Brielle removed Liam's arms away because it prevented her from shutting the door close. Her knees melted like jelly in a pot under a burning stove which made her lean behind the door while panting heavily. Brielle bit her lower lip and hastily made a visual comparison of the Liam she knew six years ago and the man outside their door claiming to be him.
She rapidly shook her head and shut her eyes close to regain focus as she furrowed her eyebrows. Her messy hair got messier as she pulled her hair out of confusion.
"Could that man outside be a con-man trying to rob our house? He claims to be Liam!" she whispered to herself.
But there is no way a con-man would know that she has a childhood friend called Liam! Did he really come back?
Of all time around the year, why did he decide to come back now that I am at my lowest point?' she asked herself.
She crawled on the floor to reach the kitchen sink and wash her face clean in a flash. Brielle used whatever soap she could find and cleaned her face thoroughly and wiped it clean using kitchen cloth.
At this moment, she is sure that her face looks more presentable than it did approximately two minutes ago. Before twisting the door knob back open, Brielle let out a deep sigh hoping and kind of not hoping really that Liam is still there outside standing on the porch.
The door creaked as Brielle opened it slowly and small enough for her to peek outside, there, Liam hung his head and shoulders down while intently looking to the ground. Brielle was moved with conscience, how could she abruptly close the door when her childhood friend has just came home from overseas? With that thought in mind, she slowly opened the door and sighed as he caught sight of her wearing an apologetic expression.
"Is this how you welcome your old friend?" Liam wiggled his eyebrows and teased in an unusually deep voice, totally in opposite as to how his voice sounded like in Brielle's imagination since the last time she saw him.
His new voice suited him best, it even unwittingly sent shivers to Brielle's spine. But she swept the thought away as she is still mourning over the death of her romance with Gerald.
It was when Liam waved his hand in front of Brielle's face that she noticed that she was spacing out, her eyes grew wide and mouth left ajar. It just does not make sense to her how her skinny and all bones childhood friend turned out to be the most dashing and handsome man she ever saw in her entire 18 years of life?
'Could the real Liam be playing pranks on me by sending someone so handsome instead of him?' Brielle endlessly threw herself some questions in order to make sense of what is happening.
Brielle realized that they have been standing for too long already that she returned back to her senses and stuttered, "Oh, I'm sorry. It is just that… I can't seem to believe… it's you," she motioned her hand from Liam's head down to his toe.
Not only that, he smells so good that even though they are approximately two meters away, his scent fills her nostrils in such an endearing way. 'Damn, I really get nervous around handsome guys!' she mentally smacks herself right in the face
.
Liam is holding a medium-sized box on his hands and seemed to be tired from standing too long outside but she hesitated whether or not to invite him inside their house. Her anxious self kicked in.
'What if he is an impostor pretending to be Liam and if I allow him to go inside our house, what if he ends up killing me? What if he murders me and put me inside a huge sack and throw me on the nearby river?' Multiple worst-case scenarios came rushing inside Brielle's mind. Maybe due to the fact that she watches a lot of true to life murder documentaries, such videos made her paranoid to the highest degree possible.
Liam chuckled while observing Brielle's disturbed facial expression.
To Brielle, Liam does not look like 'Liam' at all. He lives across the street and they grew up together until he left to study abroad once they moved to the seventh grade. They have not met each other since.
Just like most friendships that turns awkward after growing up, Brielle never really tried to contact or call Liam. She thought that maybe, just like their other friends, he also changed and forgotten about her.
But seeing him right now on their porch with a box on his hand which seems to be a present, Brielle's heart could not be happier that he has not changed a bit inside his heart. He is still the same child six years ago who literally hid behind her back to run away from bullies.
Brielle gathered the courage to speak, sort of conscious as to how she sound like. Oh no. It is not good when a girl starts to get conscious about herself in front of a man. She stuttered, "Come in,"
A smile formed on Liam's painfully handsome face and made a few strides on the three-step stairs on the way inside.
Liam is in awe, scanning his eyes around the house where he used to play years ago. Brielle was his only friend back then.
Back then, he was constantly bullied for being skinny and all bones, he was even called as 'stick' by some of their peers. And then one day, Brielle stood up for him. He cannot say that Brielle was not scared of the bullies at all, her voice was shaking and her hands were trembling as she screamed at them.
But even though she was scared as heck, she gathered all the courage her twelve year old body had and fought the bullies off.
Brielle scratched the back of her head as she sat down on the couch in front of Liam who is happily looking around their house, "So… uh… when did you arrive?" It was the only question she dared to voice out. Of course, she has a lot to ask him but shyness took over her. She has always been a lively and outgoing person but this time, she is as silent as a pebble.
"Actually, I just arrived. I headed here in your house first to meet you," He innocently smiled at her and handed over the box on his hand to Brielle who was startled to receive it.
'Since when did he start talking smooth like this?' Brielle's heart beats faster and faster especially when their fingers brushed against each other when she received the box from his hand. After that, Liam sat down on the wooden chair in front of Brielle.
He motioned his hands forward and urged her, "Open it," He looks extremely excited when Brielle started untying the bright red ribbon on the sides of the box.
Brielle carefully placed the ribbon on the side as she will keep it because she likes to collect things like that. She also opened the gift wrap cautiously on the side where the scotch tape is so as not to damage the wrapper because she will also keep it.
Liam grew impatient looking at Brielle carefully opening the box which seems to take forever. But he is still all smiles looking at how meticulous Brielle is when it comes to these things.
Finally, she opened the box and was utterly surprised by how many things are inside. There are cute notebooks, cute pairs of socks, a book, a lot of pens and highlighters. There were so many stuff that Brielle could not determine what they all are in just one glance.
"What… what are these?" she gave surprised glances to Liam and then back to the box on her lap. On the other hand, Liam rested his arms on his lap and slightly leaned forward.
"Each year, I prepare a gift for your birthday. Inside that box are my birthday gifts to you for the past six years," This time, Liam's playful expression subsided and turned wistful as he stared at Brielle's beauty. For him, Brielle turned out to be the most beautiful person he knows but Brielle thinks about herself otherwise.
It was what he was holding the entire flight, imagining how she would react and much to his happiness, she was glad with it. He has a lot of questions for her but as of now, all he can do is appreciate the girl he secretly loved and still, loves.