I'm Not Drunk, I'm Just Intoxicated By You <3

Chapter 17

*Aiden's POV*

I'm finally going to tell her how I feel. Don't got me wrong, I'm terrified. What if she hates me? What if we can't even be friends after? What if she laughs at me? What if I'm left heart-broken? All these doubts almost made me change my mind. But I have to do this. I need to. I don't know what to expect, but I can dream. I can hope that she feels the same. I can hope.

I heard the door bell ring and my heartbeat sped up. I made my way downstairs and opened the door. Ella was standing there somewhat impatiently.

"Right, you need to tell me what is going on!" she said.

"Yeah I know, lets go for a walk," I suggested, grabbing my coat and walking out the door. I heard her sigh before she decided to follow me.

"I don't know what this is about, but it can't be that bad," I heard her say, "You should just spit it out."

If only she knew that what I was away to tell her could make or break me. If only she knew.

*Ella's POV*

Aiden was acting really weird. I can't even begin to imagine what this secret is that's eating him up inside. I'm sure it can't be that bad? Could it? Aiden's a good person, he wouldn't have done anything really bad.

He was walking just a little bit ahead of me, head down, slouched over. His feet scuffing along the ground. It was getting dark, and a bit colder. He was leading me towards the beach. Why the beach? I guess it's very secluded and empty at this time of night, so no-one would hear us. My imagination was going wild thinking about what could have happened to make him act like this. He was normally so care-free and fun.

He came to a stop once we were standing right in front of the sea. The sky was now black and the stars were shining down on us. He turned around to look at me, his eyes peircing into mine with so much intensity that I had to look down at the ground.

"El, you have to promise me that once I've told you this you will still stay friends with me, that we won't go back to not speaking, okay?" he asked quietly.

I looked up to him and met his eyes, which were now filling with tears.

"Of course. I promise," I said, sticking out my pinky finger like we used to do when we were kids. I saw a brief smile flash across his face, before it changed again to mask of misery.

"Right okay, I'm just going to go straight out and say it." he said. After a small pause he opened his mouth and said.

"I love you."

"Yes I know, and I love you too now just tell me what you have done that Carrie could blackmail you for," I answered. I'm starting to get a bit fed up of his stalling.

"No, that's it. I love you. I am in love with you."

"WWhhhaaaatttt?" I stuttered.

"I. Love. You. I have done for years. You are the one person I can trust with everything. You know me the best. We have basically grown up together and we have so many memories and great times. Surely you must have at least suspected that I had feelings for you. The way I hated whenever you spoke to boys, how I try to get people to back off from you. You can't be so oblivious to not have realised that about half of the boys in the school fancy the pants off you, and I've had to keep them away."

And I hadn't. I was oblivious to everything. This is what I had been dreaming of for so long. For him to feel the same. For us to have a relationship, to have a shot at something more than just being friends. It wasn't meant to happen now though. Not now that I've starting to block out the feelings, not now that I've started to move on. And there's Sean. He would hate me for sure. And Aiden's his best friend. He would be so betrayed. I can't do that to him. Maybe if Aiden had told me before Sean I would have said I felt the same. Actually, there's no maybe about it. I would have said I love you too.

"What about Sean, why did you set me up with him then?" I asked, it didn't make any sense.

"I was trying to get rid of the feelings I had for you, but I couldn't. You were happy with him though, and the night you introduced him as your boyfriend I was devastated. I knew I would never have a chance. Carrie knew because that night when I got wasted I told her everything. I tried to forget, since you were with Sean but I couldn't. I love you too much to forget El. Please just give me a chance. Sean will understand. I love you so much that it hurts Ella. Every time you hug him or kiss him my heart breaks. Every time I see you holding hands I feel a pang in my chest, and I find my self wishing it was me instead. Please, give us a shot." he pleaded with me.

I so wanted to tell him I felt the same, to tell him the truth. The look on his face nearly broke me. If only he'd told me before Sean, it would have been do much different. Never mind all the 'if onlys' or 'what ifs', I need to do what's right for everyone. And just now, as the waves crashed into our feet, and the moon lit up his hopeful looking face I knew that whatever could have been will have to stay in our imagination. He stared me right in the eyes, and looked at me with confusion and hope, waiting for my response to his confession. So I did the only thing I could. I ran.  

I could hear him shouting at me to come back, to hear him out, but my legs kept moving and I didn't look back. I couldn't see him, but I could hear his sobs, piercing through the black night which was silent just a minute ago. And as the distance between us increased I couldn't help but feel a pang in my heart. I had just broken the one I love. It was my fault he was like that. I had hurt him. Probably beyond repair. And I know now that our friendship will have changed a great deal now, and it will never go back to the way it was. Never. I think I had just broken my first promise.

*Aiden's POV*

I just stood and watched her leave. I shouted on her to come back, to stay with me and let me explain, but I knew she wouldn't turn back. I couldn't take it anymore and I just sunk to the sand and let out the tears. All the anger and frustration came out in my cries. I just sat there on the beach, sobs raking my body. I hoped she would come back to comfort me, but she didn't. I was alone on this deserted beach. Alone and broken.

Somehow, I managed to get up off the sand and my legs started moving on their own accord. I'm falling apart, I'm barely breathing. With a broken heart, that's still beating. It hurts. I'm officially heart-broken. She left me here alone, she doesn't care about me.

At some point it had starting raining, and the drops poured down on me while I ran. The streets were deserted, but it's a good thing tears never show in the pouring rain. The drops lashed down on me, but I barely noticed. I was numb. I was not thinking, just running. Running away from Ella, from my problems, from my life. There's no point if Ella isn't in it. Now she's gone, it's like an echo in my head. As I remember all our memories, all of our good times. It hurts even more knowing that we will never have anything like that again. Our friendship has definitely changed, it will never go back to what it was. In some ways, I regret telling her, but I knew I had to.

Through the rain and the tears I had made my way to an old tree house, where Ella and I used to play when we were little. It was in a small forest beside our old houses. This is where we would escape from reality and delve into our imagination, and that is exactly what I did now. I imagined waking up everyday, holding her in my arms. I imagined being able to kiss her and hug her, to love her. I imagined a life with her. Finally my tears ran out and I found myself falling asleep in the tree-house, with the rain battering against the roof and the pain in my chest as vivid as it had been all those hours ago.

A/N: So next chapter guys :) x i'll try update tomorrow but ive hardly got any votes/reads on my last chapter compared to the older ones :/ xx i need your help, should i enter this in romance or teen fiction for watty awards?xx anyway the song is Broken by Lifehouse, check it out :) xx

As always please vote/comment/share/fan if your liking it :) xx