Page 48 of Falling With You

So, while this might be our first actual date, I felt like we’d had more than just this one moment.

Derek and Olivia went off to make a phone call after we got our snacks, and I stood in the waiting area with Sienna for a bit. That way, we didn’t have to go straight to our seats. There was something I needed to say to her, and while this probably wasn’t the best time, I didn’t want to keep it down for too much longer. I had a feeling if I did, it would get weirder than it already was. I seriously wasn’t any good at this whole relationship thing. Hadn’t been since Allison, and it was showing.

“Hey, Sienna? There’s something I need to tell you.”

“Oh?” Sienna asked. She looked a little worried, and I held back a wince. I really wasn’t good at this.

“So, I know this seems like a first date, but there’s something that you should probably know.” I let out a breath. Just do it fast, and it’s not a big deal, right? “Back when we were in school before I started dating Allison, before we all became the group of friends we were, I had a crush on you. And it seems silly in retrospect to even mention it, but I wanted you to know that it wasn’t just that one night at your place. It wasn’t just me asking you out and using a kitten to get it done. I just thought you should know.”

She blinked, and I just stared at her. She had frozen at the mention of Allison’s name, and I knew that was something else we needed to talk more about. Because no matter how much time passed and what happened between us, Allison would always be here. And that was something we needed to work through.

“I guess I should tell you that I had a crush on you, too,” she said, her voice small. “More so before you started dating Allison, and then I pushed it away because it didn’t matter. You were with her.”

A sharp bark of a laugh escaped, and I ignored it when people looked at me. Relief and confusion slid through me. There was so much between us, and we just kept ignoring it. Except now. Now, we couldn’t. And maybe that was a good thing. I wasn’t like Brendon or Cameron, who were good at talking about shit. But I was learning. “We are something, aren’t we? Because I thought you didn’t like me, thought that you didn’t want anything to do with me, so...”

“So you went out with Allison,” Sienna said, her voice a little wooden. “And I was just a little shy, so I didn’t say anything. But Allison wasn’t shy.”

“No, she wasn’t.” I swallowed hard. “And I can’t regret being with her, if that makes sense.”

This was seriously not the place or time for this, but I didn’t want to stop, not now that we were talking.

“I get it. I really do. And I guess we need to talk about that, too. But maybe not here.”

I reached out and cupped her face. “Yeah, not here. But we will. I probably shouldn’t have brought it up here, but I’ve never been great at timing.”

“Timing? What’s that?”

I leaned down to kiss her, but she darted forward at that moment, rapping her forehead against my chin. I cursed and looked down at her pale face.

The drunk dudes that had been in front of us for the whole game were smirking at her, standing far too close for comfort, and I clenched my jaw, anger radiating through my body.

“Hey, no wonder you want to tap that ass. Feels kind of nice.”

“Don’t you dare touch me again,” Sienna growled, her voice a little shaky.

“The fuck is wrong with you?” I asked, taking a step forward as I gripped the man’s shirt. His drunk face paled just a bit, but I still saw the smirk. I fisted my hand at my side and winced, just remembering at that moment that I had just fucking broken that hand from punching a man.

“Aiden, just let it go. Just stop. Please?” I looked over at Sienna, aware that people were all around us but just looking at her. She was shaking, her body rigid, her face pale. And then I knew that it wasn’t just me thinking about the last time I had punched someone. She was clearly not over the assault, and I was just making it worse. Like I always fucking did.

“Fuck,” I growled and let the man go. “You better back off. Just go.”

The little dipshits ran away, and no one really seemed to notice what had just happened. Everyone was worried about their sports and all that other shit, and here I was, making things weird.

“Can we go home?” Sienna asked, her voice emotionless. “I think I want to go home.”

I reached out to touch her, but she flinched. And that’s when I knew that maybe I had fucked up. Again. Like usual.

“How about we go see Diego, and then I’ll take you home?” I knew she needed space, but I also didn’t want her to be alone until she wasn’t so pale.

“Okay,” she said with a sigh. “I’d like to see Diego.”

And then she reached out and took my hand, my non-injured hand, and we left the game, not knowing who might win, but knowing that our night was probably over.

I had fucked up, but so had those guys. Sienna would normally be the one to stand up for herself and kick the guy in the groin or something, and the fact that she hadn’t, worried me more than it should. Or maybe it didn’t worry me enough. I didn’t know, but it was something we needed to talk about. I just didn’t know how to bring it up.

We didn’t talk on the drive back to my place, just let the music play as things got a little more uncomfortable.

She just stared out the window, her hand thankfully on mine as I drove. I didn’t mind driving one-handed, and I counted the fact that she was still touching me as a win.