Alone In the rain

Chapter 3 - pushing away

"What?!" She gasped, looking at him with wide eyes.
"I said I'm in love with you." He looked back her, showing how true it was in his expression. "I mean it Sasha, I have been for a while. I was worried that you'd come to hate me." He slowly caressed her cheek, brushing her hair behind her ear once again.
"Don't." She almost whispered, placing her hand on his and removing it from her cheek. "I need time to process this." She sat down on the office chair across from him and lifted one leg onto the chair.
"How long have you felt like this?" She asked him, avoiding his gaze as much as possible. "Like how long have you been in love with me?"
"For a couple years now. I noticed it at the beginning of grade 9." He said bluntly, waiting to hear the rejection he felt coming.
"Wow..I did not expect to hear this from my best friend." She sighed, as if clearing her mind of unneeded thoughts. "I hope you know that I...I can't return your feelings." She paused, biting back the tears that wanted to flow. "Even though I want to." She half whispered as the first of the tears fell, staining her cheek as they went.
"What do you mean, 'even though you want to'"? He asked, standing up and walking over to her, placing his hand on her back.
   "Don't." She choked on her tears barely able to get the one word out. She cared about him, she really did, but she was incapable of loving someone, she always had been.  " I can't return your feelings because I don't know how to, that's why I can't even though I want to." She looked up at him, the truth of her words showing in her eyes.
    "Sasha.." Leo sighed, putting his hand down by his pants pocket. He didn't know what to do when she was like this, it hurt him to see her like this, especially if he had caused it.
    "I think you should go now, I have to finish packing. And I don't want my mom seeing you, she'll flip out." Sasha wiped away her tears and stood up, reaching out to pull him into a hug. "I'll be okay, I just need a bit of time to think. But I promise to call you later tonight okay?" She said as she hugged him and backed away just enough to look him in the eyes as she reassured him.
   "You better, or I'll run all the way here and risk your mothers wrath to make sure your okay." He hugged her tightly, not wanting to let her go. He always felt like this when he was around her.
  "I promise, Leo." She said when she let go to open her window so he could escape without the risk of being seen by her mom. "Now you better get going, you have a long run ahead of you, and mom will be calling me down for supper soon."  She smiled, teasing him as he walked up to her and the window.
   "Take care of you." He smiled sadly, bringing his face just inches from hers and gave her a quick kiss on her full soft lips. "Don't forget what I said." He said as he climbed out the window and jumped from the roof onto her lawn and began jogging down the road.
  Sasha stood there, looking out the window until he was out of view. Once she sat down, she put her hand to her lips. 'He kissed me. He really kissed me' she thought to herself. She laid down on her bed and began to think, what did she think of him? Why was she scared? She had so many questions to ask herself when she heard her mom call her.        "Sasha hunt suppers ready!" Her mom called from the bottom of the stairs.
   "Coming mom!" She answered. 'I guess this will have to wait until later.' She thought to herself as she got up and opened her door to head to the dining room.