Dance With Me in This Rain

He still had his back to me. He didn't notice me running like a maniac.
I began running out of breath and I felt like I would pass out any second. "T-Tom."
He didn't hear me.
"Tom."
Nope.
I took a deep breath, holding myself up by my knees. "TOM!"
Tom stopped dead in the middle of the road and spun around, with his hands in his pockets. His eyes went wide as he saw me. I tightened my jaw and began walking steadily across the street til I got to him.
He stared apathetically. "What are you doing?"
I opened my mouth, preparing to unleash a motherload, but my voice managed to somehow get lost in the process. And so I did what was unexpected. I punched his chest with all my force.
"Ow!" Tom yelped, jumping back abruptly. His mouth fell, and his eyebrows knitted tight in confusion. "What the hell?!"
I narrowed my eyes. "You had no right to do that."
Tom looked at me weirdly as he rubbed the spot I had hit. "What? What are you talking about? Are you not aware that you just punched me......freakishly hard?!"
"Why did you come here?!" I exclaimed, ignoring his question. "Why'd you have to tell me all those things! I-I was mad at you, dammit!"
He still looked confused. "......What are you talking about?"
"What part of I was mad at you don't you understand?" I hissed. "You can't just show up here like this, Tom!"
Tom crossed his arms. "Why not?"
I scoffed. "Because...you just can't, okay?!"
He narrowed his eyes. "You can't tell me what to do."
I rolled my eyes. "So this is how it's going to be? You screw up and I'm the only grown up in this situation?"
He gave me a puzzled look. "I seriously don't get what you're saying. Did you come here to yell at me some more?"
I let out a frustrated sigh. "You know what. Forget it. I'm outta here," I snapped, turning around and walking away from him.
It wasn't long before he came waltzing after me and grabbed my arm tightly. I winced.
"No, tell me. What are you thinking about this exact moment? Do you want me to leave? Do you want me to stay?" He questioned angrily. "What do you want?"
I paused, as he stood there, staring me straight in the eyes. It was hard. So hard. Did I have to answer him right away?
You know you want him to stay, Bella. Tell him.
I don't know.
Tom let out an impatient. frustrated sigh. "What do you want?"
I looked away from him, and pretended to be interested in the plain black flats I was wearing.
"I don't know, okay?" I finally answered. "That's like the hardest question you've ever asked me."
He raised any eyebrow. "What's so hard about it? Just tell me if you want me to stay or not."
"So if I tell you that I want you to leave, you will?" I inquired.
He shrugged. "What else do you expect me to do? I already spilled my guts back there and you didn't seem to buy any of it, so.."
I stayed in silence for a minute, as did he.
"Look," I began, in hesitance. "My sister and her husband are visiting. Um...you kind of scared them back there."
Tom smirked. "That was your sister?"
I nodded.
"And the tall guy is her husband. Oh. I thought you were screwing him just to get back at me."
My jaw fell and I punched his shoulder. "Are you kidding me?!"
He laughed, rubbing his shoulder. "Sorry, sorry."
"No, seriously, Tom. I can't believe you think I'd do that. I'm not you."
His face fell. "You can't blame me for thinking that, though. I mean, you leave and three days later when I show up at your house, some guy answers the door. A handsome guy, might I add. Sue me for being hysterically jealous."
I gave him a dirty look, but then smoothened it out. There was no point in discussing anything with him anymore. I was officially surrendering.
"You wanna go back and....set things straight? You know, to show them you're not just some psycopath who regularly comes into my house and yells at me?"
Tom couldn't contain his trademark smile. "So you want me to stay?"
I looked down again. "I can't tell you what to do, remember?"
He let out another small laugh. "In this case, you sorta can. It all depends on you."
"Don't say that."
"It's true. If you want me stay, I'll stay. If you want me to go, I'll go. You're the boss."
I shook my head. "Whatever."
"Good answer."
I shrugged and turned around, beginning to walk slowly. Then I suddenly noticed Tom wasn't following. He was just standing still, watching me.
I stared at him strangely. "You coming? Or would you rather just stand in the middle of the road just waiting to be hit?"
He smirked. "Do you want me to stand in the middle of the road? Because I will."
I rolled my eyes. "Stop screwing around, Tom."
He pouted his lower lip. "I'm not."
"Would you just come on? My sister's probably freaking out. I have to tell her about you."
Tom began walking up to me, stuffing his hands in his jeans again. "You didn't tell your sister about me?"
"No."
"Not once?"
"No. I haven't seen her in a long time and I wasn't planning on telling her about you, either. But you just had to show up," I muttered.
He smiled crookedly. "I'm such a screw-up, aren't I?"
