Chapter 17: Chapter 17

"I hope you're not a lighthead, I don't want Nathan to think I drugged you or something." Betty says as she refills my glass of wine and I laugh.

"I assure you, I'm not." I say and she giggles. Almost everything she does or says is done in a delightful manner.

It's been almost an hour after we had dinner and I have to say, she was a pretty good cook. I'd stuffed myself silly, especially with the amazing shrimp cocktails and after Betty put Emily to bed, we came to the kitchen while Nathan and Fred are somewhere in the living room.

"You know, Nathan has never brought a girl to meet us before...or even his parents." Betty says as she sips from her glass.

"I wasn't surprised he brought you though, especially since he always talks about you."

"He really does?" I ask, still befuddled.

"Of course. He just lights up whenever he mentions your name, I'm beginning to think he is crazy in love with you." She says matter of factly and I blink.

"You think so?" I ask and she shrugs simply.

"Honey, when a guy looks at a girl the way Nathan looks at you, then you know it's real. I couldn't stop watching the both of you tonight."  She says as she empties her glass.

Betty reaches for the bottle now, but it's empty.

"Would you like another?" She asks and I nod.

"Sure, why not?" I say and she leaves the kitchen.

Almost instantly, Nathan walks in.

"I'm sorry, I can't seem to find my girlfriend. We came to dinner together, but then she just vanished." He says in an excellent British accent and I can't help but laugh.

"Shut up and kiss me." I say and he doesn't hesitate. His hands are around my waist and he has me against the wall with his body pressed up close to mine.

And then his lips are on mine. It always feels like heaven when he kisses me, and coupled with the wine, I give in completely, returning his intense passionate kiss with the same rhythm and need.

"God, Lunar. The things I want to do to you in that dress." He groans in my ear and pulls me again into another kiss.

Then the kitchen door opens and I pull away immediately to see Fred standing there.

"Whoa. Sorry, to interrupt." He says and I turn red.

"It's fine. I have to go use the bathroom." I say and he smiles.

"Upstairs, third door to the left." He says to me and I nod, trying to hide my embarrassment as I leave the kitchen.

In the bathroom I check my hair and dress and makeup. My lips are still pink and pouty from the kiss and I can't help but touch it, giggling to myself.

I felt like a naughty school girl.

Sighing, I brush my hair quickly and leave the bathroom. As I'm approaching the kitchen, I hear Nathan and Fred talking.

"She just...makes me happy. So happy. She's so unique and amazing." I hear Nathan say and I smile to myself.

"I can tell. I've never seen you this happy around a girl." Comes Fred's voice.

"And Lunar isn't just any girl. Not to me atleast. She's special."

"Have you told her about the Franchise?" Fred asks and I frown.

Franchise?

There is a long silence that follows and then finally Nathan sighs.

"I can't. Not now. We just got back together, I don't want to overwhelm her." Nathan says and then his brother replies,

"Come on, you can't keep hiding it. She's going to find out sooner or later."

"Later is fine with me. The less she knows about it, the better."

For a second, I want to deny that it's Nathan s voice I'm hearing...But I can't.

The less I know the better?

What happened to all the promises about honesty? He promised to be completely honest...with me.

My heart beat is accelerating so quickly, that I can barely hear anything else as tears sting my eyes.

The memory of me talking to him about a restaurant that day in his room clouds my mind and I remember him completely shutting the topic down.

Why doesn't he trust me enough to tell me the truth?

What's so exciting about keeping secrets from me?

I make my way out of the house now, needing to breathe.

NATHAN'S P.O.V

"Later is fine with me. The less she knows about it, the better." I say to Fred, wishing he would stop bringing up the topic.

He knows how I don't like talking about it.

"It's your biggest achievement. Why keep it from her?"

"Because I have to finish school and keep a low profile. Lunar knows me as the Nathan that's her boyfriend and is getting a degree like everyone else. I'll tell her when it's time." I say and he sighs.

"Nathan, you should tell her since you really like this girl."

"No, it's more than that now. I think I love her. I can't lose her again by throwing this much news at her." I say and shrug.

Suddenly Betty walks in.

"Nathan. There you are. Have you seen Lunar?" She asks.

"Yeah she went to use the bathroom." I say and she frowns.

"But.....it's empty." She says and it's my turn to frown.

"Empty?"

"Yeah I saw the door open and I shut it. There's no one there." She says and I turn to Fred.

"She didn't come back, did she?" I ask as we all leave the kitchen.

"I didn't see her." He says and I run towards the front door and open it.

"Lu? Lunar?" I call out but it's empty.

She's gone.

"Try calling her." Fred says and I dial her number immediately. It rings for a while and then voicemail.

Uh-oh.

She's upset.

It doesn't take me a while to realise what's going on and I race to my car and get in.

She couldn't be far.

"I have to go pick her up. I'll call you later." I say to them as I back out of the driveway and head straight for the road.

LUNARS P.O.V

I don't know how long I've walked, but I just need to get away.

Of course it's going to be impossible to walk back to campus and I should probably call an uber but I can't fight the need to be alone.

To think.

Nathan kept secrets from me...again.

Why?

Suddenly a car hastily parks in my front and it doesn't take me long to know it's him.

Nathan hurries out of it now towards me and I stop in my tracks.

"Don't you dare come near me." I say to him and he stops.

"Lunar--"

"No, fuck that. I don't want to hear your excuse or anything. Just stay away from me." I say and try to walk past him but he holds me back.

"Don't touch me." I say and push him away.

"What is it? What did I do? Why are you so upset?!" He says getting annoyed now and I glare at him.

