Pieces [Wattpad's Editor's Choice]

23: StItCheS

They say falling in love takes time. Well how much gosh darn time did it take to at least fall in interest?

Arrow was supposed to be my soulmate, my boyfriend. Mine. We were supposed to be together. I created him by my own hand, so he had to love me, right? Did he not at least like me?

I pushed away the thoughts Isaac planted in my mind that night at the library; Arrow's in there, you're out here... Maybe he's only interested in you because you created him. It wasn't true. It couldn't be. Arrow did things for me that not even Ethan Suede did for me. He carried my backpack, even carried me to my bed so I could sleep comfortably. He called me beautiful, not sexy or hot or nothing at all. He told me I have wings, a METAPHOR. Who compliments with metaphors these days?!

Despite it being an unassigned project, he also gave me a rose he picked himself. I couldn't even get a week's notice of bail from Ethan before Valentine's Day so I'd have time to find another date.

We finished up our time at Soundful Cloud, though nothing became of it. We finished our mochas in silence, Arrow reading his Latin book and me retracing the unlucky numbers on my list. I did add one new thing:

14) 𝒶𝓈𝓀 𝒽𝒾𝓂 𝒾𝒻 𝒽ℯ'𝓈 𝒾𝓃 𝓁ℴ𝓋ℯ 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝓂ℯ, 𝓉ℴℴ.

That should've been number one on my list. That should be number one on anyone's list before writing out a full-on bucket list of cute things to do with their lover. I was so pathetic. I truly knew nothing about the real world. Maybe I needed to go back to high school after college.

We walked back to our dorm in silence. Arrow took it as a reflective walk home, I took it as an opportunity to determine his love for me: each footstep was he loves me, he loves me not, he loves me, he loves me not...

By the time we reached my dorm, there was an uneven step to make from where I stood to the door. I was about a step-and-a-half away; my footsteps were even the whole walk home, and any scientist knew that experiments couldn't be reliable without a constant variable. My last step couldn't count if it wasn't going to be the same distance as all the footsteps I took to get here.

And I was on he loves me not. Another step would be he loves me and a half. Or he half loves me not. Maybe?

I stopped. Stared at the door.

Arrow pulled it open and looked back at me. "Aren't you coming inside?"

"I can't." I looked down at my shoes. "All of fate is dependent on this final step. My fate, anyway."

He raised an eyebrow. Looked at my feet. "What, are you gonna trip? Your shoelaces are tied."

"You know that saying 'step on a crack and you'll break your mother's back?'"

He stared.

"Well, this time it's 'a step and a half and...and...'" He might not love you back? "I always trip here. Right here. Never fails." I couldn't say it.

He held out his hand. "Okay, well take my hand and jump. I'll help you."

Why did he have to be so sweet? "What if I fall?"

"You won't."

"What if you let go?"

"I won't."

"Rose let go of Jack, even though she promised-"

"Oh my God, just go inside the friggin' building." A girl behind me plowed me out of her way with an enormous duffel bag she carried in her arms, causing me to stumble forward and slam into the metal handle of the door. Fortunately, Arrow caught me just before I rolled off the door and onto the ground. I narrowed my eyes, ready to fight, though Arrow secured me tight against him and she forced her way through, powering ahead with such intensity that even Arrow stepped out of her way so she could pass.