(Edited)

Since we parted with James, Michael has been quiet, fuming, but still. That worried me gravely; it was dangerous for him not to speak. Id rather have him shout and scream than be silent and brooding. He was either overthinking everything or beating himself up over something he had no control off.

"Michael," I whispered, trying to get his attention, but his eyes were dead set on the road. There was the uncertainty that he didn't hear me because he was too deep in his own thoughts, but the twitch in his jaw proved me otherwise. So, the silent game?

I huffed and looked outside the window at the beautiful scenery that seemed impossible to take away all the troubles from my mind. Even though such beauty could make you forget wars, it couldn't take away the one inside me. But I knew it was my entire fault. I lied and kept secrets from Michael, things that I wasnt yet ready to reveal. If only he would talk to me, maybe I could fix things.

I looked at him and saw him clench and unclench his jaw. His knuckles were white from gripping the steering wheel very hard. I wished I knew what he was thinking.

"Michael!" I tried again, turning my body towards him. His eyes snapped to me, but before he could get his frustration out, the car came to an abrupt halt in the middle of the road with a splattering sound.

"Crap!" Michael yelled, slamming his fist into the wheel, angrily.

I rolled my eyes. "Whats wrong?" This man was driving me insane; it was frustrating.

He opened the door and jumped out, not answering me. He slammed the door hard, making the car vibrate silently. I climbed out after him, surprised that the windows didnt shatter from the force. I walked around the car and saw Michael bend over the bonnet, searching for the problem.

"Find anything?" I asked, leaning against the side of the car.

Michael huffed, irritation evident in his voice. He closed the bonnet and grabbed his phone and car keys, locking the car behind him. I stood there stunned, looking at his back, walking away from me. Was he seriously going to leave me here without an explanation? Was he going to leave me here, period? What about the car, he couldnt possibly leave it in the middle of the road like this, he would lose it?

"Where are you going?" I asked.

I looked at the darkness surrounding us, civilization miles away. He ignored me once again, walking further away from me. Was he freaking serious? I groaned with frustration and threw my hands up in the air.

"Can you stop being a child and answer me for goodness sake!" I yelled at him, his back facing me, my temper rising at his immature behaviour.

It was clear to me now that I was falling for this guy because here I stood, extremely angry at him, but I couldnt stop staring at his butt, and how perfectly they fit in those jeans. I shook my head; the hormones clouding my judgment. Snap out of it Autumn, youre angry at him!

I felt the air around us change from stiff and silent to loud and windy. My hair started blowing into my face, and I shivered from the cold. Even though I just wanted to get into the warm car, I stayed put; I was determined to get this conversation over and done. Michael turned and looked me dead in the eyes.

"Im going home so I can get far away from you and your lies!" He shouted angrily, eyes blazing. My blood was boiling; I couldnt believe how stupid he was being.

"Youre such a hypocrite!" I said. His eyes narrowed, he opened his mouth to say something, but I didnt give him a chance. "I didnt tell you, Im sorry, but you dont see me asking you why you were at the racetrack!" I yelled, clenching my fist. "You dont see me asking you how you know Ryan and his friends either! Why? Because its none of my business and if you wanted me to know you would have told me!" I declared, running my hand through my hair, trying to keep it out of my face.

His face didn't lighten up; he must have been angry about something else. Why were boys so complicated?

"If this is about this morning, Im sorry! I just wasnt ready to tell you yet." I explained.

It felt like I was yelling very loudly, but it was only because the wind was picking up. Michael chuckled bitterly, removing his hair out of his eyes revealing the glare he was sending me. He moved closer towards me, the distance between us not satisfying me yet.

"You think this is about you not telling us about those idiots? About you not telling us you have a son and worse with that bastard?" He yelled, walking closer with every word. He stopped five feet away from me, and even with the cold air around us, I could feel the heat of anger radiating off him. His eyes changed, alongside with his demeanour. "Its not! You would have told us when you were ready!" His posture changed as well, and all I was feeling was waves of sincerity and frustration coming from him.

