A/N: I suspect I may be moving things along a little too fast, but my poor Trory heart cried out for a happy ending (though it's only temporary for now.) Not to worry, plenty of Trory angst down the road, to be followed immediately by sunshine and rainbows.
I Miss You
Chapter 4: (i didn't think) Could Be Real
Tristin sits on the steps in front of a towering arch one afternoon in early November. In his hand dangles a copy of The Trial and Death of Socrates by Plato. He can't bring himself to open it, knowing that the second he tries to read it, he will doze off. So he contents himself with watching the other Princeton students meander around the campus, caught up in their own trials and tribulations. He leans back, stretching his body over the sun warmed steps. His elbows find the step behind him and he props himself up. He takes in the brightly hued trees sprinkled around the campus and the way the wind gently rustles the leaves on the ground. He loves this time of year.
He checks his watch. The football game against Harvard starts in only a few short hours. Rory should be arriving any second. He really should get back to his dorm to meet her, but he is feeling apprehensive. This will be the first time he has seen her since arriving at college. He wonders if anything has changed. He still loves her, as he always will. He hasn't been able to put her behind him. He is slowly discovering himself, the real Tristin Dugrey, the man that had never been able to emerge back in Hartford. The real Tristin Dugrey is caring, genuinely interested in people. He loves to laugh. He loves walking outside during rainstorms, letting the cleansing drops purify his weary soul. But Rory already knows all this. She had discovered the real Tristin Dugrey long before Tristin himself had any inkling of his existence.
He feels a tap on his shoulder. His head swivels and he finds himself staring into a pair of beautifully intense blue eyes.
"Rory!" he exclaims delightedly. He jumps to his feet and engulfs her in a hug.
She wraps her arms around his torso and leans into the familiar embrace. "Hey there smart boy!"
"I was just about to go back to my room to wait for you. How did you know where to find me?"
"Your roommate pointed me in the right direction."
"I'm so happy to see you." He buries his nose in the crook of her neck and wraps his arms around her more tightly.
"Right back atcha."
He reluctantly pulls back, realizing the embrace would not stay friendly for long. "Hey, you want to grab some coffee? There's a Starbucks across the street."
She smiles. "You know me too well."
***
Ten cups of coffee and two hours later, they finally get to the heart of the matter. "Have you met anyone else?" she asks quietly. She holds her breath, fearing the answer she is about to hear might kill her.
"Of course not," he responds emphatically.
She visibly relaxes and sucks in a deep breath of relief.
"Have you?" He asks the question, but he already knows the answer. She hasn't met anyone. Neither is ready to move on. Neither wants to.
"No." One word spoken, so many emotions conveyed.
The love in his eyes shines as brightly as it ever did before.
"Why are we apart?" she whispers.
"I'm beginning to forget," he answers honestly.
"So what does this mean for us?"
There is a few beats of silence. They both sit back in their chairs and sip their coffee. "What are you thinking?" she finally asks.
He leans forward and rests his elbows on the table. "I love you. And it's hard being away from you."
"I'm sensing a big 'but' here."
"Okay, so we haven't met anyone else. But this doesn't change the fact that we're far away from each other geographically."
"Do you doubt that we could make it work?"
"I hope we could. I'm just afraid that if we allow ourselves to be together now, it'll be a huge mistake. Look at it this way," he said, reaching for her hand. "You've only been in two relationships and I've only been in one."
Rory snorted.
"One serious one," he amended.
"Do you really think that we are so naive when it comes to relationships that we don't know real love when we see it?"
"Rory, I believe with all my heart that what we have is real. Before I met you, the idea of love...I didn't think it could be real. With you, there is no doubt in my mind that it is real. And I don't want to give up what we have."
"Tris, I love you too. I know we agreed to try to find ourselves away from each other, but in all honesty, I can't see the point of it anymore. I couldn't put you behind me if I tried."
"So what do we do now?"
"I don't know." He runs his fingers through his hair, spiking it up in all directions. "I want to be with you. But that doesn't change the fact that we're states apart."
"We can make it work. I know we can."
He drinks in the sight of her, seeing the optimistic expression and the stubborn chin set in determination. He believes.
He reaches across the small table and tugs her closer to the middle. He lovingly caresses her chin, then leans in to kiss her. They never make it to the football game that day.
A/N: This is nowhere near the end. I'm including the lyrics to "I Miss You" so you can vaguely see where I might be heading with this fic.
I Miss You-Incubus
To see you when I wake up
is a gift I didn't think could be real.
To know that you feel the same as I do
is a three-fold, utopian dream.
You do something to me that I can't explain.
So would I be out of line if I said,
I miss you (?).
I see your picture, I smell your skin on the empty pillow next to mine.
