"I'm just an illusion!" I sing the final line of the new song Ally wrote for me, and look into the crowd to give Ally my most meaningful heartfelt look, but she's turned away talking to Trish, oh well, it wouldn't be the first opportunity I've blown to show Ally how I really feel about her, sometimes I wish I could go back to the day I took her special book and thought she'd had a crush on me and told her the truth, but she had a crush on Dallas, the cell phone cart guy, not me. I jump off the stage joining the group.
"Austin that performance was amazing!" Ally beams, as she wraps me in a hug, I feel the tingle coarse through my body, and I wish with all my being that she wouldn't let go, but eventually she does. "It's easy to rock out when you have an amazing song to sing, you've done it again Ally, that song was amazing!" Ally blushes. "Thank you Austin."
Ally, she always takes herself for granted, I wish I could tell her how I REALLY feel. that she is so much more than she thinks, from her beautiful shiny brown hair, her brown eyes that always seem to be beaming at me, the way she walks, the way she talks, the way she dances…not well I might add, but still cute, and the way her songs speak to me…she really doesn't know just how big of a deal she is.
And she never will if you don't tell her. I think to myself.
"Ally can I, um, talk to you…in private." I ask.
She looks at me confused. "Uh, sure." She responds, a little unsure.
We go into the rehearsal room and I shut the door behind me.
"What is it Austin?"
"Ally, do you remember when I took your book, and I read about your crush, and I thought it was me you were talking about."
"How could I forget, you did everything you could to make me feel un-attracted to you, I still wish you would answer my question though, I mean, is the idea of being in a relationship with me really that awful?"
"That's the thing." I start. "I wasn't being completely honest with you when all that happened." I pause. "Well what is it Austin, spit it out!"
"The truth is, I love everything about you, the way you get shy on stage, the way you blush when I say your name, the songs you write, the way you dance, your beautiful brown eyes, the way you get mad when I touch your book, I love everything about you Ally Dawson."
Ally's lower jaw twitches as she tries to find the words to say, another thing I love about her.
"Austin….is that true? Is that how you really feel about me?"
"It is, the honest truth, every last word, you don't give yourself enough credit, you are so much more than you think you are….I understand if you don't feel the same way about me, but I had to at least tell you the truth about the way I feel about you, it's been eating at me forever."
She takes a step towards me.
"I…haven't been all that truthful to you either, the reason I felt so offended when you said you didn't like me anymore than a friend, and when you did everything to make me un-attracted to you…it was because, I really wanted you to like me that way, I really like you Austin, more than you know, I was just scared….I mean, what's going to happen to 'team Austin' if we ever break up?"
I take Ally's hands in mine.
"I will never let that happen….I mean look how much we've been through, if we've gotten through all of the little arguments we've been in up till now, I think we can get through any others…Ally, if you want, I'd really, really, like to be more than just your friend…would you?"
Ally smiles at me, wrapping me in a hug again, but this time, the sparks flew faster, and the hug felt tighter and lasted longer.
We pull out of the hug, Ally grinning at me again. "I thought you'd never ask!"
And for the first time, my lips meet Ally Dawson's lips.