A/N: So, I spent about 2 full days working on this story and I'm very proud of it. This is my first Naitlyn and I absolutely love these two characters together, their characters write themselves. Anyways, this is based upon the song "You Can" by David Archuleta and is one of my favorite lovesongs. If you have never read one of my songfics before, I write them a little differently than most. Instead of writing the lyrics between paragraphs, I weave them into the dialogue. That way it seems more realistic and gives you an idea of where the lyrics MAY HAVE come from. I hope that this story leads you to checking out some of my other ones. Thank you for reading and reviews are greatly appreciated. Enjoy!
P.S. The line breaks mean POV change.
Disclaimer: I do not own the song "You Can" or the characters of Caitlyn and Nate. I only own the plot.
You Can
Trust. It's the one feeling that I don't think I have ever fully felt. How do I know this? I know this because as soon as I begin to trust someone, they end up hurting me. And each and every time the cut gets a little bit deeper. Grows a little bit wider. Makes the pain a little bit stronger. Makes me cry just a little bit harder. And I just can't deal with that anymore. So I've decided to give up. I, Caitlyn Gellar, have made it my mission to never trust a guy ever again...
Distrust. It's the only feeling she knows because she has been hurt by every guy she knows, including my brother. How do I know this? I'm just the only guy who will never break her heart. The problem is that she doesn't see that at all. She only sees me as that one guy. In that band. With the guy that tore her heart into a million pieces. So I've decided to change that. I, Nate Gray, have made it my mission to make sure that the only guy she ever trusts again is me...
"Caity, I'm sorry. But it's over..."
Those words will be repeated in my head for the rest of my life. Shane Gray had made me feel something I had never felt before. Hope. Hope that I could one day be in love and he told me that he loved me more times than I could even count. The great thing about Shane was that he told me he wouldn't force me into anything, that I could take my time saying 'I love you' back. And that one thing gave me so much hope...But then, he abused that feeling, along with my heart and just forgot about me, leaving me on the sidelines. Those words repeated through my head all the way to my cabin. Those tears stung my face more than they should have, forcing me to wipe them away faster than they appeared. And because of those words, because of those tears, it was that exact moment I started to put my mission into action.
"Caity, I'm sorry. But it's over..."
That's when I heard the cabin door slam. Storming out of the restroom I now wished I hadn't been in 10 seconds prior, I found my brother, my band mate, staring right at me.
"You had to do that while I was in here!" I proclaimed.
"Nate, calm down. It's just Caitlyn..." Shane said, leaning back against his pillow as if breaking the most beautiful girl in the world's heart wasn't a big deal.
"It's not just Caitlyn, Shane. She's your girlfriend!"
"Was, Nate. Was."
"I don't care. You just said last night that you were in love with her. What gave you the right to do that? "
"I don't know... Boredom."
And with that answer, Shane got the cabin door slammed in his face for the second time today.
Those words would be repeated in my head for the rest of my life. Shane Gray made me feel something I had never felt before. Hatred. Hatred for relationships in general because he acted like girls were property, like they could be thrown out and forgotten. And the worst thing about Shane was that he broke her heart. The girl he had known I was in love with when he asked her out in the first place. That one thing gave me so much hatred for him... And he didn't even care. I knew that he was seeing Tess. But then again, he knew I'd never tell and he was right because if I ever had to see Caitlyn cry because of something I said, I know I wouldn't be able to live with myself. I've heard that good things come to those who wait, so that's what I did. I waited patiently for a moment to act... I just never knew it would be after Shane broke her heart. Those words repeated in my head all the way to her cabin. And because of my hatred, because of those words, it was that exact moment I started to put my plan into action.
Stepping up to her door, I took a deep breath. I saw her crying on her bed, so I lightly knocked and asked, "May I come in?"
Her head turned quickly and then snapped right back to her pillow, obviously thinking that as Shane's brother, we must be exactly alike. Oh, how wrong she was...
"Caitlyn..." I said, opening the door. "I wanted to come and see if you were alright."
She lifted her head off her pillow and turned it towards the bed I was sitting on. "Why?" she asked. A loaded question. A question I was not fit to answer.
