A/N: No more Will in the way, so Lily can just head on back to Oliver, right? That would be way too easy. I had fun writing this chapter, so I hope you enjoy it. The Lily-Oliver interaction is just a lot of fun. Anyway, here's Chapter Eight. Sorry for the wait, and enjoy!
Disclaimer: In this country, they don't trust sixteen-year-old girls to drive cars safely. Do you really think they trust us to own television series?
Chapter 8: Pulling Away
Lily had happily spent the better portion of her day out on the grounds photographing. It was Friday, so she didn't have one of her classes, and that in addition to her study hall, as well as the actual photography class, gave her plenty of time to try capturing a few nature shots for her portfolio. Something was missing though, she knew. It was that one picture of something unusual caught from an angle only she could get. Something that would make college admission officers glance once at her portfolio and gasp.
She slung her camera carefully over her shoulder before continuing to sift through the contents of her locker, picking what books she's need to bring home for her weekend homework, checking the stack she'd made on the floor against the assignments in her planner. The camera, not so well-balanced, slipped down her shoulder each time she moved, so she turned to slide it off her arm and set it on the ground, but when she did so, she came face-to-knees with someone she hadn't seen in a number of days.
"Hey Oliver," she laughed, standing to make her eyes level with, well, his mouth. He was a good deal taller than she was.
"Hey Lily," he smiled apologetically at her. It wasn't like they hadn't talked since that night on the bridge, but their words were few, and it hadn't seemed to make it's way into conversation yet.
He nodded down to her camera, now seated atop her books. "Get some good pictures today?"
She smiled at his attempt at small talk. "Yeah," she ran her fingers through the long side bangs cut into one side of her hair, pulling them out of her face. "But I'm missing one, still."
"The big one?" He asked knowingly.
"Of course," she said, turning back to her books. "Listen, Oliver," she called to him from inside the green metal locker, "It's Friday, and my parents are working late as usual." She pulled her head back out once she'd retrieved the final notebook. "Do you want to come hang out at my house?" She pushed the locker door shut.
He grinned through one side of his mouth. "Sure thing, Lils," he said. "Let me just drop a few things off at home and clean up a little first."
"Four o'clock?" She asked, bending down to stuff the books into her blue messenger bag.
"I'll be there," he told her, and walked back to his locker.
Xxx…xxX
After walking around the corner to her street, Lily, in her usual routine, made sure to check out the lawn decorations in every yard. The snow hadn't fallen yet, but it would only be a week or two more before it happened, which meant that Christmas lights and obnoxious blow-up globes and figures that were synonymous with big-city-suburbs were not far away. 'Can't wait,' she told herself sarcastically.
Her lawn was empty. No lights until after Thanksgiving, she'd told her father, and so it became law. And even then, it was only classy strings of white lights that were allowed to line the roof and doorway. If he wanted to do the trees, he had to do the whole tree and do it right. Lily would not stand for any of this hap-hazard throwing of the blinking multicolored variety into a bush and calling it "decorated". That would just be an embarrassment.
She stepped casually up the front steps, shivering a bit. Yes, she was always cold. She wondered briefly if she should listen to her mother more often and put on that extra sweater or bring along the scarf.
A twist of a key and a shove of an old doorknob opened the blue-painted front door of her house, and she drew into the warmth happily. She slid off her flats, wishing she'd warn shoes that allowed for socks, and slipped the plaid peacoat off her shoulders, setting on the hook beside the door. She, after all this, still managed to hold on to her camera, so she shifted positions with the intention of setting it on the little side table next to the front door, but that space was already occupied.
Lily scrunched her face up, confused. Who would leave such an unusual gift there? Now burning with curiosity, Lily all but ran to the kitchen to set the camera down on the camera so she'd have hands with which to inspect the oddity, then sprinted back.
