The Girl in the White Dress

by BritishObsessed

Their journey began as strangers on vacation and after being separated, they met again when he became her teacher and she was his student and from there their relationship flourished into something beautiful. Now it's 12 years later and they're not speaking to each other but through a little literary creation they may be able to find the love again and become stronger than ever.

3. Can You Tell?

Chapter 3: Can You Tell?

Here we are we chapter 3. This one won't take place where I left off with chapter 2 but I promise I will get back to that later. Anyway, enjoy!

Oh, have I been too discreet?
How long am I supposed to wait?
I think about you nightly
Oh, can you tell I'm losing sleep? Oh, what am I supposed to do?
It's hard to stay cool
Oh, when you smile at me
And I get nervous every time you speak

—Can You Tell by Ra Ra Riot

Olivia found herself lying awake at night, thinking about him—his smile, his great wavy chocolate curls, those stormy blue eyes, the way he made her feel all warm inside just at the sight of him, the way he seemed to look out for her, the way he made her feel like she was the most important girl in the room just by how he looked at her. He gave her the feeling of belonging and satisfaction that she had been craving for so long. He made her feel alive. He was perfect to her but probably not for her. For one, he was too old for her. He looked somewhere around 23-25 years old and maybe that would be fine if she was eighteen and already in college but she was still 17 and a beginning senior in high school—no one would take them seriously. There was also the possibility that they would never see each other ever again after Hawaii so she would hate to get too attached to him. And besides, even if they did see each other again and a relationship between them could be appropriate, it wouldn't work because he only liked the sarcastic, snarky, tough chick side of her—he didn't know the real, troubled, broken, and pathetic side and she knew that as soon as he saw it, he would run in the other direction. She releases a long, frustrated sigh and flips over onto her side, wishing that life wasn't always so hard and unfair.

IiIiIiIiIiIiI

Early the next morning before her brothers, her Dad, or Rebecca wake up, Olivia dresses in some shorts, a sports bra, and a light jacket along with her Nike's and iPod and sets out for a morning run. Hawaii hadn't stopped her from continuing her daily runs and this way she got to jog right by the ocean. Besides, a run was just what she needed to clear her head and try to push these thoughts about Blue-eyed McDreamy away.

The first twenty minutes of her workout are great—the sun is a little ways above the horizon, the breeze by the shore is just right, and the ocean air gives the most fulfilling feeling to her lungs. She smiles to herself but the grin is wiped off of her face as soon as she glances to her right and sees none other than Blue-eyed McDreamy running in pace with her.

"What the—!" She puts the brakes on and after jogging a little ways, he stops also, looking back at her.

She rips her earbuds out with the music still playing and exclaims, "What are you doing here?" She wouldn't have been as freaked out if some stranger had spooked her, especially since she wasn't the only one running by the shore, but the fact that the person just so happened to be the same guy who had been weaving his way in and out of her thoughts since the day they met and especially after their almost-kiss, she was even more on edge.

He gives her a crooked smile. "Hi. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I was trying to actually do the opposite but…I guess I failed."

She looks back at him, taking in the sight of his damp chocolate curls sticking to his sweaty forehead and the size of his well-toned arms in a shirt that was messily cut into a muscle shirt. She never thought that sweat could look so sexy as she stares at it glistening off of his muscular physique, making him look even more divine. She tears her eyes away from him so that her mind can at least formulate a coherent thought.

"Um, it's okay…" She tells him absentmindedly.

He smiles again but an uncertain look comes over his face as he reaches behind his head and rubs the nape of his neck, a movement that makes Olivia bite her lip in desire. "I also just wanted to say that I'm sorry for last night. I was…out of line and I shouldn't have taken advantage of our position like that."

Olivia thinks over his words, knowing that she should just accept his apology and say goodbye for good, but for some odd reason she doesn't want to. When she was around him, he didn't make her feel like some other ordinary chick, with him she felt magic. She felt such a deep level of contentment but at the same time having such a quick connection with someone scared her, which is why she hadn't allowed their lips to connect the night before. But it seemed that every time she ran into him, she was becoming more and more comfortable around him and even though currently the air around them was awkward, she felt the strange desire to stay. It's not like I'm going to see him ever again once this trip is over—might as well get the most out of it, she rationalizes.

