2 Truths & a Lie | Grayson Dolan

one

grayson, 3/18/2018

in that moment, nothing mattered to me more thank getting to hold her again. with her black hair sticking to my cheek, her almond scent in my nose and her soft lips on mine, i was able to forget everything for a few short seconds. that has to be the best feeling ever. and then reality comes back and hits you like a bus.

suddenly, i can feel every single pair of eyes burning into me, i can sense their cameras following my every move. i let my reese go, my breathing hitching. no, no, no. her face gleams, her smile the center of attention. "grayson!", i heard- ethans voice bellow behind me. my hands are shaking, my palms sweaty. my jacket feels too tight, my head feels heavy, my eyes hurt. i let go of her.

ethan is next to me, his expression confused, his mouth agape. everything starts spinning, like a carousel starting. reese's smile is fading. i feel like my body is alight, my skin aflame. i'm not even breathing anymore, for all i know. everything starts to distort and reese's image seems closer than before, her mouth wide open. everything sounds like i'm underwater, like i'm drowning. the eyes were still preying me, i still felt them all.

my arm is lifted and placed on a firm surface, a muscle that moved as i was dragged along the path. i must look day drunk, stumbling over my own shadow as i helplessly followed ethan. we've crossed a crosswalk and ethan lifts me up some steps, past a gate. apartment complex. ethan is breathing hard, my heart beats normally again. i pull my arm off of ethan and grab the banister instead, pulling myself up the steps. i look up at reese, who's looking back at me.

she's blossomed into such a beautiful young woman. she turns away to unlock her apartment door and i already miss her gray eyes. she opens it and ethan pauses by the door to let me in first. i walk in slowly, looking around. there was a big window across from the entrance area, from ceiling to floor. they follow me and the door closes. reese's fingers wrap around my wrist and she guides me to the couch, not that i wouldn't have found it myself.

her hands are cautious when they let me go and i seat myself down, completely overwhelmed. "hi.", i finally manage to say and reese laughs. ethan's still confused as hell and she turns to him. "have a seat, i'll get us some water.", she says and smiles tightly, stumbling down a long hallway and turning a corner. ethan limps in and stares at me, talking seat in the armchair. "explanation?", he breathes and i bite my lip, bouncing my leg. how was i supposed to explain this incoherence? "that...she's...", i begin with a stutter. but i cant find the words.

i try to grasp the thoughts from that one night years ago. the night i'd found her. the night i'd lost her. "apricot princess.", i stammer. ethan frowns. "what?". i turn to him. "apricot princess.", i repeat and his eyes widen, his finger pointing down the hall. "she- she's the girl? the tyler girl? the 'i gave my v card to her' girl?", he hisses and i nod, looking down at my feet. he's quiet and he leans back, pulling off his beanie. "holy shit.", he mumbles, just as she appears again, a bamboo tray balanced on her forearm with three glasses.

she takes a seat next to me on the couch, leaving an obvious distance between us. "such a coincidence.", she mumbles and looks at ethan. "i'm reese, by the way. you must be ethan?", she asks and ethan nods. "yeah, that's me.", he chuckles. "you remember?", i ask her and she shrugs, smiling. "i have a thing about remembering things. it's weird. how did you end up in la?", she questions us and picks up a glass, sipping from it.

"moved here a couple of years back.", ethan explains and i fold my hands together. she nods and puts down her glass, her lip stains on the rim of the crystal. "i haven't been back in jersey since i left. how's home?", she asks and looks at me. ethan doesn't answer, giving me a chance to say something. "i mean, we go back a lot, but nothings really different.", i tell her and bite my lip, nodding. then i muster up my courage and look at her straight in the eyes. "when did you come here?", i ask her.

an uneasiness fills the void between us and she sighs. "i cant even recall. but i work in a bookstore down the road now and it's my last semester in college.", she says and looks at the empty space between us. ethans phone rings and he pulls it out of his jeans. "oh, god. uhm, can i be, uh,...". reese laughs again. oh, what a laugh. like a symphony. "second door left.", she says and points down the bright hallway. ethan blushes and gets up quickly, following her directions and closing the door behind him.

we're silent. she looks up at me. i look back. and then i grab her by the wrist and pull her into me, pressing my other hand into her hair and holding her close to me, my lips brushing hers. she parts hers and puts her hands on my cheeks, stroking them and filling the space between us. we're kissing before i know it. her peachy lips on mine, her soft hair between my fingers. she's the one who pulls away, breathing heavily, smiling.

her eyelids open in flash when something rattles at the door. she springs up and walk towards it, ethan appears again in the hallway as the door opens. my brother sits down next to me on the couch and i look up and see a guy walk into the room. reese closes the door behind him and he puts down a briefcase. reese is red as she leads him towards us by grabbing his bicep. she smiles insecurely at me and ethan and gestures towards us. "liam, this is grayson and ethan, some old childhood friends.", she says, her voice squeaking slightly. he nods and gives us a smile. i return the gesture. reese breathes in slowly before she continues.

"this is liam, my husband."

-

a/n:
i don't think anyone was ready for that:)
xx,  cece