Chapter Thirteen

To my surprise, Ali didn’t show up yet. Automatically, I was led to a table in the far corner by a mid-aged waitress. My cell phone rang, and I picked it up.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Krys? It’s Alicia. Listen, Krys, there’s some really nasty traffic on the Parkway, and I’ll be at least 15 minutes late."

"Oh." I was kinda disappointed.

"Oh, Kryssie, I’m so sorry. Don’t worry, though, I’ve planned some real cool things, so you won’t regret it. I swear on my life that I will be there no matter what."

"Okay, see ya."

"Keep your tips up, girl. Something will roll across your way."

That last sentence confused me, but I pushed it aside. There absolutely nothing to do, so I ordered myself lemonade. I was sipping my sweet drink when a familiar figure came by with a waitress made me choke on the drink.

It was AJ. He was seated in the table right next to ours. What a coincidence.

AJ seemed equally as shocked, and we eyed each other for the longest time. Suddenly, I realized how babyish we were acting and decided to break the strained silence.

"So, what are you doing here?"

AJ frowned slightly, but he answered reluctantly. "The guys and I planned a guy’s night out, and they are all late. What about YOU? Have a date?" AJ was accusing me.

"Ali and I are having a girl’s night out and Ali’s late. Wait a minute! I think that this whole night out was a trick! Dammit!" The coincidence struck me, as I started to fit the pieces together. AJ slapped his forehead also. "Do you think those guys will ever show up?"

"No." It was as simple as that. All he said was a plain ‘no’. I couldn’t stand this any longer.

I got up and sat down opposite of him, causing him to burrow his brows together in confusion. "Listen, AJ, we need to talk."

"About what?"

"Our relationship," I pulled myself together and answered back.

He snorted and wet his bottom lip with his tongue. "We have no relationship, thanks to you." This was going to be more difficult than I thought. ‘AJ,’ I pleaded silently, ‘just try to cooperate!’

Ignoring his acid remark, I went on. "AJ, after I … decided to stop seeing you, I realized what a big mistake I made. I… I missed you so much and …" Tears sprang to my eyes before I could stop them. I had missed him. Too much. His eyes softened a bit at my tears, but he was still as stubborn as a calf.

"Krystal, it was YOU who ended this relationship, saying that long distance relationships can’t last. Look at Brian, Ali, Haze, Howie! They’re perfectly content at how far they are,"

"So, what are you exactly stating here?"

He sighed. "Krys, I missed you, too. Tremendously, in fact, but I can’t be with someone who won’t trust me with relationships."

"AJ," I said, knowing that it was time to let him know, "I don’t think you know how much I like you."

He gave me a questioning glance. "Really? Just how much?"

"Oh, enough. Enough to admit that I love you," I whispered.

He pulled away, as if someone had dumped water on him. "What? What did you just say?"

This time, I looked at him straight in the face without flinching. "AJ, I love you. You might not love me, but I love you with all my heart." AJ stood up, and I was afraid that he would leave, but he came towards me and kneeled next to me.

"You know how long I’ve waited to hear those words? All through the tour, all I could dream about was you saying those words. Krystal, I love you, too." He leaned in and gave me passionate kisses over and over again. It became more and more desperate to make up for lost time. Suddenly, we heard applause and cheers. We looked and saw the guys cheering us on. "What are we, some kind of soap opera?"

My eyes grew wider as they landed on Ali and Hazel. "You asses! Hazel, I thought you were at your parents’ anniversary! And you, Alicia! You were stuck in traffic! Ugh! You guys have some nerve!"

They laughed and replied, "Without us, though, you wouldn’t be where you are right now, in your dream man’s arms."

"True, true, very true," I admitted and turned back to my ‘knight in shining armor’. "AJ, I’d really love it if this relationship works out."

"Silly girl," he whispered, his breath sending shivers of delight behind my back, "that’s all I ever wanted."