Only, Always, and Forever You

36 - The Only One

Amara's POV:

"Okay, well umm... I..."

"Amara?" a familiar voice cuts me off.

I turn around, "Oliver?"

I can almost feel the atmosphere tensing up as I sit between the two guys, who seem to have some unspoken beef...

"What are you doing here?" he says, switching his gaze from me to Cole and then back to me.

"Cole and I were having a beach day. What about you?" I ask, and I can tell both Cole and Oliver are annoyed with each other.

"I was just fishing," he says, flashing a smile at me.

"Oh, I thought that was just your normal stench, but I guess the fishing explains your rancid smell," Cole snaps sharply at him, sending him a glare that could kill.

"Cole!" I yell, hitting his arm, but he doesn't flinch or stop glaring at Oliver.

"No, it's fine," Oliver says, reciprocating Cole's energy, "Guys are often intimidated by me, so it's alright, really."

I scoff at the two of them. There is no way these two aren't toddlers. Why are they acting like this? Why do they dislike each other so much? They barely know each other!

"Can you guys at least try to get along?" I plead.

Cole scoffs, a dangerous smirk on his face, "No. I don't play nice with douchebags like Ollie, here."

"I'm the douchebag? Weren't you the one dry-humping my date yesterday?" Oliver replies.

"A date? In your dreams, man! She's just too nice to say no when someone asks to hang out," Cole says.

"Enough!" I interrupt, tired of the bickering, "You two are children! I'm going home." I don't know how I'll get there, but I will, and so I turn and start picking up my things.

Cole acts all bitchy whenever Oliver is around, and Oliver, who is also bitchy around Cole, thinks that we went on a date? I scoff aloud at the chaos of my situation.

I walk away and leave the two to figure things out behind me, but I don't get too far before I hear him calling out for me.

Cole's POV:

"Amara, wait up!" I yell, as I run after her.

She doesn't stop walking like she usually does when I call out for her. I follow after her all the way to my car.

She stops and crosses her arms in front of her chest, still facing away from me. We're standing in front of my car, and I know she'd prefer I give her a ride home, but something tells me she's not going to ask for it.

I let her be upset, and instead of saying something, I just open the door for her before walking over to the drivers side.

I start to drive her home, and the car ride is tense, uncomfortable, and dead-silent. I can't stop thinking about what just happened.

Seeing Oliver made my blood boil, and especially when he looked at her in the way he did, I wanted to beat him to a pulp. I held back though, only for Amara's sake, and instead let anger seep through my words. I didn't even say the worst thing on my mind. In my opinion, I actually went easy on the little bitch-boy.

However, as much as I enjoyed getting a rise out of him, I hated that it annoyed Amara, too. This is exactly what I was worried would happen. I'd get attached, I'd get possessive, I'd get jealous, and I'd act out.

Except this time, I'm not going to ignore her. I won't do anything except for acknowledge her, as if in this moment, she is the only real, the only important person in my life.

Because maybe she is...

I park the car outside of her building, and when she gets out, I don't hesitate to follow her.

"Leave me alone," she calls out, not bothering to stop walking or even turn around to face me.

"Amara, stop," I plead as she speeds into the building.

She climbs a staircase, skipping the elevator, and reaches her floor. I stay close behind her for the whole time. She walks down the hallway and stops in front of her apartment door. She unlocks it and storms inside, not even bothering to close the door. I follow her in, finally closing the door behind me.

I follow her into the living room, sitting down next to her on the couch. I know she doesn't want me to be here right now, but I need to explain.

"Go home," she says quietly, keeping her head turned away from me.

"Amara, look at me," I say, trying to get her to at least give me a chance to talk to her.

Amara turns to face me, and the annoyance in her face stings me a little.

I don't know what changed inside of me, but it must have been the kiss. Everything I felt, everything I tried to push away, materialized the second our lips touched. I can't forget how she makes me feel after that.

This time, I'm not going to run away from her. From us. Instead, I'm going to run to her. To us.

Literally and figuratively, I guess.

"I haven't stopped thinking about it," I say cryptically, "I can't stop thinking about it."

"Don't do that," she says, suddenly looking away  again.

"Amara—"

She snaps her head back around to face me, "Why don't you like him? I can tell you don't, but why? You don't even know him!" she questions, just as confused as she is annoyed.

"Can't you see he has a thing for you?!" I blurt out, speaking before I could filter my words.

She pauses for a second, thinking about what I said, "So what? That doesn't give you the right to not like him," she says, her low volume not taking away from the impact of her words.

"You're right. It doesn't. But I still don't like him," I state honestly.

"But why?" she asks, growing impatient.

"I don't like him because I can't stand the thought of another man being with you. Someone who isn't me."

Her annoyance disappears and her expression drops. Her mouth parts slightly, and her brows knit in confusion.

After realizing what I just said, I start to stand up. I should be leaving. I've said too much, and I don't want to hear her say something I couldn't stand to hear.

Shortly after standing up, however, a gentle hand wraps around my wrist, pulling me back down onto the couch. I look down at her, meeting her round, amber doe eyes.

"Wait," she says under her breath, almost too quiet to hear, "What are you saying?"

I pause for a moment, debating whether or not I should say anything. If I tell her how I feel, she may never want to talk to me again. She may not feel the same. So, should I say anything?

I eventually figure: why not? I've already said what I said, so there's not much left for me to risk.

"I'm saying that I want to be with you. That I can't sit and watch someone else look at you the way I do. That I want to be the only one to kiss you, and hold you, and touch you. That I want to be the only one who wants you, Amara."

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...What's going to happen?

Will things get awkward and tense?

Or is the good stuff finally coming up?

...You'll find out soon... ;)