(Note: Now it changes back into third person.)
CLINK.
Belle and Shawn took a sip of their drinks without breaking
eye contact. Shawn set down his glass and reached for his fork. He broke off a
piece of cake and held it towards Belle. At her confused look, he explained, "Taste
it. It's really good."
Belle leaned forward and ate the cake off the fork. She closed
her eyes in amazement. "Mmm. That is absolutely wonderful," she commented. She
opened her eyes and held out a piece for Shawn.
He reached out and held Belle's hand to steady it, then
delicately ate the piece she had offered. Shawn kept his hand on Belle's. He
took the fork out from her grasp and, placing it on the blanket, took Belle's
other hand. "Dance with me," he said quietly, standing up and pulling Belle up
with him. He placed his hands on the small of her back, making sure that his
hands weren't too low. In return, Belle wrapped her arms around Shawn's neck.
Shawn leaned his head down so his forehead was touching Belle's.
"I have a confession to make," he whispered. "Actually, a
couple. First of all, I didn't set any of this up. I realized today that I wasn't
going to have any time, but I did clean everything and say exactly how I wanted
it to look. Second," he continued without letting Belle interrupt, "Belle, I
discovered tonight that I like you. I like you a lot. In fact, I don't consider
you my best friend anymore. Tonight, I-" he took a deep breath. "Tonight, I
realized that I'm in love with you. I have been for awhile, actually, but when
I saw the look in your eyes when we danced at the Last Blast; when I saw how
the moon bounced off your hair and made you look like an angel; I finally
realized that I love you. Heck, I was even in love with you when we were ice
skating at my parents' wedding and we almost kissed. And when I attacked you
with the Silly String and we almost kissed. In short, I love you, Isabella
Black." With that, Shawn stopped and took a deep breath.
'I hope she's not mad at me,' he thought to himself. 'I
mean, I just poured out my entire heart to her. Wait a minute. Why would she be
mad? Stop it, Brady. You're making yourself go crazy.'
Belle brushed aside a stray lock of hair from Shawn's
forehead. "Shawn, thank you for telling me and for not holding it in like you
do so often with your feelings. Tonight has been the best night of my entire
life, and I just wanted to let you know that you're being held personally responsible.
This is kind of hard for me to say, but I love you, too. You're incredibly
caring and—I know you hate this word, but I don't care—and sweet, and I love
you for it. In fact, there isn't one specific quality I like about you. I love
the entire package. I love you, Shawn Brady."
Shawn smiled in relief. "Thank God you don't hate me after I
poured out my heart to you. I was afraid you would."
Belle shook her head. "I could never hate you, Shawn. I love
you too much," she confessed.
Shawn lightly brushed Belle's cheek and rested his forehead
against hers once more. Belle leaned up to close the small gap between the
lightly brushed her lips against his. When they kissed for the first time, both
teens felt a shock, like they were meant to be together. They smiled at each
other and kissed longer and a little more passionate. At that magic moment,
nothing mattered except for their love for each other.