Don't be sorry, Nat

Part 13

So obviously, everyone freaks out. We decide we are not telling fans an ounce of what happened, not that we were broken into, that we were attacked, that we were supposed to be in Hawaii- nothing. We ignore the comments about us going missing online for several days and eventually people stop asking.

Our friends make a large effort to take care of us. People start sleeping over all the time so we'll feel safe. I readily give up my bed since I've been sleeping in David's anyways. Zane and Heath do everything short of actually move in. They make us dinner, show up with vlog content so David doesn't have to think about it, and also completely ignore fans questions about where we were.

The police eventually catch the guys- they knew it was them when they found they still have David's key. We don't bother trying to get any of the money back, it was worth the price of not being dead. Gradually, we start to feel safe again. At first, neither of us could go to the bathroom alone in the middle of the night, waking the other to come with them even though it was right there. Over time, it was better. We started encouraging people to stop staying over so much and David starts to pick up more and more projects again. Within two months, things feel almost back to normal.

"I think we should move." David says. We're sitting in bed with our laptops out. We weren't talking or doing anything specific, just being next to each other.

"Move where?"

"Well I've been looking at houses," he turns his computer towards me for me to see. "I really like these two, I was going to schedule a showing. If you want." I think about it a moment, we are outgrowing this house, David really wants a pool, and I still can't get the taste of being robbed out of my mouth.

"Wow, that's so pretty." I take the computer from him and start scrolling through all the photos. When I decide my preference, David immediately sends out an email for a showing. It's much bigger, has a pool, a nice view, and a very nice master bedroom. Then we could actually start sharing a room instead of having all my stuff in the other room.

"I like this place because it's still a two bedroom so if you decide you hate me you can take that room and still be my assistant!"

"Well I'm not sick of you yet." I lean in and kiss his cheek. "You're stuck with me for now."

"I wouldn't use the word 'stuck' but I'll take it." I lean my head on his shoulder as we scroll through more pictures of houses.

"Natalie," David sets the computer aside and sits up. "I've known this a long time, too long, and I have to tell you. It's actually stupid how long I haven't told you."

"Oh no," I sit up and brace myself. "what did you do?"

"What did I do? Hmm, well I met this girl that was way cooler than me when I was like 13. She was just way out of my league. So, when she asked me to the dance, I was just, wow, I didn't know what to do with myself. But it didn't play out how I wanted it to really. She spent all night dancing with friends and I didn't have the courage to do anything else about it. Then she became one of my best friends which was good enough for me." He was looking down at his hands, fiddling with a loose thread. "Life tore us in different directions, we had entirely different lives until it felt like mine was falling apart, getting out of hand. I knew she was the perfect person to help me. So when she agreed to come live with me and be my assistant I thought 'wow this is perfect, I get to work with my best friend' because I didn't trust anyone else, and she was who she was so I just knew it would be perfect.

"But being so close to her brought on a lot of feelings I had forgotten about, I felt 14 again. I tried to contain myself, I pretended my friends teasing me about her didn't bother me, I hugged her and called her gross after, I kept my distance. Then she got into this really bad situation and seeing her like that made it impossible for me to keep quiet. I had to protect you- her, sorry, her. And it drove me crazy, I did too much. I went too far. But she was the nicest person on the planet. So, to my very good fortune, she liked me too. I don't think she liked me as long as I liked her, but I wasn't going to let her go without trying. I was never worried about losing her to a relationship because I knew at the end of the day, I'd always be there for her, and her for me.

"So around that time I realized this, that I-" He lifted his head to meet my gaze for the first time, "That I had fallen in love with her." I almost feel my eyes start to tear up but hold it in because this isn't sad, this is beautiful.

"David, I've always loved you. And I've been in love with you since- really since we pulled the prank on Heath and Zane. Hearing you call me your girlfriend just pushed me over the edge."

"Well you are very easy to please." And with that I kiss him, giggling through it. We have really good sex and fall asleep, his hand in mine.

So since we've been sleeping in David's room, and there isn't room in either one of our rooms for all our things, it's all very much still separate. I want the feeling on sleeping in my room, I just want it to be David's too. My things have started to trickle over into David's room. I usually have my glasses on the bed side, a small collection of hair ties, my phone charger plugged in, things like that.

These Datalie shippers though, nothing gets by them. They noticed when a vlog pans over David's room that several things of mine are sitting on his typically unused bedside table. They notice that all the pillows look more slept in than usual. A big giveaway was the time a shot included my Nutella sitting next to the bed.

They also obsess whenever we're in bed together in the vlogs. Even before we were dating, we would lay in bed together just hanging out. So now that we're spending more time in bed together, more of the vlogs have shown us in bed together. The viewers aren't stupid, and they're paying enough attention that it's become super obvious. So, after dating for five months, we finally decide to tell them.

David spends days editing the video. It includes all the clips of when we told the whole room and everyone freaks out, David does a short intro about the bet, then there's Heath and Zane getting shot while me and David hold hands. Once his outro plays, there's a short clip with me in David's lap and he asks, "so now what?" And we both laugh. Four minutes and twenty seconds was all it took to throw our relationship into the world.

So..... now what? I guess we just move into a new house together, with a super awesome security system, and we spend the rest of our young adult lives living just as we have been, but now we kiss sometimes.

Author's Note:

Thanks for reading if you made it this far! It was fun to write again, and I don't think I'm half bad at it? So if anyone has story ideas send them my way and maybe you'll keep me inspired to maintain this hobby :)