"I just saw you run out of our cabin and wanted to make sure if you were okay."
"Did he tell you, Nate?" she sat up, screaming.
"No... but I heard what happened."
"Then of course you know I'm not okay! What the hell is wrong with guys these days?" she screamed once again before burying her head into her pillow.
"I just wanted to let you know that I'm here for you if you need anything. I'm sorry about what happened."
"Please just leave..." she desperately replied, looking up at me with mascara running down her cheeks and her eyes pleading. "Please..."
"Of course." I said, walking towards her door. "You know where to find me..."
One Week Later
It's been a week since I started my mission. It's been one week since I have even looked at Shane Grey, or any other guy for that matter. No one will ever gain my trust again and no matter what anyone says, I'm okay. Well, at least I will be. Sometime soon. Well, sometime. Oh, who can I kid? I'm miserable. I haven't looked at a guy in a week but that's only because Shane's picture can't escape my memory. Those words can't escape my thought. And I don't understand why. He treated me like property and ended up choosing someone else. Tess. Girls shouldn't be chosen. They should be treasured, kept, never forgotten. But girls were always chosen and every time a guy chose a girl... They always chose the wrong one.
Walking into the cafeteria with basically no one to turn to, I've started eating by myself. It doesn't really bother me. My back is turned from Shane and his girlfriend, which means it's closed off from all the hurt I am feeling. And for 20 minutes, 3 times a day, I feel further away from the situation than any other time. Even though he's only 15 short steps away...
It's been a week since I started my mission and let me be the first to tell you that it's gotten me nowhere. Caitlyn won't even look at me, let alone speak to me. If only she would just look at me and see that all I have in my eyes for her is love. If only she would just speak to me and hear that all I want is for her to be happy. All that I know is that she is all I think about. I've woken up the past three nights at the same exact point in my dream.
"Caitlyn, can I kiss you?" I say, reaching out my hand, hers slowly gravitating towards my own.
And at that exact moment, when our hands touch, I fly forward. It's as though I can't figure out the ending until I'm there. God, you have no idea how much I want to be there. But I haven't even been able to have a decent conversation in the past week. How can she give me a chance, if she barely even knows me? All I know is that the girl with her back facing towards me, the girl 15 short steps away, is the only girl I'm supposed to be with. But I have no idea how to get her...
There are only 10 minutes left for me to be at peace, for me to not think about Shane or anybody else for that matter. Closing my eyes, I begin to breathe in and out. In. One. Two. Three. Out. One. Two. Three. In. One. Two. Three. Out. And finally I reached the top point of relaxation and right as I'm about to breathe in again...
"Hey."
My eyes snap open, only to find Nate right in front of me, "Hello..."
"I wanted to see if you were feeling any better." he said, before immediately looking down.
"Not really, Nate. Your brot..." I began.
"Please, don't talk about my brother. He's a jerk. And like I said a week ago, I am so sorry about what happened." he interrupted. It seemed as though he was trying to ease my pain, even if for just a second.
"It's not your fault. I was stupid and naïve and..."
"Please, just stop. I came over here because I've seen the pain you've been in and soaking in your pain isn't a good thing. I would like to take you on a night of relaxation, a night where you don't even think about what's his name."
"Nate, you're his brother. That's not really possible."
"Oh, but it is..." he said, looking into my eyes, hoping that the words they spoke might change my mind. "So, what do you say? A night to just forget about the past week..."
"Is this a date?" I questioned intently.
"Not at all. This is a friend helping another friend. This is me feeling terrible for my brother being an ass. This is me trying to salvage the Grey family's name." he replied, with the biggest smile on his face.
Laughing, I replied, "Then, I'd love to."
"Good. Can I pick you up at 8?"
"I thought this wasn't a date."
"Caitlyn, it isn't. I'm salvaging an entire family, remember?"
"Oh, right." I giggled. "That sounds great..."
And with that the bell signaling our next class at Camp Rock rang, causing Nate to stand and wave goodbye, leaving me at the table, speechless at the invitation I had just accepted.
