Chapter 4

*The Next Day*

Damian went to the usual hangout spot with Brenda and saw only Kyle and Brianna there.

"Where's Emma?" he asked.

"Wouldn't you like to know," Brianna said, not looking up at him.

"Actually, yes, I would," Damian said.

"She's with a new friend right now," Kyle said. "Chill out and go hang out with your girl."

"I told you we need to spend more time with each other," Brenda reminded him as she kissed him on the cheek.

"Well, when you see her, tell her I need to talk to her," Damian told his friends.

"Why?" Brianna asked. She wasn't very fond of Damian at the moment. She knew better than anyone what the pain Emma was going through at the moment.

*Flashback*

"I should've never even tried!" Emma complained. "He knows I like him and now he's been doing everything to avoid me! What's wrong with me?"

"Oh, girl, don't get so worked up over him," Brianna comforted. "He just don't know what he's missing out on. Damian is an idiot."

"I care about him so much!" Emma cried. "And he just treats me like crap! What did I do? I thought we were good friends!" Brianna patted her friend's back as she handed her another tissue.

*Present*

Emma was devastated after Damian kicked her out of his room, and Brianna knew it all too well. She and Damian used to be good friends, but she wouldn't stand by and watch him treat Emma like trash.

"Why should she listen to you if you didn't want to listen to her before?" Brianna asked.

"Are you really bringing that up again?" Damian asked, exasperated. "I already said I was sorry."

"Yeah, but I'm 99% sure you didn't really mean it," Brianna replied. "Come back when you actually care about Emma."

"You have no idea what you're talking about," Damian told her. "Stop trying to act like you know everything."

"I do know everything," Brianna replied. "Emma tells me everything. Everything you've ever said and done has been heard by me already." Brianna glanced at her phone and stood up. "I gotta get to class," she told Kyle.

"Me too," he said, and they both walked away.

"Okay, how do you really feel about Emma?" Brenda asked. "Because if you ask me, you should forget about her. She and your so-called 'friends' are just hating on you and taking her side. It's not fair, right babe?"

Damian would've been paying attention had he not seen Emma walking with the same guy that saved her from that creep last night. They clearly seemed to enjoy each other, lost in their own little world. He started feeling that same sinking feeling in his heart at the sight of them. Why wasn't he still over Emma?

…

Everyone noticed how Emma seemed to be much happier. To Damian's dismay, everyone also knew that it was caused by her new friend, Aaron. Aaron was too much of a good guy. He was smart, funny, handsome, and patient- all of the qualities girls want in a man. Damian had secretly hoped that Aaron had some type of flaw, something that would give him the jump on him. Unfortunately, Aaron had no rough edges, while they basically covered Damian. Damian couldn't help but feel stupid. He wanted to get over Emma, but the only thing he did was ruin their friendship, probably ruined the ruined his friendship with Kyle and Brianna, and was essentially replaced by another guy.

It didn't help that Emma brought Aaron around so much either. Damian almost thought she was trying to make him jealous, but she didn't change her attitude- she still ignored him 98% of the time. It was almost like Damian was invisible and Aaron became the new him. Damian decided that he needed to talk to Emma quickly. His feelings for her weren't going away, and he needed to set everything straight.

He later saw Emma in class, but she was still with Aaron. They constantly walked to class together and sat together. They even started to go get lunch together! One afternoon, she saw Emma leave with Aaron and they didn't come back until almost midnight! Why would she be with him for so long? But it was a rhetorical question, of course. It was because Aaron was a perfect gentleman and Damian was a jerk.

The group of friends decided to go to a house party, and everything seemed as if it would go well. Damian didn't bring Brenda that time, so everyone was much happier. Damian was trying to figure out how to talk to Emma alone without things becoming awkward, but she had expertly placed herself between Brianna and Kyle at all times. She was actively avoiding talking to him directly, and it really hurt him. Damian remembered when they used to tell each other everything. Now, they never even asked each other how their days went.

