Page 56 of I Would Stay Forever
The laughter slowly died from my throat and before I knew what I was doing, I brush my hair aside and lowered my face to his.
It wasn’t like yesterday, not really. That kiss had been charged and sudden. This one was slower. Surer. The kind you sink into, that makes you forget where you are or the millions of reasons you shouldn’t be doing it. His hands tightened on my waist, and I felt his body shift beneath mine, the tension in him unraveling all at once like he’d been holding his breath too. His mouth was warm, his kiss deepening just slightly, like he couldn’t help it, like he’d wanted this just as badly.
I let one hand press against his chest, not to push him away but to anchor myself to something real. His heart was pounding as fast as mine, which only made me want to kiss him harder, to somehow melt further into him.
His hand slid up, gently brushing my back beneath the hem of my hoodie, and I shivered—not from cold but from the touch itself, from how careful he was. How patient. He could’ve pulled me in hard. Could’ve rolled us over. Could’ve done a million things boys with big reputations and strong arms usually did.
But he didn’t.
I pulled back just enough to look at him again, my breath catching when I saw the way he was looking at me. Like I was something important. Like maybe I wasn’t just his best friend’s sister. Maybe I wasn’t just a mistake he couldn’t help making. Maybe—just maybe—I was something more.
He opened his mouth like he was about to say something, but I pressed my finger gently to his lips.
“Don’t,” I whispered, not because I didn’t want to hear it but because I didn’t want to break whatever spell we were in. I didn’t want words to ruin the silence that was holding us, fragile and perfect.
He nodded, just a little. My finger stilled against his mouth, his lips parted under my touch.
For a beat, neither of us moved. The wind blew past us, blowing my hair every which way. Some seagulls called in the distance. The hum of cicadas in the trees filled the air. It was like it was just nature and us existing in the world right now.
I slid sideways, rolling off of him and onto the turf instead so we were laying side by side. The world spun for a second before settling again, and I took a deep breath of fresh air, feeling more alive than I had in weeks. I probably would have stayed there in that silence for hours if my phone didn’t start ringing, breaking through the quiet moment.
Another day, I might not have answered it, but the call from Imogen on Sunday was still fresh in my mind and if I didn’t answer now, I would wonder whether something had happened. I mumbled an apology to Dean as I gave the phone a passing glance, seeing Ainsley’s name on the screen, then swiped the “accept call” button.
“Hey,” I said. I hadn’t talked to either of the twins since driving them to school this morning, when Imogen told me she’d get a ride home from a friend instead of waiting until after my volleyball practice. “What’s up?”
“We’re leaving for Sebastian’s football match in half an hour,” she said. “Mum’s driving me and Imogen, but we’re bringing Nora with us so there won’t be much room in the car. Were you planning to drive with us or are you meeting us at the school?”
She was speaking so quickly that I could barely keep up, my mind spinning from all the words she was saying. Sebastian’s match? I pulled my phone away from my ear with a frown, glancing at the date on the screen. How had I completely forgotten it was Wednesday?
I looked at Dean in a panic, who mouthed“Football?”I was glad he didn’t speak and make Ainsley wonder who I was with. Ainsley knew I’d handed in my group project yesterday, so I couldn’t even pass it off as a school thing. I mouthed back“soccer match”and his eyes widened. It seemed I wasn’t the only one who’d forgotten.
I cleared my throat as I redirected my attention to my phone call. “I don’t think I can come tonight, actually. Volleyball practice was brutal and I have a bunch of homework to do.”
I squeezed my eyes shut, hating that I was lying to her. But I couldn’t show up tonight—not when Sebastian and I were in a fight and my every waking thought was consumed with the kisses I’d shared with Dean. It was a recipe for disaster.
“Oh.” Over the phone, it was hard for me to tell if her tone was disappointed or merely surprised.
“You don’t mind, do you?” I asked. “You’ll have Imogen and Nora there with you. And I’ll try to come to the next one.”
If Sebastian and I made up by then. Although based on our last fight, it could take much longer than that. Dean hit my arm and I looked at him with a frown, unsure what I could have said that he would care about. He tried to mouth something to me, but I couldn’t make sense of it as Ainsley started speaking again, talking about how she’d miss me but she understood. We hung up a moment later and I dropped my phone back onto the turf.
“What was that for?” I asked, rubbing at my arm even though it didn’t hurt at all.
“Why is my sister going to Sebastian’s soccer game?” he asked. “She doesn’t even come to my football games.”
I hesitated, wondering if Dean had noticed something between Nora and Sebastian like I had. It was the only reason I could imagine that he would get hung up on that detail. But I didn’t want to stir trouble for Nora, especially when I didn’t know anything was going on, so I defaulted to the easier answer.
“She’s friends with Ainsley,” I said. “They’re on the swim team together and Ainsley told me that they got paired together for a project in Public Speaking. They’re probably just starting to hang out more.”
Dean nodded, although he didn’t look one hundred percent convinced. I kept my mouth shut. If he asked me directly if I thought something was going on, I might say something, but I wasn’t going to offer up that information when I had no proof.
Dean rolled onto his side and propped himself up on his elbow, holding his head up with his hand as he looked at me.
“So why aren’t you going to the game?” he asked. “And don’t tell me it’s because volleyball practice was rough, because I just saw you sprint across this field like it was nothing.”
I laughed as I remembered the game, but it disappeared just as quickly as I thought about his question again. I sighed and rolled onto my back so I could look up at the sunset gracing the sky.
“Did you know Tiffany and Sebastian are back together?” My voice sounded odd even to my own ears, like I was putting on a calm tone even though it was obvious I was anything but.
