Come One, Come All to This Tragic Affair

It’s been about three months since Jaden and I started dating.
We see each other every day and text each other constantly if we’re not together.
We usually end up sleeping in the same bed every night, be it in my apartment or hers.
I love waking up and seeing her curls tangled into bedhead. She’s beautiful even when she’s asleep.
I’ve known that I love her for three months as well.
I haven’t told her.
I want her to tell me first, so she doesn’t feel obligated to say it back to me if she doesn’t mean it. I glanced over at my fridge, where a strip of photos hung. They were taken yesterday at a carnival photo booth Jaden dragged me to.
“Please?” She stuck out her lower lip and clasped her hands under her chin.
How could I say no to a face like that?
“Fine, fine. I’m losing street cred by the pound.” I laughed, settling her into my lap because the photo booth was small as fuck.
“You’ll get over it.” She stuck her tongue out at me. I did the same just as the first picture snapped.
I checked the time on my phone and sighed when it had only been five minutes. She’d had to run down to the gallery to pick up something she’d left there. I’d offered to go with her but she told me to just relax until she got back.
I paced my apartment, unwilling to sit still. I just don’t like it when she’s not around.
The guys have started saying that I’m whipped, although truth be told Jaden and I haven’t had sex.
Oh, we’ve gotten close sometimes, including that time that Gee and Charlie interrupted us, but we’ve never actually gone all the way. God, I’m using the euphemisms of a 13 year old.
Jaden drives me crazy sometimes. The other day she got me to strip down to my boxers so she could see all my tattoos. Of course having her touching my skin when I was mostly naked didn’t help my blue balls much.
My phone rang and I lunged for it. I flipped it open without even looking at the caller ID.
“Hey, I’m on my way back.” Ever since that little incident in the park, Jaden is under strict orders from Charlie to call every time she changes location.
“The door’s open for you.” Plus she had a key. I had a key to her apartment too so we wouldn’t have to keep getting up in the middle of the night to let each other in.
She still wears her wedding band around her neck though. I won’t ask her to take it off, not unless I was prepared to put another ring on her finger.
She still talks about Danny too. I know she knows it kind of bothers me to hear about it, but sometimes she just blurts things out about him.
The door swung open and I looked over my shoulder happily.
There she was.
The girl I love, in all her glory.