PULSE

(thirtyone) july 7

Lev smiled.

I hadn't realized how much I had missed his ridiculous sideways grin until it lit up his face for the first time in a while, and I couldn't help but smile back at him.

"Why are you smiling? I haven't even said anything yet," I said in amusement.

He rolled his eyes, leaning against the doorframe of his house as he watched me. "I've known you for a pretty long time now, Aidan. I can tell by your stupid face that something is different. Plus, I called your mom and told her to kick your ass for me."

I scoffed. "Isn't that crossing the line a little?"

"Not if you needed it," he replied. I sighed dramatically, and he smirked. "So, I hope you have something awesome and ground-breaking to say since you went through the trouble of coming all the way out here. If I don't approve, I think I'll have to send you home and have you work on it a little more."

"Aren't you being a little presumptuous?"

"I'm waiting, Aidan," he prodded, raising an eyebrow.

I sighed deeply, jamming my hands in my pockets as I mumbled, "I'm sorry."

"I couldn't hear you."

"I'm sorry," I said louder this time, meeting his eyes. "I'm sorry for being a giant pain in your ass for the last year. I'm sorry for getting you into trouble. I'm sorry for taking up the ground in your bedroom for months. I'm sorry for making life so damn hard on you."

He only stood in front of me, arms crossed over his chest, grinning.

"That's all you're getting," I muttered, looking away. "I don't know what else you want."

He shrugged, sighing. "I guess I'll accept that. I mean, I was hoping you would mention something about me being your knight in shining armor, but I guess you're off the hook."

I rolled my eyes.

He nodded slowly, shifting on his feet before looking back up at me. "Anyway, I'm glad you came here and all, but I think you're apologizing to the wrong person."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Don't be clueless. You know who I'm talking about."

I fell silent, looking down at the ground.

"Have you talked to her yet?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Not exactly."

"You'd better do it soon, then. She's leaving town today."

My eyes widened, and my head snapped toward him. "What?"

"She's leaving today. If you find her fast enough, you might still be able to talk to her before she goes. And who knows; you might be able to convince her to stay, if that's what you want."

He said the latter part cautiously, waiting for my reaction. I was tired of putting on an act, though, and was tired of all the indecision that I'd been dealing with for so long. I knew what I really wanted—what I'd wanted for months.

"Lev, I think I still love her," I said.

"Yeah," he snorted. "Obviously."

"Where can I find her?" I asked quickly.

He shrugged. "I don't know. I already said my goodbye. But if you really want to find her, I'm sure you'll figure out something."

My mind began racing as I slowly started backing up across Lev's front porch, wracking my mind for what to do first.