Age Gap

Page 25

He kissed her or she kissed him. He felt both joy and dread she was underage for Christ sakes. He pulled back and she felt her lips. He really wanted to kiss her again she was like a drug that made him feel so many things. She went to kiss him again but he stopped her.

"Maddy...." she looked up at him, rejected.

"I'm sorry I shouldn't have done that oh God". Her cheeks turned red, embarrassed. Chris stared at her and laughed sorrowful.

"No you should have I just we can't-"

"Was the kiss bad?"

"No, the kiss was the best kiss I've ever had." The atmosphere lightened as the compliment sunk in. Finally, Maddy realised the answer.

"The age gap?" Chris nodded.

"Your sixteen and I'm nineteen your underage-"

"So what Chris! I'm going to be seventeen in three months!"

Chris looked down "I'm nearly twenty mads there's nearly four years between us!"

She shrugged.

"Haven't you Heard of love conquering all?"

"In this world our love could end up with me arrested and you in therapy!" She raised an eyebrow. Chris copied her.

"I'm sorry Maddy.... I want this too." She sighed

"I'd yell at you but can I ask you one thing?" Tears fell down both their faces.

"Was meeting you fate or coincidence?" Chris felt himself choke up.

"I think it was fates way to show the world that the most precious things in the world are just out of reach." She smiled even as her heart shattered into a million pieces.

"I know this may be pushing luck but can I kiss you one last time?" She didn't wait for an answer and instead pulled him down to her level and kissed him. She pulled back abruptly.

"I know being the way we are wouldn't work but friends?" She held out her hand. He shook it.

As she climbed out the window she turned around

"I know you believe in the world but have you ever thought maybe it isn't fair?" And with that she turned and left.

That night Chris fell asleep with a heavy heart. He'd lost the most important person ever because he was afraid.

He wasn't all that sure how he'd got there. He was wet and cold that was something he knew. He also knew he'd not seen her since the kiss. After being yelled at by her uncle and all his friends he felt the need to apologize, even if breaking their hearts was the only way. So that's how Chris ended up outside Maddy's window.

She let him in and he landed with a soft thud. There was an awkward silence before

"What happened to you?" He looked down and supposed she had every right to be worried. He looked like he'd lived through a tsunami.

"I uh I came Here and uh I don't know how" she stared at him.

"Chris are you ok?" He looked down.

"No... I missed you"

"Chris you said-"

He threw his arms up.

"I know what I said mads but I miss you I miss the way you laugh the way you tell me off for being too unoptimistic. Heck even my brother approves and he's ten and I want you I want what we have and I can't." A thick silence settled on the room. Maddy sat on the bed and before he could protest she kissed his cheek.

"What's the real reason we can't be together Chris? And don't you dare say it's the age gap!" She stared at him. He looked so broken and tired like he hadn't slept in weeks.

"I don't know... I guess I'm scared no I'm terrified. I love you I love you so freaking much and I thought at first it was the law you know how it says that I'm technically abusing your trust or whatever but then it clicked. I love you Maddy and I wanna spend the rest of my life with you and I got scared because I'm too young to think like that." Maddy tried to intervene but he wasn't finished.

"I stopped whatever us was because I was staring to fall. Hard. Stopping us didn't help, for the past week all I've ever thought about is you. That kiss drove me crazy all I could think about was being able to kiss you whenever I want and I think if it wasn't for my friends I'd be living in fantasy land." He stood up his face scrunched.

"I'm nineteen and I'm falling hard I was supposed to have a few more years before I thought about stuff like this but I realised your it for me and-" he was cut off mid rant. Maddy got up from the bed stood on her tiptoes and kissed him. He kissed her back and wrapped her hands around her waist and her arms around his neck. They only stopped when air became a necessity. He liked in her eyes.

"Wow.... so, I guess there's only one thing left will you be my girlfriend?" She smirked.

"why of course do you really think I kiss all the boys that way?" He stared at her. She laughed.

"Chris you're my first kiss and no other boys shall be kissed that way" he blushed.

"I'm your first kiss! Well I'm uh honoured" she giggled at him before grabbing his hand.

"Come on you before you rudely interrupted I was watching a very good film." Together they collapsed on to her bed. They didn't pay much attention to the film though as he deemed it fit to play with her long hair and she thought the only way to stop him playing with it was to kiss him. Eventually they fell asleep as The Lion King played in the background.