First Comes Friendship

Chapter 8: The Night that Changed it all

A/N This chapter contains some mature content!

People say all the time that "time flies when you're having fun" well I guess they were right because it had already been a year since Elle and I had first met at the bar. Sometimes it seemed like I just met her yesterday, yet I also felt like we had known each other all of our lives.

It had been two weeks since we had seen each other and despite the fact that we kept in touch via emails, I missed her. I could not tell her that of course. I could not tell her that whenever we are apart all I want to do is be with her. I could not tell her that she was all I could think of all day long. I missed her so much that I could not seem to eat or sleep anymore, my nights were spent thinking about her. I kept seeing her face in my mind, hearing her laugh and her soft voice... I was going completely insane just thinking about her. I was supposed to be the tough guy, the macho man that collected ladies, and she was just a friend, my best friend, but yet she was much more than that.

Tonight she was coming home after a long holiday and I just could not wait to see her. We were meeting at the student bar later that night, the place that started it all almost a year before. All afternoon I was a ball of nerves, waiting to go see her, to hold her in my arms even if it was only for mere seconds. I even changed my shirt 3 times, wondering which one she would like best and settling for one that she had complemented me on before. I felt like a fool for behaving as though this was a date, but I just could not help myself, I was finally going to spend some "alone" with her something that I had not been able to do in quite some time, since her and Paul had gotten together. Tonight she was all mine, she had told me so in her last email. I must have read that email a thousand times, taking in every word, analyzing them over and over again. 'I can't wait to see you and only you' she had written. Only her, only me, the thought made me smile. 'Tonight is about me and her' I told myself, like old times, the good times.

She met me at the entrance of the bar at 10 o'clock, looking as beautiful as always. As soon as our eyes met, she ran towards me and gave me a huge hug. I did not want to let go and it felt like she did not want to either. When she finally pulled away, she had the biggest smile on her face.

"Hey, you! I'm so glad to see you! I've missed you so much!"

I could not stop staring into her eyes and like an idiot I just stood there. I could not believe she missed me too! So without sounding too enthusiastic or pathetic, I finally said:

"I missed you too, you have no idea..."

"It felt like the holidays would never end! I kept thinking 'I wonder what David is doing right now' or 'I wonder what David would think of this?' It was weird not to be able to talk to you all the time or just to be able to pop by your house to say 'hi'."

"I know, totally" wow I couldn't believe I had said that, that sounded so pathetic.

"I'm just so glad to be back"

She nuzzled her face into my chest. I tucked a strand of her hair behind her ears.

"I never thought I'd say that one day, but me too!"

Then she laughed. What an incredible laughed she had. I had missed her laugh so much during the holidays and it felt so nice and comforting to hear it again. I felt so much lighter and happier just by standing next to her. Her presence had this way of making me feel more at ease in a way that no one had been able to before.

We walked pass the line, my hand around her waist, waiving at Jim, the usual bouncer, on our way by. We dropped our coats off and walked in.

"So what were you up to during the break?" she asked casually as we made our way to the bar.