Less talking | Maneskin |

Reunited

— Damiano? - I grabbed him by the shoulder.
— Sky? - he turned to me and I couldn't read his face expression. Instinctively, I gave him a tight hug and he returned it. I didn't care what happened between us, how it made me feel. I only knew I missed him so much it hurt. We stood like that in silence for quite a while. That silence meant so much more than words could.
— What are you doing here? - I asked, when we finally let go of each other.
— I could ask you the same, - he smiled.
— I was going to get some clean water from the stream when I spotted you. 
— I was going to join you camping.
— But our camp is the other way, - I pointed to the direction I came from.
— Yeah, I know. I didn't want to interrupt your evening by showing up like that... - he scratched the back of his head, clearly confused.
— Interrupt? What are you talking about? - I was surprised hearing these words from him. 
— Sky, we need to talk... - he began. Now that I got a clear look at him all the memories came back, 
— About what? - I asked uncomfortably.
— I owe you an apology and an explanation.
— You don't owe me anything, - I interrupted him.
— Yes, I do. Sky, we got so close and then I left you like it didn't mean anything to me, but you have no idea how much it did, - he started talking, his eyes fixated on mine.
— It was a party, we got drunk and did some things, I understand, it's okay, - I said.
— No it wasn't. I may have drank that night, but it only gave me courage to do what I wanted to do for so long. I'm sorry for disappearing, for ghosting you. It was really hard for me to do, but I did it, because my life was a mess and I didn't want to pull you in that too. My heart was breaking when I knew you were sick and I couldn't be there for you, I'm sorry I couldn't. You have every right to be mad at me and I promise I will do anything to make things right between us, because finally cleaning up the mess in my life helped me open my eyes wide again after a long time of blindness. I could finally see that my feelings towards you are not only friendly. I like you, Sky. You put me under your spell and now I can't keep myself away from you. That feeling grows stronger everyday, - I could see his eyes starting to get wet and that broke my heart, but he wasn't done yet.
— It's hard for me to talk about my feelings sometimes. I rarely open up to people like this, I usually do it in a form of song, but you have something that makes it easy to trust you. Now my feelings are laid out in front of you. Do you think we can start over? - He smiled a little, but I could see he was nervous. 

I was in a state of shock. I couldn't believe Damiano David had just admitted he had feelings for me. For ME. I've just heard the words, millions of girls wanted to hear. My mind was completely blank, I could only hear my heart pounding.
— I'm not mad at you, - I finally broke the silence, - I was at first and I admit, it really hurt me when I found out you disappeared like that. I guess when days passed, I processed it and understood that it's childish of me to think that a kiss or two makes you mine. I got attached to you too quick and it wasn't normal. I was disappointed, but time made me sort out my emotions and I just missed you so much... I wanted to see you or hear from you. I'm not mad at you, Damiano, just don't run away from me, from all of us, - I inhaled deeply before saying the last sentence, - We definitely can start over, but I think it would be best to do it as friends now. We need to get to know each other deeper before letting our bodies speak for us.

The last part was incredibly hard to say. I wanted to leap into his arms and let him drive us to the sunset, but deep inside I knew it would be best for us to push the brakes a little. I needed time to get comfortable around him again, to trust him and to read him. He needed time to find out if his feelings are true or not. He smiled at me warmly.
— That's what I was thinking, - he said.
— I'm glad to finally see you, - I smiled back. There was a little bit of awkward tension. We both poured our hearts out to each other and now it was time to get back to reality.
— I missed you so much, - he said, looking at me longingly, - Okay, I won't hold you off any longer, go get your water, I'll see you tomorrow.
— What? - I was surprised, - Aren't you coming with me?
— I think it would be best for you to let everything sink in without me being around all the time. I got a bnb for the night, I will join you tomorrow, - he shruged.
— No, come with me, please, - I said as the fear of him disappearing again overwhelmed me.
— Do you really think it's a good idea? - he lifted an eyebrow.
— Yes, our group is only complete when you are with us, - I smiled to lift the mood.
— Then I guess I'll have to cancel my reservation, - he smiled back.

