Chapter 43
Chapter 43:
And there it is. God, I am not prepared for this.
I know I told her that I love her, and I know I desperately want to find out if she feels the same way. But what’s killing me more is the fear—fear of what she will say about my feelings if she finally wants to talk about them.
And from that statement she uttered, today is the day that fear finally gets tackled. Does she love me too? Or not?
I hope it’s the former because—
“Asher p>
Her voice drags me out of my spiraling thoughts.
I blink a couple of times, clearing my throat. “Uhm, yeah… we… we need to talk,” I stutter.
Even my words are betraying me now.
Dear God.
I watch Isla tuck her her long hair behind her ears, clearing her throat, her deep blue eyes fixed on me.
“Asher, uhm, about what you said to me that day I was kidnapped, well…” She pauses, fumbling with her hands. “you deserve to know what about it p>
She stops again, taking a breath. “I wanted us to talk about it before, but you were still recovering and I didn’t want to bring up something that serious while you were getting your strength back. But now you’re fine, and there’s no need to stall any longer. There’s no better way to say this, so… uhm p>
She pauses again. For the third time. God, I don’t think I can take this suspense anymore.
“Isla, it’s okay if you do not p>
“I love you, Asher p>
My heart stops.
My mouth falls open. The rest of my words vanish, sinking back into my chest. I gulp in a breath. Everything around me, except Isla, disappears briefly.
Am I… am I dreaming? My ears had better not be failing me because I swear I’ll lose my mind if what I heard isn’t true.
“Isla,” I mutter, my voice raw and gruff. “You don’t have to tell me that you love me because you feel obligated to. I told you that I love you because I do love you and p>
“You don’t understand, Asher.” She cuts in, her fingers raking through her her hair. “I love you. I’ve always loved you from the moment I first saw you in Literature Class back in college. I thought it was a silly crush that would fade. But then Ikept seeing you. Everywhere. In my head. At the coffee shop. At the library. At The Neon’s p>
She stops, catching her breath. “And then when you asked me if we could be friends, I thought, ‘Okay, I could try to be friends with Asher Kane.’ But it didn’t work. My feelings for you kept getting stronger and stronger. I wanted to tell you so badly p>
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“Why?” I ask, cutting in as I walk towards her. “Why didn’t you tell me p>
“I didn’t tell you for the same reasons you didn’t tell me how you feel. Because I was confused, and scared, and I didn’t want to ruin the friendship we had. I didn’t want to lose you and p>
My hands clutch her neck and I silence the rest of her words when I pull her to me and crush my lips on hers, kissing her.