Love Sucks

You've Been Invited - Chapter Fifteen

“God can allow you to pass through storms and get to your success. But what the devil loves to do is to make you not to realize it that the storm is over. He wishes to keep you in condemnation even at the time you have to feel liberated.”

Israelmore Ayivor

***

"What?" Abigail asked again. She could only stare at the boy in front of her.

Nathaniel's eyes glazed over; his mouth hung open, while he stood there, listening to Abbi's heartbeat. It had skipped a few beats.

"I ... Abigail ..." He was confused, and Abbi would have none of it. Roughly disentangling herself from his arms, Abbi jumped away like he had fleas.

"I want to get dry. Will you take me inside?" She asked in that dead pan voice.

Nathaniel didn't understand, he was disappointed in a strange way, and kept his blue gaze locked with Abigail's tawny glare. She looked freezing, now that he noticed.

With a slight nod, he took her hand and started towards the house, Nathaniel felt satisfied that she didn't smack him away, but she still didn't respond to his touch. Normally, her heart sped up, like a hummingbird's wings. This time, it had lowered, and then moved to a different speed. Almost like she was anxious.

In the pit of his stomach, he knew he shouldn't have said that. Maybe it was the intense moment they had just shared, which all seemed to blur together thinking back on it, and it was then that he knew she wanted him just as bad as he did her.

There was no other explanation, was there?

Maybe he had frightened her by saying those words, or maybe it was all extremely sudden. Nathaniel now had a sick feeling in his stomach, and the strong urge to hit a wall.

But Abigail kept her hand in his; not entwining their fingers - unfortunately - but it was the same.

Why didn't she say it back? Was he being abrupt?

The house was a looming cage in front of him, but he let her in, hearing her shoes squeak against the pearly floor. Her breathing had changed. As Nathaniel studied her from the corner of his eye, he saw her face. It was utterly broken, terrified, and desolate. His heart pained at such a sight.

Nathaniel didn't ever want to see such a look; there was a fine line between surprise and shock, and that line had been thoroughly ran over with a bulldozer.

Abigail quickly went towards his bedroom; which normally brought a shock of arousal, but this time, all it provided was guilt and need to take back what he said.

"I didn't mean it," He started softly.

She turned to look at him sharply, her eyes pained. Nathaniel found himself drowning in her honey gaze, as he did often enough.

"Oh." Was all she said.

Oh? What did 'Oh' mean? Abigail then turned on her heel and made the rest of the way into the room; Nathaniel followed.

"What does 'Oh' mean?" He asked curiously, watching as she moved about the room, gathering an essential amount of evening clothes.

"It means Oh." Her voice was quiet, yet determined, and she strode from the room, towards the bathroom this time. Abbi shut the door in his face, but that didn't stop Nathaniel from talking.

"Is 'Oh' supposed to be intuited as a bad thing, or a good one?" He asked to the white paneled wood.

Nathaniel could hear Abigail rustling about, the movement of her shirt against her skin; his stomach clenched at the thought of a different situation in which that was involved.