Kiss Me

Chapter 11

     Weeks had flown by and Ella and I were hanging out frequently. We'd been hanging out a lot more nowadays with Ella asking me to hang out every few days. And with every hang out we had, we grew closer and I was growing to really like the real Ella.

     Ella and I were sitting on a wooden bench and we were eating the shawarma we bought from the cafeteria. We were side by side, staring at the field in front of us. Fall was coming to an end and winter was soon coming, and I was dreading the snow that would come soon.

     "How come I rarely see you at parties?" Ella asked, glancing at me. "I would have expected to see you at more of them, but I rarely see you at any of them."

     "I don't know, it's not really the life I'm into. I mean, I do like the occasional party, but I'm not a huge partier," I said, shrugging. "My parents are kind of strict and they drilled in me and my sister that getting a good future is a priority, so I try to focus on my studies. I hope I don't sound like a total nerd."

     I smiled at Ella and she immediately smiled back. Her eyes were gentle as she stared at me.

     "I always noticed you were different," Ella said quietly.

     She flushed then and looked away, and she began to swing her legs. She looked nervous and I stared at her, feeling my heart race.

     "Whoops, I've told you before that I think you're different. I should chill out," Ella said, laughing to herself.

     "No worries," I said. "I like hearing that from you."

     Ella looked to me then and broke out into a huge smile. Her smile was blazing. Beautiful. And I was mesmerized.

     "You're fun to be around," Ella then said, catching me off guard. "You're just so easy going and chill. I wish we met earlier."

     "I can say the same for you," I said, smiling. "I honestly can't believe I used to be scared of you."

     Ella's eyes widened and I flushed. I cursed myself for admitting my fear.

     "Wait, you used to be scared of me?" Ella asked.

    "Um..." My face grew warmer and I tried to come up with a lie. But, I ended up not having it in me to lie. "Kind of."

     "How come?"

     Ella was staring at me with wide eyes and her mouth dropped open a bit. She looked so innocent and I stared at her, feeling my heartbeat quicken at the sight of her. She was stunning and sweet and everything I wanted in a girl. And as she stared at me, I thought about how this was the perfect moment to confess my feelings. After three years of pining over her, this was the perfect time to tell her that I was scared of her because I was in love with her.

     But as I stared into Ella's blue eyes, I found my heart racing with fear now. Even though Ella and I had grown closer, I still wasn't completely comfortable around her. I was still scared of rejection and with that, I realized I was a wimp and I couldn't confess just yet.

     "It's because you're so popular," I lied.

     "You're popular, too," Ella said, frowning.

     "Yeah, but I'm a different kind of popular. I just get along with everyone, but everyone knows you. People you've never spoken to know you. I can't relate on that."

     Ella grew deep in thought at my words and she bit her lip. She then brought her eyes to me, looking defeated.

     "That's true, but sometimes I wish everyone didn't know me," she said.