A Beautiful Mess｜ONGOING

22. Take a Breath

"SEE YOU GUYS tomorrow," I waved to them from across the lawn as the sun slowly set in the distance.

Malia, Quinn, Nico, Oliver, and Vaughn waved back before piling back into the car. The girls were stumbling and swearing as Vaughn took the wheel and lurched the car forward.

They pulled out the tequila on our last night at the cottage. To say they were still drunk would be an understatement. Even the slightest thing set them off into bursts of laughter. Vaughn, the only one who hadn't drunk his weight in alcohol, was having a hard time wrangling them into the backseat.

But I was more focused on Nova, who stayed behind, opting to walk to her house that was a block away. Even after she's warmed up to my friends, I think she was hesitant to accept their kindness as if there was some sort of catch that came with it.

It made my fists clench, knowing that she couldn't trust me as easily because of whatever shitty friends she had that made her feel less. She deserved genuine and caring friends, and I was determined to be one...even though I wanted to be more for her.

My thoughts flashed back to our kiss at the carnival. I had held her under the night sky, basking in the feeling of her mouth pressed against mine. Her sheer presence enveloped me in a strange feeling of warmth, like the feeling of the sun touching my skin. It was the first time in a long time that I made a decision I didn't regret.

But then her hands were on my chest, pushing me away from her. She staggered back, her eyes wide with panic. She frantically shook her head, backing away as I stood frozen in shock.

"I can't do this," she whispered, almost as if she were speaking to herself.

Then her eyes painfully connected with mine. "I-I have to go. I'm sorry, Theo."

Then she'd skated away, as swiftly as she could go considering this was her first time on ice.

I found myself letting her go. Watching her retreating figure, feeling utterly confused about what had happened. Did I move too quickly? Had I read the signs wrong?

Maybe I should've gone after her. But I wanted to give her the space she needed.

So I was okay with taking a step back and waiting at her own pace. Because if it came down to Nova's best interests, I'd be the friend she needed.

But just because I left the ball in her ballpark, doesn't mean I was going to let her slip away from me. I watched as she awkwardly picked up her bag and made a beeline in the direction of her house, doing everything she possibly could to avoid eye contact with me.

"Wait," I scrambled off the lawn and caught up to her frantic pace.

It seemed to spur her to go faster until she was doing a light jog. But I had long legs and easily matched her pace.

"Nova."

When she didn't answer me, my arms came around her waist, pulling her to the side so she was facing me.

She yelped, the weight of her bags causing her to pitch forward.

My hands shot out, one taking her bags from her and the other tightening around her waist.

"Let go, Theo" she glared at me.

My hands immediately let go of her but that didn't stop me from blocking her path.

"Nova, just listen-"

"No Theo. If you're gonna bring up the carnival, I don't want to talk about it."

I paused as I swallowed anxiously. "Is it because- do you regret it?"

"Is that why you've been avoiding me?"