Good night, guys! :) I'm finally back. I'm deeply sorry for the delay. I hope this chapter leads to your forgiveness because of my lack of time and you so much for your support, guys! :D
An: Hahaha. We all want that, right? :D Just be patient.
MJ: I hope you like this chapter more. Things are changing and I have a few ideas in mind that I know you will love. Drama is coming. xDD
Kinky: Yeah, I know I keep it short and that you'd love to read a 10.000 word chapter. :) I get that, but writing this takes up a lot of time and I lack free time. Anyway, I hope I can publish next chapter ASAP. Thanks! ;)
jofi: LOL You made me laugh. You were asking for more action, and you'll know a detail about Emily in this chapter, so I hope you're more satisfied after reading it. xD I guarantee the story will get more interesting from now on. I have a few ideas that will improve the development of the story more attractive.
Enjoy!
IT'S NEVER TOO LATE
: Chapter 11 – The Truth Is Out:
"So, do you have plans for tonight?" I ask her while I'm gathering all my belongings to leave the office.
"No, I don't." I feel that my question intrigues her.
"I'm having dinner at my place with Hanna and Spence. Do you want to join us?"
She laughs at my words and I don't understand what's funny about them. "I find hilarious you call her 'Spence'. She will always be Dr. Hastings for me," she adds, her beautiful smile filling our workplace.
"I know her since we were basically toddlers. She's one of my best friends. Calling her Dr. Hasting would be a little bit weird, don't you think?" She nods at me and smiles at the same time. I find her adorable.
"I appreciate your invitation, but I don't want to bother. I'm a stranger after all. And I don't think my mom's doctor would want to see me outside the hospital. She must be tired of my presence already, because I've spent a lot of hours around her. She needs a break," she says.
"I did a question and you didn't answer," I tease her and then wink at her. I got the smile I was willing to see from her.
"I told you that…" I interrupt her. I love teasing her, 'cause she's so shy that she immediately flushes.
"Then you don't have plans. Spencer likes you. I already told them and they want to get to know you better now that we're friends. Do you want to come?"
"Well… if they don't have a problem with my presence, then…"
"Get your coat already and let's go, silly." She suddenly stands up and follows me. Not before smiling at me and making me melt. Being just friends will be harder than I had expected, but it's better than being nothing.
"With one condition," she emphasizes and stops walking, making me turn to look at her. "I need to go to my place first to grab a few things."
I nod at her. "It's fine. You can call me later," I add.
"You can come with me and go to your place after. I mean, only if you want to …" She's looking down at the floor, avoiding my gaze. Her shyness is so cute that I'd love to hug her right now. She looks so vulnerable.
"Okay," I briefly say. I don't want to make her feel more uncomfortable even if I found it adorable.
Once we get to her place I take a seat at her comfy sofa and wait for her. She disappears and comes back with two bottles of wine in her hands.
"Are you planning on getting me drunk?"
"I'm bringing those to the dinner."
"That's not really necessary, Paige. This was an invitation."
"I don't care. I want to. I was taught that way," she politely adds. She couldn't be any more perfect. I nod at her, I know she's stubborn and won't take a no for an answer. "What time are we supposed to be there?"
"It's early yet. But we can go have a drink or something? What do you think?"
"A beer would be fine. We can have it right here. Or do you prefer to go out?" I guess that she realized I'm fine with her decision, it's like her sofa consumed me. Besides, her place conveys tranquility to me. I love the decoration and how tidy and clean it is the few times I've been here. "There's no need for you to answer," she jokes before making her way to the kitchen and grab two bottles of beer from the fridge. She opens them in front of me, takes a seat next to me and I smile at her.
"How is your mom?" I know this subject is delicate, but she seems to be better and I'm curious about it.
"She's awake, she's in a good mood and she's getting stronger, so I couldn't be happier."
"I'm really happy about that, Paige." She smiles at me.
"Emily… I just wanted to thank you for everything. I mean, I've never told you how much you helped with the whole situation and your support meant a world to me."
"You don't need to thank me, Paige. It was a pleasure," I admit. I place a hand on her shoulder, trying not to touch her too much, but she suddenly pulls me against her and hugs me. I didn't see this coming, but having her so close to me and being able to smell her sweet perfume is the best thing that could happen to me. I caress her back and wait for her to pull away from the hug, but it seems like she needed it, 'cause she doesn't end it until a few seconds more.
"Thank you," she says, looking me in the eye from a short distance. This makes my heart go crazy. "I needed a friend and you're always there."
"And I hope our friendship lasts forever." I would love that, but I would prefer if she ended falling for me. 'Stop thinking that, Emily. She just hugged you. It means nothing.'
"Since when are Hanna and Spencer your friends?"
"Since we were basically toddlers." She laughs. "We've been together since kindergarten. Well, they came here to work and Aria and I stayed at Rosewood. Aria is the fourth one that you don't know yet," I joke.
"You had a job there?"