"Then what is it about?" I whispered, tired of fighting with him, his eyes darkened. Darn it!

"Youre so dense!"

"Dont insult me!" I warned.

He ignored me. "This is about him!" he yelled, throwing his hands in the air, agitation clearly present.

"Who, James?" I asked, honestly confused.

He gritted his teeth. "Dont even mention his name!" he spat venomously. "You dont see it, do you?" Michael asked, pretending to be shocked.

"See what?" I asked flabbergasted.

Michael smirked, bitterly. "Either youre pretending not to know, or youre an idiot?" He furrowed his eyebrows.

I clenched my fist, trying to keep my anger in check. "Stop being so cryptic and tell me what the hell youre talking about?" I crossed my arms over my chest, trying to block the cold.

His nose flared, and he shouted, "Hes in love with you!"

His words hit me, and I started laughing. "He isnt in love with me, Michael. Hes like my brother."

He was jealous!

He laughed humorlessly. "Of course, because your brother usually looks at you like he wants to rip your clothes off?" He remarked, being a smartass.

"Maybe he doesnt like them!" I retorted. He glared at me. "James doesnt look at me that way, and even if he did, why would you care?" My heart started beating rapidly. You want him to care! I do, the same amount or even more than what I care. But he didnt. With that thought in mind, I got aggravated and made sure he knew it. "Besides what I do and who I do it with doesnt matter to you!" I yelled angrily.

"It does!" he groaned, and before I knew it, he was retreating towards me with such determination written on his face, that it scared me slightly.

Before I could say something, his lips were on top of mine, moving feverishly. I was frozen in place, confused at what was going on. But my lips had a mind of its own and started moving on its own accord. It was what I wanted since I realized I liked him and now that it was happening, I couldnt believe it. Our lips moulded together, moving with a rhythm like they were playing their own tune.

He didnt deepen the kiss, it was fast and desperate like he thought this was his last chance and I was going to disappear. His left hand was in the centre of my back, pulling me closer to him; his other hand was caressing my cheek.

At first, I was stiff, but as soon as the shock left, I placed my hands on his shoulders to keep myself from falling over. Because of the height difference, I was standing on my toes, and it was getting sore, but I didnt want to move away and end what might be a dream.

The kiss softened and turned passionate. Michael bent down, and I was standing on my feet again. The kiss was out of this world. It was like Michael was trying to say all the things he hadnt been able to say, show to me how much I meant to him. I returned every single feeling. I wanted him to know what I felt, to tell him that I was crazy about him. I wanted him to feel the mother dragons flying out of control in my stomach. I yearned to return the burning fire that his every single touch left behind. Unfortunately, we were humans, and oxygen was a needed factor for us, so we pulled apart. We didnt separate from each other though, we stood still, wrapped in each others arms, trying to catch our breaths.

"It matters to me," he whispered out of breath, his forehead pressed against mine.

Then like a perfect cliché moment, it started to rain. We pulled apart and stared up at the sky and started laughing. Michael's hair was matted on his forehead, the smile on his face showed that he had no regrets, and that made my heart soar with hope. After such a long time, he was finally ready. He was worth the wait.

I wiped his hair out of his eyes and blew a laughy breath out. He took my hand and spun me around, his laughter lighting up our surroundings. It was a beautiful feeling; I felt loved, protected like I could take on the world. And it was all because of him. I stood in his arms, wet and cold, but I had never felt better. I spent so many years with Ryan, and I would give all of them up for this one moment; thats how much this moment meant to me.

Our blissful moment ended with a big truck that stopped next to us. By some weird miracle, someone decided to drive down this road. The man was kind enough to look at the damage of the car and while he was complaining about the rain and the cold, Michael and I stood shivering and smiling at each other. We got a ride back with the man; we found out his name was Eddie, and he lived with his lovely wife and their four cats. While he was driving us home- talking our ears off- we sat in the backseat hand in hand, staring at the passing trees. I touched my mouth with my fingertips.

The ghost of his lips still lingered.

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