Little Too Much

Chapter 25 - Never Forever

Even though Shawn had called Cameron and explained everything, Cameron still failed to believe it, failed to stop hating me for 'spreading the rumors,' and failed to stop being disappointed in Bella for what she had supposedly done. He swore he'd never invest his heart so quickly again. 

After us girls, Bella, Julie, and i, made a few attempts - all of which that failed - to call or text Cameron, we put our trust in Aaron and Shawn to get to him. Cameron said he'd come over, but under one condition: that Bella and i wouldn't be there.

Us girls skedaddled to the mall, since we hadn't on Saturday. Five hours later we guessed Cameron would have been long gone. To our surprize, we discovered Cameron was still there, huddled up in a blanket, tissues beside him, remote control sitting idly on his lap, and his cheeks red and wet with tears. Shawn's contact was lit up on Aaron's phone, and he was on speaker. His voice was shakey, as if he'd been almost crying too. 

His immediate responce to our entrance was a muttering, "You promised they wouldn't be here, SHE wouldn't be here!" Aaron defended himself, "You've been here 5 hours! I didn't know they were coming back!"

Shawn was on the other end calling out "What?" and "What's going on?" but everyone was too busy to hear him. I did, but he wouldn't hang up. I knew him.

Cameron stood up, letting the blanket fall off his shoulders and the remote control to the floor. He made to leave. Bella stomped over to him, "You..." her voice caught in her sudden burst of anger, "you're not leaving until you hear my side of the story!" She shoved him back onto the couch, standing above him, arms crossed. 

Cam remained silent, stunned by Bella's actions. I whispered Bella's name to her, and she whipped her head and hair around to face me. In that moment, Cameron jumped over the couch to the door. He was slipping on his shoes and jacket as Bella hollered for everyone to get out. Julie and i shoved everyone down the hall to Aaron's room, closing the door. 

I grabbed Aaron's phone and told him I'd call back in five minutes and explain everything when it was over. He agreed, although i could hear his reluctance to hang up in his voice. He hung up first anyway.

Bella ran over to Cameron and grabbed his wrist. He yanked it away to shrug on his jacket. Bella grabbed onto it again, this time without both hands. "Look," Bella beged for one last chance, "i know you probably hate me, but i can't change that. The least you can do before leaving me forever is let me explain! Just listen, please!"

He grumbles, "Fine," so deep in his throat Bella could hardly make it out.

"I didn't go home with Shawn, i haven't kissed him or heald his hand or anything! You don't have to believe me, but please give me a chance! That night after Nash's party, yes i left with Shawn, but that's only because he dropped me, Julie, Athalia, and Aaron back at our house before he went home. I have proof i slept over at Athalia's, not Shawn's. We have a million snapchats of us all night. It's impossible anything could have happened between Shawn and i that night. Then, and clearly nothing happened between us in the time between Nash's party and Shawn's. Look, if it isn't obvious, Shawn totally has a thing for Athalia, even though she refuses to see it. There's no freaking way in the eintire world he'd ever be stupid enough to screw any chances he has with her up by hooking up with me! And Athalia is my best friend. I don't have anyone else to go to aside from Julie. If i don't have her, i don't want to be here. You can't possibly think i would willingly mess that up by screwing her best guy friend. She has feelings for him too even if she won't admit it. Does it make a single ounce of sense for us to do that?!?"

Cameron tried to look her in the eye, but turned away instead, heading for the door. Bella sped forward, barracading herself between Cameron and the door, he hand clamping the handle to keep him from it. He reached for the handle anway, his hand resting atop hers. She wiped away the tear on his cheek with her thumb and finally their eyes met. 

He stared her dead in the eyes, melting her. "You're the only person i want, Cameron," Bella said, quietly breaking the open silence. He kept glancing down at her lips, but stopped to look her again in the eyes to say passionately, "I love you."

He kissed her. Bella was crying, but it didn't make the kiss any less romantic. He shifted his hand to the wall behind her, leaving the other one on the doorknob with her's. He stopped it to whisper into her lips, "I don't want anyone to love you the way i already do."

He kissed her longer and more passionately and Bella kissed him back, this time smiling a bit inbewteen. He dried her tears with his jacket sleeves then put his arms on either side of the wall beside her. Bella slid her fingers in his belt loops and pulled her closer to him. "Will you please be my Beautiful Bella? I don't want anyone else to have you."

"I'm never going to be able to say forever with more meaning than now."