As Miles slipped out of the room, Caspian was instantly awash with a mixture of nervousness and excitement. He was glad that his friend was inadvertently giving him the moment alone with Iris that he had been craving, but at the same time, he wasn’t quite sure what to do with it. They would only have a few minutes together at the very most—and that was only if Jay and Miles got caught up in chatting at the front door—so there wasn’t time to really address everything that was on his mind. He couldn’t question her about her intentions or find out where they stood with each other in sixty seconds. However, as soon as the door closed and they were alone, Iris made the decision for him.

His breath hitched as he felt her hand leave his shoulder, and suddenly she was kneeling on the floor in front of him. At first, confusion etched itself onto his face. He wasn’t quite sure what she was doing, but he couldn’t bring himself to retreat from her touch as she took his hands in hers. Her touch was so familiar, her fingers warm and soft against his skin. In spite of his uncertainties, it relaxed him just a little, and the tension ebbed from his shoulders. His eyes fixed on hers, and he held his breath as he waited for her to make the first move.

When she assured him that nothing had changed and that she still only wanted him, he nearly closed the distance between them to kiss her. It was exactly what he had been longing to hear, yet the slivers of doubt hadn’t been thoroughly washed from his mind with just those few sentences. They kept him rooted to his seat, studying, calculating, wary of letting go so quickly that he would open himself up to be hurt if she changed her mind. He had always been the type to fall fast and hard for women whom he was attracted to, but out of anyone he’d fancied, he’d fallen for her the hardest. He didn’t want to back away from her again, but he was also nervous about the possibility of getting his heart broken. Torn in two, he took a slow breath to keep a level head before he finally spoke, [color=#b97703]“Are you sure?”[/color] He held her gaze, trying his best to keep some emotional distance just in case she didn’t answer the way he wanted her to. [color=#b97703]“I mean… it looked to me like you were both flirting with each other… Did something happen between you and Miles during the lockdown?”[/color]

He bit his lip, partially regretting asking the question that had been on his mind. [color=#b97703]“I know it’s not fair of me to get upset if you were with him while we were apart. I just… I should have made it clear a long time ago that I wanted us to be… exclusive.”[/color] He blushed as he made the confession. [color=#b97703]“I understand if that isn’t what you want or if you’re not ready for that. I also know I have god awful timing for bringing this up, but it’s where I’m at. Watching other guys pursue you is hard for me when I don’t know who’s going to walk away with you in the end. I just—Jesus, this sounds clingy as hell,”[/color] his blush deepened as he forced himself to say it, [color=#b97703]“I need… some kind of reassurance that you’re not going to walk away from this—from us—when someone else comes along to try his luck with you. I need to know that you still want me and that you won’t be running off with other guys when I’m not around… I care about you so much that it hurts to think about you being with another man. I’m sorry if I’m putting you in a tough spot, but I can’t pretend like I’m okay with just being one option.”[/color]

He swallowed hard, concluding quietly, [color=#b97703]“So, all that to say… Do you want to go steady with me, Iris?”[/color]