Endless Bonds

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here's no way I'm letting her get away.

Cher runs out my door. I stand there planted for two seconds, my emotions starting a war inside me, before I snap back to reality.

Fuck that. I chase after her.

She takes the elevator, but I take the stairs until we both meet in the lobby. She squeaks to a halt when she sees my hulking frame closing in on her.

It's crazy how just five minutes ago she was lazily grinding herself against me like I was her favorite sex toy, and now she's running away like I've got a damn disease.

I back her up against the wall with only my body. "Let's uncomplicate things now, because I'm tired of these mixed signals. You flirt with me. You dance with me. You act like more than my best friend and sometimes I can't tell if you're innocent or if you're actually turned on by me. It's frustrating, Cher. I don't do frustrated. I do simple."

I did frustrated with my ex-girlfriend and it got me nowhere.

Cher swallows hard, not meeting my gaze. I want to see her eyes so maybe I can get the answer she's having difficulty conveying with her mouth.

There are never any lights past midnight so it's dark in the lobby, a picturesque image of my mind right now.

But the sliver of moonlight filtering through the front glass doors illuminates us and resembles the beacon of light in the abyss of my mind, screaming that there's still a chance for us.

Cher's bronze hair looks like melted gold and I have this urge to fist it in my hands and tug it back, until she is forced to meet my gaze. I want her to see the wreck she's created.

Instead I cup her chin and lift her face. I lean down, keeping a breath of a distance between our mouths. I don't kiss her no matter how much I want too.

"I have feelings for you, sweetheart. No more lying. If you don't feel even the briefest of something for me, I'm out. I'll never bother you again, and we can pretend this whole thing never happened."

It might kill me, but I'll do it for her. I'll walk away.

It's my own damn fault that I lost my chance with her in high school. I should have pursued her then. Maybe there wouldn't have been so much lost time between us.

Cher's palms rise up to hold my jaw and there's a trembling quality to them. I lean into her touch, letting her feel the prickle of a day's worth of growth. Even her voice is feeble when she speaks. "Trent, I do have feelings for you. Maybe old ones too that I didn't realize. I'm a mess because I'm conflicted and there's another guy."

I jerk away from her like I've been shot. Another fucking guy. Tara did mention it but hearing her say it out loud feels like something in my chest snaps in half.

It actually hurts.

Sensing my discomfort, she desperately latches on to me, holding me even closer than before and trying to make this better. "Let me explain. I've been seeing him for awhile and I can't play him and hurt everyone in the process just because I'm lost and know that what I'm feeling for you isn't something that's just passing by. It's more than that I know it."

"More than him?" Please, say yes.

She licks her lip, a certain vulnerability in her eyes that has me weak in the knees. "It's complicated, that's why. But know that every time I'm with you, I forget about him and lose myself in you. Every. Damn. Time."

I press my forehead against her, feeling her warmth and just closing my eyes. Living in the fleeting moment where she's just admitted that when she's with me, she loses herself.

"I lose myself in you, too," I whisper to her.

Sometimes when she leaves me, I wonder when I'll see her again. And, when I do see her, I find myself remembering the days and hours in between the last time I saw her. I wonder how much time will trickle by before I see her again the next time.

Her hands slowly trail down my face until they're holding the collar of my shirt. "I need to make things, right, Trent. Do you understand what I mean?"

I know what she means.

Doesn't mean I'm happy with the fact that we've lost time – I'm not happy that it took so many faceless girls and pointless hookups for me to come to the realization that I should have just thrown caution to the wind and told her how I felt about her all those years ago, before I ever bothered with Rose.

This girl, she's got me twisted and it hurts. It aches where my heart resides.

"Take the time you need, but I'll be here," I murmur to her, before stepping away. "You need to make a decision, Cher? Know that I'm waiting for it. I don't give a fuck about this other guy because I know that you and I have too much history that no one can compete with. You know this, too, baby. Don't you?"

I'm not trying to be cocky or arrogant. I know the fucking truth. No one in this world can compete with what I have for this girl. The world be damned, if it tries.

Nothing will sway my determination.

She may have been seeing the other guy – fuck, how many girls have I see after Rose – but if she has the same feelings that I have for her, I know it won't matter.

If it's complicated, we'll work with it. I can deal with whatever stupid fucker she's been hooking up. I know it can't be as meaningful as everything Cher and I share between us.

I'll give her space.

"Do you need a ride home, babe?" I gently tuck her strands behind her ears and trail my fingers through her strands until I reach the tips. I've always loved her hair.

She shakes her head, a small content smile playing at the corners of her lips. "I've just texted Sara since she's up. She'll come get me."

At least I know she's going home safe and sound with someone I know. "Goodnight, Cherrycakes."

"'Night, Treasure-Chest."

I'm walking away from her and it doesn't feel right. Everything about our night doesn't make sense to me anymore, but I don't let go of the hope blooming inside of me.

"Wait!"

When I'm practically inside the elevator, Cheryl choses to confess something that has me sucking in a deep breath.

"Trenton, the real reason Rose told me to back-off wasn't because I was your best friend and she was insecure. I didn't tell you the full story last time."

I gaze at her over my shoulder, my eyes wide. I know Oli and Jared said Cher had felt something for me back in high school, but I didn't know how much of it was true...

Cher's eyes clench shut as if this is painful for her, her mouth twisting slightly. "Trenton, Rose didn't want me near you because I liked you. I liked you a lot for a long time. But you were in love with Rose and I just wanted you to be happy. That's why I backed away and didn't say anything to you. I'm so sorry I lied to you all those years – that I avoided you for a period of time – and never came clean. It was wrong of me, but I did it for you both. I hope...You understand where I was coming from. I hope you can properly forgive me."

I'm speechless. Not feelings. Cheryl Anderson had fucking liked me.

And I'd liked her, too.

God, I still liked her. That realization doesn't shock me either.

In that exact moment, the elevator doors shut in both our faces.

With a curse, I start jabbing at buttons furiously until the doors open again.

Something on my face has Cheryl gasping. She liked me. That's all the encouragement I need. Right now, I don't give a shit about what she's going to tell the guy.

Right now, I'm about to speed up her decision and further uncomplicate things.

I stride towards her like I'm a man with mission to accomplish. And I do.

Once I reach her, my hands shoot out until I'm grasping her by the hips and crushing her to me.

Cher's hands go to my shoulders to steady us as we rock from the impact of our bodies colliding.

"You can't fucking say shit like that to me and expect me to say goodnight and leave you alone."

Her eyes have got that weighed-down quality to them and it's obvious that this is going to fucking happen. I need a taste of her mouth. I need to feel what it could be like between us.

She runs her perfectly manicured fingers over my mouth, catching my bottom lip. "What do you have in mind?"

"This."

I tilt my head and fuse our mouths together.

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Questions: Was Trent's decision to kiss her stupid? Should Cheryl have actually told him that she LOVED not LIKED him all those years ago? What's your whole take on the fiance situation now?