Chapter 7: Chapter 7

"How is it that you make the best hot chocolate I've ever had?" Ava asks, sipping from her mug and I bite into a s'more.

"Hot chocolate is my biggest weakness." I say and she throws her head back in a fit of laughter.

"You're kidding!" She says, turning to me and I shake my head.

"Nope."

"You're serious?"

"Yeah. I literally can't stay a whole week without it. So I had to learn to make a good, hot chocolate." I say, watching Ava as she checks her marshmallow.

This was the most I'd seen her comfortable around me. She wasn't cautious about anything and she laughed like she really enjoyed my company.

Even though she was still a little tipsy, she seemed to be enjoying herself.

She's sitting really close next to me, her long legs outstretched over my thighs on the couch and making s'mores endlessly.

"So, why did you suggest s'mores of all things?" I ask her and she turns to me with a small shrug.

"S'mores are my comfort food when I'm feeling down. And it just felt right to have it with you." She says.

Hearing her say those words while wearing my clothes and drinking hot chocolate in apartment, gave me a warm, fuzzy feeling.

She waves a warm marshmallow in my front and I bite into it, enjoying the warm, creamy taste as Ava takes the rest of the marshmallow off the stick and tosses it into her mouth.

"If your date with Brenda had gone well, is there a chance you would have ended up here with her instead?" She asks suddenly as she looks up at me.

At those words, I abruptly stop chewing on the marshmallow and Ava looks away in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry. I can't believe I just asked that."

"No, it's fine--" I'm saying but she covers her face with both hands.

"That was so embarrassing and uncalled for." She whines.

"Ava--"

"You don't have to tell me anything, Aaron. It's really none of my business." She says.

"First of all, it wasn't a date." I tell her anyway and she looks up at me.

"And even though it did go well, I still wouldn't have brought her here. We just didn't connect like that." I say to Ava and she remains quiet for a while, staring at the fire.

I don't know if I've said the right things or not. I feel the need to say more, but--

"Seeing you guys together, talking....made me think of prom. It kinda reminded me of..." she trails off now as she turns away from the fire and our gazes meet.

"Of what?" I ask eagerly.

I had been dying to have this conversation with her.

There were so many things I didn't get the chance to explain and I didn't want them to go unsaid.

Ava shakes her head as she grabs a marshmallow and starts roasting it, remaining silent.

"Ava, I..." I take a deep breath,

"I shouldn't have asked Madeline to prom."

"So why did you?" She asks, turning to me and I sigh.

"It was just a stupid dare." I say and she rolls her eyes as she turns back to the fire.

"Of course it was." She mutters and I sigh as I turn a little to face her.

"After you turned me down, I was dared by my teammates to ask the next girl that talks to me to be my prom date. I was already pretty sure every girl had a date so I wasn't bothered. And when Madeline came to me and I asked her, she instantly accepted. But I--"

"Do you know why it hurt, Aaron?" She says, turning to me.

"It hurt because you made me believe that you liked me. It hurt because you acted like you didn't want to go with anyone but me. It hurt because I had a thing for you, I was basically head over heels for you." Ava says and I'm staring at her, feeling guilty as hell and unable to speak.

"It hurt because it felt like a dream come true for me and everything was going so perfect. I really believed it was going to be special--"

"I did want it to be special. I was so excited about going to prom with you that I stupidly forgot to cancel with Madeline on time. So when I was on my way to pick you up, I tried calling her to cancel but she didn't answer. That's why I left the voicemail." I say to Ava and she just shrugs as she smears a roasted marshmallow on a chocolate slice and cracker.

"I know I did a shitty thing. Both to you and Madeline." I say but she still doesn't look at me.

"It doesn't matter anymore. That was 10 years ago." She says.

"Well, it still matters to me. Because for 10 years I've always wanted to tell you that." I say and when she keeps her gaze on the fire, I hold her legs and pull her a little closer.

"Ava.."

"I cried myself to sleep that night." She says, looking at me now.

