Saturday Nights (BxB)| ✓

Something New

It's been two days since I was discharged from the hospital. It's been two days of coddling from Mom and Louise, two days of weird, occasional texts from Dad, of videogames with Andy.
But it's been weeks of nothing from Greene.
I feel stupid for even thinking about him. I don't know what I thought would happen when he saw me. I don't know what change I was expecting.

I'd be lying if I said I don't miss him. I do. More than I'd like to admit to, but I have this feeling he's gone. Maybe he still ended up moving.
His house has looked empty since I last saw it. No curtains, no car in the driveway, nothing.

Louise, even after my protests, has  gotten back together with Rob.

"I have attachment issues," she said dismissively when she told me. Apparently he didn't really cheat on her,but I don't believe that. I still support her, but I hate his guts.

I did hang up that pride flag in my room after a while, but took it off that same night after deciding it looked cheesy. Louise and I have gone back to the gift shop, more to keep ourselves occupied than to actually work and it's there, in the middle a late evening shift, sweat running down my back, in my least favorite t-shirt, when I see him.

He looks more boyish, in a white t shirt and beach shorts, his hair longer as the black curls whip around him in the wind. He looks like something straight out of a magazine, walking up to me.

It takes him a while to reach me, though, having to stop several times to talk to other people who've probably been wondering where he's been too.
But when he does reach me, when he stops a few feet away from me, I forget all my anger, and sadness and guilt. I forget it all, and all I want to do is hug him. And maybe kiss him.

"Alex."

"Greene."

"Walk with me." He slightly tilts his head towards the beach, and I follow him. Of course I do.

We reach the shore, staring at the sky. The sun has just set, but the sky is still inked with oranges, pinks, blues. We sit down, just like we did before.

"I was scared." Is all he says. I don't reply for a while.

"So was I."

"He could have killed you. You could've died, Alex. I couldn't keep him from you ."

"You did though. You did. It was my stupid decision to come see you even when you'd told me to stay away. That's on me."

He doesn't respond, but I see him shake his head.

"What I'm wondering, though," I say, "is why you didn't come see me in the hospital. Did you really not want to see me that much-"

" I did. And that's the problem, Alex. I wanted to sit there next to you and take care of you myself until you got better. I wanted to apologize to you over and over again because if you hadn't met me we wouldn't be in this mess."

" So you regret meeting me?"

" Of course not. But I regret being me, because if I was someone else, you wouldn't be here with a half broken rib."

We sit there in silence, me looking at him, him looking at the sea. "So what now?" I ask.

He sighs. "I got rid of my dad. My mom wants to move somewhere quiet. Her side of the family is out in Seattle, of all places. Nowhere near quiet, but that's probably where she'll go. She needs family."

"And you?"

"I go where she goes."

Of course. He can't leave her, he has to protect her. She needs him, far more than I do.

" I... I'll miss you."

I hear his intake of breath. I see him bury his head in his hands, I even hear his low chuckle while he shakes his head. But I completely miss the moment he pounces on me and crashes his lips on mine. I fall back on the sand, and he's on top of me, kissing me, smiling.
I realize I'm smiling, laughing too. We kiss until the sun is gone, until the stars twinkle above us. Until Louise and Rob walk up to us, yelling
"Get a room!"

...

'crashes his lips on mine' is the most Wattpad novel thing I've ever written in my life and I deeply and sincerely apologize 😭😭😭