Chapter IV
"Sooo… how long have you known about your feelings?" Ben asked shortly after the revelation, his voice coming up to normal volume. "I trust they didn't show up only four days ago?" He teased.
"No." Gwen replied, not catching the lighter note of his question. "I've known how I've felt since the end of the seventh grade, it's just taken me forever to act on it…"
"You were afraid too?" His question came out more like a statement.
"Yeah. When I finally got the courage, I couldn't find the proper time to tell you. Then you ambushed me with water balloons." Gwen's voice became stern with the latter half.
"Hey, it was one balloon." Ben corrected, grinning.
"Aaanyways… What happened in the woods was my way of finding out how you felt about me."
"And why didn't you kiss me then?" He pouted.
Gwen blushed slightly at the question. "I kinda chickened out at the last minute."
Ben laughed heartily, keeping his grip on Gwen's fingers.
"Wouldn't have mattered though. I would've thrown your ass over, kiss or no kiss––you deserved that much." She stuck out her tongue.
"Cute."
Gwen beamed at him and looked into his deep emerald eyes, as always, she felt completely at ease with him. When he smiled back at her all she could do was wonder what could possibly be going on behind those eyes. "So what are you thinking about?"
"Besides how fortunate I am right now?" Ben replied, taking no time at all to contemplate(Gwen's smile widened). "That I still can't believe this is happening, it all seems so unreal."
"May I ask when it was you first thought of me as… more than a friend?"
Ben didn't take any time to think about this one either, though he turned a light shade of red. "Pretty much soon after we started hanging out in the fall after our first summer together."