hardly know anything about her. I bet you don’t even know about her condition,” she growled at me angrily. Condition? What the hell was she on about? But just as I was about to ask her what she was referring to she opened her mouth once again. “Don’t worry though now everyone knows. And you can read all about it in the school paper. Page 7” She thrust a folded up booklet into my un-expecting hands and walked away before I could react. It was the same paper people had been buzzing about all day.
I debated whether or not to open it. On one hand it was something Tara wanted me to see so it obviously couldn’t be good but on the other hand it was about Ana and anything that had to do with her interested me. So curiosity won the battle and I flipped the paper open to page 7. A photograph of Ana was placed on the top left corner with her name in bold letters underneath but that wasn’t what caught my eye. It was the title of the article that grabbed my attention.
Inside Scoop on the Life of a Freak!
Diary Excerpt:
“Today was one of the worst days of this week. If it wouldn’t have been for the gallon of hand sanitizer I used and the triple showers I took, I don’t know how I could have survived. Germs follow me everywhere, constantly around. There’s no escaping their microscopic claws. Some kid sneezed on me in the hallway this morning and I swear I almost passed out. Mom forgot to disinfect my personal fork which also sucked big time. The worst part of all this is that no one really understands because normal people don’t go through these kinds of problems. Normal people don’t think about how dirty other people’s hands are or how contaminated the railing of a staircase is. Normal people aren’t afraid of germs like I am. The rents pretend to comprehend what I’m dealing with and sympathize but I can tell it’s not genuine. Deep down I know mom hates me or maybe not me exactly but the condition itself…which is part of who I am. I see the disappointment in her eyes every day. I’m not the daughter she wanted and she wonders why I turned out the way I did. Perhaps she blames herself. I blame fate for dealing me a crappy hand. It’s too bad I’m so conscious of her feelings though. I wish I could be oblivious to my surroundings, to her frustration, to my classmate’s antagonistic feelings, to the contaminated environment, to people’s judgments and harsh words. I know I’m a freak, an outcast even and it really is lonely to be set aside by people for being different.”
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I was absolutely speechless and not in the good way. They’d actually gotten hold of her personal diary and published it? Who in the world would do such a cruel thing and how had the school paper committee approved that? This was bullying in its most creative yet lowest form! They had even gone as far as to create a facebook page dedicated to Nirvana Evans. But I didn’t ask myself the question for long. I already knew who’d been responsible for this. It was clear that the same girl who’d given me the newspaper had done it. Could Tara be the one who’d been threat texting Ana and sending me the picture as well?
But there was no time to think about who or how this had been done. It was already out there, the whole school had read it and there was nothing I could do to stop it. The only thing I could do was find Nirvana. If she’d already found out then she’d need a friend to comfort her and if she didn’t know then someone had to warn her. I really hoped she was alright. I took out my cell and typed her a quick message:
-Hey. Where are you? Are you alright?-
I gazed around the halls as I waited for a reply and realized it was deserted. The second bell had rung and everyone had rushed to their next class leaving me completely alone. I started growing impatient so I resorted to calling. I dialed her number and held the phone to my ear completely forgetting about the rest of my classes.
It rang once, twice, three times until it went into voicemail.
Damn it.
I re-dialed and called again. I wasn’t giving up that easy. Ring. Ring. Ri-
“Hello?” a broken, hesitant sounding voice answered on the other end.
“Ana! Where are you? Have you seen the- wait are you crying?” I said in a rush.
“No,” she replied followed by a muffled sniffle.
“Yeah and I’m a penguin. Listen, where are you? Let me come find you and we can talk.” I told her as I walked down the hall pass the rows of lockers and classroom doors not really knowing where I was heading.
“I-I’m outside,” she said sounding unsure and then “But listen River you don’t have to come. Don’t worry about me I’ll be fine.”
“Just stay right where you are, I’ll be there in a few,” I said before hanging up and speed walking towards the double doors that led to Ana. Once I was out the doors I spotted her right away sitting under the shade of a big tree. I jogged over to her side feeling my messenger bag bouncing against my leg as I made my way over to her. She glanced up at me when my shadow fell over her but quickly looked away to wipe her eyes of any trace of tears. I plopped down beside her and wrapped my arm around her delicate shoulders, pulling her into me.
