𝐅𝐎𝐑 | Tom Holland

Chapter XIX

*Y/N'S P.O.V*

"God, I really like you." Tom said suddenly, the seriousness in his tone and facial expression shocking me. I was still catching my breath, my heart and mind racing at those words.

Just as I was contemplating if what I heard was real, his eyes widened as if he had just realised what he said. He stuttered, struggling to find the right words.

"I-I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me there, I didn't mean to weird you out or anything-" He tried to explain.

"Did you mean it?" I asked, not knowing where the sudden boldness came from. "Did you mean what you said?"

I watched as he opened his mouth to respond almost immediately, before closing it again, as if he was surprised by my answer. He then looked away, allowing me to take notice of the position we were in. I could feel my cheeks burn up,  as Tom moved to the side of the bed, letting me to sit up straight. As I adjusted myself, I saw Tom looking my way, ready to elaborate.

"I, um," Tom started, his voice cracking slightly. I felt bad. "I'm sorry. I don't want to ruin what we already have. I know we haven't even known each other personally for a year yet, but I've really appreciated everything over these months we've been friends." He looked up at me, the two of us making eye contact.

For some reason, I almost felt like crying. My heart began to sink at his words, as I immediately assumed the absolute worst.

'Was I wrong?'

I could feel my eyes begin to water. I quickly broke the contact, disappointed in myself for feeling this way.

'What was I expecting? He's the Tom Holland.' I thought to myself, desperately trying to fight back the tears that threatened to fall. I felt pathetic. This wasn't something worth crying over.

I didn't want to look back at Tom, not like this. I continued to hold my head low and look down, my body not wanting to get up and leave. "So, you didn't mean it after all.." My voice broke on me. I felt ashamed. I didn't even realise I had started crying until I started to feel the tears fall from my eyes and onto my lap.

*TOM'S P.OV*

Shit.

Upon hearing Y/n's words, I immediately leaned over to wrap my arms around her in a warm embrace. I mentally cursed at myself for making her cry.

'I'm a horrible person.' I said to myself, rubbing her back in an effort to calm and comfort her. I didn't want to hurt her any further, but I did my best to clear things up and be honest, even if my voice was failing me.

"No, no. Don't cry, I'm sorry." I whispered in a rush. "I wasn't trying to friend-zone you.."

'Wow, great start, Tom.' I continued to mentally scold myself.

I pulled away gently, my hands still on her figure but this time on her shoulders. I made eye contact with her again. My heart broke seeing her. I felt it shatter. I inhaled deeply before continuing.

"I meant want I said." I said firmly, before realising the vagueness of my statement. I didn't want to mislead her, again. "The thing I said about really liking you, I mean."

My eyes frantically searched hers for any sign of understanding. I calmed down slightly upon feeling her ease up. I heard her sigh.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to mislead you like that. God, I'm so sorry. I really like you, I really do. I was just, scared." Words spilled out of my mouth. She then engulfed me in a hug.

"Thank you. I'm so glad." She said in a hushed voice, still hugging me tightly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cry. I thought the worst, that was my fault. Please don't blame yourself."

Y/n pulled away and looked me in my eyes. "I like you too. A lot." She broke into a smile, the tears gone from her eyes, causing me to smile too. I could feel the relief rush through me.

*Y/N'S P.O.V*

"I feel like the worst person alive right now, I can't believe I made you cry." Tom said truthfully with a slight pout. I felt beyond bad.

"I feel like the worst person alive making you feel bad like that!" I replied, wiping my tears from my face with my sleeve, letting my head fall into the crook of his neck. He chuckled, making me feel the vibrations in his chest.

"I guess we're even then?" He tried to lighten the mood. "That sounded, a lot more savage than it should've. Oops." I felt him tense up a little.

I lifted my head up and laughed, before Tom relaxed again and joined me.

"I'm so glad we were able to clear that up, I made things awkward real fast." He admitted. I wanted to agree, but I couldn't really describe how I was feeling. I just assumed I got rejected right away, almost as if everything that's happened between the two of us didn't even happen.

'The Tom Holland likes me back?!'

The realisation finally dawned upon me as I felt my eyes widen.

"Yes, the Tom Holland does in fact, like you back. Even more than you think." Tom laughed. It was only until then that I realised I said my thoughts out aloud. My face heated up in utter embarrassment.

Tom's hand then reached to gently hold my cheek. It felt cold in contrast to how warm my face was. His eyes held such a soft gaze as his face slowly inched closer. Even though his touch was cold, everything else felt warm.

My eyes fluttered closed, my heart pounding out of my chest. I braced myself for impact, feeling as if everything was happening in slow motion.

"ACHOO-!"

"WAY TO GO, HAZ." Paige's exasperated voice could be heard from doorway. My eyes immediately opened to see Tom's eyes wide open as well, both of us snapping our heads towards the closed door.

"WHAT? AM I NOT ALLOWED TO SNEEZE?" We could hear Harrison respond in a similar tone to Paige's. The two continued to bicker, before the door knob twisted open.

"They could've been having a moment-" Paige argued with Harrison while opening the door, creating a clear view of both Tom and I. She stopped in her tracks, Harrison looking beyond lost behind her.

Realisation hit me.

I cried.

"Tom," I turned around to face him, "you might wanna start running." He gave me a confused look. I turned back to Paige to see her approaching us. "Paige, it's not what you think, I can explai-"

"Thomas Stanley Holland." She said in frighteningly cold voice.

"What did you do?"