~𝗠𝘆 𝗟𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗻 𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿~

27

Afya looked the boy up and down in disgust, shaking her head severely. She didn't turn away from him but put down her food.

"Well?" she asked. "Why are you here? Surely Sabrina is waiting for you back at the hotel or something."

The long, heartfelt apology and confession that Bukayo had planned flew out of the window of his memory. He stood there, not saying a single word.

Admiring the beauty of the young woman in front of him.

He slowly walked up to her, until she was directly in front of him. Raising a hand to her delicate cheek, he began to stroke it before taking a deep breath.

"I love you," Bukayo announced. "I really, really do - and I'm sorry for what I did. I know that I fucked up, believe me. It's been on my mind constantly."

The boy's eyes became softer as he slightly smiled. "You've been on my mind constantly."

"Really?"

"Really. I needed to apologise to you," he continued, beginning to tear up. "Even if you didn't want to hear it, it would get of my chest and you'd think of me as a better person. I think. I know you hate me right now, but please, Afya, at least know that I love you with all my heart."

Afya looked up again to see tears running down Bukayo's face, which, even as they were kids, had broken her. It made her put her guard down and she shook her head once more.

"Hey, don't cry, it's alright," Afya cooed, pulling the boy into a hug. "It's okay, you're okay, alright? How was the final?"

At the mention of that the poor lad cried even more. He dropped down to his knees and held the girl's hands in his own, which definitely surprised her.

"We lost," he sniffed. "I, um, had to take a pen. But I missed. And cause Jadon missed and Marcus missed, my pen was the one that counted the most. I just wasn't focused on the right thing."

"You mean-"

The boy nodded. "Always you. But I fucking messed it up, didn't I!"

"Bukayo-"

"I always mess things up!"

"Kayo I-"

"God, I'm so stupid!"

"BUKAYO!"

"What?"

Afya sighed, and looked back at him. "It doesn't to me. None of it does, because I really, really like you."

These four words brought Bukayo back to reality. He quickly stood up again to meet the eyes of the girl, which were looking down at the floor, tears threatening to fall.

"And I - I hate that," she added, beginning to sniffle. "I hate that I couldn't do anything without thinking about how it related to you. I couldn't focus because I was constantly worrying about you."

"Th-That's how I felt too," Bukayo stammered.

"I don't know," Afya sighed. "Maybe we should just be apart so we can heal separately."

"But what if we heal, you know, together? I don't wanna be apart from you like this ever again, and I know you feel the same."

The pair were drawn closer to each other like magnets while Bukayo spoke. His eyes darted from her eyes to her gorgeous lips, and her eyes were doing the same.

"You are really pretty, you know," he whispered. "I'm so sorry for everything."

Afya kissed her teeth but smiled. "I know. I forgive you."