Friends

Part 11

"So, what's all of this about then? Come on, Chris," you nudge his foot with your own beneath the table, absently twirling some loose strands of hair around your finger. "Dinner's over."

Dammit.

Chris frowns, letting his fingers run around the rim of his glass before steeling himself.

He might as well spit it out.

"Well, I... I wanted to talk about... us." he says carefully, trying not to wince as he raises his eyes to yours, waiting for your reaction.

"Us?" you ask, trying to remain neutral, your heart thundering loudly.

"Yes. Us."

"What about us?" you ask warily.

Where was he going with this?

Chris takes a deep breath as he straightens.

"Well, I - we need to talk about the other night, everything happened so quickly," he sighs, and you feel your stomach suddenly tighten. "And I don't know... what to do about it?"

"What to do about it?" You frown. "What do you mean? Chris, there's nothing.... I mean, it happened, it can't be changed now."

And you certainly didn't want it to be.

"I know," Chris meets you eyes, his hand reaching across the table to curl through yours. "And I wouldn't change it for anything."

You feel your cheeks go rosy, and you look down quickly, smiling slightly.

He wouldn't?

"But... (Y/N), we need to talk about what this means for us," Chris continues softy. "Where we want to go from here?"

"Where would we want to go?" You ask him, flushing even more when he presses his lips lightly against your palm, his piercings warm against your cool skin.

"Well. We can remain friends," he shrugs, lowering your hand slightly, though his grip never lessened, "pretend it never happened. Or we could... see what happens from here. My tour ends in a couple more months, and then there's Christmas."

You blink at him. "Christmas?"

You didn't understand.

Chris nods. "Yes. Christmas. I figure I'm going home this year, and if you go home as well... we'll get to spend it together. And I'm hoping that when my tour is done, I can come visit, stay a couple days, take you out on more dates."

You feel a new smile forming on your lips.

"You want to take me on more dates?"

He nods, nuzzling your hand with his thumb. "Lots and lots more dates."

You feel yourself smile as you gaze at him, something inside of you starting to melt.

So he... did want more?

He did want to try for more then just friends?

You cautiously let your fingers slip through his.

"I wouldn't mind... more," you say after a moment, gazing at him, and you see him relax slightly. "Some more dates... wouldn't be so bad. And you're welcome there at any time, Chris, always."

He smiles back at you, looking pleased.

"Good. Good." he nods, tightening his hold on your hand. "That's good."

You grin at him.

"Do you wanna get the check?" you ask suddenly, your eyes meeting his pointedly. "Go home early?"