Three separate pieces greeted her wondering eyes: A red long-stemmed rose, a little gift box wrapped in ivory paper with a little blue bow, and a note tucked beneath the two. There was no doubt it was for her, as written in a lovely cursive scrawl on the front of the note was her name.
Not being able to control herself, she snatched up the note in one hand, less anxiously pulling the rose and delicate box under her other arm, and made her way to her favorite chair in the living room. She set down items two and three and turned her attention to the first. She unfolded it slowly, afraid of what it might say, and glanced down with a hopefully open mind. The little cursive letters were the same as what had adorned the front.
Lily,
Thank you for a fantastic three weeks. I hope you enjoyed them as much as I did. I'm sorry for not being what you need, but know that if you ever doubt your decision, I'll still be here waiting. I guess it's going to take longer to get over you than I thought.
Love,
Will
Her heart broke just a little more reading it. She had to be such a selfish person. He hadn't done anything wrong. She let the note fall onto the table beside her and picked the rose up instead, smelling it deeply, longingly. Then, with regrets, she decided she had no choice but to open the beautifully wrapped box.
She lifted the lid with agonizing tentativeness. Beneath it lay a thin purple ribbon. Lily just wrinkled her brow at it at first, wondering what would possess him to give her something so unusual, but then a memory hit her, causing her to need to catch her breath.
They'd just been talking, but talking of course led to some really fantastic kissing. But during that kissing, the little purple ribbon she'd tied onto her ponytail that morning came undone, falling into the hands of Will that were wrapped in her hair. He grinned at her, pulling away and telling her he'd very much like to keep it as a reminder of her, and she told him to take it.
She scrunched the ribbon in her fist and jumped up from the couch, running up the stairs to hide the tears that began to fall from her eyes.
'I guess it's going to take longer to get over you than I thought.'
Xxx…xxX
Some ten or twenty minutes later, Lily really wasn't in the mood for counting, a knock had come at the front door, and she returned downstairs to answer it. She paused to wipe away any tears that might be left on her cheek and blinked her eyes a few times, hoping the puffy redness would fade enough by the time she would be seen.
She took a deep breath and pulled open the door, smiling convincingly. "Hi, Oliver!"
She watched him take one look at her and raise an eyebrow. "Lily," he stepped inside, pulling the door shut behind him. "have you been crying?" He placed a gloved hand on the back of her neck and gently kissed her forehead, comfortingly, then pulled back again to look questioningly at her.
"Yeah," she mumbled, letting her head drop so she was watching her feet. She couldn't lie to him. "But don't worry about it, okay?" He nodded and followed her up the stairs.
Once they'd entered her bedroom, Lily shamelessly shut the door. No one was around, but it felt nice to have the privacy of her cozy blue and green room. "Take your coat off," she laughed, pointing at his still winter-clad self. "My room is warm."
"I noticed," he grinned, unzipping and pulling it off. She watched him look in either direction, a bit confused as to where to set it now.
"Just put it anywhere," she shrugged. "I don't care. You won't mess anything up," she told him, turning away and walking in her sock feet to the far corner.
He mumbled some agreement and followed her. As she fumbled with the CD player on the opposite side of her bed, she felt him standing very close behind her. "What are you doing?" he asked. Had his voice always been so deep?
She pressed a button dramatically and spun to meet him. Yes, he was standing very close to her. They were almost touching now. "I feel like dancing, Oliver," she grinned. "Tough times. I wanna let loose." Her words were honest, and she pushed him back away from her so she could center herself in the middle of her bedroom.
She knew he was laughing at her, but, feeling the way she did, she just really didn't care. Something about the moment told her it was time for some childish fun. Just for a few minutes, anyway. The music started on a strong beat, probably a little louder than it should have been, and the room was filled with the bright sounds of an old rock classic with an uptempo beat.
Oliver moved to sit on the corner of her bed. She realized she'd put him in a very uncomfortable situation, but didn't really seem to mind. She began swaying her hips with the music, jumping around excitedly and mouthing the words. "Come on!" she pointed at Oliver. "Dance with me!" He shook his head, holding his mouth shut, tight with a tiny grin.
