Pretend (74 page)

             
"Ok, do you still want to check on him?"

             
"No, he probably just needs a little space, I'll try and talk to him tomorrow," I said as I smiled at him.

             
"Ok."

             
"Can I ask you a question?" I said as I looked over at his face.

             
"Fire away," he said as he threw me a smile.

             
"Did you really like me when we were younger?" I asked.

             
"How did you
kn
-" He said before cutting himself off.

             
"Alison?" He said as I burst out laughing.

             
"How did you know?" I said as I began to chuckle.

             
"She never was good at keeping a secret," he said as he began to laugh.

             
"In her defensive it slipped out when she was taking me to get some food on the night of your performance," I said as I thought about how beautifully he sang that night.

             
"Yeah her mouth slips a lot of stuff out," he said with a smile on his face.

             
"Yes it's true," he said, catching me off guard.

             
"Oh," I said as I tried not to act too surprised.

             
"I know that you want to ask more," he said as he smirked at me.

             
"Well
,
how come you never told me?" I asked.

             
"Well
,
firstly I tried to ignore it since you were Crystal's friend and I was suppose
d
to just look out for you. Then I just convinced myself that I didn't like you at all and that I was just getting the fact that I cared about you mixed up with actual feelings," he said calmly.

             
"So
,
when did you realise that it was more?" I asked.

             
"It was that night that you came to ours and Crystal took that picture of you and
put it on facebook. It was the night that I found out that you were dating
Kyle," he said in a slightly annoyed tone.

             
"Oh gosh
,
I hate that picture," I said.

             
"I think it's cute," he said with a big grin on his face.

             
"So
,
is that why you never liked Kyle?" I asked.

             
"Kind of, well t
hat and the fact that I knew that he
was
n’t
right for you," he said.

             
"Oh," I said.

             
"Anyway
,
when I heard what he had done to you I was mad. You spent weeks just hiding away from everyone and I wanted to kill him. I made a decision that as soon as you were back to your old self again I was going to try and make you see how I felt, I
didn't want you to go back to
him and I didn't want to miss my chance again," he said.

             
"Well you got there in the end
,
didn't you," I said as we both began to laugh.

             
"I told you, I always get what I want and I've never wanted anything this much before," he said in a more serious tone.

             
"
Wow
that
was both cocky and sweet at the same time. How you managed that was beyond me," I said as I chuckled.

             
"Well I'm a man of many talents, beautiful," he said as he winked at me.

             
"Whatever you say," I said as we pulled up outside of his house.

             
"Wait," I said as he went to open his car door.

             
"You ok?" He asked with a confused expression on his face.

             
"Yeah, I just wanted to say thanks," I said as I tried to avoid his gaze.

             
"For what?"
He
asked.

             
"Not giving up on me and putting up with all
of the madness that came with it."

             
"April, I would do it all over again if this was the result every
time," he said before leaning in and kissing me gently on the lips.

             
"Oh and thank you too," he said as we stepped out of the car and walked towards his front door.

             
"For what?"
I asked as I turned to face him.

             
"For p
roving my theory to be correct."

             
"What theory?"

             
"That I always get what I want," he said as he burst out laughing.

             
"You
,
Mr Daniels are something else," I said as I hit him playfully on the arm.

             
"And yet you still choose to put up with me," he said as he pulled me towards him and wrapped his hands around my waist.

             
"Yeah
,
I must be crazy," I said as I looked into his eyes and smiled.

             
"Well as
long as you
’
r
e
crazy with me then I don't mind," he said as he chuckled to himself.

             
"Always," I said in a more serious tone.

             
"Promise?"
He whispered as he looked at me seriously.

             
"I promise," I said.

             
"Good because I don't think that I can imagine my life without you now," he said as he smiled at me, genuinely.

             
"Me
either. I love you Aiden," I said as I tip toed so that I could kiss him.

             
"Boy does that sound good," he said as he smiled against my lips.

             
"Yup
,
now shut up and kiss me," I said as I pulled him towards me and kissed him again.

             
I know that people say that when you're young, you don't understand about love but believe me when I say that I understand and I am completely in love with this guy. To even try and imagine life without him seems crazy.

             
"I love you too," he finally said before leading me up the steps of his house.

             
Yes, I definitely want to spend the rest of my life hearing those words
from his mouth
.

I woke up this morning with the biggest smile on my face. Every time I tried to shake it off, I couldn't
 
because the memories of last night just kept flooding back. It was nice knowing that th
e truth was finally out and that
everyone
 
was happy about it. The fact that Susan
was happy made me feel at ease.
I never
even knew that her and my
mom
were
practically dreaming
 
of me and Aiden
 
becoming a couple and I can't deny that it
 
put a smile on my face. It
 
was nice to
 
see the joy in Crystal's eyes last night as she spent time with her mom. I know that she always brushes it off like it doesn't matter but deep down I know that, that's what she has always wanted.
 

             
"You up?" Crystal said as she popped her head through the door.

             
"Yup," I said as I jumped up out of bed.

             
"Someone's happy this morning," she said as she watched me searching through the wardrobe for something to wear.

             
"Shouldn't I be?" I asked with a smile on my face.

             
"Well
,
I suppose you do have a reason, I guess," she said as she smirked at me before collapsing onto the bed.

             
"Are you sure
that
you're ok with this?" I said as I gently sat down beside her.

             
"About you and Aiden?"
She asked as she looked at me.

             
"Yeah
."

             
"It is a little strange but you're both so happy that it honestly makes me...Smile," she said as she threw me a genuine smile.

             
"Thanks," I whispered before throwing my arms around her.

             
"So
,
how's Cameron?" I asked as I smiled at her.

             
"Well remember how I said that I really like him?" She said as she began to play with her fingers.

             
"You're not sure are you?" I said.

             
"How did you know?"

             
"Like you said to m
e, I'm your best friend. There are
just some things that I know without
even
needing to ask," I said with a small smile on my face.

             
"It's not that I don't like him, I do but it's just
that there's something missing."

             
"Do you want me to be honest with you?" I asked, looking her straight in the eye.

             
"I may regret this but go on," she said as she watched me.

             
"The Crystal that I know doesn't really play things safe, she's daring and fun," I began.

             
"Yup
."

             
"So
,
I know that you like Cameron and I don't doubt that at all but Cameron is what you call safe. He is someone who will probably end up being one of your best friends-"

             
"Oh
my gosh
,
you know me way too well," she interrupted.

             
"Well I wouldn't be
much of a friend if I didn't
, would I?" I said as I smiled at her.

             
"What am I going to do? I really do like hi
m and I don't want to hurt him."

             
"Well
,
if there's one thing that I've learnt lately, it's to be honest. You just need to tell him the truth and see what happens but you can't lie to yourself," I said in a soft tone.

             
"Yeah you're right. I'll talk to him today, better to get it over and done with, I guess. I just hope that he still wants to be friend
s
because I don't want to lose him," she said in a sad voice.

             
"Something tells me that it'll all work out just fine," I reassured her.

             
"I hope so, I really do. Right
,
now get ready missy, breakfast is nearly done," she said as she stood to her feet.

             
"You're not cooking it are you?" I asked as the fear laced my voice.