Chapter Thirty-three

Rose

''Elliot!'' I exclaim.

He smiles widely before pulling me in for a hug.

It has been awhile since I last saw him; his appearance has changed, slightly. The length of his dark brown hair has increases but he manage to work it by pulling it all to the back, making him much more attractive. Actually, the three of them are attractive.

''I missed you, sugarplum.'' He whispers near my ear.

My heart softens at the sound of his voice, he has always been a joyful soul and never once see him getting upset over something too fixable. I know how people like him has been through a lot and has felt the pain but he's strong enough to smile.

We stay in each other's arms for as long as we can because ever since I left Elia, I have only been with Elis. Elliot never showed up either but Elis told me how he would always ask about my wellbeing.

Elliot's a sweetheart.

''I missed you more,'' I reply by wrapping my arms around his neck, pulling him closer before inhaling his cologne; loving how he has always smelt the same.

Elliot chuckles before pecking onto my neck and lean back to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear, ''You've changed than the last time I saw you. You look different, good different.'' He smiles, eyeing me.

I take my time to look at him, eyeing his every features; seeing that he has a five o'clock shadow which defines his masculinity. Whenever I look at Elliot, I never see images of Elia but whenever I look at Elis, Elia seems to easily appear. I wonder why.

''You're becoming a man,'' I refer to his stubble.

He chuckles immediately, winking. Honestly, Elliot is an undeniably attractive young man. He may be younger than Elis and Elia but he looks matured; making him appeal much more older than his age. Yet, it makes him look better. He can win anyone's heart just by looking at them but he never seem to be more than just a close friend to me.

''Well, I'm only getting older.'' He replies before looking up at something behind me. When I turn around, I see Elis smiling at his youngest brother; ''I came here to see Rose but if you miss me too, you'll get a hug.'' Elliot jokes as Elis places his hand on my waist.

Both of Elliot's eyes look at down at my waist before clearing his throat, ''It's getting hot in here,'' He sings; only leaving me with heated cheeks but I keep calm, smiling. To my surprise, Elis pulls me slightly closer as he chuckles at his brother's reaction.

''Where have you been?'' He asks.

Elliot closes the door behind him as he makes his way towards one of the sofas, ''You know, here and there. Nowhere specific. I came here to visit because I just miss you guys,'' He rolls his eyes at the end, ''I've been gone for a year and a lot has happened.'' He adds.

''For instance, you two. Is there something that I should know, Elis? Tell your little brother, he wants some juicy details.'' He continues, chuckling as soon as she sees Elis rolling his eyes in annoyance.

To be honest, I love it when they can bond and reconnect easily because it shows how they will always have each other's back. Elliot and Elis can always smile to show how they are happy but they can never fake away the happiness. They are both miserably suffering inside; we all are, we know how we can never have the normal or perfect life.

''I've heard about Elia recently—'' Elliot stops talking immediately once he realises the look on my face. Within seconds, I see Elis glancing at my direction before placing a hand on my back, trying to soothe me down and I smile at him; standing up.

''I'll be back,'' I mutter.

As I continue to walk towards the bedroom, I feel my heart breaking. It's true that I haven't thought about Elia recently and it has managed to make me forget. Elis helped me through it all but when Elliot spoke of his name, I can't help but feel sad. Upset. Mad.

I let my weakening legs drop behind the door before closing it as tears are streaming down my cheeks, slowly making me realise how I can never truly forget about the love of my life. He was the first to have ever loved me. He was also the first to have ever made me see true pain and heartbreaks.

''I shouldn't have said that,'' I hear Elliot say from the living room, trying to not make me hear but I can hear perfectly fine. For some reason, I want to hear.

''She's healing. Slowly but she's getting somewhere. That topic will always be sensitive to her because she loves him, Elliot. It pains me to say that but I can't deny her feelings—that's what she truly feels.'' Elis replies and I hear him sigh, deeply.

My eyebrows furrow in confusion but I stay still.

''Does she know that you like her?'' Elliot asks.

They both stay quiet for a few seconds while I start to feel a little bit confused. Elis never said he liked me but he showed everything, they are better than words. I thought, waiting for them to continue.

''Maybe Elia was right, I'm a fucking coward. I kept on showing her how much I like her but I've never said the actual words; which I should. Ever since she left him, I've been trying to make her forget about him. It's not as easy as I thought it would be. So yeah, I like her,'' He mutters and I quickly lean my head against the wall.

It feels like hours but it has only been ten minutes. I can't help wanting to have a space of my own, so I end up staying in the bedroom without exiting. Elliot doesn't seem to mind either because he keeps on talking with Elis about his trips to places and his goals in life that he will fulfil.

Elliot appears to be heading home as they laugh a little bit more at their jokes before finally ending the conversation. I make my way towards the living room, seeing that Elis is currently standing near the front door as he turns to look at me, ''You feeling better?''

His brown eyes are looking directly into my blue ones and I appreciate it. I appreciate that about him because he would always look into my eyes; whenever we have a conversation or whenever we just look. It makes me feel like he really wants to talk to me.

''I don't want to talk about him,'' I reply.

''Of course, anything for you.'' He smiles, walking towards my direction before caressing the side of my cheek; letting me feel the warmth of his fingers. The way his finger meets with my skin, it starts to give me an unknown feeling—that I haven't felt in awhile.

