Can I Join You?

A Short Love Story

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"Hey," he whispered gently, looking at me with soft and warm hazel eyes.

Despite the warmth that I could feel from his eyes, I still look at him suspiciously and not reply. My mother told me never to trust strangers...but then again, my mother's dead and I was all alone. I've only been wandering these streets for a few weeks and I knew that I was completely defenseless from this boy because of my weak and exhausted state.

But he made no attempt to hurt me. In fact, as I look more closely, he looked just as scared, cold, and lonely as me.

He hesitated before speaking, "Can I...join you...?"

Giving up to sympathy for the boy, I finally smiled and weakly nodded. He hesitantly sat beside as I share my only blanket with him. And together, we stuck together and made sure that we were warm.

"I'm Haley."

"I'm Rafe."

-Ten Years Later-

I sighed as I sat there all alone, watching as the snow fell from the sky. 

Alone. 

That's what I was feeling right now. All alone...

Of all the days, it had to be this particular day that I had to be alone. It had to be Christmas when I had to be all alone.

I let myself feel all alone and cold with my thoughts. There had been one point in my life when I had been feeling this exact same feeling but that had disappeared when he came. I had been 7 years old then. But now, here I was, feeling lonely once more...

What a coincidence that it had happened on December 25 as well.

"Hey," I froze when I heard that voice. 

That voice that I had grown to become familiar with. That voice that had filled that cold and lonely spot inside. That same voice that was the reason it was empty once more, after he left a year ago...

I didn't look up and kept my mouth shut, hoping that it was just a voice in my head.

"Can I join you?" Now I knew for sure that I wasn't alone and that he was really here.

What surprised me the most was that it was the same question he had asked me the first time we met. 

But instead of agreeing, I kept on looking down as I muttered, "What are you doing here?"

I heard him sighed and I heard him walking until he stood right in front of me.

"Haley..."

"I said, what are you doing here?" I asked, my tone slightly higher.

He didn't say anything for a while before I heard him say in a quiet voice, "Haley, can I join you?"

I gritted my teeth, my anger getting higher, "And why should you when you left me a year ago?"

I had been expecting some pathetic or cheesy reply like, "It was a mistake" or "I never meant to hurt you." Even worse, "I can't lose you."

But instead, he replied, "I...I thought you might want this back..."

I looked up to see where his hands were, not being able to see his eyes as I flinched in realization. Right there in his hands was the same blanket they both shared on this same night on the first day they had met.

I finally found my voice as I croaked out, "You kept it..."

He let out a small chuckle though it died down quickly, "Yeah, of course I would...but I can't keep it..."

I felt as if i've been stabbed in the heart all over again but I managed to ask with a shaky voice, "W-Why...?"

"Well, it wasn't mine to begin with," he answered hesitantly, "It was ours...but I...I don't think it's right if I kept it when we're..."

He didn't need to finish the sentence for me to know what he was talking about.

He went on, "And...I guess you could say...one last Christmas gift before I...you know..." His voice wavered at the last part as I tried to hold back my own tears.

"But...I just thought...maybe if I could..." he took a deep breath before asking me that same question once more, "Can I...join you..."

I couldn't speak then for I was trying my hardest to hold back my tears. I knew him for so long and so well that this was his way of saying sorry...and goodbye. I managed to give him a shaky nod, still avoiding eye contact.

I heard him sigh from relief and I felt him sit beside me. I was still feeling cold but he must've known for I felt something warm drape over my shoulder. I tilted my head slightly and saw that the blanket was around both of us.

He scooted closer to me until both of our shoulders were touching. It had just been like the first time they met. When they stuck together and worked together to survive. No matter the hardships they face, none of them were alone.

I suddenly couldn't stop myself as I dug my head into his shoulder and let out sobs as I felt his arms wrap around me. After all the years they've been through, they both had almost lost sight of what was important...

And that was being together.

"I'm...s-sorry...Rafe," it had been a long time since I last said that name.

"Do you know...why I came back?" I looked up at him and finally met those familiar, warm hazel eyes.

Rafe then smiled at me weakly, "Because I wanted to ask for your blanket...our blanket, back."

He then leaned in closer and whispered, "Because for us not to be together...is impossible. So, can I join you, Haley?"

I finally cracked a weak smile as I finally decided to ask a question of my own, "Can you love me?"

- - -

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Dedicated to RiceItsSelf for always being together with me at school with projects and reading and talking and the list goes on.

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