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“Let me go get cleaned up,” he said and gave me a grin, and it was the first time I noticed the shirt he wore had some grease smudges on it. “I’d just hopped out of the shower when you texted, and I threw on my dirty clothes again so I could get to you faster.” He winked before he turned and disappeared down the small hallway and into his room.
I walked around, seeing a few pictures on the walls, all of them of the two of us over the years. I smiled.
I went into the kitchen and yelled out, “I’m going to grab a glass of water, okay?” He hollered back that was fine, mumbling he didn’t know why I was even asking because his place was mine. That put a bigger smile on my face.
I grabbed the glass out of the cupboard and went to the sink, turning on the tap and filling up the glass. I walked over to the small breakfast counter and leaned against it as I stared at his bedroom door. It was partially open, and I could see him putting on a clean shirt, the wide expansive of his muscular back coming into view. My heart jumped a little, and I looked away quickly.
It was when I turned that I noticed a clear bag sitting by the microwave. It looked like candy, those little hearts people gave away during Valentine’s Day. Max didn’t like candy whatsoever, so I wasn’t sure why he actually had them.
I walked over and grabbed the bag, placing it flat on the counter and looking at the colorful hearts through the clear plastic. It was then I noticed what they said.
You’re mine.
Until forever.
Love you.
There were a dozen other sayings, personal and heartfelt that were squeezed onto the little pastel-colored candies.
I didn’t remember conversation hearts saying all these things, and the longer I looked at them, the more I wondered if these were custom made. I had a feeling these weren’t just candy but were meant for someone, someone special.
Or I could’ve just been overthinking it all, jumping to conclusions. It was just candy, for God’s sake. But in my gut, I felt like it was more.
I pushed the candy back where I found it just as I heard Max come back out. I didn’t know why I was being so anxious about this, but I felt like what I’d found had been pretty personal.
He stopped on the other side of the breakfast counter and stared at me, a smile on his face. “Hey.”
I cleared my throat and gripped the edge of the breakfast counter, feeling like I’d just gotten caught doing something really bad. “Hi.” Slowly, his smile faded as he looked at me, clearly seeing how awkward I was being.
“What’s wrong?” he asked and gave me this weird expression.
I shook my head and forced a smile. “Nothing. I’m good. Want to watch some TV? Order a pizza?” Those were the last things I wanted to do. I was blabbering right now, stuttering, rambling on like a fool.
I glanced at the conversation hearts on instinct, and when I snapped my focus back to him, I watched as he followed my gaze. I watched his expression change, his confusion morphing. It was then, as his nervousness was clear, that I knew without a doubt I’d been right.
That candy was for someone.
I didn’t even know he had a girlfriend. I’d never seen him with anybody the entire time we’d been friends, and he sure as hell had never talked about being interested in anyone. So to know he had someone special in his life was like a knife to my heart, that blade twisting until I had to set the glass of water down and actually lift my hand and place it on my chest.
“You weren’t supposed to see those right now,” he said softly and looked back at me.
I licked my lips and nodded. “I didn’t mean to snoop or intrude on your personal space.” He watched me with this concerned look on his face. “Are those for a girl?” I hated saying that out loud, the words like acid on my tongue.
“Yeah,” he said quietly.
I cleared my throat and pretended like that didn’t hurt more than it should’ve. The truth was, it was the most painful thing I’d experienced in my life. “I didn’t know you were seeing anyone, Max. Why didn’t you tell me?”
I already knew I’d hate her because she wasn’t me and couldn’t make him happy like I could.
He didn’t answer for long seconds, and I felt that dread start to fill me. How had I been so blind to the fact there was someone in his life? It was very clear she meant an awful lot to him. I could tell that in the way he’d admitted he had feelings for someone, very clear in the way he looked at me like it was almost… painful.
