When New York and London Collide

Chapter 35

Celine Haufftner

After my kiss with Chase, I had been too embarrassed to talk about it. I was scared that he didn't feel that way about me, even though the way he kissed me would argue otherwise. I was also scared that my feelings were just a result of my sudden breakup. I didn't want Chase to just be a rebound. Even though I felt butterflies around him, and I really enjoyed the kiss, the way he made me feel, how I always wanted to spend time with him, I wanted to make sure I was really serious. Until then, we'd keep the kiss topic on hold.

Tomorrow was the wedding and I was beyond happy that Chase agreed to go with me. Not just because I didn't want to go alone, but also because I enjoyed his company more than I admitted.

But, I had a mission today. Despite my heavy luggage filled with nearly my entire wardrobe, I was having a really hard time choosing what to wear. So, I decided to consult Alice, my best friend. Granted, her fashion sense wasn't the best. I mean I've seen her wear flannels with leather, and that was on a good day too. Sometimes I wondered how she got through the first half of her life without me. Anyways, with everything that happened in New York, I was missing my best friend. It'd be a good time to catch up too.

"Hey there!" I chirped when she appeared on screen. Her love life was as crappy as mine, as she told me, which I felt bad about. Just because I had a shitty one month didn't mean I wanted her to experience it too. I steered away from negativity and threw on the first dress.

"How about this?" I twirled in a dark blue dress that hugged my figure. It had a thigh high slit on the left and a very revealing open back.

"Why did you even bring that? Did you anticipate yourself going to a wedding or what?" She questioned, eyebrows raised. She always wondered why I brought so many outfit options.

"Hey. A girl can never be too prepared when it comes to clothes," I rebutted. She shrugged and I moved on to option two. A red dress that had delicate off the shoulder sleeves, was fitted at the waist but flowed delicately down to the floor. It had sparkles, but it was muted. Alice nodded and gave a thumbs up. Then again, this girl looked at me like I was a model who could be on the cover of vogue. But I appreciated the compliment.

"It would look great with black heels and gold accents," she added.

"Look who's become a fashion guru, I'm impressed Alice," I joked.

I quickly threw on my third and final option, a light pink dress with long sleeves that had embroidered flowers just at the bottom. She tilted her head and we both agreed that number two looked best.

"So, tell me about this man you're going to the wedding with." She asked, cuddled up in a cardigan. That was never a good sign. She only ever wore that cardigan whenever she was really upset and didn't know what to do. I didn't ask about it though, she would talk when she wanted to, that's the way she's always been.

"He's sweet. And charming. And ridiculously good looking." I had never heard myself say it out loud before, and it didn't sound as weird as I thought it would. She smiled and told me not to get ahead of myself.

"I don't want you getting hurt again Celine." I gave a gentle smile. I didn't want to get hurt either, and after Liam, I wasn't sure that I was able to come out of another relationship un-hurt. But with Chase, it felt different. In a good way.

"I know. We're taking small steps. As of now, we're kind of like best friends." I told her. Liar. A part of me wished we were more than best friends, and it even felt like it sometimes. Especially when I thought back to the kiss. Best friends didn't kiss, at least not on the lips and with so much passion and hunger.

"Hey. I'm the only best friend in your life!" She faked being angry and I appeased her by agreeing.

We went on the next few hours, maybe the entire night, talking about anything and everything under the sun. I tried to subtly bring up her love life, but she avoided it, so I took the hint. I told her all about New York, and she swooned over every bit.

It was nice. Chatting, like nothing changed. It made me feel like I was actually healing. Slowly, but surely.