It Begins With Us

3.

"She's older than me," I say out loud staring at her birth date on her Facebook profile, "three years older."

'Now I get why she was calling me a little boy.' I breathe out.

"Well that's new." I think scratching the back of my neck.

Suddenly, the memory of her blushing and peeking up at me overpowers me and I sigh. It's been a week since the games and I'm starting to feel like a high school boy again.

"Shit." I exclaim, standing up and pacing the length of my room with my hands buried deep in my hair.

The last time I felt like this for someone, it ended horribly. In every single way. I hurt her, till it drove her away. I shouldn't be getting involved and messing up anyone else's life. I don't have the right to, no matter how much I want to be apart of their life. I stop pacing and sit back down, pulling my laptop into my lap. The only personal things she's got up on her profile is a picture of her younger self as her profile picture and her birth date. She's been inactive for three months, I don't know what I was thinking.

Then suddenly, as if to bring me in, her status changes, from offline to online. I watch carefully and after five minutes of consecutive staring I refresh the page to see if anything's changed. Sure enough, when the page reloads, her phone number has been added to her info bar. A laugh bursts out of my and I run my hands over my face. This feels like when she came and sat right beside me during the second game.

"If you insist." I say and dial her number.

I shake my head as the phone rings.

"Hello?" She says softly and I push the phone closer to my ear.

'Finally.' I think.

"It was nice of you to put your phone number out into the digital world for me, Ms. Leafs." I tease and wonder if she's smiling on the other side.

"I never said it was for you, Mr. Bruins." She retaliates and I'm pleased out of my mind, hearing the smile in her voice.

"Oh?" I smirk. "Then maybe you wanted your dreamy ice skater Mardy to somehow find your number?" I tease and I can almost feel the smile on the other side disappear.

"No, absolutely not." She says firmly and I chuckle.

"Then admit that it was for me and I won't mention it." I challenge.

"You, little boy," she starts and I frown. I cringe at the advantage that she's got over me, I mean it's hot, but I bothers me, not really. "you are going to go places."

I laugh and twirl my chair, then quickly stop.

"Come on, you're a mature, older woman. Just be truthful." I push further and I can feel the silence between us snap it's jaws.

"Ryle." She says in a warning tone, and I go warm all over.

"Alba." I counter her, soft and low.

There's a moment of electric warm silence, and I decide to break it.

"Message me whatever time your free tomorrow and we'll meet-" I say and she tries to interrupt, but I raise my voice over hers, "-at Olive Garden!"