Page 107 of Fear of Intimacy

“Tasha?” Following the sound of my name, I walked around a corner just as Trevor appeared. He was still clad in his hockey uniform, even his skates, as he held a cloth to his eye. As soon as he saw me, his hand dropped in surprise. “What are you doing here?”

“You’re hurt,” was all I said as I stepped closer to him. With his skates on, he was even taller, making me crane my neck up to look at him.

“Just a small cut.”

“What if you need stitches?”

I didn’t know why, but my hands started to shake. My mind going a million miles an hour. What if he was reallyhurt? What if he had a concussion? Where’s their damn team doctor?!

The rational part of my brain was telling me it wasn’t anything serious. It was just a small cut, but it felt like something inside of me switched. I knew hockey players got hurt a lot, hell most of the guys on the team had fake teeth, but seeing the blood on Trevor’s face evoked a foreign emotion in me.

“Babe, I’m okay.” Bringing his free hand up, he softly cupped the side of my face, drawing my focus back to him.

I leaned my cheek into his hand as I swallowed the sudden lump in my throat. It wasn’t a big deal, yet here I was, wanting to cry. What the hell was wrong with me?

“Can I…” I wasn’t even sure what I was trying to say, but Trevor gave me a small nod like he knew.

Grabbing my hand, he led us toward a room near the back. Once we stepped inside, I noticed it looked like a doctor’s office.

“Take a seat.” I pointed to the chair off to the side as I went over to the cabinets to try and find something to clean his face with. I had no problem finding a first aid kit. The cabinets were stocked full of anything you could possibly need. Grabbing some alcohol wipes, I walked over to Trevor, who was sitting like I asked.

“Let’s see it,” I whispered. When he pulled the rag away, I winced at the cut above his eyebrow. While it looked like it hurt, it didn’t look deep enough for stitches, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t getting the doctor in here to check later.

Standing between his legs, I ripped open an alcohol pad.

“This might hurt,” I warned. Trevor didn’t say a word as I started wiping at the cut. His hands landed on my hips as I cleaned his face. Every once in a while, he would squeeze if I got too close to the cut, but he didn’t make a sound, keeping those eyes on me the entire time.

With gentle swipes, I cleaned the blood on his cheek. My free hand gently held the side of his face to keep it still as I worked.

Neither of us said a word, but I didn’t mind. I had this unfamiliar swirling in my chest, and I wasn’t sure what to make of it. When I looked into his eyes, that feeling grew until I was almost consumed by it.

“What are you thinking about?” Trevor whispered. His fingers slid under my shirt to softly rub my bare skin. The wipe in my hand fell to the ground as I brought both my hands up to tangle themselves in his hair.

I should have been grossed out by how sweaty he was, but as I gazed down into those eyes that became more and more familiar to me, I didn’t care. A million thoughts were running through my head as I pushed his hair back, but one thing stood out the most.

It was right then I realized what it was.

Love.

Somehow, in a matter of weeks, I fell in love with Trevor Hall.

From every small action.

From every smile meant just for me.

From every time he showed up for me the last few weeks.

Trevor came in and completely obliterated the walls I had built around myself. For the first time in my life, I felt seen. Not just the good parts of myself, but the deep, ugly, broken parts. Somehow, Trevor saw that and stayed.

I expected to freak out at the realization but standing there, staring down at Trevor, I wasn’t scared. How could I be? The man looked at me like I was the best thing to ever happen to him.

Mr. Waltham’s words echoed in my head. Even he knew I was in love with Trevor before I could admit it to myself.

“Trevor.” My voice came out shaky.

“Sunshine.”

I had to tell him. It might not have been the right setting, and maybe I should have waited until we were home, but I had to say the words. Had to let him know how I felt about him.

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