"And ever since then, I ruin my own relationships because I'm never truly convinced that someone could truthfully like me or love me. It just feels like when it starts getting perfect, something might go wrong. That's why I'm better off alone." She says and I feel a fresh pang of guilt hit me hard.

This was my fault.

All this was because of me.

"No, Ava. Don't think that way."

"And how would you think, if you were me?" She asks, shrugging out of my hold.

"How would you think if your crush asked you to prom twice, told you she liked you in front of everyone and ends up humiliating you? How would you feel if you were handed something perfect, something special and you allow yourself to accept it, only for it to come crashing down?" She fires at me and I slowly pull her into a hug.

"I'm so sorry." I say to her as I hold her close and I can feel her body relax against mine.

I feel her hands wrap around my neck as she pulls me closer and sighs.

"It just....really hurt." She whispers and I pull back a little to look at her.

"I never wanted to hurt you Ava. If I could take back time, I would change every mistake I made that day. I am honestly sorry." I say and she smiles a little at me.

"It's okay." She says and I can't stop looking at her just as she can't stop looking at me.

At this moment, under the stars, sitting near the fire and being so close to each other, all I want is to kiss her.

To really kiss her.

As I lean in slowly, she leans in as well with her eyes on mine. Then I cover the space between us and take her lips in mine.

Slowly, we move in rhythm, savouring the moment, dwelling in burst of feelings that seemed to grow with the kiss.

It's unlike the kisses we've had before, it's more passion than lust, more desire than need.

When the kiss is over, I keep my eyes on Ava as she cuddles close and sighs, resting her head on my chest.

"I just want to remain like this." She murmurs and I put my arm around her, sharing the feeling but unable to say anything to ruin the moment any further.

After a few more s'mores, Ava falls asleep and I gently carry her to her room and lay her on the bed. But the second I try to get up, I feel her fingers gently hold my arm.

"Stay...." she whispers softly and I turn to her.

"Ava--"

"Please. For tonight." She murmurs, tugging my arm which is all it takes for me to gently get into bed with her.

It's hard to tell myself that I didn't want this but I know that I did.

Spending one night, holding her, being here for her....I've wanted it so much.

Pushing away all pessimistic thoughts, I wrap my arms around her and pull her close as she sighs, before falling asleep slowly.

****

Ava's POV

The bed is empty when I wake up and I stretch against the warm sheets, thoughts of last night still lingering in my head.

Memories about how Aaron and I played.

How we ate s'mores and drank hot chocolate.

How we talked...

How we cuddled..

How we kissed.

Aaron's scent still lingers in the warm spot next to me and as the evening completely reoccurs to me, I facepalm myself.

Oh my God, he slept here last night.

I literally asked him to stay!

Thankfully, it didn't seem like he was still in the room and I let out a sigh of relief.

Thank God.

Atleast he saved us both from the morning awkwardness and definitely saved me from giving the 'it was a mistake' speech.

I take my time in brushing my teeth and taking a hot shower before stepping out of my room, at which point I'm greeted with the scent of breakfast that made my mouth water.

I walk into the kitchen where Aaron is pouring orange juice into a glass and the table is completely occupied with sausages, scrambled eggs, bacon, fruits, toast and pancakes.

"Aaron?" I ask and he looks up at me, then smiles that charming smile.

"Morning. Did you sleep better last night?" He asks as he drops the jug of juice and walks over to me, then wraps his arms around my waist and kisses me deeply.

"Yeahh.." I say, when the kiss is over as i observe him.

"What's all this? You hardly cook." I say, gesturing to the table and he chuckles.

"Well you've been busy lately, had a stressful day yesterday, so I decided to help out with breakfast." He says, getting me a plate as I sit at the table, watching him.

Is he serious?

Aaron stacks my plate with pancakes, fruits, maple syrup and scrambled eggs and as I pick up a fork, I stare at the food hesitantly.

Is this because of last night?

Did I give him any ideas?

