Lost Now, Found Later

Chapter 18 - Ethan's POV

I told her. Fuck I just told her.

"Ethan" I feel Rachel tug at the sleeve of my shirt and I bend to hear her better, calming my expression.

"Yeah love?"

"I'm gonna go get a drink" she says loudly over the music, releasing her hand from mine. I frown at the loss of contact but nod and watch her head towards the kitchen. I breathe out a heavy sigh and think back to my actions. Was I rushing? Should I have waited more?

"Man stop spiraling" I hear Arjun call me out as he slides up next to me with a beer can in his hand. I stare at him as if asking "really?".

"Did you tell her?" he asks simply and I try not to let my face show the surprise.

"How'd you know?" I ask, completely lost as to how he found out, especially when he's drunk.

"I could hear you guys and I have eyes" he mutters as if it's common sense. "Don't worry though. The other two didn't notice" he tells me and I nod.

"Honestly doesn't matter. They can know, it's not exactly a secret" I shrug indifferently.

"How'd she take it?" Arjun asks seriously. "Umm I think she panicked. I kinda just blurted it out of nowhere" I admit sheepishly. Arjun rolls his eyes at my answer and shakes his head in disappointment.

"Don't fucking give me that look. You try being around someone you like without being able to tell her how you feel" I glare at him sharply.

"Dude, I'm not judging. Just give her time man. She's gonna come around" he comforts me, and I smile at him tiredly before he turns to leave but he pauses for a moment.

"She likes you too man" he says before disappearing into the crowd. Just then I feel a soft, small hand slide into mine and hold it tightly. Rachel was back with her drink and was sipping at it. She gives me a shy smile and resumes her sipping. I internally sigh in relief that I hadn't scared her off considering that she still held my hand willingly.

The rest of the night went quickly. I mostly stood on the side with Arjun, watching Rachel while she went to talk with Liz and her friends whereas Mason was not to be found.

I check my watch for the time as see that it was 12.31am. Deciding that it was already late and Rachel had an early class the next day, I try to find her and spot her next to Liz and two other girls, slightly stumbling. She's drunk.

I approach Liz and catch her attention.

"I'm gonna take her back if that's okay with you" I tell Liz while Rachel remains oblivious to my presence. Liz looks at Rachel and back at me, initially narrowing her eyes at me but reluctantly nods.

"Take care of her and text me when you get back" she somewhat threatens me and I scoff at her attempt. She leans into Rachel and whispers something while I pretend as if I wasn't curious.

"Yeah yeah I got it" I wave her off and turn to Rachel.

"Have you told her?" I hear Liz from behind me. "Told her what?" I try to play it off cool. She rolls her eyes and stares at me, expecting a better answer. "Fine, be that way" she shrugs before leaving with her friends. I sigh a breath of relief before directing my attention to Rachel who was currently giggling while holding a beer can close to her eyes as if examining it.

"Rachel? Love?" I call her, trying to pry the can out of her hands without having her notice it and place it on the chair next to us.

"Ethannnnnnn....where were you?" she slurs with a lazy smile. "Did you know that there's 36 trillion cells in the human body?" she says with wonder as I support her with an arm around her waist and hold her arm around my shoulder.

I chuckle at how she was still sober enough to remember biology facts. "That is interesting love. Now come on. We're heading back" I tell her softly, and thankfully she complies and we both get out of the house. Fuck I can't bring her back when she's like this I think, and decide to stop by a vending machine to get water. I'm hoping she sobers a little while we walk back.

"Ethann...Ethan why are you ignoring me? Do you hate me?" She asks without giving me time to respond.

"Love I'm not ignoring you and I could never fucking hate you. You know that" I reply, looking at her as I admire how beautiful she is even when she was drunk as hell.

"Aww really? I could never hate you too" she says in a dreamy tone and I let out a small laugh at her words, hiding my rising heartbeat.

"Thank you love" I say, brushing her hair away from her face. I spot a vending machine nearby and set her gently on the bench next to it while I got a water bottle for her.

"Drink this. You'll thank me tomorrow" I say, squatting down to match her height. She stares at the bottle skeptically as if I was giving her something questionable. Before I could open the water bottle, she grabs it from me and downs the whole bottle.

"Rachel. Love. Slow down. You're gonna choke" I try to stop her but she swats my hand away and finishes the whole thing. She hands me the empty bottle and I throw it away, still worried that she might puke. But surprisingly she didn't.

I take a seat next to her on the bench and wait for her to feel better to walk. I feel her lean her head on my shoulder, causing a small smile to form on my lips. It warms my heart that she feels comfortable around me. I reach for her hand and interlock it between our legs as I stare at it.

"Thanks Ethan" I hear her speak in a soft voice. Has she sobered up?

"Are you feeling better ?" I ask, matching her volume. She nods slightly against my shoulder, making me smile at her.

"Come on let's head back. You have a morning class tomorrow" I stand up first, holding out my hand for her. To my delight, she takes it and offers me a nervous smile. I fight the urge to smirk at the fact that I make her nervous.

Right before we enter our dorm, Rachel stops in her tracks and I follow her move, facing her.

"What's wrong?" I ask, wondering if she still felt nauseous.

"Ethan about what you told me before" she starts, and my breath hitches hoping that she doesn't reject me now.

"Can I have some time to think about it?" she adds with an unsure look on her face and I sigh in relief, thankful that she wasn't saying a no. "I like you too though" she quietly blurts, directing her eyes to the ground.

She fucking likes me. YES!

I can't stop the wide smile forming on my lips but I hold myself from giving her a bone-crushing hug. "Sorry love what was that?" I ask, half wanting to hear it again and half teasing her.

She glares at me but sighs before repeating her words. "I said I like you too" she says with a shy smile.

I gaze at her lovingly before taking her hands in mine and holding them. "Thank you love. You have no idea how much I wanted to hear that" I utter, taking in her features. "I'll wait for as long as you want Rachel. Just say yes" I say, bringing her hand to my lips and placing a small kiss for the millionth time tonight.

Her shy smile turns into a loving smile, indicating that she was happy with my words. Deciding that we head inside now, we both return to our dorms. I don't know about her but I'm sure as fuck I won't be able to sleep tonight.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

GUYSS Ethan confessed!!! Rachel toooo!! This is only the beginning though!!

Thank you for reading! Please let me know what you all think of the story so far!! Comment and like as well!!!