''Make me forget,'' I breathe, leaving him in confusion but he does not utter a single word as I continue to pull his hand slowly towards our bedroom. Both of his eyes won't stop looking at me until we're standing in the bathroom and I start to untie my hair.

Elis clenches his jaw at the sight of my hair falling down my chest. Within seconds, he is watching me unbuttoning my shirt before taking it off—revealing myself in my bra and pants; causing him to only stand in front of me in silence. Our eyes won't look away and for some reason, I want it to be a little steamy.

My heart beats fast at every movement I make but I try to ignore it. Without me completely realising, I have already taken off my pants, leaving me standing in my undergarments; awkwardly a little self-conscious. I've never hated my body but I've never revealed myself like this in front of Elis. It's new.

All of a sudden, I find him closing the distance between us before pulling me closer by the hips; meeting my lips with his, passionately kissing me. I wrap my arms around his neck, playing with the ends of his hair—causing him to groan slightly. My cheeks heat up as soon as his hands move down to grab onto my butt; yet, I pay no attention.

My hands are slowly reaching down to take off his shirt and once I manage to take it off, I quickly wrap my arms around his neck again, kissing him deeply. Due to our heights, it's kind of a bit difficult so he starts to surprise me by picking me up, wrapping my legs around his torso; giving us a better access.

We won't stop kissing each other.

To my surprise, I find him entering us inside the shower, letting my back hit against the wall; slowly. A moan escapes my lips as he starts to trail kisses down my neck, letting me feel a whole new sensation when he turns on the shower—letting the warm water hit our burning skin. Burning with passion.

It's a surprise as soon as I find myself crying. Elis slows down by kissing long onto my cheek before looking at my face with confusion written all over his face but I immediately pull him close by hugging him, not letting him see the sadness all over my face. My heart continues to clench at the pain.

I place the side of my face on his chest, continuing to cry out endless tears as he soothingly rubs on my back—trying to calm me down. We both drop onto the ground, only to hear me sob louder. It calms me down a little, knowing that he keeps on whispering sweet words into my ear.

Truthfully, this is what I want whenever I'm with someone. Someone who would be there for me just incase I fall down onto the ground; at least he'll be there to catch me before bringing me back up. I hate suffocating myself with this kind of pain because ever since I was little, I've been by myself. No one was there to whisper soothing words into my ear, telling me that everything will be fine.

Elis has made a great difference.

''Why can't I forget? Why do I have to think about him? I don't want to remember. I don't want him haunting me because it hurts me—knowing that he's out there, probably already forgotten about me. My soul craves for him; I've been dying to see him, to at least hear his voice but that's not what I want. I want a new beginning, where I wouldn't have to think about him, why can't I have that?'' I cry.

Elis looks at me before breathing out, only listening to my cries without interrupting. I'm glad that he doesn't think of me overreacting because all of the pain I've been through, they are being mixed into one.

I've never felt lost.

It feels like yesterday when we were laughing and holding hands—making promises to each other, having each other's back but now it's all gone

It feels like yesterday when we were laughing and holding hands—making promises to each other, having each other's back but now it's all gone. We're in different paths with different people. We're denying our feelings just so that we can move on without a single glance back yet I'm already failing.

I've been glancing back from the very beginning. I can't help but continue to think about him. Wherever I turn, whatever I do, I am constantly reminded of him; even if I fake a smile.

Both of my eyes are looking up into Elis's brown ones, realising how they are no different than Elia's eyes. Elis leans in, ''Forget. I'm here, Rose. You just have to let go. Please, I can't see you hurting like this. I'm not trying to force you but please just don't think of him. I hate seeing you cry because I hate knowing how you're hurting, deeply inside. Don't do this to yourself,'' He whispers.

''Don't repeat these scars,'' He lifts both of my wrists up, kissing them—making me cry even more. My tears are slowly stopping at the sight of him, at the way he treats me and at the way he cares. It was the first month when I gave myself those scars and he was the one who helped me through it all.

Cutting will only make it worse.

Yet, I didn't have a choice.

''Don't cry these tears,'' He traces my tears, kissing onto my cheeks. My skin warms up immediately after feeling his lips; realising how no one has ever made me feel safe. He doesn't need to let me go or make someone else protect me because he's the one securing me.

''Then, I won't.'' I reply.

The next morning, I am already standing in front of the window as I stare out; looking at the sunrise. I've been doing this for awhile now because I find it as a distraction—a beautiful distraction from all the problems and mess that I'm going through. All of a sudden, I feel someone wrapping his arms around my waist and it doesn't take me long to realise that it's Elis.

He rests his chin on my shoulder, pecking onto my neck; letting me feel loved. My lips are curving into a small smile as my eyes remain focus onto the sun—he does the same. We're close to each other and we feel very comfortable instead of the opposite. Even though Elis has never told me about his past, I know how he has been through something other than his family matters.

''Will it be okay?'' I breathe

''Will it be okay?'' I breathe.

Elis pulls me closer, comforting me.

We stay in each other's arms for as long as we can without being bothered by our surroundings because we want to appreciate moments like this—we never know what might happen tomorrow or the day after, we will have the chance to experience but not every experience is as beautiful.

I feel him kiss onto my neck, long and full of meaning; making me close my eyes, loving how he can calm me down and reduce the amount of stress I'm feeling yet it continues to confuse me on where we stand. Are we more than just attracted to each other?

''You will be more than okay,''