She smirks. "Yeah, well, it wasn't a big deal. It was just the alcohol."

"Except I wasn't drinking any alcohol, well, at least not until after you left."

"Right…you're trying to be a good role model towards me or something," she says mockingly.

"Yeah, something like that," he says, chuckling nervously. "So, does this mean we're okay?" He looks up her cautiously with a hopeful gleam in his eyes that makes her heart melt because no guy has ever acted so sweetly timid way towards her.

She smiles and says genuinely, "Yeah, we're cool."

He flashes her his award-winning grin and to keep the air from getting uncomfortable again, she asks, "So, do you want to jog together? I still have about a mile left."

He nods. "I think I still have a mile left in me."

And they take off together. Over the course of the next two days, Olivia finds her spending a large amount of time with Blue-eyed McDreamy. They start out each day by running by the beach and then having breakfast at a nearby pastry shop that he found. After breakfast, they part their ways and go back to their hotels to shower and get dressed and agree to meet up again later when Olivia isn't being forced to do things with her family which just so happened to be the worst part of the vacation. She had tried to be optimistic, something Blue-eyed McDreamy had told her to do, but in the end she just became as miserable as she predicted she would be. Olivia's father had signed the whole family up for everything—surfing, kayaking, boating, jet skiing, fishing, windsurfing, and the most random of all, bingo—one day they did a whole two hours of freakin' bingo!

The third day, the 4th of July, after a run with Blue-eyed McDreamy, the two continue they're routine, eating breakfast at the pastry diner.

"This is the third day in a row that I've had such a sweet breakfast. You, mystery man, are not good for me," Olivia tells him as she pops a syrup-covered strawberry into her mouth.

He smiles at her name for him and says, "Come on, we deserve this breakfast. I can't believe that you run five miles daily."

"Actually, I don't," she tells him before she can stop herself. Back at home in California, she normally went three or four miles but she had decided to increase the distance because, no matter how much she tried to deny it, she really did enjoy spending time with him and she wanted to prolong their time together as much as she could. In just the few days they had spent together, Olivia had genuinely smiled more than she has in probably the last year—just because of him.

"You don't?"

"Well, not really. I guess I just like the terrain here," she says nonchalantly. He nods as he cuts into his pancakes.

"Well, I hate running but I've been doing it for almost a year now."

"Why?"

He smirks mischievously at her. "Tell me what your name is first and I'll tell you," he says, winking at her.

She leans towards him. "Mmm, see, I don't deem that as a very fair trade."

"Oh, really now? You sure you don't want to learn my innermost dark secret?" He teases.

"That is so not your innermost dark secret, because if it were you wouldn't have even mentioned it. You would've tried to avoid it as much as possible in all conversation."

"Sounds like you speak from experience. Care to share?" He asks, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

She rolls her eyes. "Whatever. Are you going to eat your hash browns? I'm so hungry." She doesn't wait for his reply and goes for the hash browns since, knowing that he'll be fine with it.

He glances at her already finished plate and raises his eyebrows. "Wow, such a small body but such a large appetite."

She glares at him. "Be quiet. I'm paying, anyway, so I can eat whatever and as much as I want."

He frowns at this. "You are not paying. That wouldn't be chivalrous of me at all."

"But it wouldn't be so sexist of you either."

He gives her a look.

Olivia sighs, feeling like this has already been blown out of proportion. "Just let me pay—please. You've paid for everything else so far."

"Because I don't mind it and I want to."

"Yeah, I want to, also."

"How about we decide on this when we leave?" Olivia nods in agreement even though she knows that as soon as they're finished he's going to rush to pay but she has an idea to avoid that.

Ten minutes later, they get up and as she predicted, he hurries to the counter to pay for the food but right as he's about to whip out his wallet, she says in a worried tone, "Oh, shoot, I can't find my phone. I think I left it at the table. Could you check to see if it's there?"

"Of course." He goes to the table and after searching for a few seconds, he tells her that it's not there. Olivia smiles triumphantly after paying the lady behind the counter and goes over to him, hooking her arm through his and ushering him out of the diner. That's when he realizes that she tricked him and he vows to get her back for it later.

