Page 62 of Significant
I’ve been calling and texting Aaron. Of course, he is unreachable. He shut down his social media. He couldn’t escape his father’s words. I just watched his last race of the season, in which he placed P5. A pretty bad position for Wolf, but yet he still claimed the world champion title. I’m proud of him, he deserves it. But seeing him, on screen, it hurts. I increase the sound, watching Wolf doing a press conference because of his title—a title tarnished by the questions of the reporters.
“Your mindset wasn’t on the race. Does it have anything to do with your brother’s death?” a reporter asks.
Another question follows. “You claimed the world champion title and yet your contract isn’t secure for next year. How do you feel?”
“Are you close to your brother’s fiancée, Monica? Is it the reason why you never came to his funeral?”
My heart broke when I see Aaron staring at the floor blankly, completely mute. When his eyes meet the cameras, I know he is breaking inside. That’s the thing between him and I. We never needed words. Even if we are apart, even if we had broken something that hadn’t even begun yet, I can still feel his presence, like our souls are one. He has left a part of him within me, and I believe I did the same. And right now, Aaron needs me.
Wolf stands up from his chair and leaves without a word.
I shut off the TV, the same way I wish I could just shut us off.
After three days without an answer from him, I’m left with a decision to make. The article. Our story began with one and ironically will end with one. I push my computer away from my bed, facing a blank page. He stole all my inspiration away.
I walk with my huge blanket toward my living room to drown my misery with food. On my way, I stare atEverlasting. I’m a martyr for my beliefs. Love.Bullshit. A shiver runs through my naked legs, as a reminder that I should be freezing. The radiator of my living room is broken, but I’m too emotionless to care.
My phone awakens in my bedroom and I rush to it. I don’t need to look at the screen to know who’s calling me.
I know it’s him.
I don’t think twice. I pick up.
“Hi, Elle. I…” I hear Aaron sigh on the phone, struggling to find his words, my heart shattering at the sound of his husky voice. I feel again. All the emotions I’ve tried to deny get back to the surface.
“Are you okay, Aaron?” My voice is weak and trembling.
“I don’t know. Elle, I’m… I’m sorry. For everything.” He waits for me to speak, despair in his voice, but I’m incapable of replying. He sounds so miserable, and so am I. Sometimes words can’t express our deepest emotions unless—
“I need you,” he affirms.
Words can’t express our deepest emotions unless it’s the words you have never been able to say before.I need you. I miss you. I love you.I was for so long waiting for him to need me, to allow me in his heart, for his acceptance that we belong together.
I need you. Words of hope. Despair. Fate.
“I’m here.” Unconditionally. Irrevocably. Truthfully. No matter the heartbreak. As his silence follows, I know it’s the same for him. I don’t want to be here, he doesn’t want to need me—but it’s not our choice to make, it’s a part of us.
“I took a flight to New York. Impulsively. I’m parked in front of your building. I wanted to see you.” He curses, I can sense his agitation. My reckless Wolf is back. He is here. “Gosh, I sound desperate, I understand if you—”
“I’m coming down.” I throw my phone on my bed, not taking the time to grab a jacket, before running toward the front door to meet him.
I can’t wait. I need to see him. I can’t think straight, I’m not conscious of what I’m doing, something took control of me, something I can’t fight. I run toward the stairs until reaching the last door separating us.
Outside, it’s snowing. My flesh freezes. My breath cuts. In the white carpet of snow on the street, there is my lonely Wolf, warming the storm. He stands outside of his car, looking just as I remember him. Handsome and troubled. A dark knight. I notice the dark circles under his eyes, his gaze red like he is holding Hell inside of him. A contrast between darkness with his black ripped jeans, black coat, and his obsidian hair with the light of his blue, celestine eyes.Oh, Aaron.
I take a leap. Running toward him in the cold, my bare feet struggling in the snow, him walking toward me. I’m only wearing my long shirt, no bra and panties, probably exposed to the view of the few pedestrians, but I don’t care. All I see is him. We are lost in a slow-motion moment, stuck in a romance movie scene, and yet our story has nothing to do with a fairy tale. That’s the thing—when you’re drawn to someone, a second is too painful to wait. I jump into his arms, hugging him tightly, my arms around his neck. He squeezes me harder against him, his arms protectively wrapped around my waist like they always belonged here. Harder. Closer. Melting together. We are one again, standing like the world is ours, the snow the only witness of our reunion.
“Fuck,ma belle, it’s freezing, don’t stay like that.” He pulls off his coat, standing only in his black shirt. He wraps his jacket around me, tugging me in, his cologne still on it, arousing my desire of him. He frowns his eyebrows, conveying his worry for me.
He swoops me under his arms, carrying me to my apartment and I don’t complain. There are so many unsaid things between us, but I’m not ready to break this moment. After carrying me for the last two floors, he deposits me in my living room before closing the door behind him.
“Why is it so cold in here?” His voice isn’t judgmental, he is concerned.Gosh, Aaron, you’re sending me mixed signals.I can’t play anymore.
“The radiator of my living room is broken. But the heat is fine on my other rooms.” Goose bumps spreading on my skin, my teeth shaking, I cross my arms on my chest, tightening his jacket around me.
“Where are your tools?”
“Kitchen, last drawer.”
