He laughed as he took the place beside her. "What exactly are we waiting on," he asked, poking at her leg. She grabbed his finger, holding his hand in hers. He stared at their hands, a sudden overwhelming feeling attacking his senses. He could hear her words, but nothing was registering with him. The only thing on his mind was the feel of his hand in hers.
"I’m waiting on the phone to ring. He’s supposed to call, and I’m not going to miss it again. As soon as he calls we can go," she said, turning to look at him. "Chris," she whispered, the sound of his name on her lips brought him out of his trance. "Huh," he said, looking into her confused blue eyes. "Chris, are you alright?"
He nodded his head before resting it on her shoulder. ‘Think of something Chris...hurry’ he thought to himself. "Uhh...yeah, I’m fine. Just bored. You know how I..." his words trailed off as the phone rang.
Faith jumped up, bounding across the room only to wait until the third ring to answer it. "I don’t want to seem to anxious," she whispered, smiling as she finally answered the phone.
As she talked, Chris sat there watching her. He watched the way she smiled, the way she laughed, the way her eyes reacted to the conversation, and it all entranced him. ‘Chris, what is wrong with you’ he thought to himself. Not that he hadn’t been in love with her forever. Who would’ve thought a first grader on his school bus would turn out to be the girl he loved?
He watched on as her eyes suddenly dimmed, the smile on her face melting away. "Oh, that’s great. You two are dating now." It was more then just blatantly obvious that her dreams had just shattered. More then anything he wanted to hug her, to hold her and make everything better. Instead he sat there, watching silently.
"Ok. Sure, we should do that. Tell her I said hello. Alright. Bye." She slowly clicked off the phone, laying it to rest in its cradle. For a moment she just sat there staring at it before turning to look at him.
Immediately she started gathering up her things. "Ok...umm...are you ready to go?" He looked at her, scurrying around as she attempted to push it all out of her mind. "No," he whispered, "come sit with me."
She looked at him as he patted the place beside him before slowly walking towards him. All she could think of was being with him. It was all she had ever wanted. She had been in love with him since first grade, even though at the time he was in high school. She had heard the jokes people made about their age difference. She had made a few herself, but deep down her heart had already chosen who she loved. Age couldn’t change that.
She sat down beside him, sinking into his comforting arms. "Tell me what’s wrong," he whispered, stroking her hair as he held her to his chest. "Nothing. I’m fine," she whispered, relishing in his embrace. If she could’ve she would’ve stayed there forever. "Faith, don’t pull that with me. Tell me," he whispered.
She closed her eyes against the feel of his lips on her forehead, and she moved her hand over to rest on top of his. When she opened her eyes he wasn’t looking at her. His focus was set on their hands. Had he felt it too?
"Chris, have you ever been so deeply in love with someone that the mere thought of being without them makes you feel sick?" He almost laughed when she said that. She was reading his mind. "Faith, I can honestly say yes to that," he answered, making up his mind right then that he had to tell her. What he didn’t know was how.
"Why can’t it be as easy as it was in elementary school. You share a pack of crayons and WHAM you’re in love." He chuckled, but his laughter stopped when he remembered something. He slowly reached into his pocket, smiling as he found his special way to tell her.
"Faith, do you remember this," he asked as he handed her the small folded up piece of paper. She took it from him, carefully unfolding it. She giggled as she read it. The words were slightly faded and the paper was a little worn, but it was just as she had written it.
Do you love me?
Do you want to be my friend?
I think this is how love goes.
Check Yes or No.
YES NO
[_] [_]
"A hopelessly in love first grader’s love note. I can’t believe you still have this," she giggled as she looked at it. He slowly reached around her, pen in hand. She watched, her laughter fading as he made a small check mark inside the "Yes" box.
She looked somewhat shocked when she locked gazes with his deep brown eyes. It was there. That look that she had prayed and longed for. The light of love was in his eyes. She felt the instant tears begin to sting the back of her eyes as she looked at him. It was almost as if she was dreaming.
Slowly they moved towards each other. Their lips inching closer and closer together. He stopped, looking for a sign that she truly wanted this. Her hand slowly slid up the back of his neck, her lips closing the open space between them. In an instant, a lifetime of need and longing finally released.
He pulled away slowly, watching as she relished in their kiss. Slowly her eyes fluttered open to look at him, her smile matching his as she took a deep breath and collapsed into his arms. "Thank you God," she whispered as he chuckled, kissing the top of her head. "My sentiments exactly," he said, sighing contentedly as he held her, "I was hoping I wasn’t making a mistake."
She looked up at him and he couldn’t help but smile back at her. "Well, I’m glad I got that miserable look off your face," he said, kissing the tip of her nose. "Ya know something. I didn’t really want to be with him. I was just trying to find someone that I could love half as much as I already loved you."
He hugged her closer to him, not wanting to let her go. "So, you would’ve checked yes too," he asked. "Sweetheart, I wrote the letter," she whispered, looking back up at him again. "But what if I had wrote the letter," he said, locking with her bright blue eyes. She moved towards him, her lips hovering just above his. "Well, I would have to say yes," she whispered, leaning in to peck his lips, "Yes, I love you...yes, I want to be your friend...and yes, this is how love goes."
