You Always Remember...

Chapter Five





The look on his face when the words rushed out of my mouth was enough to make me want to take them back. I didn’t despite the fact that my heart was breaking with every passing second. Having him say something would have been one thing, I could have played off what he said and maybe explain myself better. I could have then told him that there had always been a part of me that loved him ever since we were children. That it had taken a letter from Matt’s ghost to make me see it.

But he said nothing. He didn’t even utter a sigh, moan or peep. He just walked past me and into his bedroom, slamming the door behind him. The sound of it made me jump. Having him so obviously angry with me was making me hate myself. I should have just well enough alone. My feelings for him shouldn’t have made me hate myself. That made me angry.

I was just about to walk over and bang on his door, demanding an explanation to all the other questions I had, when the door was thrown open and Oliver brushed past me again. He had his suitcase in his hand.

“You’re leaving?” I asked, bewildered at the thought.

He just turned and gave me a look that could have frozen the blood in my veins. “You are only my little brother’s best friend,” he said before storming out the door.

I remember then that I collapsed to the floor at the front door slamming shut, and cried. My heart had broken into two.

oOo

I remember I was sitting home alone, as I had for the past seven months since Oliver left me. My friends had tried to cheer me up by taking me out to bars and dance clubs. They had even set me up on a few blind dates, which I went on just to get out of the apartment, but I always ended up comparing the guys to Oliver and I never had a good time with them. Sarah had even gone as far as to threaten to order me a male stripper. I was worried that she had done just that when the doorbell suddenly went off.

“I am so going to give Sarah a piece of my mind when I see her tomorrow,” I muttered to myself as I walked towards the door warily.

I checked the peephole, but couldn’t see who it was. All I got was the view of the back of their head, which was wearing a black baseball cap.

“I’m going to warn you now, I have a handgun and mace that I’m not afraid to use,” I yelled through the door so that the guy would think twice about trying anything funny.

I almost feinted when I finally got the door open and the guy turned around. It was Oliver. He looked as bad as I felt. My mouth fell open and I wouldn’t seem to get any words out.

“I remember the day I first fell in love with you,” he said, “It was the spring you were seventeen. You were over at my house getting ready to go to a party with Matt. I was home from university at the time and hadn’t seen you for a few months. You walked into the house as if you owned it, gave my mother a kiss on the cheek and breezed past me sitting in the living room watching a baseball game on television. You were wearing a yellow sundress with your feet bare as you walked through the house. Your hair was up in your customary ponytail and you had one of those fake flowers in it. You were humming a song by Elvis that you probably heard just as you were leaving your house as you ran up the stairs, two at a time, and walked into Matt’s bedroom. I remember then wishing that you had turned right instead of left and went into mine.”

I hated crying, and I hated it even more when Oliver made me cry. Yet there I was standing with tears streaming down my face, again, in front of him.

“Oh Oliver. You can’t just come back here and expect me to let you back into my heart after saying what you said. You left me, remember? I told you I loved you and you left like a scared little boy. Did you really think that words would make me forgive you?” I asked.

He didn’t even hesitate. “No, but I hoped this might help.” With that he grabbed me with both arms and crushed his lips to mine.

I responded instantly and led him into the apartment, our lips still locked. We made it as far as the couch in the living room before our collapsing. We were both out of breath but somehow managed to keep our lips locked and not suffocate. Finally we pulled apart and ended up just staring at each other.

“I’m sorry,” said Oliver. It wasn’t needed though, love means never having to say you’re sorry.

“I love you,” was all I said, a smile starting to form on my swollen lips.

Oliver suddenly sat up and got off the couch. I first thought that he was going to leave me again, but he just went to his pants and fished something out of his pocket. He then came back to the couch, where I was now sitting up on, and kneeled in front of me. He reached up to bring my head down to kiss me again, then pulled away and showed me what had been in his pants.

It didn’t register in my mind at first what it was. After all, it wasn’t customary to see little black velvet boxes every day, but then he opened it and showed me what was inside. There lay the more beautiful ring that I had ever seen. It was white gold with three small diamonds fastened on the top. In between those there were smaller sapphires.

“I have been wanting to ask you this ever since I fell in love with you. Esmerelda Cornelia Leighton, will you marry me and be my wife for as long as our hearts beat as one?”

I smiled then and nodded yes before kissing him again. I couldn’t fine the words to express just how much I wanted to be his for all of eternity. When he slipped that ring onto my finger, I knew that I would love him forever.