Page 110 of Chasing Infinity

Charlie laughs under his breath. “I’ll get over it, and I’ll make sure Eli gets over it. Based on how he was looking at you tonight, there’s definitely something there. You know a side of Noah that I’ve never seen before, and if you think he’s worth your time and love, then I believe you.”

Love.

Do I love Noah?

I shake that thought away as quickly as it comes. There’s no way. I just like him. I like being in his presence and hanging out with him. That’s it.

Right?

Even as I try to rationalize it for the rest of the ride, I know I’m wrong. Noah is more than just a fling. If there’s anything that I can say with one hundred percent certainty, I’ve been falling for him just as long as he’s been falling for me. I just haven’t realized it until now.

As Charlie pulls up to my house, thunder starts rolling in the distance. I lean over and give him a one-armed hug. “Thank you, Charlie.”

He hugs me back, squeezing me tightly to him before letting go. “You know I’m always on your side, Addie. Always.”

“Thanks,” I say again and then get out of his car. As I walk towards my front door, I feel a few sprinkles fall out of the sky and land on my shoulders. I manage to make it inside before the sky completely opens up.

I shout a quick hello to my parents sitting in the living room. I hear the TV going, so they must be watching one of their shows together. They yell something back as I bound up the stairs and to my bedroom.

First, I unzip the gorgeous emerald dress and slide it down my body. It pools into a satin puddle on the floor as I step out. After removing my gold jewelry, I get into the shower, washing away all of the makeup and hairspray, holding my hair into its coiffed style. It’s bittersweet watching the makeup disappear, and my hair revert to its normal style. Tonight was supposed to be perfect, and while I had a perfect moment with Noah, I wish I had gotten more.

Maybe I should’ve told Eli I didn’t want to go with him. It would’ve hurt his feelings, but he didn’t end up spending the evening with me anyway, so I’m sure he would’ve gotten over it. Instead, I put myself second as I usually do and ended up last. After the revelation I had dancing with Noah tonight, I’ll never let myself do that again.

As I shampoo and condition my hair, I let my mind wander, imagining what tonight could’ve been like if I had said yes to Noah when he asked. Part of me wonders if things needed to play out the way they did so I could experience the difference between how I felt with Noah versus not. I’m a big believer that things work out how they’re supposed to, but in hindsight, I wish I would’ve come to that realization earlier.

After I rinse my hair and wash the evening off, I dress quickly and then curl up underneath the comforter on my bed. I reach for the book on my nightstand, planning to read a chapter or two before bed. The rain is pelting against the window, thunder rumbling every few minutes.

I get a chapter in when I’m distracted by a pelting noise against my window. It doesn’t match the rhythm of the rain. Frowning, I roll out of bed and pad over to the window, pulling open the curtains. My eyebrows raise in shock when I see Noah standing on my front lawn.

“Noah!” I gasp, opening up my window so he can hear me. “What are you doing here? You’re soaked.”

“I told you I would talk to you later. Well, it’s later,” Noah responds. His hair is dripping wet, plastered to his forehead as he looks up at me in my window. He’s still got his tux on, though his tie is missing. The first few buttons of the white shirt underneath are undone.

“Go around to the backyard,” I tell him. “The gate should be unlocked, and then we can talk on the porch.”

He nods his head and then disappears into the darkness. I slide my window shut and look around my room, re-orienting myself. I glance down at my legs, realizing I need to put on a pair of pants or shorts. I’m sure Noah would love seeing me walk down there in my pink panties, but I still have a few reservations. I pull a pair of black sweatpants out of my drawer and slide them on before opening my bedroom door and tip-toeing down the stairs to the kitchen.

With a glance back in the direction of the living room, I push open the door to the back porch. Noah’s standing there, in all his sodden glory.

“Noah, you’re crazy. You’re going to get sick,” I scold, walking over to him and fumbling with the edges of his tuxedo jacket.

“I told you I wanted to talk to you about something,” he says, chuckling.

“It could have waited until tomorrow!”

“No, it couldn’t.” The edge to his tone has me glancing up at him in question.

My lips part to ask what’s going on, but he stops me.

“Addison,” he starts, catching both of my hands in his. My heart startles at the sound of my first name on his lips, and I realize I like it alot. “When I first saw you, I thought you were an absolute disaster sent to torment me.” I can’t help but laugh at the dismayed expression on his face. “And I was half right. You’ve been tormenting me from day one, though now it’s because I can’t get you out of my mind. You’ve somehow become the most important person in my life, and I can’t live without you knowing how much you mean to me.”

“Noah,” I say, squeezing his hands.

“I know over the last year, things between us have been…different. But I think that we had to go through that to come to terms with what we could be. You are everything to me, Parks, and I’ve realized there’s no point in me fighting this anymore. I’ve wanted you for a long time, and I know I’ll want you forever—until infinity. So why are we wasting time?” he asks. “Just tell me you want me back. I don’t want to wait anymore.”

“I want you too,” I whimper, stepping towards him. He anchors his hands on my waist. “I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to realize it, but—“

“But what?” he prompts.

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