The Last Spring Starflower a/k/a The Summer We All Fell out of Love

Part 7: Hurricane

A=the narrator

S=her love interest

TB=S's older brother

G=their best friend and TB's romantic interest

"What do you mean by that? Why does it matter?"

"You know what I mean. It matters. It matters because I was being lied to. No, both of us were being lied to! For who knows how long, and that angers me. ALL OF THIS ANGERS ME!"

I let go of his hand and leaned away from him a little, startled by his sudden outburst. I was just thinking that he was calming down and as it turns out I was making him even more upset. He didn't seem to notice me anymore. His eyes went out of focus, but his lips kept moving, yet no words were coming out. He was lost in his own thoughts. Everything I needed to know was written on his face. S was not going to make this situation easy on anyone and even though I could understand him, I wished he was easier to deal with sometimes. 

I was really naive and immature at 16. I thought all issues could be solved by always doing your best to fix them. I did not believe in negative outcomes. I believed in the good in people as if I was a fairy tale character. It took me a long time to find out that there wasn't a happy ending meant for everybody, and sometimes you had to settle with what you got. Sometimes there was no light at the end of the tunnel.

"S..." I started to say, feeling unsure. "Whatever it is that you feel inside, don't keep it in for too long. You don't have to go through it alone. I hope you know you can trust me and rely on me if you need to. I'm here for you." 

After I finished speaking, we both stayed silent for a while. I awkwardly waited for a reply that might not even come. My hands were suddenly very fidgety and my mouth felt dry. I kept staring at an old figurine on his desk that he broke a couple of days ago and was trying to fix up before his parents noticed. White paint was peeling off on one side of it, revealing the wooden base, while the other was badly chipped. He was probably not going to be able to repair the damage by himself. I wondered what he was going to do about it before remembering the current situation.

I did not want to go home before I felt he was calmer, but my curfew was approaching. I was shocked when I noticed that it was already dark outside. Knowing that made me even more restless. If I was to arrive home late, I would without a doubt end up being grounded.

The sound of church bells ringing is what brought him back from inside of his head to the small room we were in. Even distressed, he was still being considerate to me. It felt good knowing that.

"Is it already this late? I will have to walk you home soon or your grandma will get angry at us again."

I chuckled nervously. He was right. Grandma was never the forgiving type. Last time I came home late, I got the scolding of a lifetime. If it was to happen again, I would never hear the end of it. Who knows how she would punish me this time. I was not willing to risk it, not even for somebody so important. That little lady could make grown men fear her, and her discipline scared me the most. It still does. Even at this age, I'd do just about anything to avoid making her angry.

Glancing back at him, S looked as if he forgot what he was thinking just a moment before. He did not seem upset anymore. He even smiled at me. I became a little bit less worried.

"Yeah, I have to be home in an hour or so, but I don't have to go yet."

I made sure to make those last words sound especially significant. I wanted to catch all of his attention. He took the hint. Before I could even react, he was holding me close and kissing my face all over. My body relaxed on its own. It felt good to be back in his arms. Being this close to him felt right. I once thought that I could stay that way with him forever. I wondered how it would feel to spend my whole life with him. I was thinking too far ahead and got carried away. Reality was much different. I didn't know it yet, but we were not meant to be. We were probably never going to end up together anyway, but soon enough a distance was going to appear between us.

S pulled me onto his lap and I wrapped myself around him as much as I could. "Why was I so worried before?" I thought to myself, feeling relaxed. This is S we are speaking about, not some random guy I just met. He is a reasonable person. I knew I could talk some sense into him, even if it was not right away, I believed that it was going to happen. 

The sound of the front door opening interrupted us. I was thrown onto the bed while S ran out of the room. I needed a moment to compose myself. My heart was beating violently, even faster than just moments before when I was feeling excited over the heated meeting of our lips. I heard loud voices coming from the hallway, the voices of two brothers who were about to have their biggest fight yet, and it was about to turn physical. There was no one else there to stop them but me...

END OF PART 7