I've Never Cried

Chapter Sixty-seven - "Christmas Morning."

"I've Never Cried"

Chapter Sixty-Seven

'Christmas Morning.'

Demi's POV

I knew why I loved him.

He was charming, probably in the nerdiest way a man could be. He stumbled over his words when he rambled, and was cautious of hurting the feelings of others. He was an idiot, while at the same time impossibly intelligent. His patience with me was unreal, even when he was upset and I was to blame.

He was handsome, and had a laugh that lightened the mood of any room he entered. He was gracious, yet endlessly irritating. He was persistent, but never too demanding. He worried because he cared, but knew when not to worry and when not to care.

And the way he looked at me - like I was some kind of rare find that he couldn't afford to lose - that was probably my favorite thing about him. He loved me with such a passion, such a ferocity; and never truly made me question it.

He was perfect, and yet, so incredibly flawed.

And I was in love with him.

I remember the moment that I knew I was in love with him. It was one of my favorite days, long before I had actually admitted it. I'd never told him that day, like I wanted to, because I was afraid that I'd fallen too soon all over again. And I was right. I had.

It was less than a two weeks after we'd officially begun our relationship, and he called one morning, just before the sun came up. I was still in bed, barely awake, when I heard my phone ringing up a storm. In hindsight, a part of me knew it had to be him calling so early, but in that moment, I was livid. I answered the phone bitterly.

"What?" I said, rubbing my eyes. Then I heard him laugh. And instantly, I was happy.

"Someone's not too fun in the morning," he said, chuckling. I rolled my eyes.

"Joe, it's 6am. If the sun isn't up, why are you?"

"I wanna take you somewhere," he replied. "Right now."

"Right now?" I repeated, checking the time again. "Wait, where are you?"

"I'm outside," he said. "You have two minutes."

Then the line went dead.

I remember being so excited that morning that I practically sprinted from my bedroom. I fumbled all over the place, looking for my toothbrush and trying to freshen up as quickly as possible. At my last glance in my bedroom mirror, I saw that my hair was disheveled, I was without any makeup, and my freckles were incredibly prominent. It occurred to me that Joe had never seen me like that, but in my rush of excitement, I decided not to care, and headed down the stairs.

I met him at his car, as he leaned against the passenger door, waiting for me.  As I approached him, he stood up straight and gave me his smile.

"You're twelve seconds late," he said first. "I almost had to leave you behind."