"So, I was thinking that we should go to the big 4th of July celebration at Kauna 'oa Beach. I heard they have the best fireworks."

She smiles. "I heard that, too, and I would love to go with you, as long as my dad isn't planning anything." As soon as she says that, her phone starts ringing. "Speaking of the devil."

He asks her where she is but since she can't come up with a good enough reason to avoid him, he tells her to get back to the hotel so that they can do some more "fun" family activities together.

"I am so tired of these family activities," she tells mystery man once she hangs up.

"I know, love, but stay positive." She chuckles at his new name for her and agrees to stay positive. They take a cab back to the hotel and after agreeing to meet in front of the entrance to the hotel at 8:30, they part ways.

IiIiIiIiIiIiI

After another day of activities with her family, Olivia is again completely exhausted and can't wait to be with Blue-eyed McDreamy in the evening. She was sure to behave and at least try and act like she was in a good mood throughout the day and her somewhat good attitude paid off because her dad let her go out for the night, as long as she was back by midnight and periodically texted him to tell him that she was okay. She starts to get ready around 6 o' clock, spending almost 45 minutes deliberating about what she should wear before she decides on an elegant, light peach romper with some matching slip-on shoes. She spends the next hour and a half on make-up and her hair, going light on the make-up and pressing her hair into loose curls a little past her shoulders. She quickly sneaks out her hotel room before her brothers can ask her too many questions or tease her and when she makes her way out to the front of the hotel at 8:30, she sees mystery man, sitting patiently.

She's somewhat surprised that he's there right on the dot and this makes her even happier to see that he cared enough to not keep her waiting. Though when she sees him in only board shorts and a white v-neck, she feels like she may have overdressed just a bit. She seriously contemplates turning back and quickly putting something even more casual on but before she can even take a step back, he glances in her direction and sprouts right up at the sight of her. He looks at her with a stunned expression as his mouth hangs open in speechlessness. Do I really look that good?

He walks up to her and stutters a bit before saying, "You look…amazing."

She can't help but blush under his gaze but she shrugs, trying to play it off. "Thanks."

Though he doesn't budge so easily. "Seriously, I am a really lucky guy tonight," he says, keeping that dazed look in his eyes.

She chuckles, looking away from him, trying to hide her nervousness away from his intense stare. "Um, are you ready to go?"

He grins confidently at her. "Definitely."

IiIiIiIiIiIiI

They walk for about ten minutes to the beach which is already filled to the brim with people camped out on the sand, towels, and blankets as they wait eagerly for the show to start. Olivia and mystery man pick a spot at the very back of the beach that isn't too crowded and he zips open his bag, whipping out a blanket. They lay the blanket down and fix themselves comfortable on top. They both lean against a nearby tree, only inches away from each other, giving Olivia an exhilarating feeling every time his knee brushes against hers.

They look up as explosions of colors fill the night sky and they both whip out their phones to take pictures and videos. "This is perfect," Olivia says, meaning every word.

"Not quite yet, actually," mystery man says with a mischievous smile. He reaches for his bag and pulls out a bag of potato chips, a veggie tray, and two bottles of Snapple.

"This night would not be complete without some good food. I also made sure to include some healthy food—it's important to eat your greens. Never forget that," he says with mock seriousness. She laughs at this and they get cracking on the food.

As they're munching, instead of looking up at the fireworks, Olivia notices Blue-eyed McDreamy looking at her. She glances at him, wondering what he's thinking as he stares at her with an expression she can't read.

"What?" she asks softly.

He smiles warmly at her and reaches towards her cheek with the same hand that he's holding a carrot in and flicks at her skin. "You had an eyelash on your cheek."

"So you took it off with a carrot?" She questions, putting her hand to her cheek because she feels something weird there and sure enough, she feels a blob of ranch.

"Hey…" she starts complaining but smirks at him. "I see what you did there."

He nods with the cutest grin. "Payback for tricking me earlier at that pastry place."

"Fine, we're even now," she says, wiping the ranch off her face.

