Finn forgot how to breathe for a moment when he saw Alannah walk into the party. He hadn't seen her since they broke up a year ago and she looked better than ever. Her long, platinum blonde hair had gotten even longer, and her sky blue eyes were bright and beautiful. She wore a long, white, form fitting dress and a pair of white strappy sandals with heels. The angel she had always been to him was back even brighter than before.
He had left her when she was at her lowest. Her twin brother lost the fight against cancer and it sent her into a depression. She wasn't the fun and beautiful woman he had fallen in love with. Everyday was a struggle to even get her out of bed, and she refused to shower most days. He couldn't handle the angel of his heart having turned into this filthy, dirty thing so he left her.
He knew how everyone would look down on him for leaving her when she needed him the most so he spun a false story about how she left him. She was drowning in her own depression so she never reached out to anyone to set the record straight. People believed him and felt sorry for him. Most of their friends cut contact with her but someone had invited her tonight.
"The angel of my heart," he whispered.
He had to speak to her. She was still the most beautiful woman to him. She was clearly in a better place so maybe there was a chance for them to find their way back to each other. He took a deep breath and walked over to her. Her back was turned towards him while she picked up a glass of champagne.
"Alannah," he said.
She turned around and those sky blue eyes sucked him right back in. It didn't make it any less difficult that she gave him a cute, little smile. She actually seemed happy to see him.
"Angel," he said.
"No one's called me that in ages," she said.
"No one should. It's my name for you," he said.
He twisted a sideways smirk and she let out a little giggle. His heart jumped in joy. He was back in. He could feel it. The woman in front of him was just as happy to see him as he was to see her.
"I missed you," he said.
"I missed you too," she said.
She turned around and grabbed another glass of champagne. She handed it to him and held up her own glass.
"A toast to happy days in the past," she said. "And the future."
He looked at her with hopeful eyes and she winked at him. That wink said all the words she couldn't say out loud but he knew exactly what she meant.
"A toast to lovers reunited," he said.
She giggled again and took a sip of the champagne. He took a step closer and placed a hand on her hip.
"I know we haven't seen each other in a long time but all I wanna do right now is kiss you," he said.
"Not here," she said.
She moved her eyes to all the people in the room that knew them. He understood where she was coming from. Their first kiss in a year shouldn't be done in front of all these people. It was something they needed to do in private. Tonight should only be about them.
"Do you wanna go somewhere more quiet to talk?" He asked.
"Sure," she said.
He took her hand and pulled her through the sea of people. They found a stairway leading to the first floor and walked up there. The music and voices still reached them but there weren't many people up there.
"I love old castles like this," she said.
"I remember," he said.
"I always love when rich people throw parties places like this. It gives me a chance to sneak off and take it all in," she said.
"I remember that too," he chuckled. "Remember my uncle's birthday where we ended up having sex in one of the rooms they forgot to lock?"
"Finn!" She laughed.
He smiled at the sound of her laughter. He really had missed her, and each passing second reminded him of how much he had fucked up.
"It's one of my favorite memories to keep me warm on lonely nights," she said.
She winked at him and opened a glass door to her right. It led out to an empty balcony. He followed her out there and closed the door after him. He grabbed her and leaned in for a kiss but she stepped out of his arms. She walked over to the railing, placed her hands on it, and let out a deep sigh.
"What is it?" He asked.
"Nothing," she said lowly.
"I thought you wanted to kiss me too," he said.
"I do," she said.
She turned her head and looked at him. He could see all the unasked questions in her eyes. He stepped over to her and placed a hand on top of hers.
"It's not just tonight," he assured her. "I never got over you. Us breaking up was a mistake. I want us to start over. It was always meant to be us."
"I want that too," she said.
He leaned in for a kiss but again she turned her head to avoid it.
"Angel," he squeezed her hand. "Please, talk to me. Tell me what to do here."
"I need to hear you say it," she said.
"Say what?" He asked.
"The truth," she looked at him. "I want you to say it was never really me."
