The Wolf ✔

Extra Chapter One

His hands were weak and shaking from carrying far too many books from the bookshop and all the emotions inside. It was the best feeling.
-Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Asher knows that I love to read, so it doesn't come as a shock when he decides to give me a book.

Not long after I started to read it did I realize at the end of each chapter the nice guy put a sticky note with one thing he loves about me on it.

Tsk.

Cheesiness.

Strangly this inspired me to finish the book even more, it was already late at night so that took me two days.

Getting to the end the book, after the last chapter, I'm about to close the book when I see the bright blue corner of the last sticky note.

Expecting another little loved thing, like my dimples or maybe just another cute note about our relationship not much exhilaration fills me, rather adoration of the golden boy. That is until I read four simple but rather sloppily, nervously written beautiful, adrenaline pumping, squeal worthy words.

"Will you marry me?"

"I'm nervous about doing this because once someone told me I couldn't do anything that involved love. But here goes nothing, and I didn't even know what to write." I manage to keep the relaxed grin on my face and open the book Asher had given me with shaky hands. "You don't know this but once on Valentine's day last year I sat down and started a song about someone who thought they couldn't be loved because I couldn't find any other way to express how I feel. Because as you've probably seen I suck at expressing how I feel. So, here goes nothing. Read them out loud."

Silently I hand it over to the golden boy, who's boyish smile lights up the room, despite the nervous undertone.

"To Asher, aka the golden boy, aka the nice guy who's mine." He begins to read the gold sticky notes I put on the start of every chapter instead of the end of them, glancing up in time to see me wink. "I told myself to write about something that I'm interested in, that other people would be interested in too. I instantly knew today when Link suggested to me in jest that I should do something romantic that I knew what I wanted to write about, or rather who. Because there is nothing more interesting to me than you."

His smile fades, but I think that's a good thing, as he looks up to me, emotions clouding his eyes. I motion to keep going, a smile overpowering my snarky grin with a bite of my lip.

He keeps flipping the pages. Thank god this is a long book.

"I could have chosen lots of things, what you mean to me or how much I like your smile, or sometimes how nervous you get when I'm around you because your blush is just so cute or how you're the most attractive person in the room." Like I predicted Asher flushes at this. "I could have picked something else to write about, leave it on forever unread because it just doesn't matter, but then I thought why not? And hell, my heart just isn't giving up right now at the thought of you, but getting stronger."

This time when he looks at me I barely notice it, a hand placed over my heart as I take in how it's racing. Apparently I didn't lie.

"For lots of high school, as you know, we had our home ed. class together. You were my partner and I had this massive crush, so I kept making stuff up to do as partners even though I didn't need any help because I thought that was my chance to get to know you better even if I didn't actually have a chance. That's insane..." Asher trails off in thought before he shakes himself out of it and starts reading again.

"I have to admit when we first became friends I would ask people about you, and the people who actually knew who you said that you were just the quiet nice guy, or the kid with the gold shoes. It was what I heard from pretty much everyone I asked, using pretty much the same words. Don't get me wrong you are pretty quiet and much too nice to be with someone as rude as I am but you are much more than some quiet nice guy. They all told me that's all you were but I knew from the moment we really started talking that you're more than that."