Walls

Hope

Phana's POV

"I bought that bracelet for someone I liked. You don't fit that description anymore," Yo said. I couldn't stop the pain that flared in my eyes with his words. I didn't know what else to do, I'd messed everything up so thoroughly and now I was really losing him. He was angrier than I had ever seen him and I knew I was hurting him by pushing.

"N'Yo, I'm going to find a way to make this right, okay?" I said, taking hold of his arms gently. "Will you give me a chance?"

"I don't understand, P'Pha," Yo said, still stubbornly refusing to see what I meant.

"I'll show you," I replied. "Just give me some time."

He just stared at me. I didn't think he was going to be willing to talk anymore tonight, so I did the only thing I could think of for now. I hugged him tight and asked, "Will you meet me for breakfast tomorrow morning? Please."

"I'm tired," Yo said. He hadn't pushed me away, but he wasn't returning my hug either.

"Breakfast? 7 AM?" I asked, needing him to say yes.

"Fine," he said, giving in. We walked to his door. I stepped outside and turned to face him but he shut the door in my face. He was still angry at me, but it was deserved. I would just have to be happy that he said yes to breakfast.

I laid in my bed for hours, trying to plan what I would say to Yo, until I fell asleep from exhaustion. The next morning, I stopped at Yo's room to take him to breakfast as planned. We went to the cafe right across the street from our dorms and I ordered food for both of us.

He didn't look at me, I could see that he was still angry and confused. I knew this might be my last chance and I wouldn't let it go to waste.

I sat looking at him until the food arrived. I didn't know how to start, all of my plans from last night seemed to have vanished with the morning. Finally, I just settled for showing him how sincere I was.

"I know I've done everything wrong, but I want to show you how much I care for you," I said, finally settling for complete honesty. "I've liked you for a long time."

He just looked back at me. Confusion, hurt, and what I wanted to believe was hope on his face.

"This is my favorite," I took a shrimp from my bowl and placed it in his, "I've never shared with anyone before."

His mouth turned up in a tiny smile and my heart soared. Finally, I'd done one small thing right.

"So do you think you can beat N'Ming?" I asked, wanting to have a normal conversation. We had to start somewhere.

"Me? Beating Ai'Ming?" Yo responded, laughing a little. "Not likely."

"Sure you can," I said, trying to bolster his confidence. He just looked at me with an amused expression.

"Weren't you the one who said I wasn't going to win?" he asked. Great, even when I try to compliment him, my own words come back to bite me in the ass.

"I really didn't mean it when I said that," I said, trying to apologize.

"Pha," Pring said as she sat down next to me, interrupting my conversation with Yo. "You're up earlier than usual. I'll join you."

"Good morning, Ai'Pring," I was annoyed at her intrusion, but I didn't want to be rude to her, so I smiled at her anyway.

"How are you, N'Yo? You went all the way to the beach and didn't get any darker," Pring asked, smiling at Yo.

"I'm fine, thanks, P'Pring. We weren't able to spend much time in the sun, and we were only there for one night," Yo said, taking a bite of his food.

"I wish I'd been able to come," Pring said. "I got some extra work done for our classes though."

"You're raising the average for the class again?" I asked. "You'll have to help me study."

"Sure," she said while Yo continued eating his food, "when do you want to meet?"

"You decide," I said. "I'm too lazy to read it all, I'd rather listen."

I looked up at Yo, still eating his food. There was some rice on the corner of his mouth. Before I could stop myself, I reached over and used my thumb to wipe his lips. I noticed Pring watching me and said, "He's such a messy eater."

"How cute," Pring said, looking like she thought it was anything but cute. Yo's cheeks turned pink as she continued, "You used to tease him all the time, but now you seem very close."

"Well," I started, unsure what to say. I cleared my throat and said, "It's just like what you see."

I looked at Yo for a moment and he looked back at me with a look I couldn't decipher. The way Pring was watching us was making me very uncomfortable. I didn't want to say too much, but I wanted her to know that my relationship with Yo wasn't really her business.

I took another shrimp from my bowl, and tried to offer it to Yo. But before I could say anything, Pring said, "Don't you need to get to class?"

Yo made no move to take the shrimp that I was holding out, so I put it back in my bowl and said, "It's not far, I can get there in five minutes."

"I'll go with you," she said.

"Where's your car?" I asked. Ever heard of walking?

"It's at the shop," she replied. "It'll be two weeks before it's fixed."

I watched Yo, he was mostly just playing with his remaining food. Pring had messed up our entire breakfast. Wanting to be clear with Yo about where my thoughts were, I asked him, "Can she ride with me?"

"What?" Yo asked, looking at me in confusion.

"Can Ai'Pring get a ride to class with me?" I asked.

"Umm, yes?" Yo responded, but it sounded like a question.

"I'll meet you at your car," Pring said, standing up and walking away looking angry. I honestly didn't care how she felt about it.

"It's only a five minute drive," I said. I knew he thought I was a playboy, but I wanted to change that. "Nothing will happen. There's nothing between Ai'Pring and me."

"Isn't that something you should be making clear to her?" Yo asked. Shit.

"When are you going to trust me?" I asked, begging him to understand my feelings. I picked up a pen and a post it note from my school bag and wrote, To: N'Yo You'll always have my heart From: P'Pha. I folded the note and handed it to him, "Open this when I'm gone."

He looked at me with a frown and put the note in his pocket. Then he said, "P'Pha, trust is earned. If you want me to trust you, be a trustworthy person. A note is nice, but that doesn't make up for how you've treated me in the past."

"I'm willing to wait, I just want a chance to be with you," I said. "Will you let me prove myself?"

"I don't understand why you waited so long, and I don't understand why you're being so insistent now," Yo said, looking at me in confusion.

"I know I haven't done anything to deserve you," I said. I knew I couldn't make this right immediately, but I wanted him to see that I wasn't giving up. "I just don't want to lose you. I will make it up to you."

"You don't need to make it up to me," Yo said, finally giving me a shy smile. "If you're really serious, I'm willing to forget the past and start from today."

We walked out to my car together, since it was on the way back to the dorms and Yo was going back to his room. When we got to the car, Pring gave me a dirty look and told me we were going to be late. I opened my door and unlocked the car so she could get in, ignoring her comment.

"I'll call you later," I said to Yo, ruffling his hair. "Don't sleep too much."

Yo smiled at me, and walked back into the dorms. I had finally done it. I'd not only left him with a good impression, but I'd told him how I felt.