I knocked on her door at 7:59.
"Once second!" she replied, from behind her bathroom door.
A few second later she appeared in a yellow sun dress that came to the top of her knees. Her hair in a small bun on top of her head and a pair of silver flip-flops. She was prettier than I could've imagined.
Opening the door, she spoke again, "Hey, Nate."
"You look great." I replied, trying not to drool.
"So do you."
"Are you ready for your night of forgetting what's his name?"
"More than you know..."
"Okay, good because I have some stuff planned to make sure you do."
We then started our walk to the lake, going through a small hiking trail. Everything was going smoothly, until she asked the question.
"So, what was the real reason you asked me to come with you tonight?"
"I told you why."
"And I'm not saying that that's not part of the reason, but really? There has to be more."
"Could you wait like 5 minutes?" I said, pulling back the shrubbery, revealing a perfectly laid out picnic.
"Nate..." she said, flabbergasted.
Sitting down, I began,"Caitlyn, I asked you to come with me tonight because I want to get to know you better. I asked you to come with me tonight because I think my brother was a jerk to you and I don't want you to have that impression of me. I asked you to come with me tonight so that you could get to know me better. I asked you to come with me tonight so that I could make you something to eat that was better than the food in the cafeteria. I asked you to come with me tonight so that in 22 minutes when the sunsets, I could take you out on that paddle boat, so you could just let the sun take away all of your worries. I asked you to come with me tonight because I hated seeing you upset and I hated knowing that my brother put that frown on your face."
"Nate, I don't know what to say."
"I'm not expecting anything from this. All I want to show you is that I care about you, as a friend. And if that turns into something more in the future then it does, and if it doesn't go past tonight then it doesn't. I really invited you here tonight to forget about Shane and just focus on what's really important. Camp. Not some idiot boy."
"Thank you so much. I hope you know that I don't see you like that. I don't like you as more than a friend."
"And Caitlyn, as I said, I'm taking this one step at a time. I just want to prove to you tonight that I am a decent guy and that if you ever need anything, I'll help as best I can. That's all."
"You promise?" she said, scooting closer to me on the blanket.
And getting centimeters from her face, I replied, "Absolutely." before reaching to her right to grab the picnic basket. "Here's your chicken salad sandwich."
"Thank you."
"So, what is your hometown like?" I began.
The conversation flowed seamlessly, effortlessly and I couldn't have pictured it going better. After we finished eating our sandwiches, I led her down the steep incline into our paddle boat.
After getting our life jackets on and getting in the boat, Caitlyn started the conversation, "In all the years I've been here, I have never been on the lake before."
"This is really someplace you've never been. Caitlyn, you're missing out."
"Well, now I know that..." she said, her voice trailing off, noticing that she had just seen the sunset from this point.
"Isn't it beautiful?"
"It's gorgeous. How was I never told of this before?"
"It's kind of a camp secret. I found out about it a few years ago on a hike I was on."
"Wow..."
"It's breathtaking. But, right now I just want you to relax and just think of the sunset, nothing else."
We sat there for the next 10 minutes, just watching the sun go down. A few minutes before it fully went down, she laid her head on my shoulder, a sign to me that she was comfortable and for the next 5 minutes we just sat like that, in peace, complete relaxation, until all that was in front of us was darkness.
"I think it's time we should go back, Caitlyn."
"Before we go, I have a question."
"What?"
"Why do you call me Caitlyn?"
I sat there dumbfounded. "That's your name..."
"I know, but everyone calls me Cait or Caity, but not you."
"I like your name. Cait makes me feel like I'm a girl and Caity makes me think of my brother, so I stick with Caitlyn."
"Okay. That makes sense." she giggled, before laying her head back on my shoulder.
I slowly paddled us back to shore and helped her out of the boat.
"You ready to walk back?" I asked.
"Yep!" she smiled, looking back at me.
We reached her cabin a few minutes later and she turned around to face me.
"Nate, you have no idea how much I appreciated you doing this for me. I can't believe how much thought you put into everything just to get my mind off of Shane and I have truly never felt more relaxed. Thank you."
