Regular

It's Him

As the song ended, I felt all tingly inside. I had never sang before, and I was nervous. Everyone clapped, so I took that as a good sign. I set the mic back in its place and looked at the three boys. I looked over them. Nathan was my first love. He always will be. We'll never forget what we had together--at least, I won't. He always made dreams seem possible. Darnellel was kind. He knew what he wanted. But he was also a little bipolar. Mason was funny, cute, understanding. He could have any girl he wanted, and yet, he chose me.

I knew who I loved. I knew who I wanted to share every kiss with, trust my heart and soul with... I knew who I wanted to hold me in my arms and tell me they loved me. I knew. But what was I going to say? How was I gonna break it to him? How would the others react? But most importantly... What would they say, when they found out that the man I loved, wasn't standing before me at this very moment?

I didn't want to be with Nathan, Darnellel, or Mason. Because, what I failed to mention was during my recovery, I had a certain visitor. Ryder had come to see me.

I woke up and the nurse was standing by my beside, checking my vitals. Then Ryder came to the door and asked the nurse if he could come in and talk to me. I nodded at her, telling her he was nice and safe. Kind of a wacko, but he was funny. The nurse walked out and Ryder sat next to me. He took my hand and looked at me.

"I heard about you on the news," he said.

"Where's Anabelle?" I asked, noticing she wasn't here.

He swallowed and looked down. Tears slid down his face. "She was attacked. Some worlocks were mad at her and killed her."

"Ryder, I'm so sorry," I whispered.

He shook his head and swallowed. I pressed my lips into a line, so I wouldn't cry. But I couldn't controll it. When they overflew, Ryder held me and we cried together. Anabelle was my best friend. She was sweet, fun... I'll never forget her. We cried for about thirty minutes--well, I did--before finally carrying on with our conversation.

"So when I heard about you, I had to make sure you were alive," he said.

"I thought you didn't like me," I arched an eyebrow at him, wiping my nose with a tissue.

"Of course I do. We've fought, but we're cool like that," he smirked.

I nodded.

"I'm glad you're okay. Really," he said.

"Thanks for the concern," I smiled weakly, wiping dried tears away.

Then the look he gave me, made my heart melt. He gave me a look of genuine concern and compassion that I didn't know existed. He looked at me as if I were some flawless girl who was lying in a hospital bed. And then the realization crashed down on me, like someone hitting me on the forehead saying I should've had a V8. It was Ryder all along, but we never knew it.

"So who is your true love?!" a girl in the front row yelled at me, making me snap into reality.

I sighed as guesses filled the crowd.

"I hope it's Nathan."

"Girl, please. It should be Mason."

"Darnellel is hot."

"Okay!" I laughed. "The thing is..." I looked at the three of them. "He's not here."

"What?!" the girls asked.

I looked away from the three boys and looked out into the crowd. I was getting yelled at for being so stupid. Then a girl said, "Why don't you want someone that's right in front of you?"