Build It Better | Hunter Rowland

Chapter 22

|Hunter's POV

    My mom had just left with Brandon, Ashton, and Tyler and Hayden and I were left alone. Things have been awkward since the day I walked in on her and Ella talking, but she acts as if it never happened. Today was her last day here, so I needed to talk to her about us. Now.

    I knocked on the door and sighed. I heard her cheerful voice tell me to come in and I walked in. She was sitting on the bed with her laptop in front of her. She looked up at me and smiled.

    "What's up, babe?" She asked and closed her laptop. I sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed.

     "Can we talk?" I said after a moment of silence.

     "About what?" She crawled over and rubbed my shoulder.

      "I.." I paused. How could keep say this without hurting her? I closed my eyes and waited for the words to come to mind. "I don't think we should continue seeing each other.."

      "What?" Her voice became quite. I sat towards her and looked at her sad eyes.

      "This isn't because of anything you've done, I just don't see us having a future together." I tried to sound sincere, but I didn't know if it was working.

       "It's because of Ella, isn't it?" She looked up at me. My eyes met hers and I became quite. "It's okay, you don't have to lie. I know. I can see the way you look at her, it's not the same when you look at me. You love her, and if that's not obvious, then I don't know what is." She laughed a bit at the end and punched my arm playfully.

       "Oh my god, I thought you were gonna flip and go crazy like the fan fictions," I laughed and rubbed my face. "I really hope we can stay friends though."

       "I wouldn't want it any other way." She smiled and placed her hand ontop of mine, squeezing it a bit. "Now go get your girl."

         I smiled before standing up and walking out the door, heading towards Ella's house. I was confident, but then nervous at the same time. I shook the nervousness as I knocked on her front door.

         "Hunter," Lilly smiled joyfully, opening the door and letting me. "Ella is upstairs." I thanked her and went up to her room. The nervousness came back once I reached her door. I knocked on the door and heard her footsteps coming towards the door. 
        
           "Hi, Hunter. Wha-" She began to say, but I cut her off by crashing my lips onto hers. I cupped her face as she kissed back. The knot in my stomach went away as I felt sparks like no other. She pulled away first, sadly.

           "I love you." I said, closing the door. "I really love you, Ella. And if that's not obvious, than I don't know what is." I quoted Hayden and chuckled to myself. "Ella, if you didn't move here, I don't know where I'd be. We've been through so much together within the last 2 months, but I wouldn't have wanted to go through it with anyone other than you. I know I've been an asshole lately, and I don't know how you managed to stay with me, but I can't let myself see me with anyone else but you. What I'm trying to say is," I pulled her closer to me and leaned my forehead against hers.

             "Ella Nicole Cadwell, will you be my girlfriend?"

             She was quiet for a few seconds. Her lips formed into a smile and she nodded slowly.

             "Yes."