'Safe with Rafe' Y/N x Rafe Cameron

Chapter XXXVI

You wake up the next morning from a heavenly sleep. The night before was breezy and cool in temperature so your blankets stayed fresh and cold through out the entire night, including both sides of your pillow. So naturally, you woke up feeling rejuvenated, fresh as a daisy, ready for the day ahead of you. Not only are birds heard chirping outside but also a lot of rustling downstairs and out on the yard as well as several voices so you decide to see how far setting up has come along since you've been asleep.

You walk out into the living room before making your way to the back door to see strangers hanging up banners from their ladders, one of which being Heyward.
"Hey Mr.Heyward!" You shout from the door way.
"Hey, Y/N! You're awake! Was wondering how long you'd be sleeping in." He says with a smirk.
"Sleeping in?" You ask confused.
"It's almost lunch time, Sarah's been waiting for you to wake up."
"Sarah's here?" You ask, suddenly an array of energy.
"It's the Cameron's party too, you know. They're all here, helping to set up." He responds with a laugh before shrugging you off to get back to work.
"Ssshit." You say, looking down at your pyjamas.

You shut the sliding door before hurriedly weaving through the house to make it upstairs. Occasionally slipping on the marble floors from the loose ends of your pyjama pants. You whip through the hallways and rooms, sure to avoid any encounters with strangers while you're still in your baggy pyjama pants and little white crop top, tight, but comfortable to sleep in.

As you turn a corner, your face clashes against something unexpected and hard.
"Ow," you wince under your breath as you peep your eyes open again. Upon opening them, you see the zipper of a familiar grey fleece jacket. You avert your attention upwards to be met with blue eyes.
"Rafe?!" You exclaim, your hands flying to your chest to hide your embarrassing combo of an outfit.
Rafe smiles down at you as he readjusts the boxes he was carrying on his shoulder, "Hello sleepy head."
"How long have you been here?!" You ask, still just as shocked.
"Mmmmm...little over an hour."
"Oh? That's it? Where's Sarah?"
"She's on balloon duty, which you should be too." He teases as he pokes your shoulder.
"Oh no, she hasn't been doing it alone has she?"
"Mehh.." He shrugs carelessly.
"God, you're terrible." You laugh, "you should've woke me up." You adjust his jacket that had crumpled awkwardly when you ran into him.
"I couldn't do that to you," he says lowly as he watches your hand glide against the fabric on his chest before averting his eyes to yours, "I'd prefer you rest, I would've been happy to take on your duties." He smiles warmly.
Your face feels heated at his words. The sweetness in his voice matches the softness in his smile.
"You're so sweet," you smile back, "such a shame you have to be such a caveman sometimes." You tease as you flick the band of his backwards hat.
"Oh yeah? It's game over the moment my hands aren't full, I'll show you caveman." He jokes with a wide, toothy smile as he inches his body closer to yours tauntingly.
You laugh before pushing at his chest, "get outta here you neanderthal."
He laughs before finally walking off, hands full as he turns around swiftly for one more glance and you do the same as you give him a small twiddle of your fingers from over your shoulder.

As you near the living room, the sound of helium tanks can be heard expelling gas every few seconds.
You turn the corner to be met with both Sarah and Pope sitting on the couch together. Sarah blowing balloons up before handing them off to Pope to be tied.
"Pope!" You shout excitedly as he stands up, allowing you to jump into his arms.
"Long time, no see Y/N." He says into the hug.
"I missed you."
"I'm here too you know." Sarah says with a sigh.
"Come here, you." You say, gesturing for her to join the huddle. She lets go of the balloon she had just blown, letting it fly across the room as stands up proudly to accept the hug.
"I missed you both." You mumble.
"Don't ever go M.I.A again." Sarah adds.
"Thanks for helping Sarah with the balloons, Pope. It should've been me but I don't know what happened- I just woke up so late-" you ramble before being cut off by Pope himself.
"Relax, I got you." He says with a fist bump.
"Now go, your poor dads working out there like a donkey." You laugh, earning a smile from the boy as he struts off towards the back.

You take Popes former seat next to Sarah. Sure, she's your best friend but something in the air felt awkward. As if she knew something that you didn't. Or, it was the fact that you had an immense amount of guilt locked away from absolutely everybody about how friendly you've allowed yourself to be around her brother, Rafe.

Sarah noticeably looks around the room before peering around the corner of the hallways from her cushion before asking, "Hey, uh, Y/N." Sarah starts.
"Yeah?" You start to panic as your chest grows tight with anxiety. She knows, she knows, she knows.
"Were you with Rafe yesterday?" She asks.
Oh no.
"-and last night?"
Oh no, oh no, oh no.
"Uhhh....well, i-" You pause.
Sarah focuses on your features as she notices the worrisome expression that had started to appear as you choke on your words. She removes her hand from the helium tank to rest it on your shoulder reassuringly, seeing your worrisome face turn to a confused one.
"Look, I don't care. Really," she smiles at you with doe eyes, "Rafes just become...well...happier lately. More lively. It makes me happy to see. And I only want happiness for you too."

Maybe it was exactly what you needed to hear to be able to finally become aware of your own emotions. Photographic memories of Rafes smile and laugh, the warmth and tenderness in his every touch and the hidden sweetness he seemed to only reveal to you flooded your entire being.
Your memories flash back to the Rafe you used to know. The reserved Rafe who was too afraid to show the smallest of emotions around anybody. Let alone his family. Rafe, who would brick himself away from anybody that cared.
To now, visibly happier.
Enough for it to sprout through his tough guy demeanour like a flower through concrete. Enough for somebody as distant from him as his own sister to notice. And it made you glad, you feel yourself beam proudly for him like an explosion of sun rays before it all became too overwhelming.

You feel your eyebrows start to furrow sadly and your eyes begin to burn as they swell with tears.
"Sorry, I don't know why I'm crying." You laugh as you wipe at your eyes with the backs of your hands.
Sarah completely stops what she was doing to pull you into a hug.

"You love him, don't you?"

You pause at her sudden choice of words, but your body doesn't stiffen like it typically would when you were shocked. It's almost as if it had no effect on you.
Like you had known all along.

"I think so."