Vivid Memories

Chapter 19

His lips slowly moved away from mine.

U-Uh... what just happened?

I saw Caitlyn slowly step back and away from us.

Dante rested his head on my forehead, where he smiled. He too then dropped his sparkler and placed his cold right hand on my cheek.

I placed my right hand on top of his.

"Dante...?" I whispered, looking at him in his eyes, which glowed like lights. "I..."

"Avalon, I—"

We couldn't hear each other now. More and more fireworks began to sound off outside. So much that I went inside, but Dante remained outside, watching the fireworks. I saw a look on his face that I saw once before.

It was that melancholic smile.

Ahhhhhhh shit!

I ran up the stairs in a frenzy and into the room I was staying in.

God fucking damn it! What the fuck just happened?!

Calm down. Calm down.

I screamed into a pillow.

DANTE JUST KISSED ME.

Oh god. Oh god. Oh god.

Okay, okay. I'm sure there's a reasonable reason for this... situation.

Okay. Okay. Okay. Think Avalon.

Uhhh... maybe he likes you?

Dante likes you?

Do you like Dante?

God thinking about it made me so nervous and angry at the same time.

I'm so sorry pillow.

Aahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!

What if he's just messing with you?

Maybe he could be?

Maybe it was because Caitlyn was there?

Yeah, that's it! He's probably using you to get rid of Caitlyn! Makes 100% sense!

But he wouldn't use me for his own devices?

No, that's not Dante.

So maybe he's just playing around...?

But like... if you kiss someone during New Year's Eve... doesn't that mean like... good luck in a romantic relationship?

Oh, God.

Dante may actually have feelings for me.

Aaahhhhhh!!!!!!!

Okay. You should just go downstairs and ask him straight up. No problems. He will straighten things out.

I took a deep breath and walked downstairs, trying to act as casual as possible. I noticed Caitlyn was talking to Dante. Shit. Now the right time. I waited around the living room, where the guest too was just waiting around. A lot of his former friends recognized me and asked me if I like Dante.

I couldn't give a clear answer.

Every time someone asked me that, I couldn't help but just overthink myself.

Did I like him?

Or maybe I just liked his company and that just caught me off by surprise?

God, maybe I was part of a plan to get rid of Caitlyn and I didn't know.

Geez. I wish I knew the answer.

I waited, and waited, and waited.

Dante came after everyone else left.

Uh... this was awkward.

"So, what did you think of the fireworks?" He asked casually, sitting beside me. He looked as red as me right now.

"I-I thought they were good." I chuckled nervously, shifting slightly away from him. "Haha, they go boom boom."

"Y-Yeah, you're not wrong," Really Avalon?! Is that the best you can do?! 'They go boom boom?' God, you're so nervous! "Hey, listen, I uh... wanted to know if maybe... uh... you'd like to hang out sometime?"

"What do you mean," I asked, tilting my head to the side.

"Y-you know? Maybe watch a movie or something? Next week?" He asked, his face going really red and looking away. "I think... it would be good before... you know... we go back to classes."

"Yeah, I-I guess," God why are we dodging the obvious question? Maybe he doesn't want to insult me or make things any more awkward between us. Probably? Ahhh! I wish I knew what he was thinking. He's probably thinking about the same thing.

"You wanna watch something?" He asked, looking around.

"Uhh... y-yeah?"

So we sat there, watching a movie. I don't recall what it was. All I was thinking about was what was going on between me and him. A twenty-year-old Californian liking me, an eighteen-year-old Brit. God. It sounds so weird. But I guess Dante wasn't a bad guy. It seemed like he had some experience, at least in romance. Given, it all ended tragically, but I'm not those girls. Especially Caitlyn.

When the movie ended, Dante bowed respectfully (that's probably the weeb inside of him) and headed upstairs.

Ugh... this was actually killing me.

I too headed up, after like ten minutes.

I tried to fall asleep, but it was hard.

My mind was racing between thoughts.

Anything was possible.

I wanted to know how felt... so maybe I knew how I felt about him.

I've only felt like this before once, with Gerald.

But even so, I never felt so... helpless before.

I could read Gerald.

Dante was someone who I couldn't.

Man. Caitlyn was right.

There were a lot of things that I didn't know about him.

It could be the same with him, where he doesn't know much about me.

Uuuhhhhhhhh.

Dante...

Do you love me?