Arranged Affair

~What now~

"You coming?" Alani yells down from the top of the rope ladder used to climb into the treehouse.
     I smile like a kid in a candy store as I begin to climb the rope. Nothing has changed, old pictures of us still hang on the wall and the old mattress and blankets still lie on the floor. Although she lined the remainder of the floor with a soft blanket to resemble carpet. The old pillows have cases now and an old fishing lantern hangs from the middle beam lighting the space with a calming orange glow.
"I know I changed up a bit, how do you like it?" she asks plopping onto the matress exhausted from the hike up here.
"It's amazing, I cant believe it's still standing after all these years!" I say amazed by the cleanliness and stability of the treehouse.
     I look back at Alani, her lips are still in a perfect smile but now they have a slight tremble. Her eyes are glossed over like a dolls, her cheeks combat her pale face with a burning red tint.
"What's wrong?" I ask taking her shaky hands in mine and moving closer to comfort her.
"I waited for you," she says in a low tone, "every single day for 6 years Ive waited. Why now? Why did it take you so long to come back?"
     I look at her, my heart drops.
"Were you going to come back?" She asks as my eyes fall to the floor, "Did you even miss me?"
     My eyes slowly move back up to her face, I watch as tears trickle down her burning cheeks like a waterfall of broken dreams flowing out of her eyes.
"You weren't, were you?" She asks, "you never would've came back for me, you're only here because your parents made you."
"Alani," I say quietly, "you know I couldn't. I never thought you'd wait for me, when they moved me to America I had no choice. I'm sorry."
     I feel a tear run down my face, she wipes it off and buries her head in my shoulders and begins sobbing. The years of sad, lonely pain had caught up with her and I was to blame.
     We sat there for a moment, her sobs calming down and her shaking body seized to tremble in my arms.
"I thought about you every day," I begin, "the day that I left was the single most difficult day of my life. I threw myself into my studies and never talked to anyone, without you I was alone. I figured you'd forgot about me but I couldn't forget about you, no matter how hard I tried."
We were both silent for about 5 minutes, but it seemed like it had been ages before she broke the silence,
"Have your- never mind that's a stupid question."
"No tell me, please," I say flashing her a friendly smile.
"Have your feelings changed?" She finally says embarrassed.
"No," I pause, "Did yours?"
     She shakes her head and again buries her head in my shoulder. I hug her tightly, running my fingers through her long, soft, brunette hair. Suddenly the silence is broken.
Hesitantly she asks, "do you think we can make this work?"
"We can try," I answer.
A few moments of silence pass, her lying in my arms, I can feel her heart beat synced with mine.
"So..." she says, "what now?"