Marry me

Chapter One: The Girl With the Red Umbrella The rain had been falling since morning. Not the gentle kind of rain that people romanticized in movies. This was the annoying kind. The kind that soaked shoes, ruined hairstyles, and made everyone grumpy. Emma Collins stood beneath the entrance of a coffee shop, staring at the gray sky. "Perfect," she muttered. She had forgotten her umbrella. Again. Some things never changed. Emma checked the time on her phone. Late. Very late. Her best friend Olivia was already texting. Olivia: If you're not here in ten minutes, I'm eating your slice of cake. Emma rolled her eyes. Emma: You're going to eat it anyway. A second later: Olivia: True. Emma laughed. Then she looked at the rain again. Still pouring. Great. She took a deep breath and prepared herself to make a run for it. Three. Two. One— She stepped forward. Immediately someone crashed into her. Coffee flew. A shocked yell echoed. And suddenly Emma found herself soaked in both rain and iced latte. "Oh my God!" The voice was male. Deep. Panicked. Emma looked up. And forgot every complaint she'd ever had about the weather. Because the stranger standing in front of her was ridiculously handsome. Tall. Dark hair. Blue eyes. The kind of smile that probably caused problems. A lot of problems. "I'm so sorry," he said. Emma blinked. Then looked down at her ruined shirt. Then back at him. Then down again. Then back up. "You should be." His face fell. "I deserve that." "Yes." "I'll buy you a new shirt." "Good." "And another coffee." "Also good." The stranger laughed. And Emma hated how attractive the sound was. "My name is Noah." She crossed her arms. "I'm still angry." "Understandable." "Very angry." "I noticed." A reluctant smile appeared on Emma's lips. Noah smiled back. And something strange happened. For a brief moment, the entire world seemed to disappear. The rain. The traffic. The people walking by. Everything. All Emma noticed was him. And all Noah noticed was her. Neither of them knew it yet. But their lives had just changed forever. Chapter Two: A Very Bad First Impression Noah Bennett couldn't stop thinking about the girl from the coffee shop. The girl with the sharp tongue. The beautiful smile. And the ruined shirt. Three days later, fate decided to interfere. Again. Noah walked into a bookstore. Emma walked out of the romance section. They collided. Again. Both froze. "No." Noah laughed. "Yes." Emma stared. "This is becoming suspicious." "You think I'm following you?" "I think you owe me another shirt." Noah grinned. Emma tried not to smile. Failed. Miserably. For the next hour, they wandered around the bookstore together. Talking. Laughing. Arguing about books. Discovering things about each other. Emma learned Noah loved old movies. Noah learned Emma secretly cried during romantic novels. Emma denied it. Noah didn't believe her. For the first time in a very long time, talking felt easy. Natural. Comfortable. Like they'd known each other forever. Neither wanted the afternoon to end. Neither admitted it. Chapter Three: Becoming Friends Friendship happened unexpectedly. One text became ten. Ten became a hundred. Soon they spoke every day. Emma learned Noah always drank coffee before breakfast. Noah learned Emma sang terribly in the shower. Emma learned Noah hated thunderstorms. Noah learned Emma pretended to be brave when she was scared. Little things. Important things. The things that make someone feel familiar. The things that slowly turn strangers into home. Weeks became months. Months became a year. And somewhere between shared secrets and endless conversations, friendship transformed into something neither of them wanted to name. Because naming it would make it real. And real things could be lost. So they ignored it. At least they tried. Chapter Four: The Beginning of Love It happened on a summer night. The stars filled the sky. Music drifted from a nearby festival. Emma and Noah sat together on a blanket overlooking the city lights. Neither spoke. The silence wasn't awkward. It never was. Not with them. Emma rested her head on Noah's shoulder. A simple gesture. Yet Noah's heart nearly stopped. Because suddenly he realized something. He was in love. Completely. Hopelessly. Irrevocably. And judging by the way Emma's fingers tightened around his hand... She felt it too. To be continued...