“Yeah.”
“Even with how bad it’s been?”
I nearly laughed. “It’s been bad because it’s you. If it was anybody else, I could’ve lied to myself more easily. If it was anybody else, I could’ve kept my distance. But it wasn’t.”
“I wanted you too,” he admitted quietly. “That’s what pissed me off the most.”
A beat passed then he asked the thing that had been sitting between us even before he spoke it. “If we do this, are you going to get scared again?”
The question hit hard because I knew exactly where it came from. Not from tonight. Not from the gym. From years ago. From the party. From me making him feel like he only mattered in private.
“No,” I answered right away.
His expression didn’t change. “That was fast.”
“Because I already know”—I moved closer until our knees touched—“I don’t want to hide you.”
His eyes narrowed some, not out of anger but out of what looked like caution and self-protection.
“I mean it,” I continued. “I don’t want this to be something we’re only doing here. I don’t want us acting one way when the door’s shut and another the moment somebody sees us. When we’re around other people, I don’t want you wondering if I’m about to make you feel small again.”
His face went tight.
“I won’t do that to you,” I said. “Not ever again.”
“You say that now.”
“Yeah, because I should’ve said it then.”
“That’s not what I mean.”
“I know.” I took a breath. “You mean when it actually counts. In front of people. In the kitchen. At the gym. Walking down the street. When it’s not easy.”
He nodded.
“That’s exactly what I mean too,” I answered. “I want everybody to know we’re together.”
“Everybody?” he asked.
“Yeah.”
“The roommates?”
“Yeah.”
“Mason’s going to be a nightmare.”
“He already is.”
A quick huff escaped him.
I kept my eyes on his. “Mason, Derek, Enzo, Devon, the guys at the gym, whoever. I don’t care.”
His voice dropped. “Your parents?”
“My parents too.”
“No bullshit?”