"You're welcome. I'm happy that I achieved my goal. Have a good night, Caitlyn."
"You too Nate." she replied, giving me a hug before walking inside.
I walked away from him awestruck. I was confused. No guy had never been this nice to me. He never tried to hold my hand, place his hand on my back, brush a stray hair away from my face or even give me a kiss on my cheek. He had acted like the perfect friend, one who really just cared about giving me a night to forget. It was strange, new and exciting. And I couldn't wait until I could see him tomorrow...
I walked away from her awestruck. I was happy. I had been the one guy who had ever been this nice to her. Of course it was challenging. Seeing her hand resting centimeters from my own, made me want to hold onto it and never let go. Helping her down the hill towards the lake, made me want to pick her up into my arms so that she'd know she'd always be safe and I wouldn't ever let her go. Watching her hair slowly come out of that bun throughout the night, made me want to tuck it behind her ear and whisper into her ear that she was the only girl for me. And finally, when we hugged. I wanted to hold her so close to me that she could hear my heart beating, so that she would know how nervous she made me. I wanted to slowly let go leaving barely any room between each other. I wanted to lean into her and giving the sweetest and most endearing kiss of her life. But I knew I couldn't do any of those things. I had to act like the perfect friend. The one who cared about giving her a night to forget the past week. She made me feel weightless. And I couldn't wait until I could see her tomorrow...
Walking into breakfast is when I saw her. She was dumping scrambled eggs onto her plate and was laughing with another girl in line. Then she walked to her table, right past Shane and Tess making out, right past all of her problems and she didn't even look away. She didn't even flinch. After racing to get my Cocoa Puffs, I walked over to her table and sat down.
"Good morning."
"Hey, Nate. How are you?"
"I'm doing well. I'm sorry if I kept you out too late last night."
"No, no. It's fine. I'll just have to go to sleep earlier tonight."
"Well, I was wondering if you would like to come out on another excursion with me tonight."
"I don't know if I can. I'm really tired and..."
"I'll have you back by 7. I promise."
"You promise?"
"Yes."
"So, what's the purpose of this excursion?" she looked up from her breakfast, leaning her hands on her fists.
"I would have to ask you a question then..."
"Go ahead then Nate."
"Will you go on a date with me, Caitlyn?"
"What?" she stared at me, eyes wide open.
"I knew it was too soon to ask. You know, just forget it." I replied, feeling humiliated and walking outside back towards my cabin.
"Will you go on a date with me, Caitlyn?"
"What?"
I was shocked. Amazed. Confused. Nate Grey, Shane's brother, was asking me out. He was the sweetest guy I had ever met, but was I ready for another heartbreak? Was I ready to put myself out there again? I would never trust another guy, per my mission, so how could I be in a relationship with Nate if I didn't trust him? I needed to think, but before I could, I saw Nate stand and walk away. It only took me about 10 seconds to snap out of it before I began chasing after him.
"Nate!" I yelled, him being over 100 feet from me.
"Nate!" I repeated, but he still wouldn't turn around.
"Nate! Turn around right now, I want to talk to you!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, causing him to finally look over his shoulder and giving me time to catch up with him. Breathless, I began, "What the hell is wrong with you? I didn't even answer."
"Caitlyn, I'm pretty sure that you're "What?" was plenty." he said turning to walk again.
"Nate," I said, grabbing his arm and turning him towards me. "I think that your are the nicest guy ever, but I don't think I'm ready to start dating again. I'm not ready to give that piece of my heart to someone again. Last time I did, he broke it and last night you helped rebuild that for me and I haven't had my heart whole long enough to think straight. You have made me so happy and all I can say is that I may not be willing to date you right now, but I would love to go and hang out with you again tonight."
"But not as a date..." he said, looking up at me.
"Not as a date. I'm sorry."
"No, it's all my fault. I would love to just hang out with you again."
"Thank you for understanding..." I said, leaning forward and giving him a hug, "I just can't trust anyone again."
"You can't trust anyone?" he questioned, leading me over to a stump right by his cabin.
"Not any guys... they've only torn me apart."
