𝐷𝐴𝑌𝐿𝐼𝐺𝐻𝑇 - 𝑇𝐻𝐼𝑅𝑇𝐸𝐸𝑁 𝑅𝐸𝐴𝑆𝑂𝑁𝑆 𝑊𝐻𝑌

29. ɪ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ʜᴀᴛᴇ ʏᴏᴜ

Mani stared at the boy who sat on Clay's bed, ignoring the fact that the coffee she spilled on the floor earlier was now getting her socks wet. Everything seemed to freeze as the two held each other's eyes, neither of them daring to move.

Clay stood next to Armani, his muscles tensed as he looked between the two of them anxiously. He could feel the girl beside him tense, and he couldn't help but hold his breath as he tried to figure out what she was going to do - he wasn't sure whether she would hug Justin, or choke him to death instead.

Justin stared at Mani with wide eyes, not daring to move an inch as to not enrage the girl. He gulped, breathing out slowly as he waited for her reaction.

The girl tried to comprehend what was happening, that Justin was not dead like she feared he was. That he was in fact sitting on a couch in Clay Jensen's fucking room, staring at her with wide eyes, the right corner of his lips slightly raised.

„I spilled coffee on your floor." she blurted out, finally looking away from Justin and directing her eyes toward Clay. The boy blinked in surprise, not knowing how to reply.

„I, uh, can see." he said, hesitance lacing his words as he frowned at her. The girl nodded, a sigh slipped past her mouth as she stared at the mess on the floor.

„Do you have some spare socks?" she asked, completely ignoring Justin, who now stared at her with raised eyebrows. Clay nodded and walked out of the room, the girl going to follow after him.

„Mani." Justin called out, making her stop abruptly. He could see her shoulders tense, but she didn't turn around, her back facing him. The boy slowly stood up from his place on the couch, approaching the shaking girl carefully. He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, causing her to jump and turn around sharply.

„Don't." she said quietly, and Justin immediately noticed the tears that gathered in her eyes. His heart dropped at her expression, and he slowly retreated his hand. „I thought you were dead, Justin. I was scared." she whispered, her voice breaking slightly by the end of the sentence.

„But you hate me." he said, the words coming out more like a question than a statement. Mani shook her head and looked down, wiping her eyes furiously before looking up at him again.

„I could never hate you. Not you." she said, tears slowly rolling down her cheeks as she stared up at the taller boy. Justin's heart melted at her words, and he opened his mouth to say something, but got cut off by her arms wrapping around his waist.

Mani held onto the boy with all her strength, resting her head against his chest with her arms wrapped tightly around him. She could feel him tense at first, seeing as he didn't expect her to touch him.

Justin's eyes widened as he stood there in shock. Only after a few seconds did he return the hug, wrapping his arms around Mani's smaller frame. He melted into her touch, not realizing earlier how much he craved comfort. He hid his face in the girl's brown hair, shutting his eyes to stop tears from falling.

The two stayed in each other's arms for a few minutes, neither wanting to let go. Mani could feel Justin shake in her hold, making her place her hand on the back of his head comfortingly.

„I missed you." he choked out, causing Mani's heart to drop to her stomach at the tone of his voice. She adjusted her arms slightly, tightening her grip even more. Mani could feel some invisible pressure disappear from her chest at the fact that the boy she was afraid was dead, was now safe in her arms.

„I hate to interrupt the moment, but I've got socks." Clay said, causing both teenagers to flinch at the sudden voice. Mani reluctantly pulled away, placing her hands on Justin's cheeks and placing a soft kiss on his forehead.