“Fuck them, Noah. We are on the opposite side of the bar, and they didn’t even turn when you walked in the bar. You deserve to go out and have fun too,” Bec says, slamming the remainder of her drink. If nothing else my sister will always have my back, I swear for a five-foot-one, one-hundred-thirty-pound woman, she isn’t one to mess with. She actually kind of reminds me personality-wise of Caroline from that night out at the Pub Down the Street.
“One drink,” I say, taking a sip of my hazy beer and watching their small group out of the corner of my eye.
It's karaoke night and I have listened to Caroline and half the department try their hands at singing, Cole included. But I can't seem to pull my eyes from Ollie, her perfect ass and hips fill the soft bell-bottom jeans and the way her wavy chestnut hair frames her face. Her neutral pink lip gloss shimmering on her lips, and I know it's time to leave before I make a fool out of myself.
I slam the Jameson shot in front of me, salute the boys, and stand to walk out the door. I open the door, hear the little jingle, and then hear the music change for the next karaoke singer.
It still feels like our first night together
The voice stops me dead in my tracks, and I turn to confirm what my brain is telling me. Ollie is singing karaoke. She’s standing at the end of the platform, staring at me, voice shaking, and tears streaking down her face.
I close the door behind me and continue to watch Ollie sing, oblivious to the cheers for her around me. She steps down off the stage and starts walking toward me.
Part of me wants to just turn away and leave, but seeing her standing up there, being this vulnerable, has my feet nailed to the floor.
The bar erupts with cheers when the song ends, and we’re standing inches away from each other. I can’t help but smile as Ollie looks at me, tears filling her eyes from embarrassment. She’s never liked the spotlight, and that was completely out of her element and comfort zone.
“That wasHigh School Musicaltype shit” I say, crossing my arms in front of my chest to keep myself from touching her. She looks absolutely beautiful tonight, but I have to remember she told me she never wants to hear from me again. I have to respect that. She laughs through the tears, and everyone around us goes back to drinking and chatting, as if nothing even happened.
“You’ve never even seenHigh School Musical,” she says, trying to sound menacing but she’s too full of emotion for it to come across accurately.
“No, but that is what I imagine it to look like,” Even if we can never move past what happened, I'm going to live in this moment here forever.
“There is one more thing I want to show you,” Olivia says, placing her hands on my forearms, stepping closer before walking past me, to lead us outside.
“Ollie…”
“Noah, I owe you an apology and not just a small I’m sorry a big true apology but before we get there I have to show you something.”
“Where are we going?” I ask hesitantly as she gets in her car.
“Do you trust me, Noah?” she says half smirking, hand shaking as she places it on the steering wheel, clearly nervous and trying to steady it.
“I have always trusted you,” I whisper.
We drive downtown and park in the angled parking outside the empty dance studio where Bec used to dance. Unfortunately, the studio closed a few years ago because there weren’t enough dancers anymore and it’s been empty ever since. The space is perfect, centrally located, with huge windows in the front, a large open space on one side, and some smaller rooms on the other side in the back.
Then I see it the new white and green sign outside the dance studio, and the big red ribbon across the doorway.
“What is this?” I ask, confused.
"Welcome to Bennett Rehabilitation & Performance,” she says, smiling ear to ear while her, cheeks start turning red, probably with nervousness and anxiety.
I just stand next to Ollie, confused looking at the building.
“You bought a building in Fisher Creek?” I ask, trying to decipher what’s happening. “Ollie, you live in Milwaukee.”
“Not anymore,” she replies. “I bought this building and am opening a practice here in Fisher Creek. After your accident, I realized there’s a huge need for physical therapy and performance-based care here. I can fix that. Plus, I get to be closer to you.” she continues, saying the last part quieter.
“Ollie” I start, but she cuts me off.
“Wait, let me finish, please, before I lose my nerve and don’t say any of this at all.” She’s holding and twisting her hands in front of me, trying to keep herself occupied. “I was wrong. I know that now, and I'm so incredibly sorry for what I said to you and that I wasn’t there for you when you needed me the most. Truthfully, loving you is the scariest thing in my life and I'm terrified of being hurt again. I didn’t know at the moment that shutting you out to protect myself would actually hurt both of us more than ever.” She’s fighting back the second tsunami of emotion about to crash over her, but I stay quiet to let her finish. Seeing her this upset is a punch to the gut, and I don’t even need to hear her finish to know I want her in my arms forever. “I should have listened to you and communicated better about how I was feeling and taken into consideration that there are other factors in life that may play a part in your actions. It was childish and immature, and I'm sorry, Noah,” she finishes while looking at her hands, and then drops them to her sides and looks up at me.
“I forgive you, Ollie, but I cannot let you give up Milwaukee to be closer to me,” I add because I will never let her give up her dreams and aspirations for me. Or for anyone, for that matter.
“Dreams change, Noah,” she says, and my heart instantly melts into a giant puddle. “Opening this practice in Fisher Creek is my dream. It allows me to do what I love while being closer to and with the people who mean the most to me. I'm not giving up my dream for you. I'm striving to live my dream with you. I may not know what the future looks like for us but I know that I want you in it.”
“I love you, Olivia Bennett,” I say as I grab her hips and pull her body close to mine, kissing her lips.
