G/t Short Stories

Forbidden Feelings

All it took was one slip for Grace's heart to nearly stop. The glass of water plummeted from the cluttered shelf and onto the bed, splashing water all over the bed, and the boy occupying it. Grace made a run for it as soon as she heard him yell out. But in a flash, the lights came on, temporarily blinding her. She tripped over what she presumed to be a pen and crashed into a pile of wrappers! Oh, why did this bean have to be such a messy person?
"What the hell?" He breathed out. 
Grace stopped trying to untangle herself from the wrappers and went stiff. This was the moment every borrower feared, the moment when a bean finally caught suspension of their existence. Every terrible thought of what a bean could do to a borrower would run through their heads, but Grace was much more terrified of having to talk to the guy she's had a crush on since she was thirteen. 
Large fingers brushed away the wrappers and revealed Grace to him. Her eyes locked onto his and she felt her face heating up. He was just so perfect, from his hazel eyes, to his blonde hair, and his strong jawline. Grace could hardly handle looking at him. 
"Are you real?" His hand inched closer to her. 
"Stay back!" Grace jumped back. The panic in her voice made him freeze. "Y… You're not supposed t… to know I'm real!"
He furrowed his brows. "Why?" 
"Well…. It's kind of a code of my people." 
"You're people? How many tiny people are in my walls?"
Grace clenched her mouth shut. She couldn't tell him about her family, what if he told friends at school or his parents, or his dreaded little sister?! 
"Look, I guess this is all kinda scary from your prospective, but can you tell me something?!" He sighed and lifted up the plastic cup that was once on the shelf. "You dumped water on me, you owe me an explanation." 
"Oh that was an accident!" Grace exclaimed. "I was… just trying to borrow something like crumbs and paper clips. Your shelf is a bit cluttered… so that cup… kinda fell."
"Yeah... I've been meaning to clean this up." He admitted. 
"So… you're not mad at me?" 
"Of course not, it's technically my fault for not cleaning it sooner." He chuckled. "By the way, what's your name?" 
"I'm Grace." 
"I'm Duncan and that's a beautiful name." 
Grace could feel her cheeks burning up. She had to get out of here before Duncan could notice her face turning red. "Anyways, it was nice meeting you… but I should get going." She jumped up to her feet and sprinted to the edge of the shelf. 
"Wait!" Duncan shouted. "Will I be able to see you again?" 
Grace paused, he wanted to see her again? Her heart began to flutter, this would have been a dream come true! But she was a borrower, and her feelings for him were forbidden. "Hopefully not."