Page 62 of Some Things Never Change

I furrowed my brows at the anguished, handsome face staring down at me.

Andy let out a defeated scoff, as if in disbelief. “I can’t believe you beat me to it. I was going to tell you how I felt after our trip home and after your dad’s death anniversary.”

“What do you mean?”

I blinked my tears away as Andy’s thumbs brushed another warm stroke under my eyes, wiping them away. His large hands held onto my face as a soft, warm smile touched his lips. Then his lips came crashing down hard. My teeth accidentally cut the inside of my mouth with the force of Andy’s lips coming down on mine.

The metallic taste of my blood danced over my taste buds. But my mouth was soon enveloped in that sweet, sweet taste of his mouth as his tongue slipped in. Andy tasted of warm vanilla and a rich, milky buttercream, exactly like the caramel hard candies he often sucked on to keep himself awake during long drives. I wanted nothing more than to just swallow every bit of him whole as I kissed him back with the same fervent intensity.

Andy pulled away from our kiss, gasping for air. As I gazed over him, he looked undone with messy hair, bright blushing red cheeks, and red, kiss-swollen lips matching with mine. Instead of the grown man I had come to know over the years, he looked like a blushing, love-smitten boy as he panted hard into my face.

We both smiled at one another, completely breathless, as Andy pulled me into him again. I expected another kiss to continue where we left off, when all he did was rest his forehead against mine.

"Julie Lo, you are the one I love. It’s always been you. For more than half my life, I have been in love with only you—if it’s not you, then it will never be anyone else," he whispered, trying to catch his breath as he caught mine. “The sun would have to burn to the end of its life before I’ll ever stop loving you.”

“W-Why didn’t you ever say anything to me?” My voice was nothing but a whisper.

“I did, but I was about to be eight and you were six and you never took me seriously. I even told my mom I loved you.” He chuckled as my eyes widened. “You’re so dumb and oblivious, Tink. I’ve been flirting with you and dropping hints for more than half our lives. You still never caught on.”

“I-I just thought that you were childishly fooling around and teasing me this whole time. I didn’t know you were actually flirting with me. Why do you think I always brush you off?”

“If that was the case, why would I tease only you like that? I never do that to Shoua, right?”

As he spoke, I felt my heart skip a beat. It was all coming together. The shared glances, the lingering touches, and the subtle hints throughout our time together growing up. It was all there, right in front of me, and I never took a moment to realize it until now.

“Have you been waiting for me this whole time?”

Andy smiled softly. “I guess, in the simplest terms, yeah. I’ve been waiting all my life for you, but I’ve also been waiting in fear.”

His fingers trailed up my body to dance across the column of my sensitive neck. I let out a soft giggle from his ticklish touch and his smile broadened.

“I didn’t want to ruin our friendship even though I’ve always felt a speck of something there, between you and me. I wasn’t ever too sure, either. But you always left some kind of breadcrumb for me to follow the trail back to you. Whether it was the way you looked at me a certain way or the way I was always the first person you looked for in a room.”

His hand came up to cup my face again. “You made me question whether we felt the same thing or if I was just wishfully hopeful or just plain stupid all the time. But I always knew that if there was a chance for us, I would take it and… I did.”

A big grin stretched across his lips, and that was when it clicked.

I gasped. “That's why you asked me to move in with you.”

Andy let out a light and joyous laugh, like gentle chimes on a windy day. “I saw the opportunity and jumped at it. But it hasn’t been as smooth sailing as I was hoping it’d be.”

“So, what was your master plan of making me fall in love with you?”

He trailed nondescript designs into the corner of my smiling lips with his thumb. He leaned in close enough for a kiss, but didn’t kiss me. Instead, his lips lingered close to mine as he stared straight into my soul. Each of his hot breaths teased against my lips, sending shivers down my spine as the anticipation of our next kiss hung thickly in the air.

“Well, I already knew I had you hooked somewhere. All I needed to do was just make you realize that the guy you’d been dreaming of has always been here, waiting for you.”

“And exactly how were you going to do that?”

“By making sure you’re well-fed and taken care of. By taking you wherever you need to go. By helping you become invested in one of your favorite hobbies again. By supporting you and always being just a door down the hallway whenever you need me.” The curve on his lips grew into a mischievous, cocky smirk. “And, it worked.”

I chuckled into the corner of his lips. “I love you, Andy Hughes.”

“I love you, too, Julie Lo.”

With that statement, I rose up on my tiptoes and wrapped my arms around his neck to give him a kiss.

The gentleness of his lips pressed softly against the shape of mine as we kissed each other with open-mouth smiles and giddy giggles. Then, with a soft bite from him on my bottom lip, I opened my mouth wider for him. Our lips moved in perfect unison as our tongues eagerly explored the map of each other’s lips and the depth of each other’s mouths.

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