"I won't leave you," he swallows, his adams apple bobbing up and down. He breaks his gaze from mine and looks up. "I might lose you, but I'll never leave you." His neck glistens with sweat and his eyes are filled with nothing but pain and despair.
"You won't lose me. Never." I respond, taking his hand in mine.
He looks at our hands but doesn't pull away. "Ash," he speaks my name. "I need you to know that.. a-after this, things might not go back to how they were. You'll want to leave once you see the real me."
"The real you? Have I not seen the real you already?" He tries to speak up but I put my hand up to silence his protests. "What about the late nights, the days that we spent countless hours on just laughing together, or the time that you'd call me because of the stupidest shit ever. Adam, how can you look at me- at us, even and say I don't know you."
"I-" he begins again.
"No. I'm sorry that I don't know every single detail about you, but I've done all I can with making the best out of what I do know."
"Ashton." His voice is muffled and he continues to look down at our hands.
"Tell me, can you keep a secret?" I almost laugh at how much that phrase has been used between us two.
"No." I say sternly. "No, I can not, nor do I want to."
A few minutes of silence passes and he finally clears his throat. "Ash,"
"Hm?" I look up, our eyes locking immediately.
He grabs both of my hands in his. "I love you," he smirks. "I love you so much. So damn much." His smirk is now a grin. "Every time I look at you- I- I just get this shock of electricity that goes through my body and all I can do is think about how lucky I am to have you." Every trace of fear and desperation is knocked off his face and replaced with a full on smile. The smile that I have become so fond of over the past 2 months. The smile that I wouldn't mind being woken up by every morning. His smile.
In that moment, I realized that I love him too, it was no longer fun and games. My feelings for him have advanced to new heights and I just realized it. I should've known by now that I cared for him in more than just a 'fake relationship' type of way. I loved this boy. I loved him so much.
"I.." Warm tears prick at my eyes and I don't bother to stop them. "I love you, too." The tears spill down my face as the words fall from my lips.
He leans in and kisses my lips softly, reminding me how much I've missed the taste of cinnamon on his breath.
YOU ARE READING
Can You Keep a Secret?
RomanceAshton Rodgers is a perfectly normal teenage girl with an average group of friends. But when an annoying boy that flirts way too much joins the school, will she be able to handle his teasing? Maybe they'll find a way to deal with each other's annoyi...
