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‘Charlie,’ William said softly, and I stopped speaking. I turned my head and looked straight into his eyes.
I didn’t say anything. William lifted his right hand and my eyes followed it. When his fingers gently touched my temple and swiped my hair away to tuck it behind my ear, I froze. My skin grew warm, the path his finger took leaving behind a tingling sensation as my heart lost its steady pace. Time slowed down as I looked into William’s eyes and I was taken back to that one week I had spent rushing to that diner to see him. That Charlie would’ve been ecstatic right about now if she saw the look in William’s eyes. This Charlie was… she wasn’t sure what she was exactly, but if anything she was overwhelmed.
‘You’re beautiful, Charlie,’ he said simply.
‘But…’
‘No buts. No buts with you.’
I swallowed and tried to think. ‘Ah. Okay then. Um… yes, the document.’ I cleared my throat and frowned at the open document on my lap. ‘You wanted me to change it to first person. Then you wanted to read it again and do something else about it. Okay. Yes, I’m going to…’
‘Charlie,’ William murmured, then to my surprise slowly closed the laptop.
I opened it up again. ‘Nope. I’m not gonna flirt with you. You’re not playing fair.’
He chuckled next to me. ‘Charlie, I’m not flirting with you. Well, I am, but I’m not trying to be… as you put it… your “training wheels” for your date.’
‘I still have a crush on you,’ I blurted out, then physically covered my mouth with my hands and slowly turned my head to William.
He gave me a long look as the silence stretched between us, and I slowly lowered my hands from my face. This time I closed the laptop.
‘Can we act like I didn’t say that?’ I asked.
Instead of giving me an answer, he sighed and reached for my hand, surprising the shit out of me, and linked our fingers together, resting the backs of our hands on his thigh. I couldn’t look away. Why did it feel so natural? Why did it feel like my heart had released a long sigh as if this was it? As if William, and William’s hand around mine, was it.
‘I feel the same way I felt for you all those years back, Charlie.’
I let his words simmer under my skin. Boiling my blood. Seducing my heart.
We were sitting next to each other. Shoulder to shoulder. Thigh to thigh on a relatively big sectional couch facing the window. My hand was resting slack in his hand. From shock, I believe, but after hearing his words, I squeezed his fingers. Holding on harder, because this was too big to just float alone. I needed him as my anchor.
‘Why would I believe that, William? You didn’t come. I asked you. I worked up the courage and asked you. If you feel like this could go somewhere I’ll be waiting here for you again tomorrow.’ I admitted, feeling beyond vulnerable. I still remembered my words. ‘I believed you’d come. So you saying this now doesn’t mean a lot.’
His fingers tightened around mine. ‘I had a crush on you back then and I have a crush on you now. If you’re ready to hear it, I can tell you why I stood you up.’
I thought about it for a second, but realized I didn’t want to learn. Simply because I was too scared of the answer he was going to give. I didn’t want him to break my heart for the second time. I didn’t even care if that made me a chicken. ‘I don’t think I am.’
We sat there, holding each other’s hands for minutes. At least it felt that way. I’d wanted nothing but to get out of this city for so long. And now he was right here.
‘I… William…’
‘Charlie, I have a confession to make.’
I listened in silence.
‘The best part of my day is when I catch you staring at me in office meetings. I lift my eyes to find you in the room and you’re right there staring back at me. I guess I should say one of the best parts of my day is looking up and seeing you being so close to me.’
I could feel the heat spread across my cheeks. I could hear the beat of my heart slamming against my chest, begging to be let loose. The butterflies in my stomach. And the goosebumps on my arm.
Then William turned and faced me, meeting my wild eyes.
‘What is the other?’ I asked in nothing but a whisper. Afraid that it would all disappear before my eyes.
He sighed. And again, lifted his free hand and tucked another piece of hair behind my ear. This time his fingers taking their time.
My lips parted. My chest rising and falling.