*DAMIANO'S POV*

I made my way back to the car. Soft wind made the trees dance and it made me relax. I couldn't stop thinking about her. The image of her laughing was stuck in my head. How am I gonna tell her everything? I felt like I will never be ready to talk to her. Opening up was something I found hard to do, but with Sky... I feel like I can share my deepest secrets with her and she would understand. 

Suddenly I heard someone running my way. "Must be a jogger or something" I thought and continued walking, when I felt a hand on my shoulder.
— Damiano? - I heard the voice so painfully familiar. Am I going crazy and imagining things?
I turned around to see her. 
— Sky? - I was caught of guard. My mind started racing and I scrambled my thoughts knowing this is the moment I will finally talk to her. She jumped forward and hugged me. I did the same. Holding her tightly pressed against my body, I tried to sink into her. The feeling was amazing, no words were needed. When we parted she asked me what I was doing here and I didn't know how I wanted to respond. 

The conversation started casually, but I just had to get my feelings of my chest. I imagined it happening in a slightly different place, but the forest around us was so calm and beautiful, I didn't hold back. I apologised for everything that upset her, I poured my thoughts out, not even sure if that's how I wanted to formulate everything. She looked at me calmly listening. 
— Do you think we can start over? - I finished. She was silent for a while and that made me feel nervous as hell. I'm not used to being vulnerable, I was the one others seeked and now... Now life threw me in a place where someone was responsible for my feelings, where the decisions were in someone other's hands. 

She started talking and my heart skipped a beat with every sentence that left her mouth. It broke my heart hearing she felt upset and disappointed after what I did. I felt relieved when she said she's not mad at me anymore, that she missed me. Oh, Sky, if only you would know how much I've missed you too.
— We definitely can start over, but I think it would be best to do it as friends now. We need to get to know each other deeper before letting our bodies speak for us, - she said, her face showing signs of sadness. That wasn't exactly what I was expecting to hear. I guess my hopes were up too high. It once again shown me Sky wasn't your average pretty girl. She made this decision and although I was hoping for her to leap into my arms and kiss me, I know she's doing the right thing. It will be hard for me to stay away from her when all I wanted to do was wrap my arms around her and never let go, but I will manage. I will do whatever it takes to gain her trust back. To get to know to her and to let her get to know me.

*SKY'S POV*

I thought going to the stream was going to be awkward, but it wasn't. Damiano knew where it was, so he lead me a slightly different way, through a beautiful meadow, full of poppies. I felt like I could finally relax when he was with me. It's a strange feeling, I never noticed myself being tensed up while he was gone. He looked so damn attractive in his shirt, that was unbuttoned halfway. Why did I have to tell him we should stay friends? Am I going to be able to resist him? 

— So how was your day so far? - he asked me, while filling up the bottle.
— It was really fun, we went to the lake. The water is so refreshing, - I smiled, looking at him. He leaned against the rocks, where the fresh water ran from a small pipe. His shirt got wet, because the watter was splashing everywhere. His tattoos started showing through the thin, wet fabric. Once again he was testing my ability to resist my desires. 
— Enjoying the view? - he wiggled his eyebrows smiling, while pressing his wet shirt to his chest. Now that was the Damiano I know.
— Indeed, - I chuckled.

We went back to the camp. Victoria was sitting on a chair by the fire, Thomas was lying on the blow up mattress and Ethan sat in an open tent, carving soething on a stick.
— Look what I found in the woods! - I waved. 
— Damianooo! - Vic ran up and jumped to hug him. He laughed and hugged her back. Thomas came over and did the same. Ethan stalled a little, still carving something, but when we got closer, he too stood up and spread his arms to greet Damiano. I smiled as seeing them reunite was so heart warming. 

Thomas pulled out the guitar, me and Vic got the marshmallows ready and we spent the evening watching the sun set into the lake.