"Radiate" – part 10

Summary and additional notes in part 1.

Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews! Indeed, Clare rocks. This chapter is relatively short but moves the plot along quite a bit. I felt the scene should stand alone. Will update soon-ish!

Disclaimer: Do NOT own Degrassi!

-oOo-

The past couple of days were uneventful. He was surprised when he received her note. It was slipped into his locker. He read it a few times to make sure had it right. Here he was in the deserted room, waiting for the brunette to arrive.

Adam sat on one of the chairs in the first row. The minutes ticked by. He really hoped he wasn't going to be stood up because he wanted to go to lunch.

"Adam," he heard from behind him. He stood up.

"Bianca," he acknowledged. "I got your note."

She smiled shyly at him. "Great."

"So, what's this about?" he asked.

She stared at him for a moment. "Would you like to sit down?"

"I'd rather stand," he told her. "I want to head to lunch before the kitchen closes."

"Oh, right," she nodded.

"You know, I never apologized for assuming you told everyone. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."

Bianca smiled. Adam really was a nice guy. He had every reason to hate her, yet he stood before her because she asked him to on a nondescript note.

"You don't have to, Adam. I never apologized for being such a bitch to you last year," she told him.

He looked at her curiously. "Why was that?"

"I'm not fond of apologies. It's not my style," she quipped.

He laughed. "You know what I meant."

She took a deep breath. "You really got under my skin. I don't know how and I didn't want you to, but you did." He stared at her. "For the longest time I swore I felt nothing but intense dislike for you but… I don't think that was it at all."

"I don't understand," Adam told her. She would constantly call him 'tranny' or 'freak'. If you don't dislike someone, then why would you call them such hurtful names?

"Before… Before I knew, I started to like you a bit," Bianca inwardly cringed at her words. "Then when I found out… I was horrified."

Adam clinched his jaw. "It wasn't something I could control."

Bianca nodded. "I know that now. But, at the time I think I was mad at you for ruining something good before it even started."

Adam looked into her eyes. "Why did you call me here today?"

Bianca swallowed. This was the moment of truth. It was now or never. "I can't forget the kiss we shared," she admitted. Adam looked away. She stepped towards him. "I wanted to do that for a long time."

Adam took a step back. "You don't know how much I wanted to kiss to you," he revealed. "Last year, I didn't know the first thing about Ballroom dancing. But the moment I spotted you in the class I spent hours practicing to videos online. My stomach was doing flips the first time I asked you to dance. When I looked into your eyes I felt a spark that I never felt before."

Bianca's eyes started to fill with tears.

"When I was at your locker I was trying very hard to stay cool and act macho because I thought if I wasn't forward with you, then I wouldn't have a chance. Every time you smiled at me I could have floated up to the moon," Adam smiled at the memories. "Then you felt my chest and everything changed… You made it clear you didn't want me. That you were disgusted by me. You even hated me. I was so depressed and everyday was a nightmare. Every insult cut like a knife and what hurt the most was seeing the eyes that smiled at me and made heart skip a beat, look at me with scorn and derision."

Bianca didn't know what to say.

"I didn't think that anyone would want me. Not to really be with me. But then I met Fiona. She didn't care and accepted me as I am. I fell in love and I can say without hesitation that she is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I don't know if she'll ever forgive me but it doesn't change what I feel for her," he continued. "I like you, Bianca. The person you are today is not the person you were last year. I've always been attracted to you and probably always will. But I can't be with you. I already gave my heart away to someone else," he finished.

She looked at him and smiled a bittersweet smile. "I really missed my chance, huh?"

Adam nodded. He walked over to her and gave her an emotional hug. She understood he was letting her go.

After a long moment he pulled away. "See you around?"

Bianca watched him go. "Adam," she said as he reached the door. He turned. "My advice is to be persistent. It worked for you once upon a time."

.

tbc

A/N: My eyes were tearing up when I wrote this chapter! Still hits me in the gut every time I read it.

Reviews = awesome. Hint, hint…