Friends... Or more?

Chapter 5

It had been a few weeks since Levi and I started working on our paper cranes. He has 876 and I have 879. Sometimes we would just work on them on our own whenever we cod find a spare moment, but most of the time we would just sit on the porch and work together. There are some moments when they would get distracted and tell jokes. They would end up completely forgetting about making the paper cranes and end up laughing so hard that they had tears coming to their eyes. It was amazing to see Levi laugh. His eyes would scrunch up slightly at the corners and he would smile slightly. His laugh was more of a quit chuckle, although it was smooth and beautiful. His eyes showed extreme happiness even though his face portrayed only a little. I find as I spend more and more time with him it becomes easier to read him, yet there ways seems to be this lingering look in his eyes that I can never place. It eats away at me that I can't figure it out since he will look happy for a while and then suddenly become, almost saddened. As if he all of a sudden realized something. I want to take that sadness away, I want to assure him that everything is alright, yet I can't do that if I have no idea what "everything" is! I'm lost in thought and I don't even notice when my mother knocks on my door until she is in my room nudging at me to see if I'm awake. I blink and sit up quickly trying to put away my thoughts for later. "Levi's asking for you" my mother says with a small smile. I thank her and go downstairs. Levi is standing at the door fidgeting nervously.
"What's up?" I ask him looking at his slightly trembling hands in concern. He stills his hands when he notices me looking at them and Swales loudly before speaking.
"W- would you like to see the fireworks with me?" He asks in a small voice, as if he is doubting himself. I almost gasp in shock and quickly try to staunch the huge grin spreading across my face.
"Sure!" I reply excitedly. He looks up at me shocked and mumbles an embarrassed okay before giving a small grin himself.
"Well you better get ready then" he says in a playfully exasperated tone. I look at him with wide eyes before rushing into the house and quickly getting myself decent. I throw on a pair of skinny jeans and a heavy sweater with arms that almost completely cover my hands. I finger comb my hair and rush outside. Levi was leaning against the house messing with his hair.
"Lets go!" I said excitedly, starting to run down the long dirt roadway and pulling Levi along by the sleeve. We got there just before the sun set and picked a grassy spot away from everyone else. Levi spread out a blanket and we say down and pulled a second one over ourselves. The days were hot but it got cold quickly at night here. I sat huddled up in the blanket and waited impatiently for the show to start. I almost jumped up in fright as I felt a nudge at my pinkie. I thought at first t was a spider but I quickly realized it was Levi's pinkie!! I tried to act like I didn't notice in case it was an accident but I froze up when I felt it again. I looked over at Levi and saw him staring straight ahead with no sign that he did anything. Looking more closely I thought I noticed a slight blush on his cheeks and with that I shyly shifted my pinkie over so that it brushed against his. I saw something in his eyes light up and he hooked his pinkie with mine. My heart started racing as fast as my mind, trying to process what exactly this meant and if I was over thinking it. Over the next 10 minutes or so our hands shifted closer and closer together until we had our fingers threaded through each other and our palms were presses tightly together. My face felt like it was on fire and even though it was dark now so he had no chance of seeing it I his it in the soft fabric of the blanket. His hand is thin and delicate looking, but surprisingly big and strong. His grip was gentle so he wouldn't hurt me but tight enough for me to feel his heart beat. It was erratic and strong, showing me he is just as nervous as I am. The crowd settled and it went quiet until the first thin streak of color went up into the air. It traveled upward for a few seconds before exploding into an array of red and gold sparks, shimmering and glinting before sailing downward to the ground. Multiple colors and styles soared up and exploded all at once in a dizzying mixture of sparks. I started wide eyes at the whole thing, gasping at every new firework that would go up. I felt a tap on my arm and heard a muffled version of my name. I looked over at Levi and was shocked to see him so close to my face. Our noses were almost touching and his eyes stated holes into mine as if he was trying to read my mind. He lifted his hand to my cheek and pulled me in gently towards him. I leaned in a bit and he closed the distance between us, pressing his lips against mine with a slight pressure. His lips were warm and soft, they moved swiftly with mine, shifting to a new position and then holding me there as if savor ing the feeling of kissing me. My heart was beating so hard I thought it would burst out of my chest. I shaky wrapped my arms around his neck and he shifted his other arm around my waist. Our lips parted just as the second to last firework ended and he looked deep into my eyes as the last one soared up into the sky. As the loud boom echoed thought the park I saw Levi whisper 3 simple words that made my heart stop. As the firework exploded into a golden shower of stars and heart shapes Levi said "I love you" and gave me a heart breaking smile. Tears came to my eyes and a smile stretched across my face. I sobbed and nodded trying to convey I felt the same way until Levi finally understood and pulled me into his chest, hiding his own grin in my hair. Little did I know at the time this would be my happiest memory for a while.