I stand there, face completely rid of any sense of emotion besides a glimpse of shock as my lips remain gaping open slightly. I'm trying to process all that I've done in such a brief period of time. Lexi had said that she needed to stop me before I did something stupid but it was definitely already too late. I had officially screwed up.

As the consequences of acting so rashly now stands before me and the regret sets in, I realise that there is something I desperately need to do.

"Oh my god Theo, I am so sorry," I apologise sincerely though I know I deserve no forgiveness, my hand rubbing my face as I process everything, "I was just so caught up with the shock and all of it that I didn't think. Yesterday you said you needed to tell me something and I thought I was some kind of detective piecing together all of the clues which led me to believe you got Lexi pregnant. You didn't deserve any of this and I most certainly don't deserve your forgiveness so I completely understand if you don't give it." I ramble on.

This incredibly short yet fast paced day continues with its surprises as, following my pleading, Theo moves as forward as he possibly can, considering our rather close proximity during my outburst, so that his grip is on the side of each of my arms; holding me in place.

"Ella, it's okay."

I look up at him with bewilderment clearly written all over my face, unsure of how he could possibly say that. I'm honest enough to say that if the roles had been reversed and he had randomly and wrongfully come to my house in the morning to yell at me and even slap me then I definitely wouldn't say it was okay.

"How is it okay? I yelled at you and literally slapped you for something you didn't do. You didn't deserve it." I tell him, me being the one to now furrow my eyebrows with bafflement. It was astonishing how quickly the tables could turn in life.

"No, I don't quite think I deserved all of that. I've made some mistakes but certainly not as many as you had thought I had. But, considering what you thought I had done, I don't blame you for all of it. If I had just been told that my little sister was pregnant and she happened to be seeing this particular guy to the best of my knowledge then I probably would've done the exact same thing as you." he explains.

"But still—"

"But still nothing. You made a mistake. We all fuck up sometimes." he reminds me. "You'll just have to make it up to me one day." he adds, giving me the slightest glimpse of a smirk along with it as though he's testing out the waters.

I respond to his comment with the most pathetic little chuckle, not in much of a mood for humour right now but feeling that he at least earned a slight laugh at his remark and the craziness of the situation.

"I think that's an understatement." I scoff, staring down at the floor with embarrassment as I say so.

Now that all is settled and Theo has miraculously forgiven me, a lot quicker than I expected, I take a moment for myself to take a deep breath, trying to calm myself down back to my normal state of self after everything. Once I feel as though my pace of breathing and heart rate has slowed down I look up to find Theo watching me closely. The slight imprint of my palm can still be found on his cheek but it appears to be fading well.

Unconsciously, I find myself lifting my hand up, in a much kinder manner this time around, to delicately touch the spot on his cheek where I had visibly struck him earlier. He seems to flinch slightly in response to my touch, hopefully just with surprise and not fear. It could just be an instinctual reaction to some sort of pain. I've never been slapped but I imagined it hurt like a bitch. 

Regardless, his response makes me realise what I'm doing so I quickly lower my hand and let it rest by my side once again. His eyes quickly flash from looking to where my hand has moved to my own eyes, staring into them with such deep concentration.

He seems to take a largely visible gulp, his Adam's apple moving quite clearly, before he says to me "You're looking a bit pale. I'm sure it's all been a lot to take in. Did you want something to drink?".

His words finally break my deep concentration on him and I tell him, "A glass of water would be good, thanks."

With that, he first takes a step back from me so as to increase the space between us before he walks off in another direction. Now being left by myself, standing randomly at the entrance to his apartment, I decide to follow wherever he was going. I find myself needing to rush so that I wouldn't lose him in a place I was not very familiar with, besides a few spots around.

He successfully leads the way to a stunning kitchen, modern in an apartment dashed with older features. It must have been renovated as its sleek design was so contrasting to the  apartment's. An expansive, thick concrete look stone bench stretches across the space, the waterfall sides creating the illusion that it was even larger than it was. Leather cushioned grey stools rest in front of the breakfast bar which the bench top creates. Stainless steel appliances fill the room, sitting perfectly again the dark shade of the matte cupboard doors.

It was sort of masculine for a kitchen but I liked it. It wasn't exactly surprising that an architect has a nicely designed apartment. Though it wouldn't be what I'd choose for my own kitchen, I appreciated its uniqueness and beauty. Most of all, I appreciated the windows which stretched from where the bench top rested on the counters all the way to the ceiling on one entire wall, rather than the typical splash back that would ordinarily be there instead.

I just had subway tiles in my kitchen.

"Have a seat. I'll just get your drink." Theo calls out to me as he quickly looks over his shoulder to check on me before continuing his walk through the kitchen.

Listening to his suggestion, I pull out one of the multiple stools which sit there before me and take a seat as I wait for him. As I watch Theo move quickly around the kitchen I wonder if he ever actually cooks. With a kitchen like this it would surely be a crime not to. It also makes me wonder just how rich he was. This was a nice apartment in a great area and he was a leading architect at a major firm in NYC. Maybe he even had staff to come cook for him. 

Within a few short moments Theo arrives at the bench, standing on the other side of it across from me, with the glass of water I had requested and one for himself. I thank him and he nods with acknowledgement before he takes a sip of the drink at the same time as me. Once he is done and places the glass on the bench top, he rests his elbows against the cool surface of the stone as he leans against it.

"You sure you don't want a little something stronger?" he asks me once I finish my rather long sip of my drink.