"I'm afraid I have to agree with you on that one," I answered with a quiet laugh.
"Do you forgive me?" He asked, making me slow my pace. I rubbed my forehead.
"Can we just go back inside?"
Psh. He knew I did. Why ask?
Tom followed me silently as I reached my front door. I took a deep breath and opened it, stepping in.
"Izzy, what the hell?" Was the first thing my sister said when she saw me walking in. Her expression went from worried to mad once she spotted Tom behind me.
"Izzy, who the hell is this?" She barked, pointing at him. I bit my lip. "Are you hiding something from me? How could you hide anything from me?! I'm your sister and-"
"Daniella!" I interrupted, addressing my sister by her full name, which immediately made her stop mid-sentence. Christian, who was sitting on the couch watching the whole thing, got up and came to stand next to her. He placed an arm around her, trying to make her calm down. Bless that italian man.
"Listen, Danni. This is Tom," I said as calmly as I could. "My uh...my...." I paused.
"Boyfriend," Tom finished my sentence, without no hesitation whatsoever. "I'm her boyfriend. Nice to meet you. Daniella, is it?" He asked politely, sticking his hand out in front of him for her to take.
Tom acting shockingly cavalier? Wanting to shake hands? What the hell is happening?
Danni glared at him and averted her eyes to me. I just gave her a small reassuring smile. By the look on her face, it wasn't convincing enough. She hesitated before taking his hand and shaking it.
"B-boyfriend? Izzy, you have a boyfriend?" She questioned, appalled, nonetheless.
"That is what she just said, mia bella," Christian said to her, rubbing her arm. "Calmarsi, calmarsi."
"He's italian? This should be interesting," Tom whispered in my ear with an ironic laugh. I shot him a stern look for the sake of my sister. She didn't look too happy.
"When were you going to tell me?" She asked, crossing her arms. "Or were you just going to keep it a secret?"
I sighed. "I didn't think I needed to."
Her jaw fell. Christian, seeing the look on his wife's face, took a step back. He knew her all too well. And so did I.
"What? Why?" She snapped.
"Maybe because you're never around."
This threw her off even more.
"I-I mean, there's a lot of stuff you don't know."
Oh no. I shouldn't have said that! What is the matter with you, Bella?!
She narrowed her eyes, placing a hand on her hip. "Like what?"
"That's not important right now," I said quickly, waving my hand. "Anyways, I'm really sorry I didn't tell you. It's just......Tom and I had some problems."
Her face fell slightly as she glanced over at Tom, who looked completely chill, as if he wasn't the least bit preoccupied.
"What sort of problems?"
Christian sighed. "Carina, wouldn't it be best if you leave all the interrogation for later? Maybe it isn't so wise to meddle in your sister's private life."
I furrowed my brows. Wow. It wasn't enough to be handsome and polite, but smart too?
Danni sighed. "Christian, I'm her older sister. I need to look out for her."
"I don't need you looking out for me, Danni," I said, shaking my head. "I'm eighteen years old."
"Exactly. You're just a kid."
"I am not," I protested, glaring at her. "Danni, seriously."
"What?" She asked, shrugging. "You are."
"Okay, you know what? This conversation's over. Just go back to doing whatever you were doing."
Danni rolled her eyes. "Just talk to me, Izzy."
"I will. Later."
She sighed. "Fine."
Christian was suddenly at her side again. "Yes, carina. Let's leave them alone for a while. They look like they've been through a lot."
I smiled at Christian, who returned a bright smile. He then took Danni's hand and lead her towards the kitchen, leaving me and Tom alone in the living room.
"So," Tom began, rocking back and forward on his heels. "The italian guy seems nice. Your sister? Not so much."
I laughed quietly. "She's just surprised. I mean, yeah, I should've told her about you but I didn't think it'd matter so much. How the hell was I supposed to know she'd be coming over today? And then you showing up just hours later? Ugh. My mind is swirling right now."
Tom smiled crookedly and pulled me into a hug, which caught me by surprise. What was even more surprising was that my own arms automatically wrapped themselves around him.
"You don't know how much I've missed you," He whispered into my hair. I inhaled his scent, feeling my insides twirling for a brief second. He smelled so good.
"Come on," I said, taking his hand and leading him towards my room. On our way, I felt him intertwining our fingers. It felt nice. I missed that so bad.
I shut the door and walked to my bed, sitting on the edge. Tom was standing near the door, with his hands in his pockets. He smiled.
"What are you doing?" I asked suspiciously.
He shrugged. "Watching you."
I laughed. "Creepy much?"
He grinned. "I missed that laugh."
