vulnerable

70.

a/n: hey guys! congrats to the USMNT for winning the CONCACAF Nations League!! So proud of the boys! Gio played absolutely amazing! Also been crushing on Ricardo Pepi, so I've decided to do a story for him coming up soon! Cast will probably be out today.

Sorry this chapter actually is so short lol but thanks for reading!

"Let's hide Stella in the pool." Ryder suggested after a long moment of silence.

Gio was still standing on the porch, but he averted his gaze back to Guy, who was telling him something in his ear. Hannah narrowed her eyes on her soon-to-be brother in law and shifted her head to the side. "You mean drown her?"

"She can hold her breath long enough." Ryder joked, glancing over at the brunette with a raised brow. "Right?"

Stella furrowed her eyebrows together. "No, I'm not Michael Phelps."

"Bummer." Ryder sighed, throwing his arms up in defeat.

"It's fine, guys." Stella confirmed with a soft smile. "I know what I'm going to say to him."

"Oh you do?" Hannah crossed her arms. "And what is that?"

"Words..." Stella rubbed the back of her neck.

Julian got the hint and grabbed onto Hannah's shoulder. "Why don't we go find Marco and Scarlett?"

"Yeah." Stella nodded. "Scar was supposed to bring Marco over."

Hannah rolled her eyes. She knew better. "Fine. Let's go JR."

"JR?" Joah and Ryder asked at the same time.

"Joah and Ryder." Hannah shook her head. "Keep up."

Stella watched them walk away, drifting into the endless crowd. Gio's head bobbed past them. From the look of it, Hannah and Joah glared at him even after he had passed by. He made his way over to Stella, stopping a few feet back as she fiddled with the hem of her shirt.

"Hey." Gio whispered, looking her up and down.

Stella blushed, "Hey."

The two of them inched closer, but kept fidgeting around like they were avoiding the deeper meaning. Because they were. Stella gulped a nervous ball of saliva and hoped those words would come out. "I know-"

"Listen, Stell-"

They forced out a few chuckles before Gio stuck his hands in his pockets and jutted his chin towards her.
"You first."

Stella let out a heavy breath. "I know it's been tough... I know I just up and left. But what you did with Chloe-"

"I promise you Stella... I didn't sleep with her." Gio jumped in, grabbing her arm in the process.

Stella glanced at the touch, feeling a swarm of butterflies in her stomach. "But it still hurt me. You kissed her. Why?"

"I don't know, Stella." Gio rubbed his face with his hands. He walked past her and rested his shoulder against the tree trunk. "I'm just sorry that I did."

"Do you still want to be with me, G?" Stella could feel some tears swelling in her eyes, but she fought them off the best she could.

Gio grabbed her hands quickly. His voice was deep and almost a whimper as the sentence slipped out. "More than anything in this world, yes, I do."

"I have a lot to say." Stella stood taller. It was both true and a lie. She had a lot in her head she wanted to say, but knew not all the words would come out. Or she wouldn't be able to put her feelings to words. "But I think we should finish this later. After the party's."

Gio opened his mouth to speak but only nodded in return. He let go of her hands. "Okay. Let's talk tonight then."

"Okay." Stella nodded.

"Stella!" Hannah jogged over. She shot Gio a frown every few seconds. Once at Stella's side, she grabbed onto her arm and smiled. "Your family's here... and Kai."

"Great." Stella smiled. "I'll talk to you later, Gio."

"Why don't you go find Hunter and congratulate him, G." Hannah stuck her tongue out at him.

Gio rolled his eyes and scurried off. Stella couldn't help but chuckle at her friend. Hannah leaned into her shoulder and the two of them hurried up the porch.