The CEO and Fate✔️

Chapter 27

I stared at him, slightly in awe and slightly in shock. Never mind the rain that was drenching me. Just seeing Blake standing out there with me in this chaos was enough to pull me into the world where it was just him and I.

Though as ridiculous as I was sure I looked at the moment, he was a reality I always dreamt of. If he had a suit, he had ditched the jacket. Now, he was wearing black pants and a white dress shirt, the sleeves habitually rolled to his elbows because he was anxious. And the rain made the shirt almost see through, clinging to his muscles, the ones that reminded me that we weren't teenagers anymore. That we were hell-bent adults.

He brushed his black locks of hair out of his eyes.

"Alexa."

"Blake," I repeated, stunned.

"You didn't bring an umbrella?" He joked weakly.

I shook my head. "I thought—Skylar said—what are you doing here?" I stammered. "You're supposed to be in Spain."

He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "I cut the trip short," he admitted. "I got back this morning."

"Oh," was all I could say. "Okay."

Neither of us made a move for the door. Neither of us made a move to do anything else. We just stood there, dumbfounded by the other.

I was too stunned by his presence to say much. I didn't know what his excuse was. I had just spent the last couple days convincing myself that I would be able to survive walking on to that airplane without having ever said goodbye to him. Without ever knowing what anything had or ever would mean to him.

It was painful to see him now. He was a blessing I didn't deserve. And I had accepted that, mostly. And I was prepared to have to leave it all behind now.

It was almost cruel for him to be here.

"Will you, uh, come sit?" He asked. "We're both kinda drenched already. I figured, uh, why not?"

I wordlessly nodded.

We walked over to the edge of the rooftop. He helped me up before joining me himself. Side by side, we dangled our feet and looked out at the gray city skyline before us.

It was haunting to see a world before me, yet mine was sitting right next to me.

"Blake," I whispered at last. I was afraid my soft voice would get lost in the rain, but I couldn't bring myself to talk any louder in fear that maybe this would get too real. "I'm so sorry about Michigan. About not telling you, and not helping you."

He flexed and unflexed his jaw as he listened to my apology. "I was angry at first," he replied. "I was angry at you, at my past, and at myself for believing that I could ever truly escape what had happened."

I watched him. "And now?"

He brushed his hair out of his eyes once more. "I'm glad to finally close that chapter," he said, carefully choosing his words. "I will never ever be able to forget what happened. My brother's funeral will forever be etched in my memory. But at least we both rest easy now."

I looked out at the gray sky, still raining steadily like the struggle of my heart.

He continued. "However I made peace, and though our troubles may be over, I won't lie. I'm still angry that you chose to lie, Alexa. It was a decision you had no right to make."