"Oh. So, is that not trusting any guys something that will never change?"
"Probably, no guy has proven worthy of my trust."
"Well, I have to get ready for class. It starts in a few minutes. I'm sorry for running out on you and not letting you explain."
"It's okay, Nate. I'll see you tonight?"
"Is 4 okay?"
"4 is absolutely perfect..."
I knocked on her door at 3:58.
But instead of her shouting from the restroom, she was instead already grabbing her purse off the bed. "Hey Nate!" she greeted.
"Thank you for coming again, Caitlyn. I was a jerk." I replied.
"Nate, I already said that it was fine. Let it go."
"Can do... So, are you ready for tonight's festivities?"
"Yes, sir I am."
"Good, because you're going to have a blast." I said, walking towards the cross training sports side of camp.
We walked for about 5 minutes before reaching the area I was taking her. In front of both of us was a log.
"What is this?" she questioned.
"Let me explain..." I began, "Today you told me that you're never going to trust another guy again so I started thinking and if I ever want to date you, you're going to have to trust me, but I'm not exactly sure how to gain that trust. I thought about this for hours before I remembered this log..."
"Nate, I don't want to do this."
"You haven't even heard what it is."
"But Nate, I don't want to trust you. Because if I trust you, you'll just break my heart." she replied, looking down to dirt below her feet.
Walking over to her and lifting her face, I looked directly into her eyes and starting talking, "Caitlyn, I don't know what it will take to make you realize that I don't want to break your heart. Ever since I first saw you all I've wanted to do is make you happy. I don't care if I'm stuck on these friend hangouts for the next 20 years, as long as I get to see you smile, as long as I get to see you laugh, as long as I know that you're okay. In no way, shape or form do I want anything else but to see you happy and if you won't be happy with me, that's okay. I'll be your friend forever, but even as your friend I want you to trust me. I want you to know that I'll never let you down."
"Okay..."
"Can I finish explaining what this is now?" I asked, looking straight at her for approval, a nod her only response. "So I remembered this log, which was used a long time ago when camp members were having a difficult time with other camp members. They stood in a group and one person stood on top of this log and fell backwards and they had to trust that the other people would catch them before they hit the ground. Caitlyn, I want you to trust me to catch you."
"This is the kind of trust you want?"
"Yeah...It's a start."
"Okay, Nate." she replied, sounding unsure as she climbed on top of the log.
Turning around with my back facing him was the scariest moment of my life. How did I know he wasn't going to drop me? Because he just wants to see me happy. He wants me to be happy. He wouldn't ever drop me...
"Caitlyn, are you ready?"
"No."
He laughed before continuing, "I'm standing right behind you. It's only a 5 foot fall. I'll catch you. Now, I'm going to be quiet and let you decide when to go. Count to three first though, okay?"
"Okay. 1..." As soon as I closed my eyes, my body started shaking uncontrollably. I wasn't ever supposed to trust another guy again and here I was falling backwards into his arms. "2..." I knew he wouldn't ever drop me, but I was abandoning my mission. But I was abandoning my mission for the sweetest, most caring guy in the world. "3..." And then I fell backwards.
But before I could even go a few inches, I felt his hand on my back and my eyes snapped open.
"I told you I'd never let you fall..."
"Nate, I was going to let you catch me."
"And you leaning back was proof enough for me. Now all you need to do is trust that I would catch you no matter what and me catching you falling off a log wouldn't prove that. I have to show you."
"But..."
"No buts. You leaning backwards means you trusted me to catch you, you already had done it, okay?"
"I'm shaking so badly, Nate."
"Then come here, let's sit down." he replied, lowering me to the log. "Rest your head on my shoulder, okay?"
Without even thinking, I listened to him. He wrapped his right arm around me and kissed the top of my head.
"It'll be okay, Caitlyn. You're going to be fine. You will never be alone again. I will never let you fall because I'll never let you go. I'm with you now. There's no need to ever be on your own, I'm here." he whispered repeatedly into my ear until my shaking subsided.
Lifting up my head I looked at him, "I feel much better. Thank you, Nate."