"And a girlfriend too. That's the main reason I accepted a job there. I had always wanted to go somewhere else, live in a different place. Anyway, I moved here, so my dream came true." I didn't expect for her to be curious about my life.
"That's before the trip to Turkey, right? What happened?" she asks, making me frown.
"It's a long story." I change the subject to avoid having to talk about Maya. I didn't even tell Hanna and Spencer about it. "Anyway, what about you?"
"There's nothing interesting about me."
"Don't say that. I find you really interesting." 'Too flirty?'
"I'm an average girl. There's nothing interesting about my life," she adds. I don't find her average at all. She's incredible and it's weird she doesn't know how interesting she is.
"Any boyfriend?" I finally ask the question that I have been trying to ask for a few weeks but didn't find the right moment to do it.
"No boyfriend."
"What about past boyfriends?"
"I've never a serious boyfriend. I mean, hook-ups, nothing else." She laughs at my surprise face. "I'm picky," she teases me, a grin plastered on her face.
"You don't settle for love. It's a good way to avoid toxic relationships. Your advice would have been helpful with Maya."
"Is that her name?" I nod at her, but don't say anything else.
She stands up to move the empty bottles. I look at my watch and realize it's a little bit late. I was supposed to meet Hanna and Spence 5 minutes ago.
"Oh, God! Time flies by so fast. We should get going."
We're lucky both apartments are so close that it takes five minutes more to get home. I hope Spencer is not bothered, because she values punctuality a lot.
"Hi, girls. I'm sorry about the delay, it was completely my fault." I look at Paige and she frowns at me. I know I lied, but I don't want my friends to think Paige had nothing to do with us being late. In fact, it was so nice to share that moment with her that I didn't even realize what time it was. "Well, you both know, Paige, so there's no need to do that, right? I joke and then look at Spencer to see if she has her "angry face". She doesn't look bothered, and that's good because I don't want any tension tonight.
"I appreciate the invitation. It's really nice to be here," Paige says, looking at both of my friends. I love how polite she always is.
Hanna hugs Paige and then Spencer approaches to embrace her too. "It's weird you're actually wearing clothes and not that white coat," Paige says, making Spencer smile at her. "Thank you for everything," I hear Paige practically whispering to Spencer's ear when they're hugging. I guess she's referring to her mom. She couldn't be cuter, my heart is about to explode.
The table is already set, so we take a seat and I decide to sit next to her.
"Everything looks delicious," Paige adds staring at the food on the table. She opens the bottle of wine she took from her place and serve everyone a glass of the red liquid.
Spencer takes a sip of the wine and she rolls her eyes. "Just… delicious. This looks expensive," she then says as she takes a look at the label.
"I'm glad you like it," she says, avoiding the fact about the price of it. I guess it's expensive but she won't say it.
The dinner goes perfectly, Paige isn't uncomfortable at all and her constant smile helps a lot. I knew she would fit into the group of my friends, she's so adorable that everybody love her. I avert my gaze from her when I realize that I've been looking at her for so long that even Hanna noticed and rolls her eyes.
"So… I guess you have a boyfriend being as pretty as you are," Hanna adds, her characteristic playful smile plastered on her face. I instantly blush. I need to control my feelings and I hate her for doing that. She knows how I feel about her and this is not helping.
"Nope," she briefly responds.
"Girlfriend?" she asks again, making things even harder for me. I knew she would do something like that even if I told her before to avoid that kind of situations. She can't avoid it though.
"Nope," she insists.
"Hanna, please, stop," I add, trying to avoid more awkward questions. Paige looks at me and smiles. I knew she wouldn't say anything, she doesn't like talking about her personal life. However, I'm glad she didn't take it bad.
"What? I had to ask." Spencer laughs loudly and then slaps her playfully.
"She's just too gossipy and she had to ask. Don't take it personally. She's been asking me the same questions about a friend of mine I've been seeing lately and I just ignore her. You should do the same," Spencer jokes, making Hanna frown.
"I'm starting to think that boy doesn't exist, you know," Hanna says, making Spencer laugh even loudlier.
"You will get to know him once I'm ready. You know I'm discreet and I don't want you to meet him and shoow him away," she teases the blonde girl. Both Paige and I laugh at Spencer's comment.
"I don't know how we've been friends for so many years considering how different we are. It's a mystery," Hanna adds pointing at Spencer and I. "They don't talk about their personal matters even if I push them. That's why I need to be so direct with these two." Paige laughs at what Hanna said, but I know she's just like us. I don't like sharing a lot about my personal life and I know I won't change, 'cause that's part of my nature.
"I'm just like them," Paige adds.
"What's wrong about you all? It's frustrating." Hanna whines, making all of us laugh. "I don't even know what happened with Maya yet? When are you going to tell us that, Em?" My heart suddenly stops beating. This is just too much.
