Just as I finished setting up the end table, I saw Josh reach over across the bed for me, his face noticeably upset when his hand brushed against nothing but pillows and blankets. When he finally opened his eyes, he sat up, looking around until they landed on me.

"H-hey.." He said, flashing me a wide grin. "What.. what is all this?" He reached over for the bouquet of pink roses I had setup next to him. I shrugged, feeling my cheeks burn as a giddy smile escaped my lips.

"You were so kind when you didn't have to be." I said softly, sitting down on the edge of the bed. "And.. if the roles were revered, I don't know if I could have been as forgiving." He leaned in closer, gently running his fingers across my cheek.

"Jaime.." He sighed, pulling me into a long kiss. I reached over, grabbing onto his shirt, kissing him back harder until his lips curled into a smile. When he finally backed away, he peeked back over at them.

"Pink?" He asked. I shrugged.

"Pink is for 'I'm sorry.'" I muttered. "I looked it up. Along with.. what lavender roses mean." His eyes lit up as his face turned bright red.

"You did."

"Mhm.." He reached back over for me, pulling me into another passionate kiss, his fingers moving into my hair, tightly tangling themselves within.

"And.. boys deserve flowers too." I sighed. "Especially boys like you."

"I love them, Jaime. But.. can we keep them here?" He asked, biting down on his lip.

"Why? They're yours, don't you want to-"

"I was kinda hoping we could.. stay here for as long as possible. And.. I want you to be able to enjoy them too." I nodded, taking his hand, intertwining our fingers.

"Should we talk about last night?" I finally asked, already regretting bringing it up. He was quiet for a moment, his face dropping as he held his stare on me.

"Okay." He said softly, finally breaking our stare, his eyes moving down to our hands.

"When I was younger.. I.. I did have a crush on him. Nothing serious. It was never anything serious. I don't know what it was, but.. I just did. And as time went on, I realized.. that was never going to happen. For a lot of reasons. But the main one.. being you. I fell for you.. years ago. You made me feel seen when I felt invisible. That day you brought me up into the tree, out in the field, and we talked for hours and I just.. I have never felt anything like that. And.. that's when I knew."

He was quiet again, his grip on my hand getting tighter as a gentle smile escaped his lips. I could hear my heart beating, pounding, it's rapid rhythm echoing in my ears, filling his excruciating silence.

"Please say something.." I whispered, reaching up, holding his face in my hands. He sighed, staring back at me with eyes that girls only dreamed of, eyes that saw me and only me.

"I love you, Jaime." He said softly, but oh so surely. Almost like habit, like we said it to each other every day, just in passing, just as a reminder in case somehow, we had forgotten since the last time we saw each other.

"I love you." I sighed, feeling tears come to my eyes. He pulled me in, kissing me so gently, so tenderly that I now felt weightless in the palm of his hands.

"I have wanted to tell you that.. for as long as I could remember." He said, brushing his fingers through my hair, his eyes staring so deeply back into mine as if he was trying to memorize every freckle, every shade of golden brown that lied within. But little did he know I've had his eyes memorized for years.

"You've always shown me, though." I wrapped one arm around his neck, moving into his lap as his hands moved down to my waist, pulling me up against him.

"I'm glad you noticed." He giggled to himself, pulling me into a series of kisses, each one harder, longer than the next.

"Despite how long it took you to tell me." I laughed, leaning my forehead against his. "I have always felt loved by you." He flashed me a wide grin.

"Well.. you were much braver than me. I.. I heard you last night." I nodded, feeling my face get hot.

"I know."

"You've always been braver than me, Jaime."

"That's not true."

"Yes it is, in the ways that matter, anyway."

"Maybe it's because.. you've always made me feel safe enough to be so brave." He smirked back at me.

"Glad I could help."

I tightly wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him into another passionate kiss. He kissed me back harder, his hands slowly sliding under my shirt. My heart started beating faster as his lips moved to my neck. Tightly tangling my fingers in his hair, I moved out of his lap, pulling him over me. I felt his hands gently grab my shirt as he stared up at me with questioning eyes. I nodded, grasping the bottom and quickly pulling it over my head, tossing it onto the floor. His breaths got heavier as his lips moved down to my chest, his eager hands slowly gliding up my arms until his fingers intertwined themselves within mine, squeezing them tightly. I could feel his heartbeat pounding against me, as he pressed his body firmly against mine.

I then reached down, grabbing his shirt. He impatiently pulled it out of my hands, lifting it over his head and tossed it away. I couldn't help but smile as his kisses got harder, searching for ever inch of skin they've yet to touch, yet to caress in such loving tenderness that I've yearned for my entire life.

"Is.. is this okay?" He asked. I nodded, pulling him back in, kissing him harder. His hands then slowly made their way down my body, holding me tightly until they reached my pants. He timidly tugged at the waist band, peeking back at me with nervous eyes. I nodded again, maneuvering out of them as he slid them off, quickly positioning himself over me again.

"Josh.." I exhaled. He instantly backed away, staring back at me with wide-eyed.

"W-what's wrong? Are you okay?"

"I.. I'm fine, I just.. we.. we don't have to. I don't want you to think.. after everything we talked about. I meant it, there's no hurry. I don't want you to rush into anything." He bit down on his lip, hesitating for a moment before pulling me into a long kiss.

"Do you.. have anything?" He asked, motioning to my end table drawer. I felt my whole body get hot. Of course I didn't have anything, I wasn't expecting this to happen, and I had never needed them before. I subtly shook my head. He sighed, rolling over next to me.

"Well, then I guess that answers that." He giggled to himself, turning to face me with a nervous grin.

"Well, I mean, if.. if you wanted-"

"No, Jaime." He was right, but when you were caught up in the moment it was hard to not consider..

But the last thing we needed was the risk of anything like that happening. Though, if that were to happen with anyone, I'd be the luckiest girl in the world if it was with him.

We then both jumped at the sound of Josh's phone ringing. He groaned, reaching over me, lifting it up to see Sam's name. He stared at it for a moment before looking back at me. I nodded. After letting it ring one more time, he finally answered.

"Hey." He said simply. "What's going on?"

"Hey, where are you?"

"I'm at Jaime's."

"Well, get back over here. We've got some news."