"Are you ready for dinner now?" he said, hoping off of the log.
"Yeah..." I replied before he lifted me off and lowering me to ground.
"Before we leave, I have a question."
"What would that be, Nate?"
"Do I have your permission to hold your hand?"
The question, once again, stunned me. What guy would ask to hold my hand? And then I remembered that it was Nate, the guy who never wanted to upset me. The guy who would ask before doing anything because he didn't want me to get angry. It was just Nate. It was just the guy I was slowly falling for...
"Yes, you do." I said before he lightly laced his fingers through my own and kissed my temple before walking me to our dinner destination.
"Thank you for trusting me..."
"Now, now. I trust you with catching me, not with my heart."
"I know, but that's better than yesterday. Progress is good."
Staring right into his eyes I replied, "Yes, yes it is."
"We're here..."
I turned my eyes to see a table set up with candles and roses and pasta covering both plates.
"I hope it's not too much, Caitlyn." he said, turning towards me.
"No, it's fine. Thank you."
He walked over and pulled out my chair for me before returning to his own seat. "I know that this is a lot for you, but I just want you to know that I'm not going to give up until you tell me flat out 'No' that you feel nothing for me. If you tell me that, I will never try this again, we'll be just be friends and I'll live with that. I just want you to know that the way I have been treating you is how I will always treat you, that you deserve to be treated perfectly. I'm sorry that all of your previous boyfriends have been jerks and haven't treated you well, but I just want to show you how I will treat you."
"I understand, Nate. And I can't tell you that I feel nothing for you because every time I look at you now, my heart starts beating a little faster and every time you speak, my brain starts thinking a little quicker. I appreciate how well you have taken care of me and I know that this is you, but I just can't trust you with my heart yet. I just need some time to make sure that this is what I want because you seem too perfect and I don't want perfection, Nate. I want you."
"Caitlyn, this is me. I promise you. And if you think I'm too perfect, I'll lighten up a bit. I just want to show you how you deserve to be treated, which isn't how my brother treated you. I'm sorry for that, by the way."
"It's okay and thank you for everything."
"It's no problem."
Once we finished eating, I walked over and pulled her chair back out of her and placed her hand in mine after kissing it lightly. We walked back to her cabin in complete silence, as if the silence was our words forming perfection.
"Look, it's 6:59. I got you home before 7." I smiled, looking at her.
"Thank you, Nate. This has been a great night."
"I'm happy you enjoyed it."
"Goodnight. I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Of course you will, goodnight."
As if it were out of my control, I started leaning in to kiss him. But before I could get too close, he placed his hand on one cheek and kissed my other one.
"Caitlyn, I don't want you to regret anything. I'm sorry. Goodnight..." he finished, before turning around and walking away.
He was perfect. He was the guy I had been looking for, for so long. He was my future and he knew that he was my future, yet still respected me. It was amazing how blind I was to his caring nature. I wish I had noticed it sooner, but I guess it's better that I noticed it now. I can no longer fool myself. I've been falling for Nathaniel Gray since the moment he first talked to me a week ago...
One Week Later
It has been a week since I told Nate I was slowly falling for him. It has been a week since we first held hands. It has been a week since I first tried to kiss him. But since that day, it has only gotten better. Every night he surprises me with something else to do, finds a different way to show me that he cares. Today at lunch he came and asked I would like to go out with him tonight and of course I replied, 'Yes.' Here I am now, waiting at my door. It's 6:50 and I can't wait to see his face again.
I knocked on her door at 6:57.
And she automatically answered, giving me the biggest hug in the world. "Hey, Caitlyn."
"Hey, Nate."
I reached behind my back and pulled out a single rose from my pocket, "This is for you..."
"Aww, thank you. What is this for?" she replied.
"You are extremely welcome and you will soon find out. Are you ready to go?"
"Yes I am..."
I laced my hand in hers walking her to our first destination.
As we were walking to Nate's first stop of our date, I saw another rose laying on the dirt. Picking it up, I turned towards Nate.
"What is this?"
"Huh, it looks like another rose."
"Why is there another rose?"
"I know, weird..."
