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Chapter Eleven
Suddenly a bell rang and students were streaming out the door; Rose jumped to her feet and started desperately searching for Albert.
I know it was him, I KNOW it was...please let him be here, PLEASE...
And then she saw him. Walking down the steps of the school, briefcase in hand. Rose thought for sure her heart would stop.
She wove through the crowd of students, trying to get close enough to wave, or call his name, something to get his attention. He had already turned and started to walk away; Rose felt her chest swell with panic, afraid that she would lose him.
"Albert!" she cried. "Albert!"
He stopped dead in his tracks and turned to face Rose. Their eyes met.
He heard me... thank god he heard me...
Rose didn't think; she tore through the already thinning crowd and threw herself at Albert. She felt a sob escape her lips and already tears were streaming down her face.
Albert took a step back to avoid falling over, and dropped his briefcase the moment Rose was in his arms. Next thing he knew, he was holding her tightly against his chest, one hand stroking her hair.
I did see Rose across the street this morning...she's really here. All this time and I never once considered that she might have come back to New York.
But she had. She was back, and currently sobbing in his arms. It took Albert a moment to make out what she was saying.
"I'm sorry, Albert," she sobbed. "I'm s-so sorry..."
He shushed her, holding her closer and whispering, "It's okay, Rosie...it's ok" over and over.
He called me Rosie...he's holding me... Rose realized. He doesn't hate me...
Rose's sobs subsided after a minute or two, but even then she couldn't bring herself to look at Albert. At least until he stepped back, forcing Rose to loosen her grip around his torso, and gently took her chin in his hand, tilting her head back until their eyes met.
"I think we've got a lot of talking to do, Rosie," he said softly. Rose nodded shakily and allowed Albert to lead them to the same bench upon which she had sat waiting for him.
Albert took Rose's hand and held it in his own. Neither spoke for a moment.
"I missed you, Rosie."
Rose squeezed her eyes shut and swallowed, willing herself to stop crying. "I... I missed you too, Albert," she whispered.
Another long bout of silence. Albert ran his thumb across the top of Rose's hand, but neither looked at the other.
Albert sighed. "I didn't give her the ticket on purpose," he said finally.
Rose blinked. "Wh- what?"
"I gave my mother one of our tickets by mistake. That's why one was missing...why you had to buy another.
"I didn't try to bring my mother with us, Rose," Albert said. "Pumpkin Falls was supposed to be just you and me."
"...Albert, I-"
"You left before I had a chance to explain, Rose. You just...left."
Rose began to cry again. "I'm sorry, Albert! I wasn't thinking, I- I felt terrible for leaving. I'm so sorry!"
"Oh, Rosie..." Albert murmured, cupping her cheek in his hand and using his thumb to brush her tears away. "I know you're sorry." He leaned in and kissed her, as gently as he could. "Please don't cry."
Rose stared at him, speechless. Albert frowned.
"Rosie, what is it?"
"...you kissed me," she whispered, still staring wide-eyed at him. Albert smiled, almost sadly, and kissed her again.
"I know."
"A- aren't you mad at me?"
"Rosie, of course not. I thought...I thought I would never see you again," he admitted.
"This isn't the first time your temper, my mother and my...awkwardness have collided to make a mess of things. Granted, it's a bit of a bigger mess than usual..." Albert said with a slight smile. He shook his head and sighed.
"I'm not...I'm not mad at you, Rosie. A little hurt, that you didn't trust me to explain." Rose looked away.
"But right now, I'm just grateful that I found you again."
"You are?"
Albert smiled again. "I am."
Some sort of sound escaped Rose's lips. Whether it was a laugh or a sob, she didn't care; she took Albert's face in her hands and kissed him, hungrily, fiercely, desperately.
"Albert," she said between kisses, "I'm so glad," ... "that you're here too." ... "I thought you were," ... "in Pumpkin Falls."
He returned her kisses with fervor, holding Rose as closely as he could while sitting on the bench, almost pulling her onto his lap.
"Albert, I-" Rose stopped and pulled away suddenly, a look of almost horror on her face.
"Rosie, what is it?" Albert asked breathlessly, frowning and searching her face for an explanation.
"I need to tell you something, Albert," she said in a very small voice.
"I'm listening."
"I..." Rose sniffed and brushed away the tears that were once again threatening to fall. "I dated another man, after I left," she admitted, not looking at Albert. She didn't want to have to see his expression. She was afraid it would break her heart.
"I dated someone else too," he said softly. Rose's head jerked up.
"You...you did?"
Albert nodded. "For a few weeks. We broke it off...she reminded me too much of you."
Rose took Albert's hand. She didn't know what to say. A few weeks...she and Bernardo were together for months... how could she possibly tell Albert?
"Are...are you and he still together?" Albert asked. Rose shook her head. Not trusting herself to speak.
"What happened?"
Rose took a shaky breath and held tight to Albert's hand.
"He died. He was killed, in a gang fight."
"Oh my god...I'm so sorry, Rose."
Rose nodded once and shut her eyes. She could still feel the tears trickling down her cheek. Albert didn't say anything for a moment.
"Did you love him?"
Rose glanced at Albert, meeting his eyes.
"I... I don't know," she admitted, looking away. "I thought I did..."
More silence. Albert shifted his hand so their fingers intertwined.
"Rose?"
"Mm-hmm?"
"...do you love me?"
Rose nodded immediately and buried her face into Albert's arm, afraid she would start sobbing again if she opened her mouth.
"Albert?" she asked after a moment, her voice muffled slightly.
"I love you too, Rosie," he said softly, answering her question before she got a chance to ask it. "I never stopped loving you."
That did it. Rose burst into tears again and threw her arms around Albert's middle. He held her tight and rested his chin on top of her head, rubbing her back with one hand.
"It's okay, Rosie," he murmured, kissing the top of her head. "It's okay."
"N-no..." she sobbed. "It's not okay. I was horrible to you, I...you deserve someone better than me, Albert."
"Rosie, I don't want someone else," Albert said gently. "I want you. I've wanted you for nearly nine years now."
Rose didn't know what to say to that. So she held Albert even tighter, and let him go on rubbing her back, and telling her it would be okay. Maybe it would be...
"Albert?" she said after a while, when she could finally trust herself to speak without crying.
"Yes, Rosie?"
She sat up and looked Albert right in the eyes. "I know that...after everything that's happened, to both of us, we can't expect to pick up where we left off," she said in a small voice. "But...would it be too much to ask to start seeing each other again?"
"Rosie, if you asked me to take you to the nearest courthouse and marry you right now, I'd do it in a heartbeat."
Rose laughed. It felt good to do that again. "I don't know if I'm quite ready for that yet."
"All right," Albert said. "I'll wait. I'll wait for you, as long as you waited for me."
Rose smiled and tenderly pressed a kiss to Albert's cheek.
"I love you, Albert."
"I love you too, Rosie."
That's the end! Thank you so much for reading, please review.