love that heals

chapter nine: ethereal

The next two months saw Keon and Aria become closer and closer to each other, both in a friendly and romantic way. They learned about each other in ways they had never imagined and kept no secrets from each other. The only thing Keon looked forward to was seeing Aria almost every weekend; spending time with her was therapy for him.

Throughout that time, Keon realized that he was falling for her; hard. One would suppose that he fell in love with her because of her stunning looks, but it was only a bonus. Her charm, kindness, purity, sense of humor, and many other features of her personality are what fascinated him. He couldn't comprehend that he had the chance to have her be part of his life; to him, Aria was the perfect girl, and he desired more than anything to at least try out being in a relationship with her. Things were going well between them, and they were both attracted to each other; but Keon didn't know how to tell Aria that he wanted to go steady. Most importantly, he didn't know how to explain how much she meant to him.

When he decided he could not hold it in any longer, Keon went to Ronan's house with Devon, Dorian, Joe, Hunter, and Austin to tell them about his feelings.

"You might be wondering why I gathered you here today," Keon crossed his hands.

"Stop being so corny and get to the main point," Ronan laughed.

"Sheesh, Ro, let him begin!" Austin smacked him.

"Don't worry about that," Keon giggled. "Anyway, I just wanted to tell you guys that... I want Aria and I to become an official couple, but I don't know how to ask her."

"Have you had a girlfriend before?" Hunter asked.

"Yes," Keon replied. "That was ages ago, though. We broke up when I was seventeen."

"That means you were probably the one that asked her to go steady," he nodded.

"Yeah, that's right."

"Then you can ask Aria to be your girlfriend in the same way you asked your ex," Ronan explained. "I know you might get nervous, but it's really a piece of cake."

"Says the guy who always gets friendzoned," Austin whispered, which made Ronan nudge him and tell him to be quiet.

"No, no, no, I don't think y'all understand," Keon shook his head. "The things I used to feel for my ex can't be compared with the things I feel for Aria. It's way too different, I've never had such strong feelings for someone before. In fact, I was not really in love with my ex when we were together; however, the things that this girl makes me feel are something I can't explain. It makes me question whether or not I've been in love, because like I said earlier, I've never felt this strongly for anyone else."

"Damn, bro," Devon raised his eyebrows, putting his hands on his hips. "Does this mean that Aria is technically your first love?"

"Eh, I guess you could say that," Keon giggled nervously. "But that's not the point. The point is that I'm going crazy about her, and I really want us to be official. I just don't know how to ask her, because... what do I do if she rejects me?"

"Easy, eat ice cream until the sadness goes away," Joe chipped in.

"Joe!" Dorian smacked him.

"What? That's what I did when Scarlett and I broke up."

"Still, don't make Keon more nervous than he already is."

"Don't worry about it," Keon snickered. "I know he's just playing. By the way, Dorian, what's going on with Leah? Are things going well between the two of you?"