"But really, you do have an eyelash, right…here." He swipes it off, right below her eye with his thumb, but he lets his hand linger on her skin as he looks straight into her eyes. Olivia feels a tingle on the area he's touching on her face and fights to keep her breathing even as she feels herself growing nervous again under his gaze. He lets his hand rest comfortably on her cheek, rubbing his thumb across her skin and without realizing it, Olivia nuzzles her face into his hand, giving into his touch. She feels him leaning closer to her as his eyes now begin to flicker between hers and her mouth until he finally takes the plunge.

She lets his lips crash down on hers as she stays utterly still, not knowing how to react. She feels him starting to pull back after a few seconds of her unresponsiveness but before he can she gently bites down on his lower lip, guiding him back to her. They slowly exchange sweet kisses, lightly nipping on each other's bottom lips with every back-and-forth motion. With every brush of their lips, Olivia feels that great spark that keeps her going back for more. Sure, she had been kissed before but this was different—it was so amazingly different with him. She never knew such a wonderful feeling could exist. It felt better than any of the sex she had had in her life combined. It made her feel infinite. He made her feel infinite.

They pull apart after what feels like forever but keep their faces only an inch apart so that their noses are still slightly brushing and their foreheads are leaning into each other. She feels him smile and she timidly returns the gesture.

He takes her cheeks in his hands. "You are so beautiful," he whispers against her lips. She blushes, trying to contain the fluttering in her stomach. Never in her life had she felt so much love in a such a simple statement but how could it be when she barely knew this man? She doesn't know but she doesn't care. All she wants to do is focus on the here and now.

She keeps her gaze focused on his electric blue eyes and she's again robbed of any coherent thought. The only thing she can think of is her desire for him in that moment. With no other thought in mind, she softly tells him, "Kiss me again."

He wastes no time connecting their unsatisfied mouths again, this time coming at her more aggressively, causing her to moan into his mouth as the kisses start to turn more slow and sensual and he slides his tongue out and asks for access to hers, which she immediately gives him, their tongues vigorously battling each other for dominance. She hooks her hands around his neck, creeping her fingers into his wavy hair and runs her fingers through his curls. He takes his hands off her face and positions them on her waist, pulling her closer to him, comfortably onto his lap.

They continue their make-out session until both of their mouths are sore and then they reluctantly pull apart. Olivia snuggles her face into his chest, curling more into him. After slight hesitation, he slides his arms around her, holding her even closer. She hears him whispers something unintelligible into her hair and feels him caress the edge of her hairline. She doesn't feel the awkwardness that she expected would come after their kiss but only absolute peace and happiness. In this moment, it's as if they belong like this—with her curled up against him and him holding her tightly in his arms as they gaze up at the sky and watch the fireworks exploding over the ocean.

IiIiIiIiIiIiI

They take their time strolling hand-in-hand back to the hotel, deciding to leave the beach before all the crowds did.

"So are you going to ever give me your number?" He asks her.

Olivia smirks, asking coolly, "Why do you want my number so badly?"

"Because I'm taking you out on a late picnic lunch on the beach tomorrow…if you're up for it." She smiles to herself but doesn't say anything to him, so he takes this as a 'yes'. "And…"

"And what?" She asks flirtatiously. "Just because we kissed doesn't mean you know me. We're still strangers, remember?" She tells him, still trying to play hard to get to see his reaction.

"Oh, come on…"

"You still don't even know my name," she points out.

"Because you won't tell me what it is."

"You haven't told me yours yet."

"Fitz," he says simply. "Fitzgerald is the whole name, but I go by Fitz."

"Hmm…Fitzgerald. If you don't mind me asking, who in the 21st century in America names their kid Fitzgerald?"

"First of all, I was born in 1991 so technically I'm a 20th century kid, and secondly, it's a family name. I'm the third."

Olivia chuckles at this. "So, you're Fitzgerald the third," she says in an overly-dramatic voice, making him laugh. "How grand-sounding. I like it," she says, winking at him.

"I'm glad you find my name amusing. Care to share yours?" He says, not letting her go so easily.

She deliberates for a second before saying, "I'll tell you tomorrow. At this picnic thing—I promise."

He nods satisfactorily. "I'm going to hold you to that promise. So, I was thinking about 2 o' clock for the picnic lunch. I thought that Makalawena Beach would be really nice and it's pretty close to the hotel, but if you want, I can pick you up."

