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He's fast, and the next thing I know, his hands are gripping my upper arms, "Get a hold of yourself, Ryan. I am not going to stand by and watch you fade away. I just can't do it!"
"No one is asking you to, Beau! Just leave, forget I even exist. You're better off that way, anyway." Damn it. My bottom lip trembles, and I start to lose steam. Trying to shove him off, he only tightens his hold.
"Jesus, Ryan! Asking me to stop breathing would be easier than pretending you don't exist!" A strange note in his voice has me stilling in his grip. "I have watched you for the past three years, Ryan, and nobody has kept me as captivated as you have."
"Don't..." I tell him.
"Don't what? Tell you the truth that you need to hear? You need to know that you aren't alone, Ryan. I fucked up, and I will own up to that, but I can't allow you to continue hurting yourself the way you have been."
My mind is still on those words he said about breathing. Is it possible for someone to feel that way about me without ever getting to know the real me? Sure, Beau is saying all the right words, but with my past, it's hard to believe any of it.
"Please, let go. I want to go back to bed," I tell him as I stare at his chest. I don't dare stare into his eyes right now.
"You need to eat," he states softly.
"No, I need sleep, and then I will eat."
Beau studies me, and then, firming his lips, he nods. "Go. I'll make something and bring it up to you."
"You don't have to. Please, just go home…"
"Not happening, Ryan…"
Letting out a sigh, I turn and go back to my room.
I'm not sure if it was exhaustion, but I was able to sleep, and when I wake up again, it's well after noon. I look around my room to find it empty, but just as I toss the cover aside, Beau emerges from my bathroom. After the last twenty-four hours, I can no longer deny his attractiveness. He looks like a runway model with his dark, messy hair and green eyes. The five o'clock shadow makes him look older than he actually is.
He immediately notices me and softly smiles. "Hey, how are you feeling?"
"Better, now that I was able to sleep," I say as I climb from my bed and head to my bathroom.
I close the door and look in the mirror. I'm horrified by my appearance. I use the toilet quickly before brushing my teeth and running the brush through my cinnamon hair. After splashing water on my face and throwing my hair into a ponytail, I look at myself again. There isn't much I can do about the line streaking across my cheek from my pillow, but I look better than when I first came in here.
I stop short at the sight before me when I leave the bathroom. Beau has stripped my bed and is in the process of remaking it with clean bedding.What on earth has gotten into him? All I can do is stand here and watch him, dumbfounded.
"I hope you don't mind. I searched the hall closet for clean bedding. After the last couple of days of sweating out all those toxins, I figured it'd be best if we washed the bedding." He's looking a bit sheepish at the moment, and it's all I can do to hide my amusement.
"Thank you. I appreciate all your help, Beau, but I'm sure you have better things to do. You shouldn't be missing school, too." I tell him as I grab one side of the sheet and help him tuck it under the mattress.
Beau shrugs, "I really don't have anything important, anyway."
"What do you mean? You graduate in less than two months. I'm sure you need to be studying for finals and such." I glance at him and notice that he has a little color to his cheeks.
Is Beau Huntley blushing?
"I really don't have anything. I could have graduated in January…"
I stop and stare at the guy on the other side of my bed. "What do you mean?"
"It's nothing. It's just that I've had enough credits to graduate, but I wanted to wait until May." He says it like it's no big deal.
"Well, that's just crazy! Why in the world would you wait when you could have been a lazy bum at home while the rest of your class had to finish?" I grab my comforter and start flattening it on top of my bed.
Beau stares at me momentarily before the side of his mouth kicks up into a cute little smile. "I can't really stalk the girl I like if I'm being a lazy bum at home, now, can I?"
He's kidding, right? I'm still having a hard time believing that this guy was bullying me just a week ago, and now he expects me to think he's into me. I just don't know what to say anymore. Thankfully, my stomach interrupts the silence by growling, and Beau's smile grows.
"How about you get dressed and meet me in the kitchen," he suggests. "You were asleep by the time I brought breakfast up to you, so I ate it. Let's go see what we can scrounge up for lunch."
