Owen

I'd Wait

I didn't feel anxious until I actually saw her. Staring at her like a creep all sixth hour. I wanted to slam her with questions but that never actually worked out well for me. That and there was nothing to keep her from just walking away from me. Not like at therapy.

So I waited.

Letting myself drown in thoughts and worst case scenarios piled on top of uncertainties and doubts.

She looked the same, blond hair pulled back into a ponytail, some of her hair falling from it because it was nearing the end of the day. The khaki pants and blue shirts all the therapists wore replaced the light denim jeans and white T-shirt she had worn to school. Her green eyes laser focused, her face impartial as she listened to Sarah.

What had I done?

Where had I gone wrong?

Why was she pretending to hate me?

What about Saturday or the night we played pool?

Why were there fleeting moments when she smiled at me?

She didn't make any sense.

But my heart still pounded at the sight of her.

I wheeled myself in her direction, Sarah spotting me first. She glanced at her watch and then back up at me as a smile spread on her face.

"Hey Owen, how are you?" She asked.

I smiled back. "Good, you?"

I looked at Mina. Was it possible for your heart to beat straight out of your chest? Mine was dangerously close. Her eyes met mine for the smallest of seconds before she fixed her gaze on her shoes. But for that split second, they were filled with anger.

Was she mad because I had grabbed her hand Saturday night?

Had I overstepped that stupid invisible line so much that now she actually did hate me?

"I'm going to step back and let Mina get you started, you guys seem to be getting a system down." Sarah said.

I wasn't exactly sure I wanted to be alone with Mina. She'd looked at me with loathing before but never just pure anger. And if I was actually on the receiving end of that anger, I'd rather not be left alone to suffer its wrath.

"I...uh..." I muttered, my eyes following Sarah as she walked away. "Well shit."

"Ready?" Mina asked.

She had folded her arms across her chest, most of the white polish gone on her finger nails.

"Yeah."

"Start with your upper body stretches." She instructed.

I did, without any hesitation. There was something off about her. Something I hadn't noticed during the hour that I had watched her from my desk at school. She was more closed off than normal. Which I hadn't realized was possible but apparently it was.

I brought my left arm across my body, my right arm pulling it close to my chest. Mina just stared at my arms, watching what I was doing but I couldn't help feeling like she was a thousand miles away. Stuck inside her head.

"Are you okay?" I had to ask.

She didn't even blink. I switched arms.

"Mina?"

"Hmm?" She answered distractedly.

She was making me nervous.

"Are you okay?" I repeated.

Her eyes flicked to mine, still full of anger. I swallowed hard as she reached out and shifted my arm.

"I'm fine."

That was incorrect.

I wasn't exactly sure I wanted to call her out but she wasn't fine. Even her voice sounded distracted and distant.

"You don't look fine." I said, taking the risk.

I had no idea what the right move was. What move would make Mina stop hating me or at least stop wanting to hate me. Her eyes met mine, bouncing back and forth between them as she searched for something. What it was I wasn't sure but I held her gaze trying my best to be whatever it was she was looking for.

"It's nothing." She said on a sigh.

I shifted through another stretch, deciding maybe it was best to just lay it out there. Let myself be vulnerable for a minute, give her the opportunity to see that I'm willing to jump if it made her feel better. Even though I'd already realized I was definitely falling in love with her, what Max had said had been on a loop in my mind since the words left his lips and I just wanted to know she was okay. That if she need an ear or a shoulder or a crippled boy to help in anyway, that I was there.

"I know you hate me. But I don't hate you." I was waiting for my heart to just up and quit on me it was pounding so hard. I wasn't going to tell Mina that I definitely liked her. But I also wasn't going to pretend like I wasn't falling hard for her. "Believe it or not Mina, I consider you a friend and as a friend I'm there if you need someone."

For a second, a tiny short little second, it almost felt like she was going to let me in. It was the way she looked at me. The anger falling away to reveal hurt, the slight slump to her shoulders, the way her eyes glossed over like she might be tearing up.

But then she caught herself. Her back stiffening, eyes narrowing slightly as the anger rushed back in.

"I'm fine." She said more confidently.

My heart sunk a little but I wasn't stupid. People didn't just trust blindly. Especially with what little Max had said. And I understood. My ability to trust had a hole blown through it by my best friend. But I was willing to wait. I could be patient. I'd earn it. Besides anything worth having was worth waiting for.

I gave her a small smile, nodding my head.

"Well if you change your mind, I'm here."

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I tried like mad to get this chapter out yesterday but the stars clearly did not align for me. Apparently the universe is a little more behind me this morning.