Page 89 of Don’t Forget Me

“I know,” I said.

“Then why? I opened my heart to you. I let myself care for you. I don’t do that.” Her voice raged as she stepped closer, as if seeking comfort in my proximity. My mind begged her to come nearer.

My breath hitched. “There is nothing in this world I regret more than hurting you. Please understand that.”

Lysandra frowned and disapproved with a shake of her head.

This was my moment. I had to speak, I had to tell her how much she meant to me. It was now or never.

“Don’t you get it, Lysandra? It’s always been you. Only you,” I almost yelled.

“How can you be so sure of that?”

“There has not been a single night that I have not dreamed of you. Not a minute has gone by where my heart has not ached for yours. You are so deeply rooted into my essence that I can’t imagine my life without you. It’s as if we were fire and water. You’re the wind, and I am the sea. One cannot exist without the other. Your smile has been the light of my days. The luminosity of you awakened what was dormant within me. Can’t you comprehend that?” I confessed. The rage in her eyes began to simmer as I watched her gaze soften.

“If this is some kind of sick joke of yours,” she muttered.

“It’s not. It’s not, Lysandra. Understand that. I’ve never so much as looked at another girl, that’s how much you mean to me. How could you possibly ever think I could move on from you?”

Her brows furrowed.

The rain continued to drip across my face as my chest heaved. I could feel my hair sticking to the side of my face, and my clothes getting heavier with each passing moment. Lampposts flickered as the night reigned upon us. The chill in the air was nothing compared to fiery passion I had for this girl.

“I love you. I’m in love with you. I always have, and I always will be. It’s always gonna be you for me.”

Despite the fact that I had opened my soul to her, she remained silent. My mind screamed as she stared at me, contemplating.

No more words. No more waiting. Screw having patience. I had been waiting five years to be able to tell her that I loved her, that I’d never stopped loving her ever since. I would only ever stop loving her the moment my heart no longer beat.

My indignation, my patience, and everything else in between overpowered me as I pulled her arm, bringing her into my chest and slamming my lips against hers.

I kissed her as if I had been taking my last breath. As if this was the last moment I was going to live. As if she were water and I had been dying of thirst. And I melted in her solace when she responded to me, wrapping me into her quiet embrace.

She was worth the fight and the patience. She was everything. My downfall and my revival.

I let go of her, just to take one breath. I set my head over hers, hoping that she didn’t regret giving into me.

“What guarantee do I have that you won’t hurt me again?” she asked softly.

“You have my heart.”

I opened my eyes, she’d already been looking at me, possibly for some sort of doubt in my affirmation. Then, suddenly, her hesitation disappeared.

Her expression was filled with what seemed to be acceptance.

“I love you too,” she whispered.

My heart almost exploded in my chest. We never had the chance to confess it to each other before. And it was exactly how I’d dreamed it would be.

“Give me another chance to prove to you that I have become the man that you wanted me to be. You handed your heart to me, and I ripped it to pieces, but please give me the chance to put it back together.”

Silence.

I watched as she pondered. I wouldn’t know what to do with myself if she rejected me that day. It was difficult not to believe that my life would stop if she deemed me unworthy of her love.

Joy flickered on her perfect lips as she nodded. “Fine, but if you hurt me again, then I’ll have no choice but to murder you.”

Ah, her humor. Terrible as always. I chuckled. I leaned in again, grabbed her waist, picked her up and spun her around.