Chapter 138 – Break up
Right when he was about to set foot on the main street, he heard the girl's soft voice again.
"Wait."
He turned back toward her and she looked at him for a second before dropping her head. Thinking that she might be having a mix of complex feelings right now, he didn't answer and slowly came closer to her position to sit on the ground a few meters apart from her. She gave him another look but stayed silent otherwise. He decided to wait patiently until she got her feelings under control and sat there, without looking at her and without making any noise.
A few minutes later, she used her sleeves to wipe her tears and glanced at him.
"What you said about your sister, is it true?"
"Yes."
"Why was she sad?"
"She was getting bullied at school."
She nodded at his response and stayed quiet for another couple of minutes. Eventually, she opened her mouth again.
"My parents divorced five months ago."
She stopped there, not adding anything for a long time. He didn't rush her, waiting for her to continue.
"Just when I was getting used to the change, my boyfriend broke up with me two days ago."
She sniffed, looking sad and ready to cry again. Benjamin stayed quiet for a few seconds before replying.
"When my sister was sad, she got a little better after crying in my arms. I am just a stranger and this is all I can do for you but I don't mind lending you my shoulder to cry on if you want to."
He opened his arms toward her and she looked a bit surprised at his suggestion. She hesitated for a long time, not moving at all and just watching him. Finally, she slowly came toward him until she was right next to him but didn't do anything more than this. Thinking that she was too shy to go any further and adding to the fact that they didn't know each other, he took the initiative and covered her in his arms. She trembled a little at his contact but soon relaxed when feeling his arms and warmth around her. A few seconds later, she felt comfortable and said.
"It feels warm and comfortable, I understand why your sister liked it."
He began to caress her head and she closed her eyes, feeling reassured for some reason, burying herself deeper, her glasses hitting his collarbones. She didn't know why she let this total stranger boy hug her but she didn't dislike it. It felt like when her father hugged her when she was little and it was very pleasant. When she thought about him, she got sad again and started to sniff again. Seeing this, Benjamin comforted her in a gentle voice.
"It's okay to cry if you want to."
His words triggered her emotions and she began to cry again while letting her feelings out.
"Sniff, why did they have to divorce? Everything is different now and they're so cold toward each other. I hate it."
He continued to soothe her and she expressed her grievances even further.
"And Lyle, what do you mean you don't like me anymore? What do you mean I am too clingy and annoying? How can you say that when I liked you so much?"
She went on like this, alternating between talking about her parent's separation and her own. This was a lot of grievance for such a young girl and he felt bad for her, continuing to soothe her as best as he could without interrupting her. After a few minutes, she seemed to reach the end of what she had to say. She sniffed and cried for a little more before eventually stopping and staying quiet in his arms. A few tens of seconds later, she looked up and conveyed.
"Thank you for listening to me and comforting me, um..."
"Benjamin."
"Thank you, Benjamin."
"You're welcome. What's your name?"
"I'm Alena."
"Alena, are you feeling any better?"
"Yes. You were right, it was good to unwind."
He smiled at her and concluded.
"That's great."
Seeing his smile, she couldn't help having her heart miss a beat, her cheeks suddenly warming up. She finally realized what sort of situation she was in. She was in the arms of this angel-like guy, who had comforted her for a long time even though he didn't know her at all. She wondered if this was what having a big brother would feel like. She only had a big sister, who wasn't even that nice to her, so she didn't know. She remembered hearing her friends who had big brothers saying that they weren't that nice either, often looking down on and not wanting to associate with them. What this guy some sort of rare sweet boy, the kind you would only see on TV series and movies, like those princes waiting to be rescued by the heroine? Before going out with Lyle, she often dreamed of having a boyfriend like that, someone that would dote on her and indulge her as only fictional boys could do.
Her heart started to beat faster and faster as her thought process continued. She wondered if this might be some sort of fortune in misfortune to meet someone like him here. What's more, his chest was right in front of her head. She swallowed her saliva, getting sad at the fact that her nose was still stuffy from crying and that she couldn't enjoy his smell. No doubt it would be amazingly nice and sweet.
She had never gotten so close to a boy before, not even her boyfriend, who had only been alright with holding hands up until the end. She discretely tried to lower her head so that her face would enter in contact with his chest. Somehow, she was successful and couldn't help feeling hot when feeling his toned chest against her nose and cheek. Her glasses were a bit in the way but she still tried to slowly rub herself on him, wanting to get more of that feeling, forgetting herself a little in her excitation.