Damian noticed that Emma had departed from the group and was walking towards the front of the house. He followed a little far behind her, trying to see where she was going. She stopped at the front yard and walked up to some guy. Of course, it was Aaron. She hugged him and they talked for a minute then started heading back. Damian nonchalantly walked back to Brianna and Kyle and pretended not to notice Emma coming back with Aaron. Of course, everyone was happy to see him and he automatically became the center of attention.

"I've been wanting to talk to you for a while," Damian said to Emma.

"Really?" she asked sarcastically.

"Look, we really need to set things straight. I don't like the way things are now," Damian told her.

"You could've had me fooled," she replied.

"Can you stop acting like that?" Damian asked. "I'm trying to handle this situation like an adult."

"Oh, and I wasn't?" Emma asked, offended. "How many times did I have to beg for you to give me the time of the day? Several. I'm not gonna beg anymore, Damian."

"Can everyone just stop talking about that?" Damian asked through gritted teeth.

"No, I'm not gonna forget," Emma told him. "I don't think anyone could forget the day- no, weeks- when their ex-best friend treated them like utter crap." She sighed. "And it didn't even need to escalate like that," she continued. "If you would've just told me what was wrong, I could've helped." Damian crossed his arms.

"No, you couldn't have," he stated firmly.

"Oh, but Brenda could?" Emma asked.

"Whatever." She began to walk away, but Damian grabbed her arm.

"Look, I'm tired of you just saying whatever you want to say then walking away," he told her. "Now, it's my turn. Yeah, I couldn't tell you what was going on- I probably still can't. At least Brenda doesn't pry too much into my life."

"That's because she doesn't care," Emma explained.

"Why do you think I can't have an actual girlfriend that cares about me?" Damian asked.

"Don't act dumb, you know what I meant," Emma told him. "I know what it looks like when someone really cares about you."

"How would you know?" Damian asked. "Oh, yeah, probably from your little boy-toy over there that you always like to walk around with, huh?"

"Don't bring Aaron into this," Emma demanded. "He's been a better friend to me than you have recently."

"Oh has he now?" Damian questioned sarcastically. "Look who's acting dumb now! How long have you known him? A week-two at max- and you think he's been a better friend than me? All these years and you replaced me in a week."

"No, you replaced me as soon as you basically told me to get the heck out of your life and you started dating that basic bimbo!" Emma shouted. "You know she hates me for no reason but you always defend her!"

"At least I have a reason to! She's my girlfriend!" Damian shouted back. "What's your excuse? You're not even dating Aaron yet you've been staying around him all week! I know it's not just 'friendship' making you cling to him all the time recently!"

"Oooh."

A crowd had formed around them, watching the argument take place as if it was part of a reality TV show. As soon as he said it, he regretted it. Damian could see the hurt in her eyes, and it cut right through his heart. He tried to walk towards her.

"Em, I-" She took steps back and shook her head.

"No, you meant what you said," she said. She didn't sound as angry as she did before. Her voice was small and soft, not at all like her usual, outgoing personality.

"Maybe you were right," she continued. "All these years and we still don't really know each other like how we thought we did." She walked past him and he didn't try to stop her that time.

Brianna, Kyle, and Aaron went after Emma, calling her name. The crowd was still there, waiting for Damian to react.

"You can go home now, the show is over!" he announced.

"You're such a jerk!" someone said.

"Tell me something I don't know," Damian muttered as he began to walk to his car out in the front of the house.

…

Of course, Damian didn't see Emma for a long time after that. Two weeks to be exact, and it was the longest two weeks of his life. Not only did he have to deal with the dirty looks from several classmates in several of his classes, but he had to deal with the fatal guilt in his heart. He could've sworn he felt pain in his chest every time he thought of that night. Even Brianna and Kyle didn't talk to him for a while. After two weeks, Kyle settled with short responses for everything, but Brianna wouldn't budge.