“This is twice now that you’ve seen me crying. You must think I’m an emotional wreck” she joked with a raspy voice but I could sense the hint of seriousness in her voice.
“Hey what are friends for? If I can’t stick around the difficult times then I don’t deserve you at your best,” I pointed out smiling down at her.
“Are you quoting Marilyn Monroe?” she asked with an arched eyebrow chuckling a little.
“Maybe,” I said smiling back because I’d made her laugh even if only for a bit.
“So I’m assuming you saw the school newspaper, huh?” she questioned plucking at random strands of grass not bothering to meet my eyes.
“Yep. I read the article. I’m sorry” I admitted shamefully. I knew it was something bad when Tara handed it to me and I had seen the title which was enough to warn me not to read it. But I couldn’t help the curiosity that had overcome me. It was Ana’s diary where she expressed her personal inner thoughts, it was meant to be private and yet I’d gone and read it anyway. I had a deep desire to know what was in her head, to get to know her on a more profound level and maybe on some unconscious way I’d been searching to see if she mentioned me in her diary which was a stupid reason, I’m aware.
“You have nothing to be sorry for, you’re not the one who stole my diary and published it all over the internet and advertized it on the school paper” she sighed. “What I can’t figure out is why you’re still around. I thought you would’ve run for the hills after knowing the ugly truth. But you can’t say I didn’t warn you because I did. I told you hanging out with me could have serious repercussion on your reputation” she rambled on absently ripping the long strand of grass she’d picked up to tiny unrecognizable pieces. If anyone saw these green bits they would never imagine those pieces were once a long vibrant strand of grass that formed part of a whole field of grass, part of a bigger picture. I guess people were like that in a way. Sometimes people hurt us with their cruel words and actions so deeply that we ourselves became something else. Nirvana was a good example of that…I guess we all were in a way. Everyone had potential to be a better person than they already were but sometimes people and the circumstances around us broke us down until we were only mere traces of what we could be.
“Ana I’ve liked you from the first time I saw you waking on the beach alone, away from a party I was heading straight to. It was like destiny, we met half way and I knew, I knew there was something about you. Something that encouraged me to want to get to know you and now I know why. You’re an amazing person but I always suspected there was something different about you. So you’re afraid of germs, big deal. I’m terrified of clowns but that doesn’t mean people should judge me based on that. People bully you because you’re an easy target but really they’re just distracting themselves from their own fucked up lives. In reality, we’re all a little weird and we’re all afraid of something, physical or emotionally. You being paranoid about germs won’t make me like you any less.” I told her with as much honesty as I could muster. She was staring into my eyes now with her big melted caramel ones, hypnotizing me without even knowing it.
“Do you really mean that?” she whispered as I watched her eyes being to water once again, but this time for different circumstances or so I hoped.
“With all my heart,” I said matching her intense stare. I still had my arm around her and we had turned to face each other so that we were only inches apart. My gaze traveled down to her plump, naturally pink lips and it took everything I had in me not to close the distance between us. She looked so hurt and vulnerable and irresistible. All I wanted to do was kiss her pain away, to comfort her in any way that I could. She licked her lips nervously and I swear I’d never been so tempted to do anything as much as I wanted to press my mouth against hers.
Only a small rational side of my brain was warning me that maybe she wasn’t ready, that it was too soon, but I pushed the thought away into the most unreachable corner of my mind and gave into my desire. I kissed her. And for the first time in a long while I felt complete. The second my lips touched hers I felt an instant connection. She stood frozen at first showing no signs of response as I molded my mouth to hers. But when my tongue darted out involuntarily and traced the outline of her sweet mouth the most amazing thing happened. She started kissing me back!
Her lips moved with a bit of hesitation at first so I gripped her thin waist and caressed her cheek making her completely give in. I felt her let go of all her problems and concerns like a spring being released from its tension. We were moving in sync now, as if our mouths were doing a beautiful yet simple dance. She threw her arms around me and kissed me back with as much passion as I was offering, rubbing my hair between her fingers sending shivers down my spine. My left hand left her cheek and glided down her delicate neck until I reached her soft curls and clenched my fist in her hair. At the same moment as my hand tangled in her hair so did our tongues. A small whimper escaped her mouth making its way into mine and it was enough to drive me crazy. If one of us didn’t move away soon I don’t know what would happen which was a scary thought. The last time I had felt this exposed and vulnerable with a girl it had ended horribly.
