Beauty and the Geek

Chapter 15.

Will's lips remained on my own; his body pressed tightly against mine, his hands drawing soft lines on my spine. He was as close as could be, but it still wasn't close enough. We clambered into the bedroom; my heartbeat ringing in my ears with the feeling of anticipation and fear about what was coming next.

His hands travelled to the bottom of my t-shirt, easily pulling it over my head as I blushed beneath his gaze. He rested his forehead against my own, as I breathed his familiar scent that made my head feel foggy. He smiled widely, dimples I had never noticed before showing on his cheeks, making my knees weak. The carefree Will I had once known seemed to have disappeared momentarily as he seemed nervous in his movements, placing a shaking hand on my stomach.

"Are you scared?" He whispered, noticing my pale expression.
"No," I lied, avoiding his gaze. "Are you?"
"Honestly?" He chuckled. "I'm freaking terrified. I'm kind of new to all of this! If you didn't already figure that out..."
"Me too," I admitted, the sound of his laugh making me feel a little better.

Will rolled over and we lay quietly side by side, ignoring the awkward fact I was semi-naked. His hand travelled to my own and I struggled to focus on making the right decision whilst Will was unmistakably distracting me. Losing your virginity was a pretty big deal – it was something that could vanish in an instant but ironically, stick around to haunt you forever. Was I really ready? A better question was could you EVER really be ready?

"I can't promise you it'll be everything you hoped and dreamed," He said, reading my mind. "But I can promise I'll never make you do anything you don't want to do. If you want to wait 20 years, I would respect that – even if you waited 20 years with a different guy. I know that because it's what you do for people that...you love."

The word 'love' echoed around the room. My pulse disappeared completely as Will lay silent, patiently, in the dark next to me.

"You...love me?" I said, my throat dry and my palms sweaty.
"You really need to ask me that?" He replied, gently. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, period. You've really changed something within me over these past few months. You made me a better man. I'll always be thankful for that. I love you more than you can possibly imagine, more than I even thought was possible. Now...do you need me to repeat that?"

It was in that moment that I realised I loved Will back; desperately and madly and all at once. Every glance over our notebooks and every accidental brush of arms had all been the signposts to light the way to that very moment. I just hadn't realised it at the time. It was scary; knowing that I loved someone so much it was out of my control. I couldn't run away from it like I usually did. Will, self-confessed school nerd, had become my best friend, my confidant and my first love all in the space of a few short months – it was time he knew that. It was time that I stopped being scared to love.

"I love you too," I managed to utter somehow.
"You do?" Will's eyes widened in surprise.

I nodded reluctantly, hoping that it was the response he had been looking for all this time. He pounced on me, his arms wrapped tightly around me, as I giggled from beneath him.

"Now isn't the right time," He planted a kiss on the top of my head.
"Why not?"
"I don't want to do this in some seedy hotel room – after your ex kicked my ass, may I add. Just trust me, it's better off this way."
"My ex," I said thoughtfully. "That sounds nice, doesn't it? It has a ring to it."
"It sure does," He chuckled in reply and we drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

---

Monday rolled around and my almost perfect weekend was over. I still had no idea how Will had managed to convince Brett to leave me alone and I wasn't sure I ever wanted to find out. But deep down inside I knew it could never be so simple; something horrible was brewing and Brett would never leave me be so easily.

Will tried to slide through the foyer but, inevitably, there were gasps from other students as they took in the full extent of his injuries. He smiled half-heartedly in their directions; attempting to hide his massive black eyes and stop everybody staring at him. Fiddling with his locker and shoving some books inside, I noticed a certain kind of sadness in his eyes; the sadness of defeat.

"I heard he got attacked in the parking lot," A girl next to my locker gossiped to her annoyingly, high-pitched friend.
"Really?" She replied. "I heard he beat up some guy in a bar –"

I smiled to myself, knowing that everybody would never expect a kid like Will to have fought with Brett. I wanted to scream the truth at everybody and tell them Brett was a monster. Yet, I was beginning to learn high school was a bubble – one that I wanted to get out of soon as soon as possible. No matter what anyone said, Brett would always be the guy all the girls wanted to date and all the guys wanted to be friends with, even after everything he had did. It was the social food chain. I was getting tired of the constant stereotypes and the fear of fitting in. Looking at Will rifling through his locker, I felt sick with guilt. It wasn't his fault that he had ended up this way – he had been protecting me. Will wasn't the kind of guy who relished attention and now he was in the limelight, whether he liked it or not.

Without hesitation, my feet began moving in his direction. Still surrounded by a million suspicious faces, Will turned to face me with a surprised expression on his face.

"What are you doing?" He said, alarm bells ringing in his eyes.
"Something I should have done a long time ago," I pulled his face towards my own, his lips crashing down on mine.

The crowd let out a few gasps of horror, whispering wildly between themselves. There were a few singular "whoops" and claps in the crowd; Will blushed, a smug glow returning to his face immediately after I pulled away and turned to face our audience. Lauren and the rest of the cheerleaders were hyperventilating in the corner as she took a timid step towards me.

"Have you gone completely crazy?" She looked like she was going to pass out.
"Actually, Lauren," I smiled at Will, linking his fingers with my own. "I'm the sanest I've been in a long time."
"B-b-but...what about Brett?"
"Brett and I are no longer together – I'm sure he can tell you all about. But, if you'll excuse me – my boyfriend and I have more important things to do."

Will could barely look me in the eyes; his cheeks were flushed, a curved grin settled on his face. He squeezed my hand tightly, showing me his appreciation. Zeke had appeared from the science lab to check out what all the noise was about; still in his lab coat and goggles, ogling us admirably.

"As for you," I looked at him, with all the determination I could muster. "Find your own prom date. I've got mine."