Academic lovers

38 | The truth

He came closer, but his movements were slower. "And happy birthday, sweetheart," he whispered, a warm smile playing on his lips.

I paused for a second, a mix of surprise and realization washing over me. I reached for my phone and checked the time.

12:01, December 15.

Oh, it looks like it's my birthday. I couldn't believe I had forgotten. "I totally forgot about my birthday," I admitted.

Aiden raised an eyebrow. "You forgot about your birthday?"

I nodded. As I grew older, I realized that I didn't put as much care into my birthdays anymore. It just felt like any other day, without the same excitement and anticipation.

Aiden, understanding, stood up and extended his hands towards me. "Well, let's start going then. We've been here for a while now."

I got up, said bye to the place, and then we left. Oh, I can't wait to tell the girls.

—

"So let me get this straight: you guys went to this beautiful magical place, and then he confessed his feelings for you, and you kissed him?"

"Basically yeah." I shrugged with a smile, then ran my fingers on my lips. All I could think about was the feeling of his lips on mine and how we kissed for what felt like an eternity.

There was silence for a moment, then they both burst into squeals. Jumping around the room, holding each other's hands.

Suddenly, they were pulled back to reality by the sound of an angry voice coming from the other room. "Hey, keep the noise down over there!" someone shouted.

We all looked at each other in shock and then burst out laughing. Khelani shouted back, "Sorry!" and eagerly joined me. Ciara came over from the other side. "So, are you two officially dating now?"

My mind went blank for a moment. Dating? Are we actually dating? We didn't really discuss that part. We just confessed our feelings and kissed. But if two people express their feelings and share a kiss, doesn't that usually mean they're dating?

I hesitated and replied, "I guess so."

Kehlani crossed her arms and asked, "What do you mean, 'I guess'?"

"Well, we never really had a proper conversation about it, so I'm not entirely sure." Both Kehlani and Ciara let out exasperated sighs.

"Wait, when he confessed his love for you, how did you respond?" Ciara asked.

"I told him I felt the same way."

"Oh, Zhera, what were you thinking?" they both exclaimed in disbelief.

"What's wrong?"

Ciara shook her head and said, "When someone tells you they love you, you should say 'I love you' back, you know?"

I shrugged. "Oh, I'll just tell him next time we see each other." I hope that didn't hurt him. I'm not too big on sweet words like that.

Kehlani gently squeezed my hand. "What would you do without us?"

I smiled and replied, "I don't know, but I'm grateful to have you both by my side."