…

"So…how's it going?" Damian asked Kyle slowly. They were the only ones sitting at the hangout spot after all of their classes had ended.

"Fine," Kyle answered.

Silence.

"How long are you gonna keep this up?" Damian asked him.

"As long as you make me," Kyle told him. "I wouldn't have to act like this if you would just learn how to either take what you want or control yourself. You just do the opposite."

"Look, I've been thinking for a while…," Damian started. "I'm just gonna tell Emma everything." Kyle raised an eyebrow.

"Everything?" he asked.

"Everything," Damian repeated. "My feelings, my thoughts, my reasoning behind those…I'm gonna lay it all out on the table."

"And how do you think Emma will react?" Kyle asked. "Why would she even let you talk to her?"

"I don't know," Damian said honestly. "I'll think about it on the way."

"On the way to where?" Kyle asked.

"Exactly," Damian said. "Where are they? I know Brianna and Emma are together somewhere."

Kyle stopped playing games on his phone and looked Damian in his eyes.

"You know I can't do that," he told him. "Brianna would kill me then you."

"You have to," Damian pleaded. "Whenever I wait, things just get worse. I have to do it now."

"Damian," Kyle groaned. "Please don't do this, man."

"I swear to God, Kyle, if you don't tell me where they are right now, you're gonna wake up to see all the windows in your car busted," Damian threatened. "And your Xbox is gonna be missing."

"…Fine, but you didn't hear it from me," Kyle said reluctantly. "They are at the club downtown, you know, Lights Out." As soon as he heard the name of the place, Damian left to get his car. He was going to go to Lights Out and tell Emma the truth, something he should've done a long time ago.

…

Damian parked his car, showed his ID to the bouncer, and walked into the club. The place was packed but he managed to find Emma. She was dancing with some guy, but he steeled his nerves and walked up to them.

"Emma, I need to talk to you," he told her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked Damian, frowning. "If you want to yell at me again, you're gonna have to wait until later."

"Is this guy giving you problems?" the stranger asked her.

"Don't worry about it, Raymond," she told him. She turned back to Damian.

"I'm not going anywhere with you."

"Please, give me another chance, Em," Damian pleaded.

"She said she doesn't want to be with you," Raymond said. "Go away, man."

"I wasn't talking to you," Damian said.

"And it looks like she doesn't want to talk to you either, so that means you need to go somewhere where you're actually wanted," Raymond countered. Damian gripped his fists but Emma put one hand on his chest.

"Damian, they're serious about fighting in here," she told him. "They'll kick us out once you swing."

"I don't mind," Damian said, still sizing up the stranger.

"Fine," Emma sighed. "I'll be back, Raymond." Raymond gave Damian a dirty look but the latter just smirked. Together, he and Emma walked outside.

…

The moon illuminated the dark streets and the duo could still hear the pounding music from the inside. Emma stood facing away from Damian. He could see that she was slightly wobbling.

"Probably from drinking," Damian thought. Emma sighed.

"What do you want, Damian?" she asked. He cleared his throat.

"Look, Emma, it has been some stressful weeks and we've all been through a lot lately and-"

"Say what you have to say quickly before I go back inside."

"I love you."

She started walking away, but Damian wasn't going to back down. He walked right next to her.

"Look, I've already learned that running away from your feelings doesn't work," he said. "Why don't we just start being completely honest with each other?"

"Don't act like a love expert all of a sudden," Emma told him.

"I'm not acting like one, I'm just telling you about my personal experience," he said. "And another thing: you are not about to get rid of me in those heels." In a flash, Emma took off her shoes and ran down the street barefooted. Damian ran to catch up with her, grabbed her, and pulled her into a hug.

"Look, Em, I'm sorry," he repeated. "I really am. I've always known I loved you, I just didn't want to take the chance."

Emma narrowed her eyes at him.

"No," she said. "What do you mean by 'no'?" Damian asked. "You're a real jerk, you know that?" she told him. "You treat me like crap then you come back to tell me you love me? I'm not gonna let you play games with my head. I don't believe you. You're always playing with me like a toy, wanting me one second then leaving in another? What do you really want from me?"

