Page 159 of After All This Time

He laughs and scrunches his nose, grabbing my face and crash-landing his lips on mine. His hand softly tugs at the braid he made and his thumb runs along the edge of my jawline, tilting my head up.

When our lips release one another, I meet his gaze.

My body ignites into a plethora of flames which are about to implode and explode. Just from the way he’s staring into my eyes.

Blue represents confidence and sensitivity.

That’s how I feel when I look into Noah’s eyes. Confident because I know he’ll always be there for me no matter what. He’s sensitive and perceptive when it comes to my emotional needs.

Sometimes we have to do things that scare us because they have the possibility of turning into something incredible.

Take flowers for example.

They start out as nothing but a seed in the ground.

When they bloom, beautiful petals and green leaves overwhelm three of the five senses: sight, touch, and smell.

Love is a flower. It needs time to grow and evolve.

It may have taken me years to finally admit to myself how I feel about Noah, but I wouldn’t go back and do anything differently. This is how it was supposed to happen.

“Why are you staring at me like that?” Noah snaps me out of my trance.

He believes he’s the lucky one and he’s not wrong about that. But, I’m lucky too. It’s unfortunate this all happened during tragic circumstances.

Ben always knows how to work his magic, even if he’s not physically here anymore.

If I’m able to distract Noah from his pain, it’s worth it. He’s worth it.

“A wise person once told me what I’m doing right now isn't staring. It’s admiring the view in front of them.”

He places his index finger and thumb underneath his chin, looking like the human version of the thinking emoji. “I wonder who this incredibly smart and handsome guy is.”

I giggle like a bunch of middle school girls do when they’re gossiping about cute boys.

He pulls me into his chest, wrapping his arms around my waist and kissing the top of my head. “Can we stay like this forever?”

My head is resting in the crook of his neck. “Hate to break it to you buddy, but we need to leave soon. Have you heard from your mom yet?”

“Not yet. The ringer on my phone is on, so you would’ve heard if she texted or called me.”

“Right.” His head leans down, lips inches away from meeting mine and my eyes search around the room. “Are you going to kiss me?”

“I’m thinking about it.”

“Stop thinking about it and just do it.”

“You know, you’d be a great salesperson for Nike.”

“Oh my God, you’re such a dumbass,” I say, grabbing his shirt and pulling him into me.

A question pops into my head, so I break our kiss. “Can I ask you something?”

“Right now?”

“Yes, because if I don’t ask it now, I’ll forget.”

“Shoot,” he says.

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