" . . . And I-I walked out. Left her there, standing alone and speechless. The guilt and regret makes my gut twist and it kept me up last night and it made me kinda want to talk to you," he explained, his voice dying down as he finished speaking. He already felt better, having told someone about it.
Her expression softened. "I'm so sorry, Noah." Her voice was sincere. He knew it.
"You know, not a lot of people in this world are as sincere as you, Gemma."
"You keep saying stuff like that." She said in a small voice.
"Like what?"
"That there aren't many sincere people, that there aren't many good people in this world. That I'm somehow different than everyone else. That I'm special." She looked shyly to the table.
"Do you disagree?" He asked softly, his eyes gentle.
She didn't answer the question. He realized that despite having the rule to speak freely, there was an awful lot of avoiding questions.
"You have to talk to her, Noah."
"Who, Juliana?"
"Mia. Today you tell her you are sorry for walking out, but you tell her the truth about how you feel. Then go home early and cook a nice dinner for Juliana. Both problems will be temporarily fixed," she suggested, as if the answer had been obvious the entire time. This made him a bit agitated.
"Temporarily?" The agitation bit at his tone, seeped into his voice. She looked hurt, but it passed.
"You can't expect me to be able to guarantee anything-"
"You make it sound so simple, Gemma! It's not! I can't . . . " He immediately regretted yelling. Add it to the list, he thought pessimistically.
Her lips were stretched in a thin line, but she didn't seem angry. She dug into her bag, and pulled out a lollipop. He eyed it, utterly confused. It was adorable.
She handed it to him, the line of her lips curving upwards in what she said. "In case you need me. Open it tonight."
With that, she waved goodbye and left. He stared after her, aching to ask what the lollipop was for, yet was rendered speechless due to confusion. He hoped he hadn't scared her away, but somehow knew that wasn't the case. He wished to open it, curiosity eating away at him already, but decided to trust her.
And in trusting her, he would have to do as she suggested.
YOU ARE READING
Sip by Sip
Romance(Lowercase intended on cover) "The simple things in life are never meaningful, and the meaningful things in life are never simple. So maybe I don't want meaningful. Maybe I just want someone who cares enough to listen." Gemma Summers and Noah Han...