This is different, a voice in my head reminded. And it was because this time it wasn’t Ivy I was kissing, no this was Ana- a girl who broke down my walls and reached the real me. Someone I could be myself with, without having to pretend I was something I wasn’t.
But just like that our moment was over. I felt it instantly when the pressure of her lips was gone and it also made me cry. I opened my eyes feeling disoriented and cold without her warmth pressing against me. I was already missing her kiss.
“Wow. That wasn’t gross at all,” she said breathlessly.
“Well thanks for boosting up my confidence,” I told her with an eye roll. Jeez that kiss had been such a magical moment for me- wow that sounded corny- and that was all she could say?
“I’m sorry I didn’t mean it like that. I just-how do I explain?... see every time I saw two people kiss on T.V or imagined what it would feel like I couldn’t help but get completely disgusted. The human mouth is the dirtiest part of the body and the idea of kissing really seemed to gross me out. Then when Will drunkenly kissed me he just proved my point further- I still can’t forget that horrid taste of beer” she shuddered at the memory then added, “But this was so different. You were so gentle and I felt so connected to you- like we were one person. I’ll even go as far to say that I felt sparks as cheesy as that sounds,” she said with a cute giggle.
“That does make me feel a little better. I was worried it was too soon but I couldn’t help myself,” I confessed.
“Well this day didn’t turn out completely horrible” she said with a sad grin.
“I’m glad I got to make it a little better” I told her pushing a lock of hair away that had fallen in front of her eyes.
“Hey um do you think we could maybe get out of here? The lunch bell is going to ring soon and I don’t think I can handle being around everyone after they’ve all read my diary. I can’t face all the stares, the insults and the humiliation they’ll aim at me now that I’m a confirmed germ freak”
“Of course” I agreed right away. I wasn’t sure how exactly we were going to get out of school early without the assistance of a parent as an excuse but I’d figure out a way if it made Ana happy. Usually I would say it was better to face your problems head on but this was a tough situation and she needed time to process what had happened. I got up from the ground and extended my hand to pull her up as well.
I stood silent for a minute as I calculated which way would be easier to escape from. After pondering up all the possibilities I concluded that through the back by the football field was our best bet. There was no guard there to stop us or a lock. The only barrier was a metal fence but it would be easy to jump over it. We walked all the way over to the field and over to fence. I was happy to note that there was no barbed wire at the top of it making this whole ordeal way easier. The place was isolated except for the guy who was cutting the grass with the loud lawnmower. He had thick headphones and seemed too absorbed in what he was doing to notice us though so that didn’t concern me.
“Uh, River, have you lost your mind? I can’t climb that and how the hell am I going to get down afterwards?” she squealed staring up at the fence like it was some big intimidating metal monster that was about to eat her.
“Yes you can and don’t come on didn’t you jump out of your two story window? That was a much higher distance. Come on it’s the only way out that won’t get us caught,” I urged her on. She didn’t seem too convinced but she took her backpack off anyways and placed it on the grass.
“Are you sure about this?” she asked wearily.
“Duh. Would I put you in danger, Ana? Of course not. By the way is there anything fragile or important in your bag?” I inquired picking it up from the floor.
“Just my phone, why?” she arched a curious eyebrow at me.
“Take it out,” I suggested handing her the bag. She shrugged and did as I asked. Once she was sure there was nothing else of value in there I threw it over the fence and watched it land on the cement ground with a loud thud.
“What the hell?” she exclaimed with her arms raised.
“It’s easier to climb without the extra weight of the bag plus now you have an even bigger incentive to climb the fence” I told her with a wide smile before chucking my bag next.
“Hmm. Sounds like this isn’t the first time you’ve done this” she guessed.
“Not the first nor the last.” She began putting one foot through a hole of the fence as she gripped her hands tightly above her head before she lifted her left foot off the floor. Once she was grasping the fence tightly she carefully lifted another foot and stuck it up in a higher space. I stood close behind her in case she fell back or lost her grasp. I’m not going to deny that I stared at her butt as she climbed up I mean come on it was right above me how could I not look? I was a guy after all and she had a pretty nice as$.
