A fresh start

A fresh start
(Bella)

The awkward silence lasted till Calvin was out of sight. I turn to look at Rihanna and she looks a little sad, her eyes pinned in the direction Calvin had taken.

I clear my throat, snapping Rihanna back to reality. "Is everything okay?" I say, my eyebrows lifting in question.

She forced a smile. "Oh, it's nothing," she waves it off. "How have you been, Bella. It's been such a long time," she says, her eyes lightening up again.

There, she's being too obvious about changing gears but that's okay. I understand awkward moments better than most.

I exhaled, offering a smile as warm as hers. "I've been great actually. It's so nice to see you," I say earnestly.

"Yeah," she mutters, her gaze softening. "We should catch up sometime," she says and I nod.

"Yeah, we should,"

We talked a little more before she excused herself to join her date.

As I watch her leave, I couldn't help but think about earlier, what was that?

There's definitely something, it can't be nothing.

Calvin looks like he's seen a ghost and Rihanna was just as shocked.

I dragged in a sharp breath, deciding not to overthink it.

I have Calvin to worry about. I know he's upset, disappointed even. But I needed to do that, for both of us.

He'll understand, he probably needed to be left alone.

I can only hope that this doesn't change anything, that we can still be good friends.

I sigh.

Perhaps he was somewhat right, maybe the reason I haven't opened my heart to him or any other man all these years was because I still loved Dean.

The more I try to stay away, the more I'm drawn to him, the more I try to hate him, the more intrigued I become.

I— I don't know, it's like my heart just knows it's always been him.

I could still remember the way his face had fallen when I told him I'll be having dinner with Calvin.

Speaking of which, I reach for my phone, only to see missed calls from him. My phone had been on silent mode.

My fingers hover on my keyboard, considering texting or calling him.

But then a smirk creeps up my face, maybe it's time to cross this line, one that I can't uncross.



(Dean)

I shouldn't be this restless but heck I am. Last night, Bella opened up to me, for the first time in a long time we got to talk, like actually talk, no taunts, no hassle.

It was just two people talking and healing together, it felt right, more than anything has been in a while.

But then, he mentioned this dinner with Calvin and here I am, restless, a glass of wine in hand as I dial her number over and over again.

I know I shouldn't disrupt her dinner with him, she hasn't given me an answer yet and as such has every right to go out with anyone but yet I couldn't help the tightness around my chest.

I had put the kids to sleep and waited, hoping Bella will be back soon.

But she didn't.

My heart sinks a little more into despair as I drove back home. I keep checking the time, it's been less than an hour, yet no response from Bella.

I should rest, I have a business trip tomorrow but how can I?

I take my glass of wine and head downstairs, hoping the night podcast would help quell my racing thought but a few minutes into it, my mind slowly drifted back to her.

I sigh.

I reach out to take my phone but just then the doorbell rings.

I squint, who could that be?

It can't be Ethan, he's out with his new fling. And if it was him, he would have called.

Damnit. I stand up and walk over to the door, peering through the peephole. My jaw drops as I see Bella standing right at my door, looking glamorous.

My heart skips a beat and without wasting another second, I pull the door open.

Our eyes meets and for a second the world seems to stand still, her gorgeous eyes drawing me in. "You— you're here, are you —,"

My words were cut short by her next move, Bella inched closer and wraps her arms around me, not saying a word, offering warmth with her silent hug.

I didn't either, I just push the door and held her close, my hand moving in soothing circles on her back. This feels like home, my home.

After a while, we finally let go.

Bella gives me a warm contagious smile, and then she says those words that leaves my eyes wide open. "Let's start all over again," she breathed out.

I couldn't stop my grin from spreading. "You mean a clean slate, no more hassles over the past?," I ask, my eyes on her.

She chuckles, her cheeks flushing. "Yeah, a fresh start,"

"Come here," That's the only thing I could say before drawing her into another round of hug, my muscles firm against her soft skin.

When we pull away again, our eyes locked, filled with longing, I close the distance between us in a swift move, and our lips meet.

I entered her with ease, our lips moving in sync. I can feel her heartbeat against me as we both deepened the kiss.

But after a few more minutes I break the kiss, and looks at her, my eyes searching her face. "Are you sure, Bella?" I ask, needing her full consent.

I see her eyes darken, and then she choked out, her eyes meeting mine. "I want this, more than anything, I want you, Dean, all of you,"