"Nate!" I exclaimed, hitting his shoulder.
"What? It's just a rose." he replied, smiling.
"Ugh... what are you doing?"
"You'll see...for now, let's just eat dinner."
He had made all of my favorites: steak, potatoes and a salad with Italian dressing.
"Do you like it?"
"It's great. Thank you."
"You're welcome. Are you ready for dessert?" he asked while he was carrying over a silver dish with a lid on top. He raised the lid revealing Strawberries Romanoff and another rose laying on top.
"Nate..."
"Caitlyn..."
"Tell me what's going on..." I said in a sing song voice.
"How 'bout you just eat..." he replied in the same tone.
"Fine."
Once we were ready to go, he pulled out my chair and placed his arm around my shoulder to lead me to our next destination. You know those times that you know you're not supposed to be anywhere else? Like God planned for you to be at this moment, at this time for a reason. I knew this was planned. I knew that I was with Nate for a reason and in that moment, I knew that there was no place I would rather be.
We soon arrived at that dreaded log, a rose was laying on top of it as well.
"Nate, why must..."
"Stop asking so many questions, just go with the flow." he interrupted. "I wanted to know if you would catch me."
"Huh?"
"I'm going to fall backwards off the log and I was wondering if you'd catch me."
"I'm still confused..."
He grabbed both of my hands and looked right at me, "Caitlyn, I trust you more than any other person I know and I think that part of trust is being able to trust yourself. Do you trust yourself enough to catch me?"
"Of course."
"Okay, stay down here then."
I watched him slowly get on top of the log and face his back towards me.
"Caitlyn, just let me know when you're ready for me to drop."
"I'm ready."
He then counted to three and let himself fall. That's when urgency covered my body. That's when I froze and questioned my trust for myself. What if I dropped him? What if I let him down? But then, I felt him hit my arms and my body adjust to his weight. Then I saw his eyes look up at me and he smiled this smile that went straight to my heart and made me go weak at the knees.
After setting him down he started talking, "You didn't let me fall..."
"You know what? I actually did get scared that I wouldn't catch you though."
"But you did. And that's what matters." he then looked at me very seriously, "Caitlyn, do you trust me to catch you?"
"I don't know."
"You almost did it once. I'd just like to know if you'd do it again."
"I don't know."
"You know I'd catch you, Caitlyn. And I know that you know that, so there has to be another reason."
"There is..."
"Are you going to tell me?"
Shyly I turned away and said, "I'm afraid of falling for you."
"Huh? What did you say? I couldn't hear you."
"Nate, I'm afraid of falling for you. I'm afraid of putting myself out there. I know you'd catch me and that's what scares me."
"You don't have to do it. I was just asking."
"I want to though. I want to trust you."
"Then I'll talk you through it, okay?"
It was then that my body started shaking again, the memories of the first time I almost trusted him flooding back through my memory. Standing on top of that log, I could hear Nate's voice coaxing me and talking me through exactly what he was doing.
"Caitlyn, I'm right behind you now. All you need to do is fall backwards and I'll be here. I promise I will catch you. You're going to be okay..."
Hearing his words echo through my ears gave me a little dose of confidence and so, like I had before, I began counting. "1...2...3..." and then I fell backwards. It was rush falling, not knowing if he would actually be there to catch me. But the next thing I knew, I was in his arms and he was spinning me around and around with a smile that couldn't be described as anything but gorgeous.
"You did it!" he repeated, a smile being the only thing I could return. "I'm so proud of you, Caitlyn."
"Thanks for believing in me, Nate." I replied, standing on my tip toes to kiss his cheek.
"Well for completing that task," he began before reaching into his jacket pocket, "Here is your next rose."
"Thank you..."
"You're welcome. Ready for our final stop?"
"I believe I am."
"Well then," he said, reaching his hand for my own, "I think we should get going."
I had hoped that she hadn't realized that I was taking her to all of my favorite memories of us together. I just had to make sure that it went perfectly and so far it had. She trusted me and had said she'd never trust another guy again, but she had gone against her word and decided to trust me. And I was nothing but ecstatic...