She kept climbing up and I couldn’t help but laugh at how she resembled a spider sprawled on a wall.
“What’s funny?” she asked turning her head to look down at me disapprovingly.
“Nothing just maybe if you pull your arms closer together you’ll have more balance,” I told her with a smirk. She was so damn adorable and awkward. I heard the distant sound of the lawnmower and turned to see that the guy still hadn’t noticed us. Good.
“Oh ok.” Finally she reached the top and cautiously swung her one leg over the fence followed by the other.
“This is the tricky part. Just stay calm and turn your foot to place it on the nearest hole,” I explained. She did as I instructed and quickly turned her body so that she was now facing me as she climbed down. When she reached the bottom she did a happy dance and grabbed for her bag. I climbed up the fence and followed her down seconds later, landing a more gracefully than her.
“We did it!” she said excitedly.
“You sound like Dora the Explorer,” I commented chuckling causing her to smack me on the arm.
“Hey!” we heard someone shout from a distance. We turned to see that the lawnmower guy had spotted us and was marching on over to us.
“Uh-oh,” she said at the same time as I shouted “Run!” and pulled her with me as we made a break for it. I heard the guy call out after us until we were so far away that I couldn’t even hear the rumble of the mower anymore. We stopped running when we were safe and leaned forward to catch our breath.
“That was…kind of exciting” Nirvana said in between pants.
“I know right.” we decided on going to the ‘For the Love of Coffee’ café to hang out for a while since it was a quiet place where we could talk and they served the best macadamia cookies ever made, according to Ana. So we walked on over there and I ordered the food while she grabbed a table. After we’d enjoyed our sweet treats and drinks I had a sudden urge to ask her a question I’d been wondering about for a long while. But now that we’d kissed I finally had a bit more confidence to dare to ask.
“Hey Nirvana um I know it’s a bit soon and I don’t want you to feel like I’m rushing things but…um” I pulped not knowing how to finish the sentence.
“Spit it out” she said with a giggle, probably at how red my cheeks were flashing right now. God this was so embarrassing. When did guys ever blush? Jeez River pull it together, man!
“I’ve liked you a lot for a while now and the more time I spend with you the more I realize how much I love your company so uh… will you be mine?” I managed to say it. The moments as I waited for her reply had my heart beating like a frantic drum as I imagined her rejection.
“Oh gosh River I-I don’t- I mean I like you a lot too and that kiss was amazing but-” she hesitated holding my gaze as if to see if she should continue or not.
“But what?” I asked sounding desperate.
“I can’t do that to Will. He’d never forgive me,” she told me sincerely.
“Will? What does that have to do with us?” I questioned confused. I mean sure he liked her but they were just friends after all, practically siblings from how Ana described their relationship.
“Well he- he just told me this weekend that he was in love with me and I cant just start dating you right after he confessed me his feelings. That would be like throwing it back in his face. I mean he knows I don’t like him that way but he’s still my friend and I don’t want to hurt him that way. And flaunting my new relationship with you would hurt him. Specially since he doesn’t like you that much” she explained shocking me. He’d said what? So the arrogant idiot had actually gone ahead of me? He’d taken my chance to be her first kiss away and now this? Damn.
“I get it. I mean I’d be pretty crushed if that happened to me” I admitted even though all I wanted was for her to say yes I could still understand what was holding her back from me.
“Thanks for understanding,” she said with relief clearly written across her features.
“But what if we kept it a secret? What if we just started dating and see where that goes? If you still want me afterwards then maybe we could get a bit more serious? And we don’t have to tell anyone until you decide. I really don’t mind I just want to be with you”
“Dating in secret? Hmm, I don’t know. What if he finds out?” she questioned doubtfully.
“He won’t, it’ll be our little secret, I promise” I said waiting for her reaction.
“Alright, let’s try it” she said the magic words and in that moment I couldn’t be happier.
A/N: A lot of things are happening now. Finally their first kiss! Ana’s diary is out, Will’s feelings are out but Ana and River’s relationship is being kept a secret. Do you think that will work out? Will it back fire? Share your thoughts, comments or criticisms’ down below. And remember to vote if you liked this. G’night guys!