"No, it's alright. I can get there on my own." It wasn't that she had a problem with him picking her up but she really just didn't want to take the chance of her dad seeing her getting into some guy's car and then not only stopping her from going with Fitz but embarrassing her in front of him. He already made her feel enough like a child. "Do you want me to bring anything?"

"Nope, just bring your beautiful self," he says with a wink. Her cheeks flush at his word choice even though she tries to hide it. Does he really think I'm beautiful?

"Um, okay. So, I'll see you tomorrow at 2," she says as they come to a stop at the west entrance to the hotel. She pauses because she's not sure how to properly say goodbye to him. Should she kiss him goodnight? Would that be appropriate? She didn't want to embarrass herself. What if that kiss back at the beach had only happened because they were sitting so close to each other and at the time it felt right? What if he didn't really—

Before she can think about it any further, his lips are on hers in an instant. The connection is light as a feather and only lasts for a few seconds but it's enough to put all of her worries and doubts to rest. He pulls back, giving her the sweetest of smiles. "Goodnight, mystery girl. Try not to fill your head with too much overthinking. You're much better without it."

He let's go of her hand and continues down the street towards the west entrance where his room is. Olivia can hardly keep herself from smiling like a fool as she watches him walk away. "Goodnight, Fitz."

IiIiIiIiIiIiI

Olivia wakes up the following morning having had the best sleep of her life. She remembers the night before and the endless dreams she had of Fitz as she slept and again wonders how one person, one stranger can have such a hold on her. She sits up in her bed and smiles, reimagining the feeling of his perfect lips against hers and the sweet taste of his mouth. She replays his words in her head when he called her 'beautiful'. She reminisces about the feeling of his strong arms around her, holding her closely to him and his wonderful scent that she will never forget.

Though, her heart and her mind struggle against each other, since her heart wants to let her fall into the abyss of love but her mind wants her to hold onto her pride and keep her armor on so that she doesn't get hurt again. She was gushing over him like some inexperienced little girl does with her first crush, but she was inexperienced. She had never even had a boyfriend before, she had just slept around a few times with some guys that she thought she liked, but in the end they turned out to be jerks and had made her feel worse about herself every time she let them use her. But she just knew that Fitz wasn't like that. He was different. They had known each other for about a week and by now, if it had been any other guy, he would've gotten her to into bed or at least tried to take her back to his hotel. But Fitz was being careful and gentle, he wasn't trying to push her into doing anything. He had treated her like a person instead of an object and had been a gentleman about everything. And he seemed to actually care for her. Who was this perfect man who had somehow wove his way into her heart?

She continues to daydream about Fitz until she gets a knock on her door.

"Hey, Liv, open the door! We need to leave! It's already 10 o' clock!" Yells a voice that sounds like her 15 year-old brother Matthew through the door.

"I'm not going anywhere with you guys, not after what happened yesterday!" She calls back, remembering an embarrassing windsurfing mishap.

"Cut the crap, Liv! Dad is already getting pissed because he thinks we're running late for the plane flight."

"Plane flight? What the hell are you talking about? We're leaving tomorrow," Olivia yells back assuredly but in her mind she feels a little doubt. They had to be leaving tomorrow—that's what their dad had said.

"Not anymore. Dad had to cut the trip a day short to handle some things at work so we are leaving now. Maybe if you had actually hung out with us on this vacation you would've known." She hears him walk away from the door but she still refuses to believe what he's saying. She gets up from her bed and opens the door to see the boys' area, which had looked like a World War II battleground just the night before turned into the spic-and-span hotel room it was before.

She watches as her oldest brother Sammy packs the last of his stuff into his suitcase and starts to wheel it out of the room. But Olivia stops him before he can exit.

"Sammy, please tell me that we're not leaving Hawaii today," she says with a pleading look in her eyes.

He just shrugs and nods. "Yeah, we are. Our flight leaves in an hour and a half. I thought you'd be happy to leave, though. You acted miserable the whole time even though Hawaii was your idea," he says indignantly and moves past her.

"What the hell?" She mutters to herself. How could they be leaving today? She couldn't leave just yet. She still had her date with Fitz that afternoon. How was she going to tell him that she couldn't make it? She had been such a dumbass for not getting his number and now she was kicking herself for it. What if she didn't get to say goodbye and she never saw him again?

