Dae's shuddering breath was interrupted by the feeling of Leilani's arms encircling him and pulling him close to her. One of her hands rubbed his back gently while she broke the silence.
"Sorry...But, look Dae, I just meant that it's obvious that Evan cares about you." She takes a small breath, but then steels her resolve, "But I think even you can admit that this isn't the usual routine for you..."
To both of their surprise, Dae let out a small laugh. He felt the smile rest on his face despite the spiral his mind was going down. "Pretty sure we both can agree that Evan is anything but usual."
As his breathing started to settle in Leilani's embrace, another silence filled the space between them. But this time Dae broke it by clearing his throat, "You're right though."
Leilani pulled back to look at his face, watching him take a breath before continuing. "This is different--he's different. With Evan...It's not just about having a good screw. Sure that'd be incredible, but there...it just feels like there is more here. But realizing that is scaring the shit out of me, Lei."
His confessional is met with more silence. Risking a glance at his best friend, Dae sees a confusing look on her face. But before he could decipher what she was feeling, she released him from her grip which petrified him, only for her to plant a kiss on his cheek eliminating that fear swiftly after. "I'm so proud of you, Dae."
He felt warmth rush to his cheeks from the praise he wasn't used to and had to force his gaze away from hers. Leilani gently squeezed his hand before continuing, "I really am. This is a big step for you. You've avoided any romance in your life since...well you know. I'm still not sure what she did to mess you up so bad, but I still hate her."
Just the briefest mention of his ex caused his chest to tighten. Fighting against the feeling, Dae focused on his breathing. After a couple of deep breaths and another comforting squeeze from Leilani, he felt...okay. To his surprise, he was easily able to share some information about that tough time in his life. "Yeah...Well, she...She fucked me up, royally. She...took advantage of my drugged-out state and I did shit...I'm not proud of that time, Lei.
I'm not proud of the person I was with her...I'd have gone to the end of the earth for her, I had no will of my own, and she still cheated. That betrayal...It just made me think that I couldn't ever let anyone close to me like that again."
Leilani nudged his shoulder gently, a smile on her face. "But Evan isn't just anybody, is he?"
Again Dae is surprised when a laugh bubbled up to the surface, "Nah. He's something special."