|A L W A Y S & F O R E V E R| B O O K 1

6||S t a r t O v e r

Date: 3/11/15
Day of the Week: Wednesday
Location: Los Angeles, California
Place: Ciara's Condo

Ciara
I sat with my back against the headboard of my bed. I sighed in frustration as I threw my phone down next to me. Russell had been blowing my phone up for the past hour and thirty minutes. I wanted to answer, but I didn't have the guts to. I didn't know what to say to him after I ran out of his place when we kissed. A rush of emotions started to run through my mind after it happened. I felt overwhelmed by it all. I shook my head before lying down. I figured I'd just try to sleep and hopefully, by tomorrow, it'll be blown over.

The next day, I woke up to the vibration of my phone. I had to put it on silent due to the constant calls. My hands rubbed the sheets underneath me in an attempt to find it. When I did, I picked it up, looking at the caller ID. I sighed, running my hands down my face. It rang three more times before I let it go to voicemail. He didn't leave a message.

  Omniscient
While Ciara sat in bed contemplating whether or not she should have answered Russ' calls, Russell sat at home with his head in the palms of his hands. He let out a deep sigh before shaking his head.

"What the fuck was I thinking, man? What was I doing?" He shot up from the couch, pacing back and forth in his living room.

He was angry with himself for running her off. Although it was just a kiss, he knew she'd been through a lot. It was too much for her. He had overwhelmed her. The first time was on both of them, but the second was all on him. He decided to take that risk. A risk that could have possibly run her away for good. Things between them had just started to kick off. She'd come over and hang out with him at his house. They'd talk about whatever came to mind and laugh at the many funny things they shared. They were opening up to each other as friends. He stopped pacing the floor and took a seat on his couch. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, staring at the name on the screen, wondering if he should call or not. He figured maybe she just needed time to clear her mind of everything. Maybe she'd answer later or even call him back when she felt it was right. So he put the phone down on the glass table in front of him. Since it was still kind of early, he figured he'd catch a few more hours of sleep.

Later on in the morning when Russell woke from his sleep, he decided to give it a try and call her. To his surprise, he got lucky on the fourth ring. Her soft voice was like a sweet melody ringing through his ears.

"Hello..."

"Um...We need to talk. Can I come over?" Her end of the line was silent. She was hesitant at first before agreeing.

"Yeah. Come over in thirty."

"I'll be there. Thanks."

"Yeah."

She hung up and put her phone on the charger. Since Russ would be coming over soon and she'd just recently woke up, she made her way to her bathroom. She turned the shower on and got in after stripping from her night attire. She closed her eyes and let the water relax her body. Her nerves were bad. She wasn't ready to talk with Russell, but it had to be done rather sooner than later. Realizing he would be over in less than thirty minutes, she finished her shower and dried off quickly. Her hair was wet, so she wrapped it in a towel before putting on a tank top and sweats. She finished the rest of her routines and headed downstairs to the kitchen.

"Fuck. This damn fridge is empty." She sighed. There was a knock on the door.

"Great." She walked to the door, looking through the peephole to see Russ standing there. She took a moment to take a deep breath, preparing herself to be in his presence. She opened the door seconds after to be met by a distressed Russell.

"Hey."

"Hey. Come in." She moved to the side.

Russell
The tension was thick in the room as we sat on the couch. Neither of us said a word to each other. My foot tapped on the tile floor impatiently.

"Look, Ci. I didn't mean to come on to you so-" She cut me off.

"Russ?" She whispered.

"No Ci. I'm sorry for kissing you." I almost felt wrong for saying it because, in a way, I wasn't.

"I shouldn't have done it. I put my feelings in front of your wishes. You said you didn't wanna rush into anything, and I know it overwhelmed you." She nods her head as she listens. She looked like she had something on her mind that she wanted to get off her chest.

"Look, Russ...You're a great person, a great friend, and a great guy all together." She paused, biting her bottom lip.

"I'm not gonna sit here and lie. I am feeling you, and it's crazy. It's been close to two months. It's just way too soon. We've both been through a lot. I don't wanna rush into another relationship. I'm not gonna rush into another relationship. We're great friends, and I think we should stay that way for now. You just got divorced last year, and you and her have been together since high school. You loved her. You were in love with her. I just got out of a relationship last year, too."

"I understand where you're coming from. We do need some time to get to know each other a little more. I don't want us to do anything stupid that could cause us to ruin something good. Something that we might have a chance at. It's just gonna be hard to refrain from kissing you, though." She chuckled although, deep inside, I knew she felt the same.

"Get over it." She says as she pushes me.

"You know you feel the same way. Can I at least get a few pecks on the lips?" She glared at me.

"Don't play with me, Russ."

"What about the cheek?" I leaned over to her cheek.

"No. Now move." She pushed my face to the side before the expression on her face got serious.

"Whatever happens between us...please promise me one thing."

"Okay. What is it?" I sat up, giving her all ears.

"Promise me that you'll never do anything to hurt me. I don't think I can handle any more hurt." She looks into my eyes.

"I promise that no matter what happens between us to never hurt you, Ciara. Just from spending these few weeks with you, I can see that you're a good woman. Who knows what'll happen in our lives? If things continue to go this good, I may wanna build something special with you one day. I don't wanna ruin my chance at that." She nods her head.

"Maybe we should start over,"  Russ suggested. She grinned.

"That sounds like a great idea."