The Arrangement | Completed | Wattys2020

33

Author's Note! 

Beau truly looks so good in every GIF or picture I post of him. We love and support him wow.

I hope you guys are enjoying the story so far! We are about halfway through it (finally!!!!) I am so glad you all have joined this journey! I love you all so much! Who is your favorite character so far? I would love to know! 

Matty's POV

Candace is sleeping soundly in my arms, and I can't even find it in me to fall asleep. If I fall asleep right now, I won't fully be aware of the fact that she is this close to me. When we wake up, I know things will be different. She'll go back to being distant and cold, and she has every right to be. I don't want to sleep because I don't want this moment to end. Not yet.

My phone rings by the pillow next to me. I look at the screen and see Haley calling.

"Hello?" I answer, whispering into the phone.

"Matty, what are you doing?" Haley says.

"Trying to sleep. Do you need something? I'm busy right now." I ask, trying my best to stay quiet.

"I'm in the hospital." She says.

"Are you okay?" I ask, instantly worried about the girl that I am also trying to forget.

"I will be. I have to stay over night, but I really need you here right now. I can't do hospitals alone. You know that." She says sadly.

"Where is your mom?"

"I asked her to stay and she said that the pull out chair hurts her back. She said she would come back in the morning." She says, sounding annoyed at the mention of her mother.

"Okay, well can't you have Rebecca come and stay with you or something? I can't really leave right now." I say.

"Why not? You've been acting weird ever since our last conversation. You said that you would still be here for me, Matty." She said, reminding me of my words.

"Because I'm with someone right now." I say, still trying to stay quiet. Candace's body stirs underneath me and I cringe, fearing I have already been too lound. She needs the rest.

"Who?" 

"Im with Candace right now." I say, not wanting to sugar coat anything.

"Oh, so that's what it is. Your ex girlfriend comes back into the picture and now everything you said to me is a lie?" She asks, already assuming that's what i'm doing because in a way, she is completely right.

"It's not like that, Haley." I groan, still trying my best to stay quiet.

"No, that's exactly how it is. She crawls back to you and now it's just 'fuck me,' right? That's exactly how it is. I knew this was going to happen. I knew you wouldn't give a shit about me after she came back. I fucking knew it." She said. I can hear her sniffling on the other side of the phone, and I start to feel guilty.

"Haley, I don't know what the fuck to do right now. Whatever I do hurts one of you, and I can never please you guys. I know that you are hurt and offended by what you think i'm doing, but I don't know what to do right now. If I stay friends with you, I hurt Candace because I have already lost all of her trust. If I drop you to please Candace, then I hurt you. I don't mean to push you away but I love Candace, Haley. I love her so much, and I can't stand to lose her again. So, I'm sorry if distancing myself is hurting you, but I don't have any more options. I'm trying so hard with everything right now, and all of this shit is really stressing me out."

"Wow, Matthew. You really are a fucking dick." She spits out.

"Well, I'm sorry you feel that way, Haley. Candace's father just died. I know that you know how that feels, so maybe be considerate about what could be happening in other people's lives. It's not all about you, you know. Now, I have to go." 

"Fine." She said before hanging up the phone.

I really do feel bad about doing this to Haley, but she just doesn't understand that I won't always be able to hold her hand throughout our lives. I tried being that person for her before, and she rejected it. She cheated on me, not the other way around. Now, I have to makeup for the fact that I am now the Haley in me and Candace's situation.

"Who was that?" Candace mumbled, waking up from her sleep.

"Hey..." I mumble, pushing some hair out of her face, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up."

"It's okay. I have been falling in and out of sleep." She says, stretching her arms over her body.

"Well, i'm sorry for waking you up."

"Do you have to go somewhere?" She asks, looking at me with those big, green-blue eyes that I love so much.

"What?" I ask, forgetting the question the second it enters my brain.

"I asked if you have to go somewhere?" 

"No. No, no, i'm staying right here. I'm not going anywhere." I promise her.

"Was that Haley?" She asks.

Lie, Matty. Fucking lie.

"No. No, it was just Frailey. He was just..."

"Matty, I could hear her." She admits, sighing at me.

"I...Yeah, it was Haley." I admit, although she clearly already knew the truth.

"I should probably go into the other room now." She says, leaning up and uncovering herself from the white comfortor.

"Wait, don't go." 

"No, this was a bad idea. I should get back into the other room. Phoebe is probably-"

"Phoebe is fine. She knows where we are. Please, Candace." I beg, sounding like the pathetic fuck that I am.

"Matty..."

"Please, Candace. I need you right now. I just...I need you." I admit, feeling completely fucking defeated.

She sighs and moves back into the bed with me. I pull her closer to me by instinct, and she tenses under my tough. I try and ignore it, but it breaks my fucking heart.

"I know you don't trust me, Candace. I know you might not ever trust me again. But I promise that I will try every fucking day to be the man you thought I was. I fucked up, and i'm sorry." I whisper into her back. She doesn't reply, but I didn't really expect her to. "Get some sleep. You need it." I tell her. 

Although she never replies to me verbally, she does something that is better than what I could ever ask for. Her small hand gently covers mine, which is wrapped around her torso. Her fingers intertwine with mine, and she gives my hand a gentle squeeze. 

"Goodnight, Candace." I whisper once I know that she has fallen back into a peaceful sleep. This moment is one that I will remember for the rest of my life. This moment is so small. But it is this moment that I truly believe that everything will be okay.