Why I Love Him

Chapter Twenty

Two weeks passed. I had messaged Wayne, but I was yet to receive a reply from him. I wondered what happened, but I didn't let my thoughts get in the way of my newfound happiness.

Edward was amazing.

I know it's only been two weeks, and it was too early to judge, but I couldn't help the overwhelming feeling of assurance that had taken over me. I stayed at his place at night, slowly moving the stuff from my apartment upstairs down to his. He knew I was going to move to one of the studio apartments in the main city when I got my first paycheck and could make the first down p*****t. He hasn't come around to the idea of moving in with me when I did leave, but I was sure he would with time.

"Look, I told you he hates me," Edward groaned as a hiss from Ciel echoed through the tiny apartment. I looked up from my phone to find Edward backing away from the cat's feeding bowl. Ciel gave him one last his before circling his bowl and settling down to eat his wet cat food.

Edward folded his hands across his chest, making me chuckle, watching as he made faces at Ciel before heading to the fridge to grab a carton of juice.

"He doesn't hate you. He's like that to everyone when he's hungry," I explained as Edward poured juice into two glasses.

He walked over to me, handing me a glass before settling down beside me on the couch with his. The foam sank with his weight, and my face warmed up when he reached out to hold my free hand with his. He was always doing that—holding me—like he was afraid I would just up and leave.

"You don't say." His voice was sarcastic, and he clearly didn't believe me.

"Sorry, I didn't train him right," I muttered, trying to keep the conversation on track. My voice was a bit shaky, and my heart was beating fast. Edward was just holding my hand, but it made my whole body warm.

"Are you okay?" he asked, dropping his half-finished glass of juice before leaning closer to me. I dropped my glass too, swallowing the spit that had formed in the back of my throat before nodding my head.

"I'm alright," I announced, feeling my voice grow smaller with every syllable. Edward chuckled before kissing my temple in a comforting gesture.

"It's so cute how shy you are sometimes," Edward muttered as I looked at him. His brown eyes boring into my blue ones. I didn't say anything in response. Instead I punched his shoulder, making him winch and laugh. I got up, and he laughed harder, tugging at the seam of my shirt. I was smiling now. I just couldn't stay mad at Edward. I even liked it when he teased me like this.

Since it was a Sunday, we both had the day off. We spent it lazing around and cuddling. Ciel joined us in bed too, stepping over us and forcing us to create space in the middle of the bed for him. It was while we were in this odd pretzel that my phone buzzed on the bedside table.

"I think it's mine," I muttered when Edward tried to sit up. He rested his head back on the pillow as I got up instead. After getting my phone from the side table I looked at the screen, and the blood in my face drained when I noticed who was calling.

Wayne? The phone stopped ringing, and then it started again. Why's he calling me now? Despite not being too comfortable, I answered the call. I've been waiting for him to call so that we could have proper closure. I shouldn't prolong things.

"Hello," I muttered into the receiver, chewing on the nail of my thumb finger as I stared out of the small window over the bed rest. Edward's apartment was a replica of mine, just flipped. He'd managed to stuff a queen sided bed into the tiny room, which didn't leave space for much else.

"Hello, Jon?" My lips curved into a sad smile at the sound of Wayne's horse voice. He sounded like he'd been crying for days before this, and it tugged at my heart, feeling responsible.

"Yeah, it's me." I wasn't sure why I was whispering, but it probably had something to do with the fact that I could feel Edward's gaze boring holes in my back.

"Are you free to talk to me sometime next week?" he asked, and I bit down on my bottom lip, nibbling it as I turned to look at Edward who was now sitting up in bed with Ciel on his lap. He was smiling at me. He didn't look upset. In fact, he seemed like he was encouraging me to go along with it. Feeling a bit confused, I looked away from him and shifted my gaze to my bare feet. The wooly carpet felt cool between my toes.

"Yes, I have some time," I said after finding my voice. I had thought about it, and it needed to be done. "I have some time on Wednesday after work. We could meet at the park. How does that sound?" I asked, getting up from the bed. "How have you been by the way?" I quickly added, afraid Wayne might hang up after getting the time and place.

"I've been fine," he answered. "My daughter's here now so I've been busy," he went on.

"Oh." Was the only thing I could muster at the revelation. I made my way out of Edward's bedroom, closing the door behind me before heading to the living room. The whole apartment was cluttered with my stuff. Bags and boxes of clothes and cosmetics were scattered in the sea of moving boxes and document stacks.

"How is she?" I asked Wayne when I collected my thoughts.

"She's doing fine," he said as I heard a small sneeze in the background. I assumed that was the mentioned daughter.

"So where in the park should we meet?" he asked, and I blinked, realizing that we had let the conversation be dominated by silence for a bit.

"I'll meet you at the entrance," I said as flashbacks of when Wayne and I had met up there for the first time flooded my thoughts. A sad smile formed on my lips. Wayne had tried to make things work. He really had tried to fix us, too bad what we had was beyond repair. "You know, right in front of the fountain," I added, smiling at the vivid memory of the time we spent walking around the park together.

"Okay, sure," Wayne said. There was a pause that followed. I wasn't sure if it was time for me to hang up or not. Every time I was about to, I would hear Wayne let out a sigh, and I'd hold on, hoping he would have something to add to the conversation.

"Jon?" he said, and my eyes went wide. "Are you still there?"

"Y-yes."

"I'm sorry."

My eyes teared up at the sound of his apology. I sniffed, pinching the bridge nose with my free fingers until it hurt. "I'm sorry I couldn't fix us. I'm sorry I treated you like shit." Wayne went on, and I could only stand at the center of the living from in silence. I opened my mouth from time to time, hoping the words I had jumbling in my head would form a sentence, but they didn't.

"I hope you're. I want you to be happy. Prioritize your happiness," Wayne continued. "You deserved better than me. I'm sorry." A croak of a cry left my throat before I took in a deep breath. The edges of my lips turned up in a slight smile—it was filled with sadness and joy at the same time. My eyes darted about the room, and I spotted Edward and Ciel peeking at me from the door of the bedroom. My croak must have made him concerned. I locked eyes with him, and he seemed to relax at the sight of the smile on my face.

"Yeah, I'm happy," I confirmed as Edward made his way to me. "See you I the park on Wednesday, Wayne," I said, hanging up before Edward reached me and pulled me into a tight hug. I buried my head in his shoulder, letting the tears that had whirled up in my eyes flow. We stayed like that for minutes, just dwelling in the moment as I sobbed in silence.

I was glad I had Edward with me, and I was glad that after five years I was starting to move on from the man that broke my spirit.