Tragically Beautiful

Chapter 19....

Semi-Edited! (I probably don't even have to put this here anymore :D) 

Song above is....Silhouette by Aquilo (this song is sooo good) 

Happy Reading! :)

Alex's Pov....

Fuck, I wanted to kiss her. Her soft lips were inches from mine and all I had to do was lean forward and I'd be able to feel them. But my conscious got the best of me. I couldn't kiss her.

I knew she was still getting over Lingston; it was still a fresh wound for her. It wasn't my place to push her to be ready, only she could do that. And I had to be honest with myself as well. I wasn't quite sure if I was ready to be with anyone at the moment.

There was so much going on in my life right now that having a girlfriend didn't really fit the picture; if it ever would. There were certain things about my life and my past that Riley didn't know about, what a lot of people didn't know about.

My reasons for taking Riley out today were ten-fold. When Olivia called me and said Riley hadn't answered her phone and didn't show up to class I immediately knew she was staying home, avoiding everything that happened yesterday. I didn't blame her honestly.

After hearing what Mitch did to her last night I couldn't bring myself to let her stay home by herself. Riley wore her heart on her sleeve and I could feel the pain and hurt coming off of her in waves. She needed a distraction from everything.

That was only one of the reasons though. After yesterday and last night I ended up staying up all night thinking through things. If Riley was going to stick around our friend group then there was something she needed to know about me. I had debated back and forth about telling her, but every time I said no her soft face would appear in my head.

Those green eyes wide and innocent. She may seem shy but from little cracks in her wall I could see the feisty part of her wanting to burst free. I saw it that night at the club with Marcus.

So after a lot of inner discussion I decided that I would tell her today. She deserved to know something this big, if she hadn't already figured it out.

While I was enjoying hanging out with Riley I couldn't ignore the feeling in my the back of my mind about what I was going to tell her. How would she take it? Would she be surprised, angry?

I shook my head, forcing myself not to listen to the questions swirling through my mind. Stressing over it won't change anything.

"That is 20 to 10, bad boy."

"Bad boy?" I raised my eyebrow at Riley.

"Yep, your new nickname." The teasing grin she sent my way made me clench my fists at my side. With each passing day I felt myself looking forward to that smile. Her green eyes twinkling.

Its been only recently that her smile as come back, only for it to go away once again after yesterday. I wouldn't admit it but I was worried that after what happened yesterday Riley would fall back into herself.

I knew all too well what can happens when something traumatic happens and you fall back into yourself. If you don't have anyone there to catch you things can take a bad turn. Riley's sweet nature made her more prone to heartbreak. I guess in a way I was taking it upon myself to make sure nothing like that happens to her.

"Lets see if I can kick your butt yet again."

"You do realize I won the first two right?" I raised an eyebrow at her as I went over to the rack of axes.