S.O.S/The Winner Takes It All

Chapter 19

I left Courtney's house about ten minutes ago after dropping her off, and now I'm on my way back home.
We decided it was best that I didn't stay the night again in case we had a repeat of history. It's kind of tiring, hiding our relationship. I just want to be with her without the constant fear of our friends discovering we are more than just friends. I have to admit, I'm the happiest I've ever been with her. There's no nervousness with her like I normally have with new dates, I just feel calm and peaceful.
But what happens if Courtney and I want to get married? We'll have to tell everyone then, right? I wonder what she would say if I asked her.

...

I arrive at the office the next morning, my head hurting slightly. Courtney and I had spent 3 hours talking on the phone last night, about random shit. Nothing that was stressing us out, just our normal conversations.

I swing the office door open, taking a sip of my takeaway coffee. I walk into the main room where we normally just chill and eat lunch.
Olivia, Noah and Keith are sitting at the table, Noah and Olivia nodding and talking quietly, while Keith has his earphones in. I sat down opposite Noah, reaching for my phone in my pocket. But before I could turn it on, Olivia clears her throat. "Hey, Shayne."
I glance up, giving her a small smile. "Oh hey, Olivia."
"Did you hear that Courtney is dating someone?"
I raise my eyebrows, slightly confused. "No..."
"She hasn't told you?" Olivia tilts her head to one side. She knows exactly what she's doing.
I shake my head, playing along. "No, she hasn't. When did she start seeing him?"
Olivia holds my gaze, shrugging. "I don't know. But they've known each other for a long time."
I nod, glancing down at my phone. A text from Courtney pops up. 'I'm gonna be a little bit late, tell the others I'm sorry.'  I look back to Olivia. "Hopefully she'll introduce us to him soon."
"Yeah." Olivia sits back in defeat. "Hopefully she does."
Suddenly the door is thrown open, and Courtney is holding her backpack in one hand, and her face is slightly flushed. "Sorry!" she exclaims, closing it carefully behind her. "Um, I forgot we had work, so I overslept again. Sorry." She places her backpack on the floor, sinking into the chair next to me.
"It's okay, we haven't started yet," I reassure her.
Olivia leans forward in her chair, observing Courtney and I. "Okay, I'm sorry if I'm wrong, but you guys are totally dating right?"
Courtney's eyes widen as she stares at her friend. "What makes you think that?" Her hand is moving underneath the table, and another message from her appears on my phone.
'Do we tell them?'
I quickly type back a reply. 'Only if you're ready.'
Courtney clears her throat. Olivia hasn't answered yet, she's still staring at us. "Um, we're not dating. Shayne is helping me through some shit, and we've just hung out a lot because of it. So thank you Olivia, but no."
I nod, gazing at the table. I'd seen her anxiety kick in, and I had known she wasn't going to tell our friends the truth.

...

I lean against my kitchen bench, gazing at her. She stares at the floor, refusing to break the silence first.
Suddenly I come up with an idea. "Why don't we go to Virginia for a bit?"
Her head snaps up, and she stares at me. "What? Why?"
"Well, it takes 4 hours and a bit to fly there, and we both have a week off. So why not?"
She swallows, rubbing the back of her neck. "I suppose we could." She pauses, still contemplating. "Yeah. Okay, let's do that."
"I know some fancy places there, so pack something nice to wear." I wink at her, pulling her in for a kiss.
Her lips taste like fairy floss and candy, and I have to use everything in my power to pull away. She smiles at me, her eyes filled with tears, placing her hands on my chest. "I love you so much."
I bite my lip, smiling back at her. "I love you too." Despite myself, a tear runs down my face. Courtney lifts one of her hands to my neck, guiding my lips to hers. After about 10 seconds, her phone rings, and she quickly pulls away from the kiss. She glances at the screen. "Sorry,  I gotta take this." 

I nod as she walks into my room, the phone to her ear and a concerned expression on her face. I open the cupboard, removing a bottle of red wine. I received it as a present from Kristen for my birthday, but never drank it. I place it on the counter, taking two wine glasses down from the cabinet. I pour the wine into the glasses, bringing them in one hand and the bottle in the other, down to my coffee table. About a minute later, Courtney re-enters my living room, slipping her phone into her pocket, her face a little paler than usual. I smile at her, lifting a glass for her to take as she sits down next to me. "Who was that, babe?"
She clears her throat, sipping the wine. "It was Olivia. She said that she knows that I'm keeping secrets from her, and she said it hurts her that I think I can't tell her my feelings." Her voice breaks a little bit, and her eyes are filled with tears. "She knew I was lying today, Shayne. She knew." Courtney whispers.
I nod, kissing her on the cheek. "Well, maybe we can tell them when we get back from Virginia." She smiles at me, wiping her tears away. "Okay. Together."
I squeeze her hand, gazing into her eyes. "Together."