Confessions of the Fragile Heart

Chapter 14

After the show was over, we went back to ballroom. Everyone seemed excited about the show. I was starting to look forward to it. Finally, it was time for cupcakes and ice cream. We had red velvet cupcakes from Sprinkles and all types of ice cream. After everyone sang happy birthday, I blew out the candles. Denver grabbed a cupcake and put it in my face. I gasped a stuck one in his face. I laughed stuck another one in his face. He held his hands up in surrender. I picked up a cupcake and gladly took a bite. The cupcake was thrust into my face. Denver put his hands on my arms and kissed my icing covered nose.

It was certainly a lot of fun. Everyone watched us happily. We might as well have been the entertainment. They laughed at us. They took their cupcakes and spread out in the ballroom. I yawned and sat down in one of the chairs on the outer edge of the room. Denver saw I was tired. After getting permission from my mother, I went back home with Denver and Heather. I crashed on the couch as soon as I walked inside. These parties always drained me. I saw Denver sit on the couch near my head. I moved up so that my head was in his lap. I quickly fell asleep afterwards.

~

I woke to see my mom. She was smiling at me. I sat up to see that Denver didn't move all night. I was still in my dress and makeup. I went upstairs and took a shower. I let the water run over my face and my body. I ran the water on my hair and smiled. It felt amazing. I got out and dressed in a comfortable t-shirt and my pajama pants. I let my hair hang wet and naturally. I walked downstairs carefully. Denver had today's script in his hand. I took it from him as we got in the car. I started to read over it as we drove to the studio. I got into today's outfit and read my script silently as my hair and makeup team got to work. Nicole walked over to me looking dazed.

"I can't believe Denver is okay with you kissing Teddy today," she said quietly. My eyebrows pulled together as I frowned.

"What are you talking about? I'm not kissing Teddy today," I replied confused. She shook her head a bit.

"Haven't you read all the way through the script yet?" she asked surprised. I shook my head and started flipping through the pages. I stopped when I saw something highlighted in pink. James kisses Rylan. I was a bit stunned when I first saw it, but I cleared my head and looked back to Nicole.

"I'm not kissing Teddy today," I said. I thought for a second before I came up with my brilliant idea. "We'll do a stage kiss." I smiled. I was pleased with my decision. Nicole walked back over to her hair and makeup team. After my team was done with me, I walked over to Denver and showed him the script. He automatically tightened and his fists clenched. I grabbed his hand and unclenched it.

"I'm not kissing him," I corrected. "I'm about to go tell him that we're just doing a stage kiss." He kissed my forehead before I went over to Teddy. I explained it to him. We only do a stage kiss, not the real thing.

"It would make everyone's lives a little less complicated," I said. He agreed and soon, we had to get into our positions for the filming. After the director yelled 'action', Teddy started.

"There's something different about you," Teddy smiled, reciting his lines. "You're not like other girls."

"You don't know what you're getting yourself into, James," I said softly, looking down. He lifted my chin so my eyes were looking into his.

"I don't care. I love you. I don't care how complicated it gets," he said seriously. I looked at him confused. That wasn't in the script. Before I had time to piece together what was said, he was kissing me. My eyes closed after a brief moment of confusion. I knew I should've tried to stop him but I couldn't. My arms wouldn't work. Frankly, I was glad they wouldn't. I was stuck in his kiss. His lips were soft and smooth. His tongue spelled my name. A small moan escaped my lips. He pulled away gently. His lips lingered close to mine. My eyes fluttered open. I couldn't think straight. Why? Why did he do it? Why did I enjoy it? By the time my head cleared, I heard arguing over near the corner. I put my hand on my head and wandered over to the arguing, dazed.

"That was completely uncalled for, Teddy, and you know it," Denver said through his clenched teeth. A crowd was starting to form around the two. I was at the front of the circle watching in a haze.

"Well, Mr. High and Mighty, it's called show business. A fake kiss wouldn't do it. It wouldn't have the effect of a real one," Teddy argued.

"That's the point! It wasn't supposed to be real," Denver spat at him. Denver was about to lose it. I looked at the onlookers faces. They were an array of expressions from confused to shock. I finally looked back at the two guys. They were still arguing. I walked in between them and looked at their faces. There was a slight pause between their arguing. Denver's voice came back angry but soft.

"Why did you do it?" he asked. He was aware of the crowd.

"Because," he snapped before Denver could finish completely. He looked down and sighed. I waited patiently for his answer. I knew he loved me, but I never heard him say it to anyone he knew was listening. He looked back up at me with childlike, pained eyes. He was hurting. I felt bad for him. I wanted to reach out and hug him. I wanted to comfort him and tell him that everything was going to be okay. I knew that would never be the case. He looked at Denver. His voice came back soft and pained. "Because I'm... I'm still not over Leana. I still love her. I... I hated you because you have what I've wanted most of my life. You have her."