She continued her dance alone, pumping her arms up in the air and spinning in circles when she felt like it. "I remember this song," Oliver said suddenly, and she twisted in her moving to face him. "We used to listen to it in fourth grade." She nodded excitedly at him, thrilled that he had caught on, remembering. He sat silently for another moment, waiting for that final moment of realization. "And we choreographed it!" He stood suddenly, and she giggled.
He held out his hand to her jittery form. "What?" she asked between mouthed verses.
He pulsed his hand. "Do you remember the moves?" She let her jaw drop, shaking her head. That was eight years ago. Of course she didn't remember the moves, but she took his hand anyway just for the fun of it. "Follow me," he said.
The chorus began again, and she felt herself being spun into him, on the beat, and back out again off it. Before she realized it, she was happily watching him, moving with him to the dance they'd made up so long ago, and slowly it came back to her. She felt herself box-stepping while receiving gleeful grins from Oliver's half of the room. It occurred to her then that the next move was a dangerous feat they'd created as a challenge to themselves, but that they'd never been able to perfect. If she could do it now, the song would end in time with them and their famous crowd-pleaser.
He looked at her, remembering too the finale, nodding enthusiastically. She giggled again, starting her run towards him with only seconds of the song left. He held out his arms to catch her, and holding her breath, she jumped. She wrapped her legs around his waist, facing him, and he caught her gracefully and rested his hands on her back, spinning them twice in rhythm while she held his shoulders. One the final beat, she dropped her hands and let her torso fall backwards so they were both smiling outwards to the should-be audience. After-song silence followed where Lily imagined a standing ovation for their talents.
The CD flipped to the next song, and Oliver, with his arms holding her dangerously low on her back, pulled her upwards to face level. She pulled him into a tight hug, laughing hysterically. "I can't believe we did that," she breathed.
She felt his body vibrate below her as he spoke. "I can't believe we remembered it. God Lils," he said, pulling his arms around her waist, holding her to him while she was still wrapped firmly around him, "We even pulled off the finale."
She pulled away to look at him. "First time for everything, but it helps that you're a good eight inches taller than me and a good deal stronger now," she grinned.
"Yeah," he sighed proudly, "I am pretty fantastic." Lily felt him walking beneath her. "But it might also have something to do with the fact that you're absolutely tiny," he proclaimed, throwing her playfully back on the bed. She felt her back hit the comforter softly, breaking her fall. She looked up to find Oliver climbing on top of her, holding himself above her valiantly while she squirmed.
"You're crazy, Oliver," she pushed him off herself and readjusted so she was lying on her side with him behind her. "Besides. I'm 5' 3". That's not tiny."
He huffed and she felt her hair tickle her neck from the air he blew. "Well, compared to my massive manly form, it is. Besides, you're so skinny." She felt hands on her waist, her ribcage, dancing in an attempt to tickle her. But she held strong.
"Am not!" she teased, wiggling lightly at his touch. But he scooted closer behind her so she was pressed into him. He was determined to prove a point.
"Look," he whispered into her ear that was suddenly not-so-uncomfortably close to him. "I can fit one arm completely around your waist." She felt him wrap his arms around her middle firmly and pull her in tight to him.
They lay like that for a number of seconds until the song that was playing switched again to something soft that she didn't recognize. Or maybe she was just distracted. Then, without warning, his arms were removed quickly from her now chilly body. "Oliver," she giggled, "what is it?" She closed her eyes and smiled at their previous position. She mentally willed his arms to return.
"Lily," his words were soft against her cheek, "Am I allowed to touch you?"
'What a weird question,' she thought, scooting her hips backwards a bit to meet his in an attempt to tempt him into bringing himself closer to her again. "Of course you can touch me. You're my best friend."
He exhaled slowly, loudly. "Lily, there is nothing friendly about the way your body looks to me right now." His words were blunt.
