Half a Heart

23. I Do

"Never have I ever kissed someone of the same sex," I said.

There is no reason for me to stoop to Savannah's level. I'm smarter, prettier, and not nearly as easy. I hold more value and everyone in this awkward oval square knows that. At the end of the day, she could never be me. I'm the first one Peter said I love you to. I'm not the one he drunk dials. I'm the one who knows him inside and out. I'm the one who has his heart. He can pretend that I don't. He can say all those pretty words into her ear the same way he did me, but she won't ever have that piece of him that I have. He knows it. She knows it. I know it. He's not the guy with the girl anymore. He fucked that up.

It goes the same way for me. That piece of my heart will always belong to Peter. I knew that the moment I first saw him. There was this whisper in my head that told me he would be special. I could pretend I wished we would've stayed strangers, but wouldn't that have been tragic? I learned so many things about myself that I never would've known had it not been that curly, doe-eyed boy. So many fond memories that we shared, what would have become if Peter and I hadn't crossed paths?

We ended the game after Mason's turn. The tension was getting to be too much and we didn't want issues before the time came that we were supposed to be a team. Mason and I leaned back into our seats as everyone else got themselves situated back in. As much as I had to drink, I needed to pee awfully bad.

"You ok?" I asked Mason.

He looked really worn out. He nodded, "Dad spanked me this morning and I'm having a hard time sitting still. Sorry if it's bothering you."

"It's not bothering me at all. You look really tired."

"I stayed up too late," Mason explained, "That's why Dad spanked me. I was being grouchy with everyone and he caught me up last night. He probably went easy on me so I wasn't too sorry during the game tomorrow, but man I'm sore."

"You wanna try and sleep?" I asked.

He nodded.

"Ok."

He leaned against the window and used the hoodie I handed him as a pillow. I leaned towards him and rested my head on his muscled bicep. How in the world are these boys so muscled??

"We work out a lot," Mason said sleepily.

"What?"

"You asked how we're so muscled. We work out a lot and do a lot of labor in the summertime."

"Oh, I said that out loud?"

"Yes, you did."

"Oh," my cheeks were hot.

I hadn't meant for him to know that I was thinking about his muscles. Which I'm not, by the way.

I was quiet for a while. Not very many people were talking and the ones that were, were far enough away from us that all I heard was mumbles. It had started raining and the sound was soothing. Mason was sleeping, but thankfully, he didn't snore. He was breathing deeply and we were rising up and down with every breath inhaled and exhaled. He looked really cute when he slept. He had a pout on his face and some of his blond hair had fallen into his face. I closed my eyes and let myself be content. This was my new happy.

We had just pulled into the hotel parking lot when Mason woke up. He looked much better and like he had rested well.

"Sleep good?" I asked him.

He nodded, "Thanks for keeping me warm."

I winked at him as I stood up from our seat, "Anytime."

It was probably against the rules to flirt with your ex's brother, but when do I follow traditional rules? The answer is never. I do what I want.

Thankfully, we drove out of the rain a while back. We got all of our stuff and went inside to check-in. I roomed with Jae, Avery, and Noelle. I liked all of them and I expected that we would have tons of fun. I brought the game 'For the Girls', which is really fun to play. I figure we'll watch movies, eat healthy snacks (eye roll), and play games. I was super excited about the next couple of days.

We had no more than gotten settled in when a knock came at our door. Being the leader of the pack, I was forced to open it. Mason looked back at me.

"Can I talk to you?" he asked.

"Uh, sure. Lemme change real quick. I had already changed into my Winnie the Pooh PJs and as much as I love Pooh, I didn't want the whole hotel to see the pots of honey on my butt. I put on some black athletic shorts and left my Pooh shirt on. I slipped on a hoodie and my shoes and went back to the door. Mason had waited outside and I followed him down the hallway to the elevator.

"Is everything ok?" I asked him.

He hadn't given me any hints as to what this was all about. He didn't say anything. Mason grabbed my hand and we ducked out the back doors.

"Mason," I took my hand back, "What is going on?"

"YOU! That's what's going on. Dammit, you're the only thing I think about anymore. No matter what I'm doing, you're there in my head!"

My eyes were wide as saucers. I thought about him a lot too. I didn't know what to say.

"I know that you still love Peter! I know that! But I think there's something there for me too. Isn't there? I see the way you look at me. I know you like me. I know it's not like how it was with you and Peter, but dammit Tay, I love you. I have tried and tried to fight it, but I can't fight anymore. There's you. Only you."

I was at a loss for words. What he was saying made sense. I knew that much. I did like him. I loved Peter though. I wasn't sure I was ready to move on you. We only broke up a month ago. That was too soon, wasn't it?

"I'm ok with being second to Peter. I'm used to it. I just need to know if you feel anything for me. Any feelings at all."

"Mason, I do."

A/N: Welp, I really don't know where this came from because this was not planned. We still haven't even gotten to the drama that I hinted at yet. Oh well. I love a good storyline <3