"Why wouldn't I be upset?! You promised to always be honest with me but you can't even do that! I heard you and your brother talking and--"

"You mean were eavesdropping?!" He asks.

"Don't try to turn this around on me."

"Lunar that was a private conversation!"

"It doesn't change the fact that you lied to me Nathan! You're still keeping secrets and you're standing here trying to defend yourself by saying I was eavesdropping!" I yell at him and he folds his hands.

"How much did you hear?" He asks and I can barely believe what I'm hearing.

"Are you kidding me?! That's your biggest concern?!"

"Will you just stop yelling for one second and answer the damn question!" He yells at me.

"Don't you yell at me!"

"Oh, because you haven't been yelling this entire time?!"

"Because you kept secrets from me!"

"For your own good!" He yells and I blink back my tears as I take a deep breath.

"You know what? It's clear that you don't want to tell me about this franchise anyway so this argument is pointless." I say as I successfully walk past him.

"Where are you going?" He asks from behind me.

"Anywhere away from you." I say as I call an uber.

"Lunar, for God's sake you're overreacting!"

"Overreacting?!" I tell and turn around to him.

"Yes! You want to tell me that you're not keeping anything from me?! That you've told me every goddamn thing in your life?!" He asks and suddenly I can't talk.

He's right.

But I can't let him get to me now.

"So that justifies why you would go back on your word? Real classy." I say as my uber arrives and I get in.

***

NATHAN'S P.O.V

FUCK!

"Lunar!" I yell but the car drives away.

Dammit, why the fuck did I do that?

We just got back together and I managed to screw it up again.

Yet for some reason, I'm glad we argued than for me to tell her....although it wasn't worth it. She looked so hurt and betrayed.

"Nice going, jerk." I mutter to myself as I get in the car and head for the apartment, which I'm definitely sure she didn't go to.

The last thing she wants at this moment is to see me. I make a beeline for the apartment, pondering what to do but by the time I get there, she's standing at the door.

"Lunar."

"Can you just open the door please? I need to get my fucking room keys and the uber driver is waiting for me." She says as she wipes her eyes, sniffling.

She has been crying.

Gingerly, I open the door and she hurries in. I stand by in the living room and watch her head for the bedroom. For a minute I can hear her searching around....And then silence.

When I walk into the bedroom, she's sitting on the bed, crying into a pillow.

"Lu." I say and reach for her but she gets up now and turns to me.

"Why couldn't you just keep your word for one day? What's the worst that could happen if you told me Nathan? Or if you trusted me?" She cries out, sobbing continuously.

"I was just waiting for the right time."

"I'm here questioning my trust in you and you only care about how much I heard! It doesn't even matter to you that....that...." her crying wouldn't let her complete her sentence and I rush to her now but she shrugs away from me.

"No, don't touch me. Apparently you won't trust me enough until I tell you everything!"

"Lunar, that's not--"

"So here it goes. I count sheep when I can't sleep which happened a lot by the way until I met you! Every time Lucas hit me I would go to Logan's grave and cry! I have never travelled by plane! I find myself comparing how I look to other girls because I'm insecure about my appearance! My dad is in jail! After my mother and sister died in that plane crash he just became a public threat! Every night I wake up next to you, I feel for your heartbeat because I'm so used to losing people around me and sleeping on my own! And I love you, Nathaniel Jackson!" She cries now and covers her face.

For a second I feel I can't move. Watching her disclose so much secrets with so much pain tears at me.

Then I regain myself and I rush to her and pull her into my arms.

I have so much I want to say to her but that will have to wait. Now I just needed to be here for her, to hold her. She had stored up so much pain and shielded it that I could barely see through her giddiness and goofiness.

For minutes we're both there sitting on the floor with Lunar leaning on me, crying and me holding her close.

When she stops crying, she tries to move away but I don't let her.

"Lunar, look at me." I say and she sighs, but she looks up at me anyway.

"I have been so selfish and I'm so sorry. I was so caught up in keeping my secret that I didn't take enough time to really be there for you and all you've gone through. You know what? I count sheep too when I can't sleep, and most of the time it's because I was always thinking about you or worrying about you when you were with Lucas. Everyday I regret not taking things into my own hands when he used to be with you. But you don't have to worry about him anymore because I would never, ever let him or anyone touch you. I'm with you now and I'm not going anywhere. I would rather be gay---"

She starts chuckling.

"Or raped by countless gay men or even dead before anyone ever touches you again."

"Don't say that." She mutters.

"But I mean it. Also have you seen how sexy you are? I know girls who would kill---literally--to have your body. Every time I look at you I wonder how I was still able to get you. I wish Eve never ate that apple so I could just stare at you naked."

She laughs now, and punches my shoulder And I'm laughing too.

"I'm sorry about your dad being in jail. I knew about your mum and sister but I had no idea about him."

"It's fine honestly. I try to see him as much as I can and it's all good."

He places my palm on his chest now, and I can feel his steady heartbeat.

"You feel this? So far as yours is still beating, so will mine. I'm never, ever leaving you. I'm not going anywhere. That is unless you want to leave me for a hotter, sexier, loaded guy that--"

"Stop it!" She laughs and I chuckle.

"But you're not going to lose me. I'm here for you and you know what?" I ask.

"What?"

"I love you. I even mentioned it to my brother today and I thought that's what you heard when you left. That's why I kept asking how much you heard." I say and she is quiet for some time.

"You....You love me?" She asks and I nod.

"I love you, Lunar Kensington. Warts and all." I joke and she throws herself on me, merging her lips with mine.

"I love you too, Nathaniel."