Boy Next Door: A Kio Cyr Story

44- The Long Road to...

You spent the next day barely able to move. Your dad had assumed in the morning that you'd just had a late night, but when you didn't emerge by lunch he knocked on your door.

Dad: "Hey, are you sick?"

You: "No, just stressed. I'm sorry I know I'm being a miserable houseguest."

Dad: "First of all, you aren't a guest. This will always be your home. Second of all, do you want to talk about it?"

You weren't ready to talk about it, but you also failed to hold in your emotions and burst back into tears. Your dad sat next to you and you wrapped your arms around his chest and sobbed.

Dad: "If you're not happy, I need you to understand you can always come home. If you want to stay there, I will try to help you the best I can. I know I let you down for a long time, but I can be whatever you need now if you'll let me."

You put on a brave face and enjoyed the rest of the night with your Dad and Lisa but when your flight came the next morning, you were struggling. You asked them to drop you off at the doors and insisted they not wait with you at the terminal. You just felt like being alone with your thoughts or at the very least not having to hold them in anymore.

It was such an early flight there were very few people waiting so you just shoved in your earbuds and curled up against your bag replaying every moment with Kio the night before last. You didn't know how you could possibly face Tayler and hurt him because you really did love him, but how could you go on another day without Kio. Would you and Kio even work if his family felt this strongly that you shouldn't be together?

Suddenly, Kio stepped in front of you and you sat up blinking away the utter shock:
"Wha- Wait. What are you doing here?"

Kio: "Please stay. I'm begging you... please just stay with me."

You: "Kio, all I do is hurt you. You heard Riley? There's no way this ends that I don't destroy someone."

Kio: "Stop worrying about Riley. Hell, stop worrying about Tayler and me! What do YOU want."

You: *raising your voice out of emotion*
"I DON'T KNOW!"

Kio: *looking immediately hurt by your words*
"You don't know... after everything you still don't know. That's what you're afraid to tell me?"

You: "Kio, no. You don't understand. I pulled away from everyone just to prove to myself that I could live with it if your family turned their back on me and all I managed to do was turn to someone I had no business turning to if I wasn't sure I was going to stick around."

Kio: "That's a cop-out. We are adults living our own lives hours away from our families. We can do whatever we want to with or without them."

You hear your flight number being called over the loudspeaker and start to gather your things:
"I can't do this right now. I have a fiance and I need to go home and face him. No matter what is or isn't happening between us, he deserved so much better than this."

Kio: "Please listen to me. Just please remember that I know who you are in here..."

Kio grabbed your hand and placed it on your heart with his overlapping it and continued:
"I know you at your best and your worst. I know the difference between your sad tears and your mad tears. I know what food you are craving based on how moody you are. I know what you're scared of. I know what it sounds like when you're trying to pretend you're fine but you're not. I know you in a way no one else ever will and I still love you more than I have ever loved anything."

You leaned over and kissed him gently and turned to board your plane.

When you got to your apartment, you expected Tayler to still be at work, but walked in to him cooking you dinner. You were visibly hurting, but trying your best to hide it because the joy in his face at seeing you was brutal.

He didn't even seem to notice anything was wrong as you quietly ate dinner while he rambled on about how hard work the last few days had been and how he'd of rather stayed with you before you finally blurted out:
"I lied to you..."

Tayler didn't even have to ask because he already knew you still had feelings for Kio before you'd even denied them the night you'd talked about him. He just accepted that you had chosen him for a reason so he wasn't going to worry about anyone from your past. Tayler picked up his dishes and refused to ask the question lingering between you because he truly didn't want the answer:
"Look, I knew you were confused when you chose to stay behind and I wanted you to work things out on your own but if you want to be with me then you need to leave that place in the past and truly be with me."

You: "You knew?"

Tayler: "Of course I did but listen, baby, I want to be your future and if that's what you want too then you are going to have to decide that and we can move forward."

You played with the ring you were still wearing and didn't know how to handle the fact that he was so sure about you when you were so confused.