Roommates

Chapter 35- Part 2

"I don't want to be with her. I want to be with you."

Aurora gaped her mouth in shock, unable to formulate a reasonable response.

"Well? Please say something."

"Why would you want to be with me?" She raised her arms so Evangeline could look at every inch of her in her worn out, ugly clothes. She believed she was aging terribly, she felt overweight, she knew she lacked every beautiful characteristic. "This has to be a joke."

"Why the fuck would I joke about this?" Evangeline asked in frustration.

"I'm sorry," Aurora mumbled. "I just... I don't understand how you can like someone like me."

Evangeline dropped her head in her hands, massaging the stinging in her eyes. She'd never had to put this much effort into a relationship before! She'd go to the ends of the earth to prove the legitimacy of her feelings for Aurora, but she needed to be met halfway, at least. She felt foolish for ever saying anything.

"What is there to misunderstand? I have feelings for you. I'm attracted to your smile; I like who you are as a person; I want to fuck you. What exactly don't you understand?"

"I feel the same way," Aurora whispered. Her admission was certain, but she still proposed it like a question, ready for rejection.

"Then what's the problem?"

Aurora scoffed as if it was a dumb question. Evangeline was being irrational. They could never work together! Aurora didn't believe she was good enough for someone like Evangeline. Why would she believe that? Her ex, Chloe, her dad— everybody in her life— has told her from the moment they met her that she wasn't good enough. How is she meant to believe Evangeline?

"Aurora," Evangeline sighed. She reached out her hand and held Aurora's. She trembled ever so slightly in Evangeline's grip. Unsettled by not seeing Aurora, Evangeline turned on the overhead light. She found tears in Aurora's eyes. "Oh, honey, I am so sorry. I didn't mean to make you cry."

"It's been a long day." Aurora's lips quivered. "I want this... I do—"

"Then be with me."

"Evangeline, I can't." Aurora pulled her hand away, cradling it against her chest like a wounded animal. Her emotions were wounded by her own spiralling thoughts. "You're the first girl I've ever been friends with. You mean the absolute world to me."

Lowering her voice, Evangeline tried to be compassionate. She was once in the same situation, nearly word for word. The only difference was that she was hammered when she was forced to be in Aurora's place. She needed to be gentle with Aurora. She had strength that Evangeline could never imagine. "I can be your best friend; I can be whatever you need me to be. I just need to be with you."

"I can't be more than friends with you." She shook her head and stirred, trying to get some relief from the weight pulling her down. "I know if I kiss you, I can never be just friends with you again. I don't want to lose you."

Evangeline reached her hand out to catch her tears. "Honey, you're never going to lose me. Listen to me," she raised her chin delicately, "this is something we both want. Right?"

Aurora nodded, unable to deny how she felt.

"Okay, so, if we both want this, why not give it a try?"

"I have nobody else," Aurora mumbled. She squeezed her eyes shut, unable to stand the burning. "Without you, I am alone in this city— in this world. I can't lose you."

Evangeline scooted closer and brought Aurora into her arms. Sympathy began coursing through her veins like a numbing drug. "I know how it feels to be alone, and to have one person who makes the world go around."