Embarrassment at first...

You twinge in fear and the silence coming from the girl next to you. You slowly open the eyes you were keeping clamped shut and venture a glance over to your right. Melody is still lying there and her face in completely bathed in a scarlet hue. Her eyes lock with yours and she immediately averts them. In some hidden part of your mind, it registers that she just sucked your cock until you came in your mouth without so much as a blush and now she's suddenly red-faced.

"Do you mean that?" She asks softly, still trying to avoid eye contact. You throat feels dry, but you manage to muster up the ability to speak the forbidden words.

"Yeah." You say, wishing you sounded more confident. You always wanted to admit this to her and often prayed to be placed in a position where you couldn't back out of it. This was the oddly-timed answer to that prayer. "I do."

"W-wow." She says with a nervous laugh. "I didn't...I didn't expect...I mean..." she gulped to try and clear her throat. "...like romantically?" You just nod. Even though she isn't looking at you, she can feel the movement. "Oh, Jack...I don't know what to...what to..."

"Do you feel the same?" You blurt out, not able to take the tension of your heart any longer. She suddenly looks back at you and her eyes were wide with some kind of fear. Her cheeks were still flushed.

"I..I..." She stammers. "M-maybe?" Okay...not exactly what you were hoping for. Your heart hang there, half in pain and half in fleeting hope. She tries to give you a smile, but it seems kind of ****.

"Maybe?" You ask, in a kind of disbelief. She can sense the disappointing tone in your voice and she quickly puts a hand on your chest in case you felt like leaving her.

"Wait! That's not what I...It's not what it sounds like! I swear! I...I..."

"It's okay." You say, the lies burning on your tongue. "I'm sorry I said it like that. You don't need to pretend just because we..."

"NO!" She almost shrieked. Now her eyes really are radiating fear and her eyebrows are knotted in pained worry, as if you just shoved a knife into her chest. "Don't say that!"

"Melody?" You ask.

"I'm not pretending anything! Jack, you are my best and closest friend in all the world. There are no words for how much you mean to me. And I am so into you sexually, it's ridiculous. I already told you how much I fantasize about you. There is no one else I feel the same way about. No one." She pours her heart out to you, the words exiting her mouth like a runaway train. "I don't even know what to call these feelings I have for you. I just don't know...maybe it is love." She doesn't tear her eyes from your face this time. "All I know is that I feel better when you are with me than I do when you are away. That I want to do every carnal act I can think of with you and the thought of you doing it with another girl makes me want to die inside."

"Kinda sounds like love." You venture out. Her words of reassurance are cradling your pained heart enough to let the hope seep out. You still want her to say those words to you.

"How many ex-boyfriends have I had since we met?" She asks, seemingly out of the blue.

"Um...a few? Seven?" You guess.

"Six." She replies, a little sharply. "Anyway, how many of those boys have you heard me say I loved?" You earnestly think about this, but you can't recall any instances.

"I can't think of any..." You start.

"Exactly. Because I didn't." She says. "Even Keith who I dated for a long time...I never said I loved him. It's not something I say lightly. When I do say it to the person I love...I want to really, really mean it, you know?"

"Yeah." you reply, and you do get it. You fall silent and don't say anything else.

"But...I want the chance to say it to you." She finishes. "Because if there is anyone I could ever fall for hard enough to say it...it's you."

"Really?" You ask, feeling your heart flutter.

"Absolutely." She nods. "Only you." Her finger traces a circle on your chest. "So...can we go steady first? Get a chance to settle into a relationship and get used to this new dynamic between us?" She gulps again. "I really want you to give me the chance to fall in love with you."