Glassheart Chloe x Red (book 1) {Nightmarish Reality}

Chapter 4: what makes you, you

Red's POV    

Chloe had grabbed my hand, and as I absentmindedly followed, I thought about how even the slightest touch from Chloe gave me butterflies. She had always seemed so supportive, but I always had this thought in the back of my head, wondering if it was real or if she just felt "bad" for me.

I looked around and saw that Chloe had taken us to a bench under a whomping willow on the school grounds. "Uh, Chlo, what are we doing here?" I asked. Chloe looked at me with her bright, beautiful brown eyes. "You seemed so anxious during dinner, I thought you might like some peace," she said. I stared at her, feeling warmth filling me up as she continued to stare at my soul.

We sit down and stare at each other before I kiss her soft, gentle lips. I feel her warmth and love entering my body. I've never felt so many emotions during one action. I'm worried that this might be a hoax, but also happy that it's happening. I'm anxious, what if she doesn't feel the same way I do? Then I realize - I feel love. I feel warmth. I nervously pull away and look at Chloe. At first, I see confusion on her face, but it quickly changes to understanding. She takes my hands and whispers, "You don't have to worry, princess. I know that things can be hard for you. That's why I won't push you to do anything you're not ready to do." I stare at her, so many emotions stabbing my heart. "I'll wait until you're ready, now and forever," she said the last part with so much love.

               "Chloe... I know this is a dumb question but-" she caught me off guard with a kiss to my hand. "Ha, try me, princess," she giggled. "What makes you... you?" Silence. I winced, afraid to look at her. What if she was mad at me? "What do you mean by that, love?" Her voice wasn't mad, just calm. "L-like, how do you stay calm when the world is angry? How do you stay happy when the world is so cruel? How do you have so much love to give in a world where love feels like a distant memory?" She stared at the stars before replying, "I-I don't know. I guess I think about all the people who go without love, without happiness, and think what it would do to someone to not have that." I stared at her for a moment. "If everyone always chooses to look at the world through hate and not love, you'll never know what it means to really live. I share my love with the world, always choosing to look at the good, not the bad, because that's how you should choose to live. You should live that way because you want that, and not because you're told to feel a certain way." I could tell her last sentence was directed towards me.

"Chloe, I don't know if I deserve the love I get from you," I said my voice cracking"Oh, Red, of course you do, more than anyone. You've lived through so many hard things."" she said with so much compassion. "I've always been told that I don't deserve the love I get from people and that I'm a waste of space, that I'll forever be a disappointment," Imumblued bitterly, shrinking in my skin."Well, it's time you found someone who makes the real you shine. You shouldn't listen to how other people define you, that's for you to find out. And Red, you deserve every bit of love," Chloe assured me, which started to make me tear up, I looked down at my feet embarrassed and overwhelmed by her words. She gently pulled my head to look at her before giving me a hug. I flinched before I embraced her back. "Hey princess, can I ask you something?" she had been so honest with me, so it only felt fair to try being the same. "Sure, Blue."

"Why did you open up to me? You could have anyone, but you chose me...why?" I sat there, staring into her eyes, thinking. "When I met you for the first time, I had just learned that I was allowed to leave Wonderland. I was still wrapping my head around the idea when I heard you introduce yourself. I froze. I didn't know if you were being mean or what, but what I did know was that you gave off this kind of aura. I had no clue what it meant, so I lashed out. I want you to know, that as soon as it came out, I regretted it." "It's okay, princess, I understand," she smiled. I continued, "When we were time traveling, I learned a lot from you and I could tell you had something I had never felt before. I knew it was good, just didn't know what. So I gave you a chance and...well, here we are," I finished quickly, not wanting to dig too deep. Chloe stared at me like she expected more. I tensed at her stare. "But that still doesn't answer my question," I thought before I replied. "I-I guess I just felt something I hadn't felt with anyone...I felt safe." I looked at Chloe, expecting her to burst out at me. I had to remind myself that she was nothing like my mom. "See, Red, that wasn't so bad," I scoffed. "For you, maybe. You didn't have to talk about our past." "What are you talking about? You barely talked about your past," she gave a playful smirk. "I'm not ready to talk about it completely," I said in a whisper. I gazed into her bright eyes which showed nothing but love before moving in and kissing. We sat there kissing in peace. I don't know for how long; all I know is that every second I spent there, I was... happy. "Hey, princess, mind if we turn in for the night?" I nodded, and together we walked to our dorm.

A/N Hey y'all! I hope you enjoyed that chapter. It was mostly a filler, but I think it turned out nicely. The next chapter will be from Chloe's point of view, and it's going to disrupt the peace. I hope you all enjoy it. I'll try to post it soon. Just a reminder, I may repost a chapter to make improvements.