Stand By Me - Leah Williamson

You Don't Love Me?

Kameron's POV

There was silence, no response from Leah and nothing more I could say for her to open the door. I felt her slipping away from me, the distance between us growing.

I clenched my eyes shut, feeling the reality of loosing her all over again, almost sinking to the floor in defeat, until I heard the lock click open. Leah stood by the door, holding it open but she wouldn't look at me, her eyes remained to the floor.

The door shut behind us and there was silence. 

"I'm so sorry Le," I told her, "I didn't want everyone to hear that, I wasn't thinking. I'm so sorry," I looked at her, begging her to look at me but I was greeted with only silence. "Please say something," I choked out. 

Her eyes met mine, a tear slowly rolled down her cheek, "You don't love me?"

My voice shook and my eyes softened, "What?"

How could Leah question my love for her? The whole thing had happened because I loved her, there wasn't a moment when I could have doubted my love for Leah, even when I'd tried to hide it or forget, I never could. 

My definition of love was Leah; that would never change.

"You never said that you loved me, you avoided it at all costs," her voice was so quiet and weak that it broke my heart, she'd gotten it so wrong. 

I shook my head and sat on the floor with her, loosely bringing her hand into mine, praying for her to keep it there, "The whole thing started because I told her that I loved you. Le, I love you more than anything."

Her fingers intertwined with mine.

"You don't want to love me though," she cried, "You have to love me."

Gently, I brought Leah's face into my hand, pulling her chin up so she'd look at me, "Leah loving you has the been the biggest blessing of my life. Yes, it's created some of the most painful moments but it means that I care. Without you my life would mean nothing and I know that I will forever love you, you have to believe that."

Leah shook her head softly, seemingly to still second guess my words. Almost like she didn't want to believe them.

"You want me to show you that I love you?" I'd seen my belonging scattered across the room as I'd walked in but there'd clearly been bigger issues, but I saw the box from the corner of my eye. I gently handed it to her, "Look in this."

_____________

Leah's POV

With shaking hands, I pulled the lid of the box back, looking into the content having no clue what to expect.

I pulled everything out one by one, handing it to Kameron. 

There was a napkin, "From our first date," she'd explained.

I pulled out a pair of dirty laces, laughing very slightly through the tears, "Kam, why did you keep a pair of old laces?"

"They're from the camp where you first talked to me," she replied softly. 

I looked up at her in shock, felt my jaw quiver and eyes soften. The tears started all over again, but this time not through guilt or anger or sadness. But through a feeling more powerful than them all.  

Kameron gently took the box from my lap, continuing to show me everything. 

"The card you wrote me for my twelfth birthday," she smiled. 

"I crossed out love like fifty times," I smiled, "I was scared of loving you."

"I'd always wondered about that, but you don't need to be scared Le," she giggled lightly, "There's the invitation to your eighteenth birthday. There's a piece of confetti from the pitch when we won the Euros and a flag. The ribbon that tied the Euro's victory cake, a receipt from the coffee shop we saw each other at." She continued pulling out things that to everyone else would have seemed like a meaningless belongings or even rubbish, but they were our lives. 

It meant everything to me, she'd kept things from when were kids, memories were uncovered that I'd forgotten about. Kameron had never stopped caring.

"There's the card my dad wrote to me about you," she showed me, tears now rolling down her face, "Le, even he knew at fifteen that I loved you."

She passed the box back over to me, "And there's these," she pointed to the cards which lay at the bottom, "whenever we were apart and I missed you or had something to say, I'd write it and I kept them all. Maybe I thought one day you'd read them."

I felt foolish for ever doubting her love, guilty even, because Kameron had done nothing but show how much she loved me. I was the person who had made bad decisions, she had always been good, loyal and kind. 

Kameron was the best partner I could ask for, she was perfection in every sense of the word.

Being with her was like being dripped in sunlight and honey and her laugh would light up streets which once would seem dark and cold. She was ethereal to a point I'd question if her existence was true, how could someone so perfect exist?

And how would they love me?