*Zacks POV*
After the day Hayley and I danced together, everything seemed brighter. Although the weather dimmed, which normally made me miserable because it made me feel dull and opressed, I stayed happy. I was happy wearing jackets and trackpants and walking around with Hayley in the early morning frost. And after a week or two the frost turned to snow, and we could no longer go for runs or sleep on the beach, or go cloud watching in the warmth of the sun, but we continued to have our afternoons, playing chess or snakes and ladders and instead of drinking beer, drinking coffee.
Today we were playing checkers, which I prefered to chess becuase it was less strict and Hayley wasn't as competitive. She had her hand on her chin, her head resting on her knuckles, her hand tapping impatiently. I couldn't really focus. Something about today was distracting, it was that little feeling again. The one I had got the first day I met her, the one I got when we were on the beach, when we danced. It was here today, lingering around me slowly, like it was my shadow. She didn't look with it today either, her hair was pulled back neatly in a bun at the back of her head, which was odd considering it was normally thrown in a messy ponytail, her nails were painted a pale pink (a colour she often said she avoided becuase it made her feel too pretty) and her usual black skinny jeans had been swapped for white ones. She actually looks quite pretty today. I say to myself, the feeling rising up to my cheeks.
"Zack?" Her voice interrupts my iternal blushing. I look up at her, her fingers are twirling around each other.
"I'm bored..." She continues. I nod.
"Yeah, I'm kind of bored too" I agree, she smiles. There's a silence as we pack away the checkers game. Then she slides it back in the bookshelf with all the other games. I notice she's wearing earings. She never wears earrings. The feeling is back, swirling around my stomach in the form of butterflies. I wonder why she's being quiet today and decide it's time I did something to cheer her up. She flops on the couch, and I head over the corner of the room to wear there's a box of other games and find what I'm looking for. Twister. I set everything up and look up to see her smiling brightly, like she's just won the lottery. I smile back and spin the wheel, she's next to me in a split second and twisting around according to the spinner.
We're in real tangle, my arms crossed, holding most of my weight plus most of Hayleys. She's sprawled across me, legs tangled with mine, arms spread out in front of her. We're both laughing, trying to move our arms and legs with out falling or knocking each other. She's shaking with laughter and exhaustion and after a manouvre which had her sprawled across my chest, her legs give in and so do mine. I catch her shoulders before she hits the floor and she ends up on top of me, chests touching and facing eachother. She burys her head in my chest, paralytic with laughter, I am too. We laugh and laugh and everytime she lifts her head to look at me she laughs some more.
"I am so sorry Zachary" She giggles.
"Can't keep your hands off me could you eh?" I tease. She sticks her tongue out and then smiles. I smile back.
I leave, she stands at the door way, I'm a few inches away from her, saying goodbye.
"Thanks for the twister Hayley"
"I don't know aye it was your pick, you can tell a lot about a man by his twister skills" She winks. I laugh and blush.
"Oh really and what do my twister skills tell you abut me then?"
"Hmmm... well, you're pretty strong, have lots of stamina, which means you're patient. You're wary of the other players, which means you're frien-" I don't know what comes over me but I interrupt by speaking. Maybe it's the sound of her breathing, how she smiles when she explains things, her smell of strawberries and cream, the way her bright greens eyes shimmer in the light.
"I think I love you Hayley." I blurt out. Her smile fades slowly, her eyes widening, but they don't deter from mine. This is it, I've ruined it. Stupid, Stupid Zack. She doesn't move for a long time.
"I-I think I love you to..." She says quietly, more to herself than me and then she places her hands gently on my neck and leans in, I close my eyes. The next thing I feel is the feeling ovr her lips on mine. The feeling inside of me grows stronger, and I realise how it's been there. This whole time, instead of friendship I longed for her lips, the feeling of being hers, the sensation of having her in my arms. When she pulls away she looks shocked, but smiles brightly. The same smile, but it looks so much more ireesistible, beautiful. And then I smile back and wave good bye and head back. On top of the world, and completely Lovestuck.