Her voice started shaking and Damian could no longer hear the toughness in her voice that he was used to. Tears slid down her face and she didn't even attempt to wipe them away.

"I'm so tired of you, I swear," she continued. "This is what you do to me. You make me mad, you make me feel like crap, you stress me out, and I never know why! Why do you do that?" Damian looked at the ground.

"No, don't try to feel ashamed now," she told him. "Look at me. Look at what you do to me. And for what?"

"I don't know," Damian confessed. "Well, I somewhat do. I didn't ever mean to hurt you. I was just too afraid to lose you as my best friend, so I tried to push you away. I couldn't just stand by and let other guys take you from me, though. I guess I wanted my cake and eat it too, but that's not how it works. I wanted to get over you, but I couldn't. You can't just get over something that you've felt for a long time. And I've been feeling this way since I met you." He grabbed her hand softly and squeezed it.

"I loved you when the teacher changed your seats so you sat next to me in Geometry in the ninth grade," he told her. "I loved you when you always sat on the bus with your earphones in. For a long time, I wondered what music you liked to listen to."

Emma shook her head and turned away.

"Stop it, Damian," she said, sniffing.

"I loved you when you used to slightly stutter while making presentations in front of the class," he continued. "I loved you when you cried because you got your first detention. I loved you when you used to sit in the bleachers at all of my football games, no matter how late."

Damian saw how she rubbed her arms to stay warm, so he took off his jacket and tried to hand it to her.

"I don't want it," Emma said.

"Are you sure?" Damian asked. "It's cold out here. You always used to wear my hoodies."

"Used to," she emphasized. Damian wrapped his arms around her instead.

"And I used to be scared to tell you how I felt, but now I'm not," he said. "All of my feelings for you are right in front of you. You just have to choose whether to accept them or not."

"Can we talk about this later?" she asked. "This is a lot to take in and I'm tired."

Damian agreed and led her to his car. He put his jacket on her lap and turned on the heater. He drove them both back to the campus and walked her to her room.

"Please think about everything I told you tonight," he told Emma. "I'm dead serious." Emma tried to hand him his hoodie back, but he insisted on her keeping it.

…

Damian started sitting at their old tree in the shade again, but Emma hadn't shown up yet. She actually hadn't been at that tree in about a month since they had their big fight at the party. After their talk outside of Lights Out, she started hanging out with him and their friends again, and she also started talking to him like before. Brenda wasn't a problem anymore either since Damian had broke up with her the same night after he talked to Emma. She was clearly irritated but didn't put of much of a fight either. She knew that she couldn't compete with Emma since she had Damian's heart since the beginning. The only thing that had changed was their favorite spot. Emma didn't come to sit with him under the tree anymore. Damian wasn't worried though, since he had finally gotten everything off of his chest. He didn't care how long he had to wait. He just knew that he would be waiting for her once she arrived.

One day, Damian was sitting up at the tree in the shade when he felt some weight settle against his back. He slightly turned around to see long black hair and smiled. He faced forward again.

"What's up?" he asked casually.

"A lot actually," Emma said. "…About that night outside of Lights Out… were you super serious about what you said?"

"As serious as a heart attack," Damian said.

"Okay," Emma said. She took in a deep breath. "I loved you when I saw your face," she started. "I loved you when you never backed down from anyone. I loved you when you would panic if the teacher called on you when you weren't paying attention. I loved you when you would act tough just to make me feel safe. Do you understand that?" Damian turned around to face her.

"You had me at 'I loved you'," he said. "The real question is…do you still feel that way?" Emma turned around to look at him and he captured his lips with hers. It was their first kiss ever. When they parted, they both smiled blissfully at each other.

"Wow, I've been waiting eight years for that," Damian said dreamily. They both laughed and enjoyed each other's company finally as boyfriend and girlfriend.

The End