I looked down at my hands and Tom walked over to me, sitting next to me. His arms snaked around my waist, and he suddenly pulled me onto his lap in one quick motion.
"Ahh," I squealed.
"That's better, ain't it?" He laughed. "You're my little porcelain doll."
I smiled at him.
"Hey, you didn't even give me any crap for calling you doll," He said with another laugh. "Does that mean you'll let me call you doll from now on?"
"No. But today I'll let it pass," I replied wryly, resting my head on his chest.
His arms tightened around me. I was surprised that just minutes ago, we were outside, yelling and screaming at each other at the top of our lungs and now....we were actually together.
I'm not making any mistakes, am I? I forgive him. I love him. And he loves me. It's not a mistake. It can't be.
"What are you thinking about?" Tom asked softly, as he ran his fingers through my hair.
I pursed my lips. "Nothing."
I felt his breathing slow down. "Liar."
"Really, it's nothing."
"That means it's something. I know you," He said sternly.
I sighed. "You always have to remind me that, don't you?"
"Yeah, I do. It's to remind you that there's no way you can possibly hide anything from me. You're always open."
I made a face, lifting my head up to look at him. "Am I?"
He nodded.
"Tom....." I paused.
"What?"
I removed his arms from around my waist and I slowly stood up from his lap. He stared in wonder.
"Bells?"
"Look, you know I forgive you, right?" I began, speaking a bit quickly than intended.
He hesitated before nodding.
"But you can't stay here. I mean, I want you here, but....you're in a band. You have your brother and your friends. And you have your fans."
He bit his lip. "Yeah?"
"You understand me, right? You have to go back to Germany. Tokio Hotel is in the middle of a tour. You don't just take off and leave everyone behind like that."
He tightened his jaw. "That's what you did."
I shook my head. "That's different, Tom, and you know it. I don't have that sort of responsibilty. I'm a nobody. No one cares if I leave or not. But you? You've got everyone looking out for you."
He stood up. "Bella, are you gonna start talking shit now? Seriously?"
"I'm not talking shit. I'm just saying the truth. They all need you back there."
"But what about what I need?" He argued. I could sense the sudden fury in his voice. "Yeah, people need me. Yeah, I'm always there for them. But what about me, Bella? I need you."
I ran a hand through my hair. "Tom, don't make this hard. It's not like we'll never see each other again. Think positive."
He sneered. "Think positive?!"
I took a fearful step back.
"What exactly am I supposed to be positive about? You're not going to be in Germany with me. I'll be alone."
"What are you talking about? Bill, Georg, Gustav and Clara are there," I tried.
He blew some air from his mouth. "I-I just don't want to leave. Not now."
I fiddled with my sleeves.
Tom approached me. "They're my problems, okay? Just let me take care of them on my own. Right now, I just wanna stay here with you. And I know you do, too."
I became silent. Of course I wanted to stay with him. But at some point, he'd have to go back to Germany and finish the tour. Maybe that was why I wanted him to leave now. So I wouldn't hurt so much in the aftermath of this whole fucking situation.
"You still love me?" Tom asked, out of the blue, with a sudden smirk on his dazzingly beautiful face.
I snorted. "Why are you asking me that."
He shrugged, taking my hands. "Just to be clear on things."
I rolled my eyes and tried giving him another shove, but he held my hands firmly. "Do you or do you not?"
"You're really gonna make me say it?" I made a face.
"Why? Is it too hard?" He teased.
"Release my hands and maybe you'll get your answer."
He smiled slyly, and let go of my hands. "I'm listening."
I opened my mouth, but quickly closed it. "Why do I have to say it? You're the boy."
He snorted. "So?"
"So, it's much more convenient for the boy to say it first and then the girl. That's just how the story goes, buddy."
He laughed out. "Screw the talking. I fucking love you, you little tease."
I too laughed out. "Tease? Alright, let's go with that. I fucking love you, too, jackass."
"I'm glad we settled this."
"So am I," I answered, almost business-like.
He grinned. "I want you so bad right now."
I made a face, but laughed. "Way to be romantic, kid."
He scoffed. "We were never romantic to begin with. Why start now?"
I rolled my eyes. "True. But hey, you know nothing can happen tonight, right?"
He frowned. "Why not?"
"Hello, my sister and her husband are here. How inappropriate!"
"Oh, stop being such a goody-goody. You're in your own house. You can do whatever the hell you want," He tempted, winking.
"I'm not having sex with you while my sister is here, Tom. Just forget it," I said, turning around and aiming for the door.
I heard him sigh. "Fine, fine. It's not like I'm desperate."
I snorted. "Yeah, right."
