Page 62 of Meet Cute

“I know, Finn.”

Even though I said it without so much as a millisecond of hesitation, he sighs and nuzzles into me some more. “You don’t. I-I don’t think you do. Not really.” Those sweet eyes find their way to me. “The only person… you’re the only person. The only one who’s ever treated me like I matter… and of course… Of course I had to mess it up.”

I expect him to stay all pitiful and sad, but instead he sits up and pulls me into his arms. His chest is so warm, so far from that cage-y feeling I used to get when he held me. It feels soft and permanent now, it feels safe.

“I’m going to do better. I’m going to be better.” He sounds so self-assured that I can’t help but believe him despite the fact this is getting so very old. “A relationship… a healthy one… It’s about compromise, right? You wanted… you wanted to go out. Do you still want to?”

My eyes widen. “You mean it?”

“Just a car ride,” he warns. “To be safe. I don’t… I-I won’t let anyone take you from me.”

The prospect of a car ride is so nice even if getting excited about it makes me feel like an animal rather than a person. It’s something new. Something besides the same old trees and the same old snow-covered grass. No more creepy stalker pictures and no more dimly lit rooms bathed in yellow.

“Can we get burgers?”

Finn grins from ear to ear, excitedly kissing the crown of my head over and over. “Yeah. Anything you want. I really… You deserve it.” He doesn’t move, though, choosing to pull me tighter against his wide frame. “We’re gonna be together forever, bunny. Just you and me.”

“Yeah,” I say softly with my eyes closed. My stomach rumbles but I don’t pay it any mind. This is the best I’ve felt in so long. There’s no sense of unease behind his words anymore. He means it, and that’s good. “Forever.”

When we finally pull apart I don’t have to worry about what I'll wear, since Finn tosses me one of his dark green striped hoodies with the drawstring missing and a baggy pair of black pants. Once we’re in the car he does my seatbelt and gives me a kiss on the temple.

It’s so dark outside that I can barely see more than an arm’s length in front of me, and the sparsely placed street lights aren’t doing much against the heavy torrent of snow coming down.

The car’s engine starts up, pale white headlights illuminating the path forward. Finn places a gentle hand on my thigh, giving it a reassuring yet gentle squeeze before he pulls out of the dirt driveway.

Have I ever seen the exterior of the place properly until now? Vibrant wood with a black tiled roof, and a pale red bricked chimney on the side. It’s actually really gorgeous, although you’d never imagine the things that go on inside.

It gets smaller and smaller until it’s gone, hidden behind thick-stumped trees and a shit ton of foliage. But no other house shows up like I thought there might be. He has no neighbors. No one else is around. I was right not to try and escape. I couldn’t make it anywhere, not like this.

Glancing up at Finn, his eyes immediately dart over to the road in a weak attempt to seem as though he wasn’t staring at me. I can only chuckle, taking in a deep breath and turning back to the window.

The world really is so pretty. Being stuck inside for so long almost made me forget such a simple fact. The whole burger thing isn’t all that exciting, but this view more than makes up for that.

Rolling down my window just a smidge, cool winter air begins to enter the vehicle. It’s a different kind of cold. It’s not desolate like the basement. It’s refreshing, like a tall glass of water in summer.

“Careful,” Finn says as the road widens. “I don’t want you getting sick.” With a smooth motion he pops open the glove compartment, motioning to the black fabric mask inside. “Can you put this on, please? I-Incase anyone recognizes you.”

That word—recognize—makes my heart flutter in the worst way. What if Haley was…? No. She wouldn’t be. She’s probably given up on me by now.

The mask is tight around my head, and for a moment I’m reminded of the collar he tried to make me wear. I glance over at him with intrigue, but the soft smile he has on kills any sort of rational thought I was forming.

It’s just as he said: this is our normal.

FORTY-EIGHT

Headlights. Cars. People. There’s something overwhelming about it all. I never really struggled with big crowds before, and a road is hardly a crowd. But this? I've spent far too much time inside, I guess.

The burger place is another fast food joint with bright colors and overpriced junk, but that’s not what really matters here.This is the first contact of anyone else in so long, and to be honest I can’t say I love it.

As we pull up to the pay window my throat begins to tighten. So much could go wrong. Why did I want this, again? Am I an idiot? I have to be the world’s biggest idiot. Everything that goes wrong is always my fault.

Finn must be antsy, too. His knee is bobbing up and down and he can barely focus on anything without whipping his head around to make sure I’m still there. I have no idea what he’s so nervous about, since it’s not as though I can throw myself out of the car and run off.

“That’ll be twenty-six eighty, please.” An exhausted teenager who doesn’t even really register our presence mumbles. Finn taps his card and then we pull ahead, grab our food, and find a cozy little spot in the corner of the parking lot.

I’m not entirely sure what I thought would happen. Finn’s being so weird about it all that I sorta believed someone would happen to recognize me, but nope—didn’t happen. Why would it?

Cheap foil-laminated paper rustles as my boyfriend pulls out the food, handing me a lettuce-wrapped cheeseburger with a horribly nervous expression. “H-Here, uh… You… are you okay?”