"Hanna, don't push her, okay? She's not ready." Spencer doesn't know anything about Maya neither. But she knows something really bad happened if I didn't say a word about that, so she just avoids the subject. Hanna, however, doesn't stop asking me about her and I'm starting to piss off.
"Hanna, don't," I add, with a straight face. I notice that Paige is staring at me, but I don't need her attention now.
"It's been six months and you are all mysterious about it. I mean, I'm sorry if I want to know what happened, but I guess now is the time for you to open up."
"Why do you say that?" I frown at her and she avoids my gaze.
"She's moving to the city. Aria told me."
"What the fuck are you talking about? You shouldn't joke about that, Hanna. This is not funny, okay?" I'm starting to get really nervous and I feel like I can't handle this right now.
"I'm sorry, Em. It's not a joke. They offered her a job that she couldn't reject and Aria told me she wants to get back with you." Those last words feel like a knife-wound. I feel like I can't breathe.
I jump out of the chair, get my jacket and leave the apartment while my friends look impressed. "I need some fresh air," I add before closing the door.
"Wait, Emily!" I don't want to wait though. Just when I was recovering my trust and I was starting to build a new life, she has to show up and screw everything.
I go down the stairs as quickly as I can and get out of the building, the cold wind hitting my face. I start walking, although I don't know where I'm going. I can't believe she is back. I know the city is really big, but I know that she will do everything in her power to make my life a living hell.
"Emily!" I hear footsteps coming from behind and I think I know who is calling my name. "Wait!" I don't stop. However, she grabs my arm, making me stop even If I prefer to avoid her presence.
"I need to be alone, okay?" I say after turning around to look at her. She looks worried at me.
"You want to be alone but you don't need that. Let me be with you. I promise you I won't speak if you don't want me to." Her angelical smile soothes me. "Come here." She hugs me and suddenly, even if it's only for one minute, I forget about my stupid ex. My heart starts beating rapidly again, but this time is for a good reason. "Do you want to come to my place and watch a silly movie? I won't ask about her at all, I promise. You won't even realize I'm sitting right next to you," she concludes, smiling at me. Of course I will realize about her presence, I can't avoid that. I nod at her. I suppose being next to her and watching a movie will make me stop thinking about Maya.
I guess the bad news about Maya let me exhausted, 'cause when I open my eyes it's already the next day. I look around, puzzled at what I'm seeing. I've slept at her place. I must had fallen asleep last night. I have a blanket around my body that she must had left for me not to get cold. I get up and start looking my phone, but I don't find it. I suddenly hear her voice.
"She's with me and she's okay. Don't worry about her, Hanna." She suddenly walks towards me, pointing at the phone she's using. It's my phone. "She just woke up. I will tell her to call you. Sure. It's nothing. Bye." She finishes the call and hands me the phone. I take it and I stay silent. It's impossible to say a word with the sight I have in front of me. She's just wearing tiny tight shorts that show every curve of her body and a tight black tank top. I can't keep my eyes off her. I knew she was hot, but this is too much.
"Em? Wake up! Do you always have so much trouble waking up?" she teases me. I make an effort to look her in the eyes so she doesn't realize I'm checking her up.
"Morning. I need a few minutes to act like a normal person," I joke, even if that's not true. I look at her toned arms for the last time and then take a seat at the table, where she already set a huge bowl of milk and cereals.
"Thank you for everything. I didn't want to bother you. I don't remember falling asleep. I'm really sorry."
"You don't need to apologize. I'm your friend, remember that," she adds. A hot friend indeed.
"Thank you." I start eating the cereals, my eyes focused on the bowl to avoid gawking at her.
"Are you feeling better?" She couldn't be more adorable.
"Well… I guess the only way to make me feel better is if you tell me that last night was a nightmare," I joke.
"I'm sorry about that, but I can't lie," she teases me.
"It was a shock to me, that's I reacted like that. I'm sorry."
"You don't need to apologize. I realized she made an impact on you."
I nod at her and a tear runs down my cheek. She wipes it and I suddenly feel better.
"I don't know what she did to you but I already hate her for making you feel like this." I smile at her, even if more tears are making an appearance. Her adorableness is just too much. "I'm not asking you to tell me what happened, but I think being honest to Hanna and Spencer will make things better. I know you will feel better once you tell them what happened with her. Just tell your friends."
"You're right. They need to know I spent the last 7 years of my life with a person that cheated me constantly and made me think she loved me. The worst part of it is that she admitted cheating on me with a bunch of girls while being with me and had the nerve to propose me." I didn't plan on telling her, but she made me feel so good and secure about myselft that I had to do it.
"What?" She looks impressed at me.
"We were going to marry, Paige. I thought we were meant for each other. She made me believe she loved me, instead she was having affairs every now and then. I was a fool and didn't realize what was really going on until I caught her red-handed in bed with another girl."
"I'm really sorry." I have taken a huge burden off of my shoulders and I feel fantastic. I suppose I need to tell my friends about it. They deserve to know the truth.
To be continued…
Stay tuned! ;)