"So what do you have planned today?" He asks as he butters his toast and I decide to ignore the paranoid thoughts in my head.

It's just breakfast, Ava.

It has to be just breakfast.

"Peyton and I are going to order the cake and do a fitting for the bridesmaids." I say as I take a bite of the pancake.

Oh,dammit. Why is it so good?

"Sounds fun. You know, if you ladies need a break after the fitting, we could go to the beach, get some sunlight--"

"Okay, Aaron. Stop." I say, dropping my fork and he stops with his glass of orange juice halfway to his mouth as he stares at me.

"What?" He asks and I sigh.

"Stop doing what you're doing. Stop the sudden change." I say and he frowns slightly.

"What sudden change? What are you talking about?"

"What am I talking about? You made breakfast!" I yell, frustrated.

"So what? We cook for each other all the time!"

"No, we don't and you know it." I say firmly, looking him square in the face.

"What exactly are you getting at Ava?" He asks and I get up, frustrated as I run my hands through my hair.

"This is because of last night, isn't it? Because of all those things I told you! Because we spent the night together." I say as I turn to him and he drops his cutlery and chuckles a little.

"You're kidding me right? You think I'm doing this because of last night?"

"What else could it be about, Aaron? You're cooking breakfast, you're making plans, you're asking me about my plans and next thing--"

"Next thing what, Ava? I'll ask you out? I'll ask you to marry me?" He asks as he gets up.

"Is that what you're getting worked up about? You think I want to be in a relationship with you?!" He fires back and we stare at each other for almost a full minute, the gravity of his words hanging in the air.

Thickening it with tension.

I draw in a long, slow breath as his words repeat in my head and I'm almost disappointed in myself at how much it hurts.

"Well, I wouldn't want to be in a relationship with me either." I say to him and he sighs.

"I didn't mean---Wait, what do you mean?" He asks as I grab my phone and I whip around to face him.

"I mean you should run, Aaron. Run away from me and all of my fears. Run away from doing sweet things for me because a relationship between us would never work out anyway. It's clear that you can already tell I'm too toxic for you." I say to him and before he can speak, the doorbell rings.

"Hold that thought." He says to me and heads for the door.

As I hear the door open, I decide to head for my room, but his next words stop me.

"Brenda?" I can hear him say.

"Hey, Aaron. I'm sorry did I catch you at a bad time?" She asks.

"Uhh, no. How are you?"

"I'm fine. I was wondering if you'd like to have lunch with me today or do something else if you're free? I would have called but regretfully, we didn't exchange numbers last time." I can hear her say and I close my eyes shut, steadying my breathing as I wait for Aaron's reply.

There is a brief silence at first, then I hear Aaron's response.

"Of course, Brenda. Why not? Lunch sounds great." He says and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

I can hear Brenda giggling.

"Okay, here's my number. Is 12 okay?" She asks.

"Sure. I'll pick you up."

"Alright, then. See you later."

"You too." Aaron says and as I hear the door shut, I open my eyes just to see Aaron walking into the kitchen.

We stand almost 10 feet apart, staring at each other.

"I guess there's no point continuing the conversation, right?" I ask and he sighs.

"Ava, listen--"

"Atleast you have someone to take to the beach." I say and with those words, I hurry into my room and shut the door.

Then I drop to the floor and cry as silently as I can into my hands

Aaron's POV

Dammit.

Dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit!!

As I stand in front of Ava's shut door, I can hear the almost inaudible sound of her crying and I lean my head against the door.

What the fuck did I just do?

What the fuck just happened?

How did I manage to turn an amazing morning into this chaos within a few minutes?

Had I really been wrong? To cook breakfast? To ask about her day?

I was just so elated that we had gotten closer overnight and I thought she would be too.

She did ask me to stay in bed with her.

So what had changed?

She had acted like I ticked a nerve and I said the worst possible thing I could at that moment.

'You think I want to be in a relationship with you?'

And now...

Now...I have a date with Brenda and Ava is in tears again.