Author Note: So! Final chapter, I can't believe it! I really hope you enjoyed the story, please remember to review and let me know what you think about it. I probably won't be writing for a while, but we'll see. It depends whether I am particularly inspired by an idea. Anyway, please review, and thanks for reading my fiction.
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Ding-dong.
Once again, Summer was standing in the pouring rain in front of Freddy's house, trying to find shelter on the front porch while waiting for him to open. Not only she had been robbed of her precious books, but now she had to get soaked to get them back. How marvelous. The sensation of deja-vu was even more irritating, making her feel like, despite everything that had happened, she was back to square one, as if she had just surrendered to Freddy's fake pleas once again. And she could not stand the thought of committing the same mistake that had led to so much stress and wasted time, that had made her feel used and stupid and naïve. She pushed those thoughts away, shaking her head and ringing the bell again. Finally, the door opened and Freddy greeted her with a warm smile.
"Hey, Sum," he said too optimistically.
Summer fought the urge of punching him and simply glared at him. "Books," She ordered, determined to make this as short as possible.
Freddy's smile fell, but he still replied cheerfully, as if his good moods could be contagious. "Sure, come on in."
Unwillingly, she entered the familiar hall, while Freddy rapidly walked up the stairs to get her belongings. She decided to wait, standing stiff beside the door, ready to leave for good. Freddy returned surprisingly quickly, carrying an impressively tall stack of books and notebooks, which Summer deliberately decided not to help with. She waited for him to finish stomping down the staircase and reach her, only then she motioned to take them.
"Want help carrying them?" Freddy offered, kindly.
"No," was Summer's sharp reply as she seized the stack. Inevitably, her hands brushed Freddy's sending sparks of electricity through both their bodies. She ignored it and tried to balance the books, failing miserably and making the fall on the white marble floor.
"Damn," she muttered, getting on her knees and starting to get everything back together. Freddy knelt beside her and tried to help, setting the books and papers on a small table next to the door. Summer glared at him, trying to avoid any hand contact, hating him for making her feel clumsy and stupid. She just wanted to get out of there and forget Freddy Jones ever existed. Once again she tried to get the pile, wavering under its weight. Without asking, Freddy took most of the books from the top and opened the door.
"I don't need your help!" Summer snapped at him, trying to get back the rest of the books.
Freddy looked at her surprised and slightly offended. "Excuse me?"
"What are you trying to do? Make me feel even more foolish? Do you think I can't handle carrying my own books?" She yelled. All her anger and frustration that she had kept bottled up was exploding like a tornado that threatened to destroy everything on its path.
"Sum, I'm trying to help." Freddy's voice, meant to be calm, came out cold as ice.
Summer let the books fall back on the table. "Stop calling me Sum, and Tink, and Sally, and whatever else! Do you assume that your 'help' will fix everything? Do you really think I can forget so easily?"
Freddy dropped his stack of books too and leaned towards Summer, with a challenging expression. "What should you forget?"
"That you lied to me! That you-" She started shouting at him, but Freddy interrupted, his voice louder, annihilating hers.
"I didn't lie to you! My god, Summer, you know I didn't!" He yelled in exasperation.
"You said you were failing all your classes! You said you needed at least a C! How is that not lying?" She yelled back, furious.
"Are you joking? My highest grade was a D minus!" He was incredulous at her accuses.
"Right, and five days later you got a B! How is that possible?" Summer snapped back.
"Maybe I'm a quick learner, or you are a good tutor. But I did not lie!"
Summer's rage grew with his denials. "Yes, you did! You never told me your grades got better!" She yelled.
"You never asked!" He replied in the same volume.
She shot a deadly glance at his pointless remark. "You made me think I was still needed!" And she noticed that somehow she did not mean academically.
"And you were! My grades would have sunk!" Freddy made an attempt to lower his voice. "Summer, I needed your help."
She was unable to see the sincerity in his eyes. "You're lying again! You didn't, you were just playing with me! All along, it was nothing more than a waste of my time!"
"Nothing more?" Freddy asked in a low tone. "Do you really regret every moment we spent together?"
Summer was slightly taken aback, but recoiled quickly. "You lied once, how do I know you did not lie every one of those moments?" Her voice was rising dangerously. "How do I know you were not pretending or making fun of me? How can I trust you?" Freddy tried to interject but she stopped him "And you know what the worst part is? You did not even think about apologizing! You had no reason to do what you have done, no excuse and you did not even say sorry, I can't bel-"
Her words died. In an instant, Freddy had closed the distance between them, kissing her fully on the mouth, still opened in mid-sentence. His hands were holding her face, partly because of fear she would flinch away as soon as he touched her, partly because of the physical need he had to feel her close to him. In the briefest of moments, he kissed her with mind-blowing passion, his lips moving with expert ardor over hers, clearing her mind of any thought, erasing any bitter feeling from her heart. He stunned her, gave her no time to react.
And then, suddenly, it was over. His hands released her burning cheeks, his mouth abandoned her sweet crimson lips, he stepped back, expecting the worst.
It never came. A million questions were crowding Summer's mind, but in their race to her mouth they choked her voice and none of them was spoken.
Looking straight into Summer's confused eyes, Freddy explained. "That's my reason. I couldn't apologize because I'm not sorry for what I've done. Yes, I robbed you of your time, but I did not waste it, and even if you're mad at me you should admit that much. If I had the chance of doing it again, I would, and I still wouldn't be sorry, because each single second I spent with you was worth all of this. I know it's selfish, but I couldn't help it. Having you around was so… amazing, I could not let you go that soon. On the other hand, I could not fail, so I improved my grades, even if I knew it was a risk. Sum, I know what I did to you was terrible, and I understand that your trust in me is gone forever, but try to comprehend that I had a reason, indeed. I became addicted to your presence so quickly it was unbelievable even for me. And yet, I could not bear the thought of everything going back to the way it was, I needed some time to get closer to you. I know that it should have been your choice and not mine, but I was afraid you would have chosen not to stay, and I could not risk losing you. I hope you will be able to forgive me, someday."
Summer was astonished. "You did all of this… because you like me?"
Freddy laughed lightly and somewhat bitterly to himself, anticipating her angry reaction. "Actually, I think I'm in love with you, Tink." He said, his eyes on the ground.
Summer instinctively leaped forward, wrapping her arms around Freddy's neck. Standing on tiptoe, she reached for his lips, kissing him softly and timidly for only a second. She pulled away and looked at him shyly.
"I think I am in love with you too," she whispered, blushing.
Freddy smiled and then leaned over her, kissing her again. His hands ran to her body, one positioning on the small of her back, the other tangling in her hair, both ardently pulling Summer into the kiss. All the tension, all the electricity that had been in the air between them for the past few months was finally released, transformed into a passion that seemed to be a thousand times stronger than before as their lips locked together and moved with eagerness and fervor. Freddy's lips trailed away from Summer's, leaving a path of kisses on her ivory neck. She gasped softly as a shiver ran down her spine, while her fingers locked into his blond hair. As Freddy's ardent lips reached the base of her neck, Summer felt her knees becoming weak and giving way. Searching for support behind her, she backed into the table where her books were and stumbled on it. The volumes fell nosily to the ground and Summer tripped over them, ending up on the floor, dragging Freddy down at her side. They both burst out laughing, Summer reddening at her clumsiness, Freddy still elated at how things had turned out.
When the laughter eventually faded, Summer curled up next to Freddy, closing her eyes.
"Thanks for wasting my time, Freddy Jones." She whispered against his shoulder.
Freddy smiled.
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