"So, I decided to rent us another paddle boat." I said, once we reached the lake.
"I loved it when we first when out there."
"I did too. You ready?"
Like I had done on our very first "date", I lifted her into the paddle boat and paddled us out into the middle of the lake where the sun set was just upon the horizon. It my time to shine and I had only hoped that it would go smoothly.
"Caitlyn, I asked you out tonight for many, many reasons. One, to see your gorgeous face. Two, to find out if you actually trusted me. Three, to take you out on the lake at sun set, once again. Four, to make you your favorite meal. Five, to tell you something." I finished, lacing her hand in my own.
"What, Nate?"
"Well, I have one last rose to give you." I said, pulling the rose out of my other coat pocket. "This rose will make your total number of roses 5, which is the number of words I want to tell you right now... One rose per word."
"Nate, please just tell me."
I placed her other hand in my own and looked directly into her eyes before I started to speak, "Caitlyn Gellar, I love you."
"What?"
"I love you. When I look into your eyes, all I can see is my future and I can't let that go. I can't let you go, Caitlyn. I know that you're so afraid of taking that jump, making that leap into my arms, but I would love for you to try because I would never let you down. I would love to be able to recollect this moment and see it as the moment that changed my life and be able to say that this is where our relationship began. And I'm taking the biggest leap of faith right now telling you this, but you trusting me tonight gave me more hope than anything in my life ever has. You are my yesterday. You are my today. You are my tomorrow and Caitlyn, I never want to let you go..."
"Nate, I... I... can't. I can't say those words because I'm not. I'm not. I like you. I like you so, so much and you have saved me from all of the pain, all of the sorrow but, mostly, myself. You showed me that someone can care about me more than I thought anyone ever could. No one has never done this for me. No one has ever spent weeks trying to win me over. No one has ever cared so much about me that they relentlessly wanted to be with me. But I don't love you... I'm sorry." she replied, tears beginning to fall down her face.
"No, please don't cry. I never wanted my words to make you cry. I'm so sorry. I'll take it back, Caitlyn. It was too soon. I'm sorry." I replied, grasping both of her hands.
"It's okay, Nate. It's my fault for not being able to take a risk, but I'm just not ready to give that away. I'm not ready."
Sitting across from her, the sun was almost fully down. I knew right then, with the most gorgeous light shining upon her face that I needed to do something I hadn't done before.
So, I followed my tradition and asked, "Caitlyn, do I have your permission to kiss you?"
Sitting across from him, I was incredibly nervous. Here Nate was pouring his feelings out and all I could do was turn him down. All I could do was be afraid.
But the next thing I knew he was speaking, "Caitlyn, do I have your permission to kiss you?", a nod my only reply.
He then placed his hand was on my cheek, his face moving closer to my own. Then, he placed his lips on mine and he gave me the most tender kiss I had ever received, one filled with love and passion, but also filled with care and forgiveness. It was in that moment that I knew I wanted to be with him. That I knew he loved me more than any guy ever had.
The kiss was short, sweet and absolutely perfect and once he pulled away he spoke again, "Will you be my girlfriend?"
"I would love to, Nate." I replied, now pulling him in for a kiss.
We sat there for the next few hours just holding each other, counting the stars and telling each other our dreams. Right before it was time for him to paddle me in, he turned to me once more, "Caitlyn, I don't want to rush you and I know how much my brother hurt you, but I promise that I won't ever let you go. I hope that someday you can look in my eyes and realize that I'm someone you could love, but until that time, I'm so happy with you just being mine."
"I have to tell you something, Nate." I began, his face turning puzzled, "I like you so, so much and I have loved all the memories we have shared so far with each other. Please keep loving me like you have been. Please keep treating me like you have been." I paused once more trying to compose what I was trying to say. And before I pulled him in for one last kiss, I finished, "Because Nate, if anyone could make me fall in love, you can..."
A/N: So there is that one! I know it's a sappy love story, but really, who could ask for more? I really hope you enjoyed it and maybe it will be incentive enough to give me a review or possibly go and read one of my other stories. Thank you so much for tuning in for this one. I appreciate it!