𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬 ( 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐎𝐧𝐞)

𝗡𝗶𝗻𝗲- 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗶𝗴 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸

Take "no" as an encouragement to redouble his efforts, so it was easier to say "yes" right away 
~𝐒𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐠 𝐋𝐚𝐫𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧~

                               

𝐋𝐢𝐚

The following day before everyone left to go back to their lives, we sat outside for lunch at around 1 pm, facing the green plastered grass the guys had spent the previous day playing football. There was laughter, talking over each other, and the clattering sounds of cutlery filling the room as much as our laughter, reflecting the joy of being together.

Once we were done, we cleaned the dishes together, putting them into the cabinets and leaving a few in a dish rack above the sink. 

Finally, it was time for them to leave. I sat outside waiting as they all went to their rooms to prepare. "Are you sad?" Luca questioned, standing on the step above where I sat. I looked up at him, shaking my head, and then said, "a little."

He lightly touched my hair, almost in reverence, like he was comforting me. I felt his touch right to my bones, wanting more than anything to get up, embrace him, and feel the rhythm of his heart beating to mine.

We did not speak again until the guys started descending from the house. The first was Zion, carrying a small bag that perhaps carried not a single cloth but books, business plans printed out that he liked on file, perfume, a laptop, and maybe a gun or two.

He was growing up at such speed; I thought as he opened the trunk of the black Mercedes to put his bag. His glossy black hair was still a little wet from the shower, his eyes shooting up mischief when he asked Luc to respect the speed limit while driving Nic, Alyssa, and Sienna to the airport.

"I will try," Luc stated in a humor coated tone. He didn't have to drive, but Luca never turned down a chance to. He was an obsessed driver. It was ingrained in his blood, just as his genes were.

I kissed and hugged them all before they slid into their respective cars.

"Wanna come with us to the airport?" Serena asked, pulling me into a tight hug. I shook my head when she released me. I would have loved to, but the anxiety swirling within me to decide to go all in with a relationship with Luca kept me on edge.

Yes. I was ready to begin a physical relationship. However, I wanted us to keep it a secret. I had more to lose if it came out now when my career had not begun than gain, in my opinion. A public relationship with him would probably open opportunity doors for me just as it had done to Caterina. That is not what I wanted. My plan had been to pull myself up with the resources given to me.

I would do it. I had sworn I would make it when I decided to leave home.

Once everyone was settled, I waved at them; they waved back, their cars pulling out the driveway, leaving a louder silence than our voices had been. I stood in the driveway longer after their cars disappeared, feeling lonely and alone. I imagined everybody had this feeling after every goodbye.

"You'll get a chill," Dev told me. It was the two of us again, as it had been since I moved from home. We had become closer, each other confidants even though I had never told him about Luc and me. He was my bodyguard, a member of my family as well as a friend.