Tom laughed as he followed me out the door of my room. We reached my living room, where Danni was seated on the couch and Christian right alongside of her. They were both communicating in italian and weren't aware of mine and Tom's presence.
"Danni?" I said, catching her attention. She stopped talking to Christian and turned around to look at me.
"Oh, hey, Izzy," She said with a small smile.
I smiled back and went to sit on the other couch with Tom.
I didn't know why, but I was feeling a bit awkward. It was just us four in my living room in silence. The TV wasn't even on.
Danni glanced a couple of times at Tom, who just had an arm around my shoulders.
"So," I began, praying someone would strike up a random conversation. But no one did.
"Um....I don't get why everyone is so quiet," I said, staring around at them. Tom just gave me a smirk.
"Iz, can I talk to you for a sec?" Danni suddenly said, and I sighed in relief.
"Yeah, sure."
Tom must've noticed the seriousness in her tone, because he suddenly stood up from his seat.
I stared at him weirdly.
"I'll be in your room, okay?" He said, nodding his head at me and at Danni before exiting the living room.
Christian, who stared after Tom, stood up aswell. He didn't say anything, but only winked at Danni before heading off into the kitchen.
I found the whole thing quite amusing, actually.
"So, anyway," Danni began, as she scooched herself over on the couch in order to get closer to me. "I was thinking."
I nodded. "About?"
She sighed. "I know I should've called you before coming over with Christian and I know I caught you totally off guard. But I was just excited in seeing you again. Anyway, Christian and I were talking and we think it's best that we leave."
My brows furrowed. "What? Why?"
"Oh, Izzy. It's fine, really. I mean, you and your boyfriend, from what I can tell and heard, have some issues to resolve. And you can't do that with me and my husband here. And besides, I already called mom and she said she'd be happy to have me and Chris over."
I looked at her bewilderedly. "Danni, no. You don't need to leave! I mean, I didn't even know Tom would show up today and-"
"Exactly. You didn't know I would show up today, either. I'm just saying that you and your boyfriend obviously need to spend some alone time together."
I tucked some hair behind my ear, and stared down at my hands.
Danni reached over to place a hand on my knee. "Really, it's no biggie. I'm staying in NYC for a few weeks. We can totally hang out. Just you and me."
I smiled big at her and she returned the gesture. "Okay. I still think you should stay, but whatever. That's your choice."
She laughed. "I miss mom, too, ya know," She joked. "I just think it's best. And hey, we should get together tomorrow. I wanna hear all about this Tom guy. Seriously, Iz, any guy in your life is worth being talked about. Especially with me."
I shrugged. "Sure, tomorrow's fine. I get off work at 4:30."
"Great," She said, as she stood up. "See you then."
She walked over towards her bags, which were all placed in front of the door. "Christian, andiamo!" She called.
Christian emerged from the kitchen with a smile on his face. "Si, carina."
I watched as Christian helped Danni with all the bags. I quickly went over to open the door for them.
"See you, Iz," She said, blowing me a kiss. I laughed.
"Tchau, Izabella. Vedro domani, si?" Christian said, giving me a kiss on the cheek.
I couldn't help but blush.
"He says see you tomorrow," Danni translated with a laugh.
"Oh. Bye Christian." I waved. They both waved back before turning their backs and heading off.
I sighed. As soon as I closed the door, Tom strided into the living room, looking beyond confused.
"What happened? Where'd your sister go?" He questioned.
"My mom's," I answered with a shrug.
He laughed. "Um, okay?"
I laughed. "She said it's best that you and I spend some alone time together", I said, making air quotations.
He lifted an eyebrow. "Really? She said that? Okay, maybe she's not so bad."
I shook my head disapprovingly. "Oh, Tom."
"What?" He said, laughing. "She doesn't like me, Bella."
"Well, what do you expect, Tom? The first time she sees you, you're in full maniac mode and yelling at me. I think we can all agree that it causes a first bad impression on anyone."
He rolled his eyes. "Okay. okay. You're right. As always."
I smiled triumphantly. "Good to know."
He yawned.
"You tired?" I asked, coming over to him.
He shrugged. "Not really."
I laughed. "Yeah, you are. Look at your face."
"What about my face?" He questioned, as his hand flew up to his cheek.
"I meant you look tired," I clarified.
He smiled. "Oh."
"Come on," I said, extending my hand. "You must be hungry."
He immediately took it. "You're taking care of me now?"
I shrugged. "Yeah, I am."
He grinned. "I love you."
Once I heard him say that, I beamed. "Joking aside, right?"
"Duh."
"Oh. Then in that case, I love you, too."