Her eyes shot open and her muscles clenched involuntarily. For a moment she wondered whether or not she should let him do it, whether or not she was old enough to have those kinds of thoughts and feelings, but threw the patience away. 'Hell, I'm eighteen. If a boy I can't stop thinking about wants to wrap himself around me, I'll be damned if something stops him.' She knew he couldn't see her when she did it, but she batted her eyelashes just for the effect. "How does my body look to you right now?" she spoke seductively. If she was going to do this, she was going to have fun.
His breath was hot. "Tempting." The consonants were strong and lovely on his tongue. "Radiant." She felt his warm fingers glide along her arm, giving her goose bumps. Why had she never realized how hot his body was in comparison to hers? He bent in unbearably close, placing a strong hand on her leg and pulling it back to meet his. "And completely vulnerable."
Were she not lying on her bed, she probably would have swooned at the sex that dripped from his voice. She wanted nothing more at that moment than to just lie there and let his hands rest on her body. She turned in his arms so their fronts were pressed tightly together. "Hold me," she breathed, looking him pleadingly in the eyes.
The corner of his mouth turned up, and she could almost feel the hormones rushing through her veins. "I won't do it," he said, and pulled away.
She gaped. 'What? I just told an eighteen-year-old boy he had my permission to hold my body close to his, and he's rejecting it?' She watched him sit up and turn until his feet dangled off the edge of the bed. He faced away from her and just sat. "Oliver?" She questioned lightly.
"You can't do this to me, Lily," he spun around to look at her. His eyes were filled with nothing but intense pain and longing. "You can't just lead me on and make me want you more than anything. I'm not going to screw around if I can't have you for real, Lily." His words were harsh and deliberate.
"Oliver," she tried to cut in, "I want—"
"You don't know what you want." He stood from the bed and began pacing heavily over the rug. "I'll wait forever for you, Lils, but I'm not getting in Will's way. It's just a path I don't want to go down."
"But," she began, sitting up on the bed and crossing her legs. She felt positively miniscule. "Oliver," she breathed. "I broke up with Will."
She saw his shoulders relax and his head drop, but when he turned around to face her, it wasn't relief in his expression, but defeat. "Now Will Giordano isn't even good enough for you?"
What? Why didn't he understand? "No, Oliver. It's nothing like that," she stood to meet him.
"It isn't?" he scoffed. "So you broke up with him because he's moving?"
"No," she admitted, trying to speak, but he beat her to it.
"So you're going to be too busy with photography?" He raised an eyebrow, willing her to say yes.
"It's not like that, Oliver!" She hadn't meant to shout, but why wouldn't he listen to her?
"So what is it, then?" He raised his voice and stood tall above her. It would have been intimidating if she weren't so preoccupied with getting him to understand. "The boy is just about perfect, Lily. I thought I'd never be able to be as good for you as him, but what the hell is good enough for you? I'm willing to try everything here." He looked so overcome. All she wanted was to let him know the real reason, to relieve his worry.
"Oliver," she pleaded, but he cut her off again.
"You know what, never mind. I don't want to know why. It's just going to depress me more," he said, turning and trudging from her bedroom, slamming the door as he went.
Lily sat down on the bed and pulled her knees to her chest. She'd cried all too much recently, but she just couldn't seem to help it anymore. When she heard the distinct sound of his car pulling out of her driveway and speeding down the street, she whispered to herself, "I left him for you, Oliver. Why don't you understand?"
A/N: That was sure eventful. Oliver's a nutcase. But don't worry, he'll come around eventually. I think I'm going to need at least three more chapters, maybe four. I have a few things to sort through, but then we'll be at the end. Are you sad? Relieved? Or just anxious for the fluffy Loliver stuff? In the mean time, stop reading this note and review. The more you type, the less time you'll have to wait afterwards for Chapter Nine. Haha, love to my readers! XxRunThroughIt