"Water's fine." I assure him as I move my own arms onto the bench top so that I can start fiddling with my fingers throughout any moments of silence which may come along the way, the cold of the stone surprising me as it meets my skin.

"You don't want coffee or something?" he checks one last time.

"I'm not really a big coffee drinker."

He makes a bit of a hmmph sound in response to this before he tells me, "I wouldn't have predicted that."

"If you haven't noticed from this morning's series of events, I'm not so easy to predict sometimes." I tell him.

He rewards my remark with a chuckle that I truly don't deserve but I revel in the sight of, the action bringing out a boyish side to his appearance, especially when combined with the disheveled yet still flawless appearance of him so early in the morning.

Only now that I no longer want to tear his head off or hide away with embarrassment do I truly get the chance to appreciate the sight of a casual Theodore Harrington on his Saturday morning, presumably not too long after he had woken up.

The pure white of his t-shirt does wonders for him as it contrasts with the beautiful sun-kissed tone of his skin and emphasises the shades of his eyes. The relatively well fitted nature of the shirt sits perfectly against the toned build of his body, the most devastatingly remarkable quality of it being that its short cut happens to show off the muscles of his upper arm which had been hidden away under all of those long sleeved tops of his but are now defined as he tightly grips the edge of the bench top.

Most torturously of all, he wears a pair of grey cotton track pants which lazily sit low on his hips and reveal the v-shaped lines (more suitably known as the Adonis belt) which rest above whenever he lifts his arms. I had sneakily and rather guiltily caught a glimpse of them when he had lifted his arms to grab to glasses for us from the cupboard above and had since been on the lookout for another glimpse despite my best attempts to deny myself the sight.

Before I can get caught, if I haven't already whilst lost in my daze, I end my detailed analysis of Theo's appearance and return my attention to the present.

"So, how did last night go?" he asks me.

"Last night?" I ask him. I furrow my eyebrows with confusion for the slightest moment but I guiltily recall my date with Damon only a mere few hours ago. I try and make myself feel better about forgetting about it by telling myself that the chaos of this morning had simply made me forgetful.

"Oh, right. My date with Damon. It was good." I tell him, not knowing what else to possibly divulge to him and also not wanting to speak to him, of all people, about that particular topic. It seemed that the dislike was two sided for those two. 

"Before Damon interrupted us, there was something I wanted to tell you," he says to me, "I guess I should tell you now. Lexi and I ended things," he reveals.

"Oh."

I had my suspicions earlier that this was what he had wanted to tell me, and had strongly considered it as I had awaited Lexi's confession this morning, but had quickly written it off upon hearing the word's 'I think I'm pregnant" come out of my sister's mouth. Now that the moment had come and my suspicions were proven correct I wasn't sure how I was supposed to feel.

The hopeless romantic within me allowed myself a mere moment to consider if this decision had anything to do with me. However, this is quickly quenched by the realist in me and the diligent sister who now had to think about how my sister was feeling. Pregnant and dumped— this was most certainly not Lexi's week.

In hindsight though, Lexi had just revealed that she had been sleeping with her ex-boyfriend, Mason, the whole time she'd been seeing Theo so I had no idea how she would possibly feel about it all. Was it defined as cheating in the situation they were in? What had they seen their relationship as?

"It was kind of a mutual ending of things though. Now having learned that your sister was sleeping with another guy and is expecting a child with him it makes a whole lot more sense," he almost jokes, making an awkward chuckle, "But either way, it was time to call it on us," he explains.

"Well if you both feel that it was the right thing to do and you're happy with how things have turned out, then that's all that matters." I tell him with my best attempt at a safe and civil response. What the hell else was I to say?

"I think we both are. Though there is one thing about the whole situation that I'd like to change," he replies. "I think you and I got off on the wrong foot throughout this whole ordeal."

I can't stop the laugh which comes out of my mouth upon hearing this. "You think? I just slapped you.".

He seems to be amused by this as well, biting into his bottom lip as he attempts to remain relatively serious throughout his little talk he was giving.

"You make a valid point," he admits. "So, what I propose is that we press the reset button on our relationship." he suggests. I can't help the little butterflies which appear within my stomach and flutter around at the mention of the words 'our relationship' but quickly squash the crazed thoughts of mine down as I consider what he is saying.

"Friends?" he proposes, outstretching his hand out for me as he awaits my response.

I take a long, hard look at the hand which awaits me and think about the offer behind it. Was I open to giving Theo Harrington another chance and letting him into my life? Or did I want to move past him and leave behind all the drama having him around seemed to bring about?

If there was anything I had learned from today it was that maybe I shouldn't rush into forming any perceptions so quickly. Maybe I had to give things a bit more of a chance before I admitted defeat.

But could I cope with being friends with him?

I look up at his face one last time, observing the eager expression which rests across his features, and make my decision.

I lift my arm from the surface of the bench top and take his hand within mine with a handshake of agreement I hoped I wouldn't regret.

"Friends."

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I'm officially gonna wish Ella and anyone else that is in this position good luck. Don't know how well the whole friends situation turns out for most people but I guess we'll just have to wait and see how it turns out with Ella and Theo.

How do you feel about everything that just happened? Did you expect Theo to react this way? I wish everyone was that forgiving after being slapped.

This chapter and the one before were initially one single chapter hence the quick update but I decided it was a bit too long and that I'd keep you on the edge of your seat just a little bit longer. Hope you enjoyed :)

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TheFictionDreamer

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