Betting on your Heart

Chapter Six

There was a deadly silence that had filled the air. "Ella..." Damien whispered, in a state of shock. The whisper had obviously pulled Ella out of her daze because she hastily started picking up her books. Damien was going to go help her but Alice stopped him and instead, did it for him. Alice knew that Ella really didn't want him near her at the moment. Once Ella had all of her things in her arms, she looked quickly up at Damien then fled the scene. Alice shook her head as her best friend ran away from them. "Don't worry. She is just a little...stunned at the moment." Alice reassured calmly. Damien wasn't so sure though. Why was it so shocking for her to think that he loved her? Weren't his actions enough to prove that?

Damien's eyebrows furrowed. Maybe it had just seemed like he was physically attracted to her since he had never even really said he cared about her before. This thought made Damien sigh, no wonder Ella didn't like him. Alice smiled softly at Damien. "Trust me, she feels the same. She just doesn't know it yet. After all the times you tormented her, Ella does not want to believe that she loves you too." Alice stated, and then paused in thought. "Besides, she thinks she is in love with Chase." Alice added reluctantly. Damien stared at Alice blankly, he has suspected that Ella liked his best friend but had refused to accept it. Chase deserved someone amazing and beautiful like Ella, in Damien's opinion.

Alice's eyebrows furrowed. "Listen to me Damien. Ella loves you. I am her best friend; I think I know when she loves someone..." Alice whispered. The words were meant to be comforting but it only made Damien feel worse. He was now sure that he didn't deserve Ella at all; he was starting to think that maybe he should just ignore his feelings, for the both of them. Damien cleared his throat, an awkward feeling creeping up on him. "Of course she loves me, how could she not? After all, I am the hottest guy in school." He stated with his signature smirk, but the smug feeling didn't seep into his heart. "Well, I better get going..." He trailed off, looking off in the direction Ella had gone.  Alice nodded and Damien walked over to the car. She stood there quietly thinking to herself as Damien hauled out of the parking lot.

Ella felt her heart pounding in her chest. Her pulse was racing and her legs seemed to be running without much effort. Her body was having its own reaction to hearing those words, those three words she never thought she would hear come from Damien's mouth. Ella had figured since the kiss, that Damien just thought about her... physically. Ella made it just on time to be able to board the bus, some of the occupants staring at her openly as she heaved herself into a seat. Ella closed her eyes and leaned back into the seat, her breath coming out in pants. That phrase was not one that Ella ever imagined Damien would ever say, especially in reference to her.

The bus ride to her neighborhood was fairly quick, since she was so caught up in her own thoughts. As the driver pulled up near her neighborhood, Ella looked at the window and felt a sense of dread rise within her. Damien was standing by entrance, his hands in his pockets and his head down. Apparently he had beaten the bus home and decided to ambush her. Ella trudged off of the bus, thanking the driver as she went. Damien looked up at her as the bus pulled away. Her throat practically closed up when she saw all of the emotions that graced his features. He seemed like a vulnerable little child and she almost felt her heart breaking at the sight of him.

Ella approached him cautiously. For a couple of minutes, neither said anything. Then Damien grabbed her books from her arms and began walking to their house. Ella didn't even know where to start. Should she reprimand him for saying something like that? For confessing his true feelings. That wouldn't be fair. "Why..." She murmured and Damien turned sharply to look at her, shocked by her break of silence. He didn't even have to ask to know what she meant. "I don't know. I just do. It's not like I'm asking you to feel the same way but I'm not going to fucking deny it Ella. I've always felt something for you. You have never be a sister to me, we were fucking teenagers when we met. You're amazing and brilliant and beautiful. It would have been fucking impossible for me not to have feelings for you." He answered with a fire in his eyes.