You have only been gone ten days, but already I'm wasting away.
I know I'll see you again
whether far or soon.
But I need you to know that I care
and I miss you.
I Miss You
Chapter 4: (i didn't think) Could Be Real
Tristin sits on the steps in front of a towering arch one afternoon in early November. In his hand dangles a copy of The Trial and Death of Socrates by Plato. He can't bring himself to open it, knowing that the second he tries to read it, he will doze off. So he contents himself with watching the other Princeton students meander around the campus, caught up in their own trials and tribulations. He leans back, stretching his body over the sun warmed steps. His elbows find the step behind him and he props himself up. He takes in the brightly hued trees sprinkled around the campus and the way the wind gently rustles the leaves on the ground. He loves this time of year.
He checks his watch. The football game against Harvard starts in only a few short hours. Rory should be arriving any second. He really should get back to his dorm to meet her, but he is feeling apprehensive. This will be the first time he has seen her since arriving at college. He wonders if anything has changed. He still loves her, as he always will. He hasn't been able to put her behind him. He is slowly discovering himself, the real Tristin Dugrey, the man that had never been able to emerge back in Hartford. The real Tristin Dugrey is caring, genuinely interested in people. He loves to laugh. He loves walking outside during rainstorms, letting the cleansing drops purify his weary soul. But Rory already knows all this. She had discovered the real Tristin Dugrey long before Tristin himself had any inkling of his existence.
He feels a tap on his shoulder. His head swivels and he finds himself staring into a pair of beautifully intense blue eyes.
"Rory!" he exclaims delightedly. He jumps to his feet and engulfs her in a hug.
She wraps her arms around his torso and leans into the familiar embrace. "Hey there smart boy!"
"I was just about to go back to my room to wait for you. How did you know where to find me?"
"Your roommate pointed me in the right direction."
"I'm so happy to see you." He buries his nose in the crook of her neck and wraps his arms around her more tightly.
"Right back atcha."
He reluctantly pulls back, realizing the embrace would not stay friendly for long. "Hey, you want to grab some coffee? There's a Starbucks across the street."
She smiles. "You know me too well."
***
Ten cups of coffee and two hours later, they finally get to the heart of the matter. "Have you met anyone else?" she asks quietly. She holds her breath, fearing the answer she is about to hear might kill her.
"Of course not," he responds emphatically.
She visibly relaxes and sucks in a deep breath of relief.
"Have you?" He asks the question, but he already knows the answer. She hasn't met anyone. Neither is ready to move on. Neither wants to.
"No." One word spoken, so many emotions conveyed.
The love in his eyes shines as brightly as it ever did before.
"Why are we apart?" she whispers.
"I'm beginning to forget," he answers honestly.
"So what does this mean for us?"
There is a few beats of silence. They both sit back in their chairs and sip their coffee. "What are you thinking?" she finally asks.
He leans forward and rests his elbows on the table. "I love you. And it's hard being away from you."
"I'm sensing a big 'but' here."
"Okay, so we haven't met anyone else. But this doesn't change the fact that we're far away from each other geographically."
"Do you doubt that we could make it work?"
"I hope we could. I'm just afraid that if we allow ourselves to be together now, it'll be a huge mistake. Look at it this way," he said, reaching for her hand. "You've only been in two relationships and I've only been in one."
Rory snorted.
"One serious one," he amended.
"Do you really think that we are so naive when it comes to relationships that we don't know real love when we see it?"
"Rory, I believe with all my heart that what we have is real. Before I met you, the idea of love...I didn't think it could be real. With you, there is no doubt in my mind that it is real. And I don't want to give up what we have."
"Tris, I love you too. I know we agreed to try to find ourselves away from each other, but in all honesty, I can't see the point of it anymore. I couldn't put you behind me if I tried."
"So what do we do now?"
"I don't know." He runs his fingers through his hair, spiking it up in all directions. "I want to be with you. But that doesn't change the fact that we're states apart."
"We can make it work. I know we can."
He drinks in the sight of her, seeing the optimistic expression and the stubborn chin set in determination. He believes.
He reaches across the small table and tugs her closer to the middle. He lovingly caresses her chin, then leans in to kiss her. They never make it to the football game that day.
A/N: This is nowhere near the end. I'm including the lyrics to "I Miss You" so you can vaguely see where I might be heading with this fic.
I Miss You-Incubus
To see you when I wake up
is a gift I didn't think could be real.
To know that you feel the same as I do
is a three-fold, utopian dream.
You do something to me that I can't explain.
So would I be out of line if I said,
I miss you (?).
I see your picture, I smell your skin on the empty pillow next to mine.
You have only been gone ten days, but already I'm wasting away.
I know I'll see you again
whether far or soon.
But I need you to know that I care
and I miss you.