"Kia," I heard someone muscular say beside me.
And I know that voice.
"What do you want, Shane?" I asked, and I saw him sit down beside me in the corner of my eyes.
"I'm sorry," he said in a low voice. "I didn't know why I did that at all."
"What gave you the right to do that?" I asked again, turning to look at him with a frown.
A silent spread between us. He looked in my eyes then looked back down to his lap as I waited for him to answer. He seemed to be hesitant about it so I didn't bother pushing the topic.
I stood up and tightened my ponytail. He noticed me and stood up too.
"Let me be your partner," he commented, not a question.
"Why would I do that?" I said in a harsh tone. "If I let you be a part of this, you might just break my leg, too."
"Please, Kia," he begged as he walked towards me. "I'll be your dance partner. I'll do the best I can so you can forgive me. I'll do anything you want me to do so you can forgive me."
I looked at his brown eyes sadly. I shook my head lightly with a frown.
I can't let him be in this. It's not that his bad or good at dancing, it's just that I want to forget my feelings for him. And being with him only made me more angry.
"Just stay away from me, Shane," I suggested and sadness spread through his eyes.
"Kia, I can't do that," he said in a low voice as he walked closer to me and I walked backwards.
"Why can't you?" I asked, raising a brow at him. "I mean, you just only started talking to me like a couple weeks ago. You just have to pretend that you don't know me again."
"I can't do that either," he pressed me against the wall with his hand pressing beside my head.
"Why not?" I nearly yelled at him.
"Because you're the best thing that has ever happened to me," he shouted right after, making me gaped at him.
~•~•~•~•
Casts:
Shawn Mendes - Shane Mack
Me - Kiana (Kia/Ki) Anderson
Carlos Esparza - Kenneth (Ken) Anderson
Mahogany Lox - Marissa (Mar) Grant
Graham Rogers - Daniel (Dan) Peterson
Alex Pettyfer - Connor (Con) Ev
There's this silence between us that stretches longer than it should, and it wraps around my chest like a weighted blanket.
My throat tightens. I stare at him like I'm trying to memorise the face of someone who shouldn't exist. A dream made real.
My lips part before I can stop myself. "Were you sent by my dad to take care of me?"
The question hangs in the air, trembling like the last leaf in autumn. Aiden's gaze softens. His lips tug into the gentlest smile I've ever seen. It's the kind of smile that could mend broken wings.
"No" he whispers.
"I volunteered." The words hit harder than I expect. Like a punch wrapped in silk. I gasp, air leaves me in a rush I can't reclaim.
But before I can fully process what he's just said, he takes a step closer. His fingers ghost over my cheek, brushing away a tear I didn't realise had fallen. And then-he kisses me painfully slow.
His hand cups the back of my neck, anchoring me to a moment I never want to end. And just when I think it's over, he pulls away just enough to look at me.
His thumb traces the damp trail of tears down my cheek. He doesn't say anything. He just leans in again, and kisses them away. One by one.
My tears.
My pain.
My silence.
All kissed away by a boy who didn't come to save me because someone sent him.
He came because he chose to.