She goes back into her room, switching out her pajama bottoms for some jean shorts and then rushes to the elevators, praying on her way down to the lobby that she can find him before it's too late. As soon as she reaches the bottom floor, she hurries to the check-in desk, accidentally pushing a woman out of her way.

"Excuse me," she says to the guy behind the counter. "I need to know where someone's room is in this hotel. I'm also a guest, but I just really, really need to know his room number. His name is Fitzgerald, I don't know his last name but how many 'Fitzgerald's could you really have?"

The guy with a name card that reads 'Phil' gives her a less than impressed look like he's dealt with way too many frantic guests on this job already and answers in a calm voice, "I'm sorry, ma'am but we are not allowed to disclose any of our guests personal information, including room numbers, to anyone except for the feds."

"Please!" Olivia begs. "I'm leaving for California in an hour and a half and I may never get to see him again. I need to talk to him now!"

He gives her a somewhat sympathetic look but just shrugs. "I'm sorry. I can't help you."

Olivia lets out a frustrated groan as she walks away from the counter and tries to think of another step. She remembers that she even missed their morning run. Why hadn't her phone woken her up?

She makes a last ditch effort to find him by running around the inside and outside of the hotel, searching everywhere her eyes can see but after fifteen minutes of looking, she still has no luck. She makes her way back to the lobby and collapses on one of the couches, feeling more exhausted from her worrying than the actual running around.

"Olivia, what are you doing?" She turns around to see her dad looking undeniably annoyed. "You haven't brought down any of your bags yet, what's going on?"

Olivia sighs as she gets up and mumbles, "Nothing."

Eli shakes his head dismissively at her. "I don't know what's bothering you today but you better gather your things and be back down here with your bags in the cab within the next thirty minutes. We will not be missing this flight, Olivia. Return this to the check-in desk when you're finished," he tells her, handing her the key card to the room she and her brothers shared.

"Fine," she mutters, taking the card and heading back upstairs.

They end up leaving right on time for everything. Olivia is able to pack up her stuff within the half hour, the family arrives at the airport 15 minutes later, and by 11:30 they're on a plane back to California. Olivia luckily didn't have to sit next to anyone but for extra measure, she plugs in her earbuds and turns her music up high to drown out any outside sounds and her inner worries but the music doesn't help with the latter. Poor Fitz and idiotic me. Now he was going to be waiting for her alone on the beach with a nice, romantic meal laid out for them waiting for her like some poor sap and after waiting for way too long, he'll figure that she stood him up when she wanted nothing more than to spend the whole day with him. Now it was all blown to shreds.

IiIiIiIiIiIiI

He didn't realize he had wound up at the same restaurant he and mystery girl had danced at together but by time Fitz had gotten his drink, it was too late to leave. He had poured over reason after reason as to why she didn't show up. At first when she wasn't there for their morning run, he had thought it was because she wanted to sleep in or maybe she had gotten caught up with her family but when she was still M.I.A. that afternoon, he knew something was wrong—was she okay? Had she gotten hurt? Was she not able to make it for some understandable reason? Or had she just blown him off because she knew that they never had to see each other again if she didn't want to?—He didn't know and he was tired of thinking about it. Whatever the reason, he knew that he wouldn't see her again, not at least any time soon. He had been hoping that he could at least get her number so that they could stay in touch no matter where they were but even after they had shared a kiss and planned a date she still refused to give him her number and her name, which she was supposed to reveal to him at their date. At first he had thought her playing-hard-to-getness was cute, but now he was upset at her for it and angry at himself for not pushing harder. She was the first girl in a long time that had made him feel something and the first girl overall that he had actually felt bonded to in some strange, out-of-this-world way. But now she was gone and that hollow feeling in his heart he had felt before meeting her was now magnified by ten and he didn't see it going away any time soon. All he could do was say a silent wish that he hoped would reach her. Please find me again, mystery girl, we can't be done yet.

So, what did you think of this chapter? Will Olitz find their way back to each other sooner or later? Will they be able to create a good relationship if they do see each other again? Other thoughts? Thanks for reading!