~August’s point of view~
Wow. Had I not been prepared for that. To see Brian up on stage. Hear him sing. Not only did he sing, but with the voice of an angel. The most beautiful voice I had ever heard in my life. And he played guitar better than I ever would have imagined. He was packed with talent.
I didn’t know what to say to him. I was still mad. But…
“What?” Brian looked at me and asked. We were on the deck. He stopped walking. My eyes had begun to water without me realizing it.
I was so confused. I had been so happy that day at the Magic Kingdom and then Cassie had come and ruined my good mood. I had gone from thinking that Brian had almost told me he loved me to the thought that I was only part of some bet. Now I was back to thinking that maybe, just maybe, I meant more than that.
“Look, August,” he started, when I never answered his question. “I’m so sorry that you got involved in this. When Nick and I made a bet two weeks ago, I didn’t know you.”
“That was the point, wasn’t it? Find some girl you don’t know…”
“Even once I met you, I didn’t have you in mind for that. It was some stupid, little bet. And when I was around you, my mind blanked, and I didn’t even really think about it.” He ran his hand through his slightly curly hair and paced a little. I looked out over the water. “Nick had thought that you found love at first sight. I countered that it takes a long time… see, us guys do have theories,” Brian laughed a little bit.
I managed a small smile.
“That day I was talking to you under the castle, I flipped out, because I knew Nick was about to tell Carmen that he loved her. And if she said it back, he’d win.”
“So you just didn’t want to lose?”
“No… I realized that the bet involved people. People who could get hurt. I didn’t want you to find out about it… but when I talked to Nick, Cassie overheard, as you know.”
“And then she came and told us that you guys had to get us to tell you we loved you.”
“No, that’s what Nick had to do. I said love takes time, remember? I didn’t think you could meet someone and bam, just realize that you had been waiting your whole life to meet them,” Brian looked into my eyes. His bright blue eyes shimmered. He took my hands in his. “If I told you I loved you, and you said it back, then I lost.”
“Oh…” I was still confused. Hadn’t he almost said it under the castle?
“That’s why I went to find Nick at that specific point in time. I wanted to tell you how I felt.”
“But you would’ve lost, so you had to call off the bet first?” I inquired.
“No,” he sighed, looking up thoughtfully. “I just knew that you’d be disappointed in me… and what if I had told you how I felt, and then you found out about the bet? You would’ve thought I had initiated that conversation just for the purpose of the bet. So I tried to call it off. He wouldn’t at first. Then I was just going to give him the money and tell him he won, because I didn’t care about that anymore.”
I nodded. “So what is it you were going to tell me?” I questioned.
“August, I fell for you as soon as I first met you… literally,” he said, smiling. “They say love hurts… and, although I’ve only known you a short amount of time, August, I…” Brian began.
“What about Cassie?” I had been getting too wrapped up in the moment. “You kissed her?”
“Ugh… I don’t wanna think about that… but she kissed me. I have never, will never kiss her. My heart belongs to you. She was just using me to get you jealous because she knew you were standing there.”
“Really? Cause…”
“I don’t like Cassie. She’s a friend of the past that I hope I never have to speak to again,” Brian told me. “I don’t feel anything with her. You’re the most important person to me.”
“Even after only two weeks?” I thought about his argument in the bet.
“Hey, Aladdin didn’t know Jasmine that long,” Brian grinned.
“And you think those movies are fake and pathetic…”
“I thought that. I don’t anymore. It’s hard not to believe in fairytales when you've met your fairy Princess,” Brian said with a boyish grin. “August, I love you,” his blue eyes were shimmering more than ever.
A tear ran down my cheek. He brushed it away and framed my face with his hands. “I can’t imagine, life without your love, and even forever, don’t seem like long enough,” he quoted the song he’d written for me.
“I love you, too,” my smile now matched his own.
Brian kissed me under the stars. I could hear the ocean in the background. It was the most beautiful moment that I had ever experienced. “Maybe you are good at those lines after all,” I whispered. “I can’t believe you wrote me a song… it was the most beautiful thing I ever heard.” I stood wrapped by his embrace.
Brian kissed my forehead. “Carmen, you can come out now,” he was a little annoyed.
“How? I have to know!” Carmen came out of nowhere with her hands on her hips.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Four
Drowning
Frick's Fairytales