He held her closely as they were sitting on the edge of her bed in the small confines of her dorm room. She was sobbing into his chest, his T-shirt getting wet in the process but he couldn't care less about that. She'd just told him about her parents and the horrible way they were taken away from her and what this did to her, still, after precisely five years today. He'd noticed she wasn't her usual self at the party they were both attending not yet an hour ago.
"Hey, Elizabeth, are you okay?"
"I think I'm gonna be sick."
Running after her as she bolted through the front door of one of the fraternity houses, he found her heaving her chest at the bottom of the stairs. He slowly walked down the porch and stood by her, putting his hand on her shoulder for support.
"I just need a minute," he heard her voice crack as she spoke.
He counted and gave her exactly that one minute to compose herself. However, it was obvious she could not do that within the time frame she'd asked for.
"Do you want to get away from here and take a walk?"
She nodded her head and he immediately took her by the hand to whisk her away. Just like he'd done two weeks prior when their passion for one another had taken full control after a few drinks too many.
They walked in silence for a bit until they were in the park of the UVA campus.
"Are you feeling better already?" Henry asked.
"No, but I don't think I'm going to be sick anymore."
"What was that about? Did you eat something wrong?"
"No," she looked down at their hands that were still entwined. "I don't know how to tell you this."
He stopped and turned to her. "You can tell me anything."
"I can't, I haven't told anyone."
"Whatever it is, you can tell me, you can trust me, I'm here for you, Elizabeth."
"I …," she sighed, "I…,".
Henry's face froze over as he might realize what she was about to tell him.
"You're pregnant, oh my god! You're pregnant. You're pregnant?"
"No, Henry. I'm not. God no!"
Henry sighed a breath of relief.
"I got nauseous because I saw you at the party," she started quickly to ease his mind.
"Well, ouch, that's even worse. I was actually quite happy to see you there."
She smacked his chest.
"I saw you and I remembered how two weeks ago you and I, you know." She gestured with her hands, nervousness coursing through her every vein.
He smiled. And he put his hands on her shoulders to steady her and relax her, silently letting her know he would listen to whatever it was she had to say. Heck, he would always listen to what she had to say.
"Remember the conversation we had afterwards?"
He nodded.
"How we agreed that it was best if we just remained friends."
"We didn't agree. You told me you wanted to be 'just friends'. And, Elizabeth, even though I like you very very much, I respect you and the decisions you make."
She sighed and looked at him with admiration.
"If being just friends makes you happy, then I'm happy."
"That's just it. I'm not happy. I'm not, Henry. I haven't been happy for a long time. And I think I want to be more than friends. I really like you too, you know. We've known each other for months now and I can't stop thinking about you…"
"What is holding you back then?" he interrupted.
"… but I just can't seem to let myself fall…"
He kissed her hungrily. His big hands were cupping her face as he professed his fondness of her with his lips.
It left them both breathless for a minute. She put her hands on his chest and pushed him farther away from her. He grabbed her hands to stop her from doing just that. He would not allow her to push him away.
Tears were threatening to fall. "I need to tell you something. Something that happened five years ago. I need to tell you the reason why I'm not capable of loving someone anymore."
He'd listened to every horrible detail as she told him about the loss of her parents and how it affected her. He let her fall apart into his arms until he thought she was out of tears. "You okay?" he spoke softly as he caressed her back.
She nodded. "Thanks for being here, Henry. Thanks for being my friend." She lifted her head and put a soft kiss to his cheek before she placed her head on his chest again, listening to his heartbeat to calm her.
"I like to think we're more than 'just friends'." He paused. "Well, that's what I'm hoping for anyway.
Like lightning she lifted her head once more. "Really?"
"Elizabeth, look at me." He put his hands around her neck and turned towards her. "You've just told me how you feel about me. You know how I feel about you. You've told me what happened to your parents, which is something you haven't told anyone around here at UVA, and you've told me how your fear of losing someone you love again might destroy you."
She wiped the final tears away and let her hands rest around his wrists.
"Let me tell you this, I fell in love with you the moment I saw you. And the more I get to know you, the more I'm falling." He nodded to really get through to her. "I'm not planning on going anywhere and if we ever fail as a couple, then I'll still always be your friend. Always."
Her eyes lowered and she longed for his lips on hers.
"Just, let yourself fall…," he whispered as he pulled her closer.
"I'll catch you."