Page 50 of Still Love You

"Okay, thanks." I walk past Martin and race up the stairs to Silas' room. I knock on his door. "Silas? It's me."

I hear him set something down, then wait as he walks to the door. He opens it and gives me that famous Silas smile. "Hey."

I put my arms around him and hug him, my head plastered against his chest as I give him a tight squeeze. He probably thinks I've lost my mind but it was my first instinct when I saw him.

"Willow, are you okay?"

"Yeah." I stop squeezing him but keep my arms around him. "I just needed to do this."

"Um, all right." He's hugging me back and it feels like heaven. A warm, sweet, heavenly place that I never want to leave. I inhale his scent, that perfect mix of Silas and the cologne he always wears. It's the cologne I picked out for him when we were dating.

"Do you want to sit down?" he asks.

I let him go. "I didn't come here to talk."

His eyebrows rise, suggestively.

"No!" I put my hand up. "I didn't mean I came here for that. I meant that I didn't come here to talk about last night or what it means. Because honestly, I don't know what it means, and until I do, I don't want to talk about it."

"I think we need to."

"I agree, but I'm not ready to. So for now, can we just go back to being friends?" I take his hand, glancing down at it. "I miss you Silas. Just one day without you and I missed you. Really bad. I don't know what that means. I just know that I had to see you. That's why I'm here."

He lifts my chin up. "I'm glad you're here. I missed you too."

My eyes dart to the side and I see the accounting book on his bed. "I didn't know you were studying. I should leave."

"I'm done for the night. Why don't we watch TV?" He gets the remote and turns the TV on, then sits on his bed, leaning up against the headboard. I'm standing by the bed, staring at it. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know if we should be on a bed together."

He chuckles. "Am I that tempting?"

"Honestly? Yes. Especially after last night."

"Come on." He pats the area next to him. "I promise to keep my hands to myself." He smiles. "Or at least above your waist."

I climb over him and into his waiting arms. He hugs me. "I love—" He stops himself.

"It's fine. You can say it. We love each other as friends, right?"

He pulls back. "I don't know. Do you love me as a friend?"

"You know I do." I hug him again, then whisper, "More than that." I don't know if he heard me, but I hope he did because I'm still too much of a coward to come out and tell him how much I love him.

I snuggle under his arm, getting comfortable.

He hands me the remote. "I didn't watch TV when I was overseas so I don't know what any of the current shows are. You'll have to pick."

I flip through the channels, landing on a movie I've never seen. I watch a few minutes of it but it's boring so I turn my attention back to Silas. "So have you been studying all night?"

"No. I met Trent at the park for some basketball, then we went out for a burger. Don't tell my mom. She's been on my case about eating too much meat. She's trying to get me back on her vegan diet."

"I'm surprised Trent wasn't out with Haley."

"That's over. He broke up with her last night."

"They hadn't even dated two weeks."

---