They stared at each other for five long seconds. He knew what she wanted to hear but he had never spoken the truth out loud. He had lied to everyone and painted her as the bad guy. Something she had never corrected. She had just allowed him to walk all over her. She deserved an apology but it was hard to give. He had lived this lie for a year now. He never thought she would walk back into his life like she had done tonight. Dressed in that long, white dress that had always been his favorite on her. She was the angel of his heart and he was about to lose her if he didn't speak up.
"I guess you didn't actually mean it when you said you wanted us to get back together," she said.
"I do," he sighed. "But can't we just let sleeping dogs lie?"
She shook her head and turned around. He watched her walk over to the glass door and he knew it was now or never if he didn't want to lose her forever. There wouldn't be another chance after tonight.
"I fucked up!" He said loudly.
She turned around and looked at him. He ran a hand down his face and swallowed his pride.
"I fucked up deeply," he said. "Your brother died and I was too selfish to be there for you when you needed me. I left you to fight your own way out of your depression, and like the piece of shit I am, I told everyone that you left me so I wouldn't have to face any repercussions. You lost friends because of me, and you lost me. It wasn't fair to you."
"And now that you see I'm better, you think we can forget about the past and start over?" She asked.
"Yes!" He said frustrated. "We've both changed and grown over the last year. You look amazing, Alannah. I'm still me. I'm still the man you fell in love with. Give me another chance and I promise you won't regret it."
He walked over to her and grabbed her face.
"I love you. I've always loved you," he said.
"Why do liars always say the most beautiful words?" She asked.
"Angel," he laughed. "I'm gonna kiss you now."
He slowly leaned in for a kiss while watching the smile on her face. The smile faded when he was inches away and the look in her eyes turned cold.
"What the fuck are you doing?" She asked.
He moved his head back and searched for an answer in her eyes. He wanted to hear her start laughing but there was a cold look on top of her beauty. He suddenly felt uneasy.
"I thought..." He started.
"I don't care what you thought. You thought wrong," she said.
She opened the glass door and stepped back into the hallway. She walked down the long hallway back towards the staircase. He chased after her and realized he couldn't hear any music or voices anymore.
"Alannah, wait!" He pleaded.
She walked down the stairs and he followed two steps behind her. Everyone was staring at them and he saw a lot of angry eyes focusing on him.
"What's going on?" He asked.
Someone hit play and his own voice sounded through the speakers. The words he had just said on the balcony was being played for all to hear. His confession about leaving her and lying to everyone. He looked at Alannah and she pulled a hidden microphone up from her dress.
"You... You..." He stuttered.
"Yeah, I did," she twisted a sideways smile. "Rhea reached out to hear my side and she and some of the others came through for me when I needed it the most. They were there when you weren't. They believed me but I still needed to hear you say it so we planned Rhea's birthday here. No one but them was ever going to believe the truth unless it came directly from your mouth. I know some people in this room are very ashamed right now and I have no room for them in my life again but at least they know the truth now."
He looked around and realized he was about to lose all his friends because of what he did.
"It was a joke," he tried. "You guys know I was joking when I said that, right? She left me. I swear she was the one who left me."
"Stop it. You're embarrassing yourself," she said.
He looked at her again and felt utterly betrayed. He did love her. He hadn't lied about that part. He thought once he left her that he could easily move on but she wasn't one he could forget about. She had been in his heart this entire year.
"Angel, please!" He pleaded. "We can still work this out. I just couldn't handle your depression. You can't hold that against me. Now that you're back to normal, we can start over. I love you and I know you love me."
"I stopped loving you a year ago," she said.
"No!" He raised his voice. "I refuse to believe that."
"I don't care what you believe. This conversation is over. I suggest you leave this party before someone decides to throw you out," she said.
Alannah walked back to where Finn had first spotted her. Rhea was standing there with two glasses of champagne. Rhea handed one of the glasses to Alannah and they stood side by side watching him while sipping their champagne. Finn heard someone clear his throat and turned his head to see Damian standing there with his arms crossed.
"You got one minute to leave with your body intact," Damian said.
Finn swallowed nervously and took one last look around. No one was on his side. He turned around and hurried out of the building before anyone would hurt him. He ran through the courtyard and stopped to catch his breath down by the metal gate. He turned and looked back at the castle. No one was following him outside. It was like they had already forgotten all about him. He was no longer welcome among the people he had called his friends for years.