All I Ever Knew Was Your Name [Nick Robinson]

THIRTEEN

body talks by the struts

It's late when we decide to go home. I would have been more than okay sleeping there with him, but I had a feeling he wasn't prepared to open up that much more to me. Plus, he most likely thought he'd scare me off.

For the record, he wouldn't have.

We're walking slowly back to the strip of land between our houses. His hands are in his pockets, and mine dangle at my sides in hopes that he'll feel the need to hold one of mine again. It was a beautiful feeling that was gone too soon.

"Thank you for taking me there," I say once I near the ladder, attempting to momentarily get the idea of us so close out of my head. Just for a moment though, until we say goodbye. "It really was such a stunning place. I'll never forget it."

He's watching me, making me feel like we're the only people left in the world. It's something I see myself getting used to. "We'll go back again soon, okay?"

I nod, my gaze falling over the bruise on his face again. It genuinely concerns me, but I don't prod. It's probably nothing. "Deal."

It's quiet, and all I can think about is how badly I want him to stay with me a little longer. His company is so wonderful, and it makes me feel like someone cares to know me for the first time in my whole life. However, I'm too afraid to ask. I'm not used to being forward.

"I'll see you around, Mary," he murmurs, my name so light on his lips. I could listen to him say it forever.

I purse my lips as he begins to turn away, and I do something that I don't normally do, and that's to be forward. "Nick?" I call, causing him to turn around.

"Yeah?" he asks.

"Do you want to call me sometime? I mean, I know we live next door and everything, but it seems much easier if we just— you know," my voice trails off, and I can't believe I'm initiating this.

He smiles softly before taking his phone out of his pocket and handing it to me. "You mean you don't like the surprise visits at your window?" he asks.

"What?" I ask, looking up from his phone after I begin typing in my name in his contacts. "Oh, no, I love them! I just thought—"

"You love them, huh?" he raises an eyebrow.

I feel my cheeks flush again, mostly at the sight of his eyes on me. I feel like I'm in a literal trance. "I—"

"I know, Mary. I'm kidding," he teases, nudging my arm playfully. "Now I'll be able to reach you at all hours of the night if I want to."

I press my lips together and give his phone back to him once I'm done. "Will you?"

He shrugs. "I may just have to."

My fingertips wrap around the ladder step again, and I smile coyly at the boy standing before me. "I'll talk to you soon, Nick."

"Goodnight, Mary," he says.

His eyes twinkle beautifully when the words fall from his lips. He's said it before, and I feel the eruption of butterflies in my stomach yet again. I feel it even more so when he watches me climb up the ladder, then into my room. He waves me off, and takes the ladder for his own use once I close my window.

My heart is racing even as I'm engulfed in the deafening silence in my bedroom. I feel as if I'm more alive than I've ever been during my eighteen years of being in this planet, and it's all thanks to the few hours spent outside of my bedroom.

I slip out of my dress and back into the comfortable ensemble from before. I barely want to get into bed, because I'm hopeful that the night isn't quite over.