Is anyone not in love with you? 2

Is anyone not in love with you? 2

Aria was on the warpath. From the way she was zeroing in on me, she'd apparently decided she didn't want to wait until tonight and was here to see me now. Even as I saw how very wrong this was about to go, I couldn't stop looking at her. How did I ever convince myself it wasn't her?

Emily got to me first.

“You wanted to see me?”

“Now's not really a good time, Em,” I said, just as Aria showed up too.

“Why are you here?!” Aria screamed at Emily.

“Isn't the better question why are you?” Emily asked, putting a hand on my arm.

“Stop it!" Aria and I snapped, our hands overlapping as we both went for Emily's hand.

Our eyes met.

“Isn't this interesting? I guess you told her then,” said Emily.

“Shut up, Em,” I hissed.

Aria took the hand beneath hers and ripped me away from Emily. I grinned as she marched me away from Emily. This felt familiar. She felt familiar. It was like nothing had changed. Like going right back to the precious little time I had spent with her.

She pulled me into my office and slammed the door closed.

“It's not what it looks like, Adele. Emily got herself into some trouble looking for baby Ethan. That's why she's here. That's it!”

Aria froze in her tracks.

“What did you call me?”"

I intertwined our fingers.

“Sorry. I'm still getting used to you and her being the same person. If Adele bothers you, I'll go back to Aria. I really like Adele, though. Adele is, after all, who I fell in love with.”

She tried to pull her hand out of mine, but I anticipated this. My hand was a deadlock in hers.

“Is that what this is about? You finally remember who I am and now you want a pat on the back?!”

“You stupid woman. I admit to not remembering the first time we met until recently, but the rest of it I've been carrying with me all this time, just like you have.”

“If your memory is so great, why didn't I meet Aaron when I got here? Why was I faced with The Casanova of Caines? Why didn't you show up that day?!”

The fury, the pain that she and Emily had brought on her and on me was back with a vengeance. I pulled her to me, grabbed her cheeks, and kissed her hard. She resisted, of course she did, but I couldn't help it. I needed her lips, her mouth, if I was going to tell her.

After a few seconds, I let her push me away, but my arms went around her, trapped her again.

I took a deep breath and let the pain of being separated from her flow through the words.

“Because I thought you were dead,” I breathed almost too softly to be heard. “Emily told me that you died with the rest of your family. It was an honest mistake at first, but when she found out it wasn't true, she didn't tell me. I really thought I was crazy when I saw you again. Because Aria Maine couldn't be a dead woman.”

She just stared at me for a moment, then she came to life.

“That psychotic bitch!” Aria raged, breaking free from my arms.

This time she was too angry, too quick to stop. She threw the door open again and marched herself right back out the way she'd come, catching up with Emily, who was still in the corridor.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?!” she screamed.

I got between them and held Aria back.

“Go, Emily. Go now!” I yelled as I struggled with Aria.

Emily did as she was told. Only when she was completely out of sight did I speak.

“Stop, Aria!” I yelled, trying to get her to stop resisting.

When that didn't work, I pulled her body against mine, crushing her to me.

“Stop, Adele, my Adele,” I whispered.

Her body relaxed. She turned around and started crying.

“It's okay,” I said, stroking her hair. “I'm here now.”

But it wasn't okay. As I stroked her hair, my hand descended on the necklace around her neck and she stiffened.

“Next time you decide you need a haircut, run it by me first. Don't get me wrong, it's hot as hell, but—”

This time, when she pulled away, it was for the last time. Of course, it wasn't going to be this simple. When she relaxed into me, started crying for me, I convinced myself it was over. That she was mine again. But she wasn't. Not yet anyway.

“I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, Aaron,” she said before she ran.

(Aria)

When I got back to the base, Troy was already gone. It was just as well, because I couldn't face him. What this meant for us I didn't know. There was only the pain, the misery I inflicted on Aaron, on myself. I was the one that had fucked it up after all. He hadn't left me, not on purpose, not of his own volition. I was so afraid he would hurt me, but in the end, my actions had been what hurt us, ended us. The tears flowed readily. The if onlys were endless. If only I told him the truth before he left. If only I called him when he didn't show. If only I hadn't lied in the first place. If only I wasn't so scared of how crazy in love I was with him.

I took a deep breath and screamed my lungs out.

When next I knew, his arms were around me.

“What is it?! What's wrong, Ria?” Bart asked.

Confusion crossed my face.

“Why are you here?” I sniffed.

“Didn't really want to be alone tonight, so I figured I'd hang out with Ethan.”

I couldn't deal with whatever was happening
with CC and Troy right now, on top of what had just happened with Aaron.

“Hey, whatever it is—”