Secret Admirer

Chapter 30

"You're someone I never expected to fall for."

Ethan Miles

I didn't plan on going to Prom. Of course, Olivia and I were going to go together but since we weren't going out anymore, there was no reason for me to go. I sat alone in my room drawings random doodles on the back of a notepad on my desk. Thoughts of Elise raced through my mind. I never thought I'd see her as more than my best friend but what I'd done a couple weeks before changed everything. Every time my stomach turned when I saw Elise and Chris together, I'd passed it off as my protective instincts. But now I knew I was wrong. It took me so long to realise it but I finally did - I loved Elise. More than anything. And I never expected to. Everyone else could see it, the two of us together. I never could though. And now that I did, it was too late.

Then it hit me. No. If I wanted her, I had to fight for her. And that was exactly what I was going to do.

My tux had arrived that morning. I'd forgotten to cancel it but I guess I was lucky that I hadn't. I slipped it on and brushed my hair. Then I got in my car and drove to the venue. When I arrived, everyone was inside, the music so loud that I could hear it from outside. I neared the entrance and pushed my way through the crowd of people. I rushed around the room, looking for Elise. When I couldn't find her, I worried that she and Christopher had left already.

But there she was. In the most beautiful dress I'd ever seen. She was standing on the far wall of the room next to Chris. Neither of them saw me at first. As I walked over to them, Elise turned her gaze to meet mine and I felt a pang of fear inside me. My Adam's apple bobbed up and down. "Uh Elise, can I talk to you?" She stared back at me in silence. Chris awkwardly coughed. "I'll let you two talk," he said before leaving the room.

"Wh-what are you doing here?" Elise stuttered confusingly. "I came to see you," I said in reply. She continued to stare back at me, not saying a word. "Just hear me out," I said and she backed away from the wall. The music was loud and I could barely hear myself think. I carefully grabbed her arm and led her out of the room into a dim hallway. "What's going on Ethan?" she said as we came to a stop. " I need to tell you something," I said, my voice echoing through the otherwise empty hallway. "About the kiss-"

"-It's ok. I know it didn't mean anything."

"But that's where you're wrong," I said, my voice shaking. Elise stared back and me in confusion. "I-I-" I began. I stopped, not knowing how to begin. Just fucking tell her I thought to myself.

I sighed heavily before starting again. "You've always been my best friend and I've always been so grateful to have you in my life. When I was with Olivia, things were a big shaky between us and I hate that that happened. You've supported me the whole way, been there for me my entire life. No words can describe how thankful I am.

"When you first told me about you and Chris, I was really happy for you. I thought, 'Great. Elise will have someone to take care of her and keep her company.' I started to feel as if the reason you were angry at me when I first starting going out with Olivia was that I wasn't spending enough time with you anymore. And I guess that was true." I stopped, thinking carefully about what I was going to say next.

"But then one day, I saw the two of you together and something changed. At first I thought it was my protective instincts coming out for the girl who I called my best friend. But later I realised that that wasn't true." Elise stared back at me, a blank expression on her face. I had to keep going, no matter what the end result would be. I'd come this far and there was no turning back.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is... I love you, Elise."

She stared back at me in disbelief. I was worried. What I'd just said could easily have destroyed our friendship. But then, I was sure our friendship already was destroyed. It had happened as soon as I'd found out I had feelings for her. Within my heart, I knew that now that I'd acknowledged it, I could never make them disappear. No matter how hard I tried. No matter what I did.

A few odd metres stood between us and it stayed that was for a few moments, the two of us staring back at each other, neither one willing to be the one to break the contact. But slowly, I walked towards her. And in one instant, she started to come towards me, her pace quickening with each and every step. Our faces were a few inches apart. But almost immediately, the space disappeared, our lips touching with great force. Elise wrapped her arms around my neck and I picked her up, spinning her around. When I placed her back on the ground, her lips broke away from mine. Her head moved to the side of my face and her lips brushed against my ear. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting for you to say that," she whispered.