Chase's POV
Emma spent the night at my house and woke up at four am to about twelve missed calls from her mom. I counted them all.
"Are you always up so early?" I asked her. She ruined my breakfast in bed.
"Why are you looking like it's not a good thing I woke up?" She said, squinting even though there was very minimal light in the room.
My bedroom was upstairs. I requested one that overlooked everywhere.
"That's because I wanted to bring you breakfast in bed. " I protested. "I now know to start cooking by two hours past midnight." I joked.
"That's easy. I'll sleep back, just watch me." Emma said, enthusiastically throwing the blanket back over herself.
"Not so soon." I rushed to her and tore it off immediately.
"By the way, why aren't you asleep yourself?" She asked me.
I traced invisible lines on her body and watched her respond to my touch.
The deal with girls who didn't have much experience sexually is that they were so responsive, and I enjoyed that in Em.
"I love how responsive you are." I whispered in her ear.
Emma's red hair was scattered all over my pillow.
For the longest time, I wanted to wake up to her hair all over my face, in a rough mess.
"How are you?" I asked her.
"I'm happy." She said, "But still a lot unsure." Her voice dropped a bit as she confessed. "About all of this." She added.
"Are you saying you don't love me, Emma?" She sat up and faced me.
Her face was still swollen from all the activity of the previous night.
"Come on Chase. You know that's not true." She protested. "It's just that, we have a lot of unfinished business. And a lot of things were supposed to have ironed out before all of this." I sensed that she was nervous, too timid to even meet my eye.
"You know, I realize there's something I never found out in any of this." I said, withdrawing my hand. "Do you love me, Emma?" I asked her, looking her straight in the eye.
"Of course!" She exclaimed. "What nonsense! Chase, you know I have loved you for the longest time. I never hid that, never denied it. When you were the one everywhere, with every other girl, Chase, you know this." Emma sounded like she was getting annoyed, but that wasn't the reaction I was going for. "You cannot possibly doubt my love for you." She added.
"I do not. I just wanted to hear you say it." I replied to her.
"Yes, Chase. I love you." She said, I loved her already, but I began to love her even more.
"Please do not make me love you any more, I don't think I will be able to survive it" I begged her.
"Now that we have made sure of that, we still need to talk." She said,
I dreaded whatever else there was to say.
I just wanted a "Happily Ever After", it surely should not be too hard to come by.
"Chase, I need to make sure you're sure about this, about us." She started. "I do not know when you got this ring, but I do know for a fact that you've been with other people for at least a three month gap." She said,
"Where are you headed with this, Emma? It's doing neither of us any good." I said I was embarrassed at whatever memory of any other girl Emma wanted to bring to mind.I wanted it to be only her, that, I was sure of, anytime.
"What I'm saying is this! " She cut in. "We both know you rushed things. I kinda wanna know why, and I think I'm entitled to. But that really isn't the elephant in the room. It's that things weren't exactly right with us. And a proposal does not make things change automatically."
"I think it does. Everyone now knows that you're mine." I reassured her,
"Is that all?" She asked me.
"What else is there to be, Emma?" I asked her.
"When did you decide you were gonna propose?"She asked me.
"Is that really necessary?" I asked.
"It's more than necessary, Chase. Or you don't think I deserve to know?" I asked him.
"Would you believe it if I said I kinda always knew it?" I asked her.
"No. I wouldn't." She replied, curtly.
"Why?" I asked.
"Cause it would not make any sense. If, indeed, you knew all that, there's so many things that have come between us that you wouldn't have let happen. Gray's issues for instance. And how's that going?" She asked.
"I've decided to let him proceed with the investigation. But I also swore to your mom to protect you from anything and anyone at all." I replied to her.
Emma's eyes were watering already.
"What if…?" She was about to ask.
I put a finger over her mouth and she quietened.
"That's my whole essence, Em." I replied. "To love and protect you. All I ask is for a chance to prove that I can be the man you need."
"And what happens if that fails?" She asked.
"Are we hoping it does?" I asked her. Emma could be really pessimistic when she wanted to be.
"No. Definitely not! It's only reasonable to prepare for any possibilities." She said,
"That's not gonna be one." I assured her. "Now please could you put those lips to good use and take it where I need it?" Emma's head was bent at first.
She looked up at me, naughtily.
"I know a place." She said, and bolted out of the bed.
Wth my rising erection, I chased after her and we soon got to the library.
"For the longest time, I've wanted to have sex with you in a library." She said,
"Is that so?" I asked.
Emma was taking off my shorts, but was painfully slow with it.
"Could I help you?" I asked her.
"No. You wait, wait and watch." She said, smiling. Then I knew it was all intentional.
"I've seen every author's dirty minds through books, I want them to see mine too." Emma said, and started sucking.
It wasn't until 7am that she left. We had a wonderful morning together, and I didn't fail to tell her that I wanted her there more frequently. I even, presumptuously, suggested that she could move in.
Emma was one for propriety, so she refused straight away, as I expected.
I got to the school the next day, feeling like I was ready to take on the world .I really could do with the new burst of energy every morning.
"Hey man." I ran to Gray in the parking lot. "I know I missed a shit ton of your calls. I'm sorry. I was with Emma all through last night." I said, smiling.
When Gray took his sunshades off, I saw really dark circles.
I was thrown aback for a second.
"What happened man?" I asked him.
I watched him close his eyes and inhale so deep. What I didn't see coming was the next thing he did.
Gray punched me, squarely in the face.
I was dazzled for a moment, even crashing into Jessica's car.
"What the fuck?" I screamed, approaching him
He didn't even put up a defense when I stood up to confront him.
"I hope you die like you killed her baby." He spat in my face and slinked off.
I felt cold sweat run down my spine.
Lily had told him about it. I thought they had both gone their separate ways.
I still needed to talk to Gray.
I ran after him, till I caught up and held him by the shoulders.
"Come on, man. That was a moment of stupidity. You can't really be on to me for that right now." I was fierce, but calm still.
"'That', is why I never had a meaningful relationship with her, Chase. You fucking bastard. You know I've always liked her. But for your charm, she fell for you first, and look what you did. I hate you man. Stay very far away from me." He added, backing out.
The effect of the punch started to set in, and so I held my head a bit.
"And just so you know, there's gonna be payback." He screamed at me and walked away as fast as he could. Every other person who passed by us was still giving me sheepish smiles, I expected that with the feat I pulled the previous day.