PS I'm (not) Over You

0Rion watched quietly as Sara started preparing her luggage and taking her clothes from her closet. The reality that she was leaving him for the meantime made his heart clench within his chest. He wasn't quite ready to be parted from her.     0

He never thought that he could be a clingy lover to his woman. One more week, and she would have to leave. He wondered what he should do while waiting for her.     

"What are you thinking about?" Sara asked.     

Rion shook his head before pulling her, making her sit on his lap. He then wrapped his arms around her and buried his nose in the crook of her neck. His broad chest pressed against her back. He knew he would miss her badly.     

"Don't you want me to leave?" Sara asked him.     

She had a good idea of what was going on in his mind. The two of them were inseparable for the past weeks, and she knew she was going to miss him. She would miss how he nagged her, how he teased her, and how he gave her those secret glances when he thought she wouldn't notice.     

"You have to. I can wait, and I don't want to be an obstacle to what you want to do in your life," he murmured against her skin. "Just come back safe to me."     

He would be alone again until she came back. Rion finally realized how lonely his life was when he hadn't met Sara before. He realized how lonely it was until it was the end of the day and got some things to talk about… but no one to talk to.     

Sara was in awe. She had never experienced receiving such kind of concern from anyone except her siblings. Slowly, she loosened up his hold on her and held the side of his face. He would grow lonely, but he would endure until they could be together again.     

"I will be back before you know it. I thought you wanted to go with me?"     

"I will need to do some work in here, but if you really miss me, just give me a call. I will then follow you wherever you are because you are mine."     

Sara grinned. Her man knew what to say to make her fall in love with him all again.     

"Yes, I'm yours."     

Just like everyone else, she wanted a lover, a protector, and a friend. Sometimes, people would forget to protect the heart of their lover. It didn't make sense to be in a relationship if one was feeling alone. Rion just made her forget all about her past relationships, proving that he could secure and protect her heart. Something that most men had forgotten to do in this modern era.     

She was comfortable being with him; she could be weird as she could be, say what's on her mind, and talk nonsense.     

"Hey, why don't we go out for a while and play some games?" she suddenly asked.     

"I don't like the games you have in your mind." Rion sharpened his gaze at his girlfriend. She had a weird definition of a game, and he wasn't so keen to know what it was now.     

"Aww… my poor baby is scared to lose now?" Sara pouted.     

Rion chuckled, his hand starting to rub her sides.     

"Me? Scared? You haven't beaten me on anything, right?"     

"Oh, you know buster! You won't give me a single chance to win against you!"     

----     

Sara held his hand as they walked down the busy streets of New Global City. They would enjoy her last vacation days, and he would let her do whatever she wanted. She dragged him to a local park and watched how busy everyone was. Teens were practicing how to skate and eating ice cream; some kids were even learning how to ride bicycles.     

"Come on, Rion! Hurry!" she said. She swiftly pulled him into the nearest bicycle shop she had seen earlier.     

"Do you know how to ride one?" he asked. He wasn't liking this idea. He knew how Sara could be reckless and childish at times.     

"Of course, I do!" She nudged his side before pointing at the bicycles to choose his bike. Did he have a choice to back out? He was having doubts about it.     

"What will I do with you?" Rion sighed.     

"Love me?" Sara winked at him, and Rion could swear she was getting bolder with her claim of her love for him. It wasn't like he opposed the idea, but he just wasn't used to being showered with love and adoration from others.     

She took one of the bikes and paid for the rent to the staff at the booth. Rion gave her a flat look before taking his own bike and following her outside.     

"Now, we are ready to race!"     

"No."     

"What? Don't be such a killjoy, Rion. Come on. It will be fun." Sara insisted.     

"No, and that's final."     

"Heh, I know you're just afraid to lose this time."     

Rion glared at his girlfriend. Oh, the things he had done for her. Was there even a chance that he could decline her wishes?     

"What's your bet?"     

"Fine. If you lose, you're buying dinner tonight," she said.     

"Deal." Sara grinned and made a thumbs-up in his direction.     

"What about yours? What's your bet?" Sara asked, slightly tilting her head to her side. Rion thought she was pretty cute in this angle and made him want to kiss her right now.     

The ends of his lips curled into a small smile. Should he make it embarrassing for her just like before, or should he make it one memorable bet for Sara?     

"I will tell you once I win."     

Sara frowned. She didn't like what he was implying. He was probably thinking of a way to make her do a silly bet again.     

"Tell me, Rion. Tell me, please?" She tried to make a cute face that she always did whenever she was trying to ask something of him.     

"No, you will have to wait. What? Unless you're assuming you're going to lose now and admit defeat, I will tell you."     

"Damn, Rion. You're so unfair." She pouted.     

Rion eyed her before shaking his head. He would never win against her. It was true that he was always the one who wins their every bet, but she hadn't realized yet that everything he did was for her sake and to make her happy even how weird it looked from the outside and to everyone.     

He looked around him and at the people playing in the area. Maybe it was a bad idea to race with her with all these people blocking their way.     

"Don't you think we should leave and find another place that isn't crowded?"     

"It will be fine." Sara tried to reassure him. "We have our safety gears on and bells to make them aware we're going their way," she said while adjusting the strap of her helmet.     

Rion leaned over his bicycle and readied himself while Sara had a big grin on her face.     

"Okay! Ready?" she asked and Rion nodded.     

"Ready. Set. Go!" Sara yelled.     

Both of them pedaled their bicycles eager to pass each other. Rion could feel the sudden excitement flowing through his veins. It has been a long time since he rode a bike. The last time was when he taught Ava how to ride a bike when she was ten. He could hear Sara's laughter and excitement near him.     

They were going so fast, and every turn was getting harder. Their bells kept on ringing to warn people in their way. Rion gave an extra kick and pedaled faster, trying to beat his girlfriend to this race. He heard Sara exclaim something and saw her zoom in top speed.     

"Slow down, Sara!" Rion warned her.     

"No way! I'm going to win this ti—waaaaaaahhhh!!!!"     

She swerved and turned too hard as she tried to avoid the little boy that she had failed to notice earlier. Her bicycle hit the pedestal gutter, flipping and throwing her body up in the air. She landed in the thick bushes and rolled down to the grassy area in the park.     

She laid there for a moment with wide eyes, trying to catch her breath as she waited for Rion to come after her. He was right. This was certainly a bad idea.     

Rion quickly followed where Sara landed, leaving his bicycle on the sidelines and running to her side.     

"Are you okay? Does anything feel broken? Do I need to call your sister?" He panicked as he tried to see if she was hurt somewhere. No blood, no wounds, but she had some scratches and would surely get some bruises later.     

"My pride as a racer," Sara whined while Rion gave her a reprimanding look. She still got the guts to joke around?     

"Wait here. I already asked someone to get the Park's medic," he said while she whimpered at the pain.     

A moment of silence, and no one uttered a single word while they waited for some help. Sara gave him a side glance before remembering their bet.     

"I won, right?" she asked.     

"No."     

"What?"     

"Technically, you lose because you haven't reached the finish line."     

Sara pouted again and silently berated herself for losing when she was about to win against him.     

"So what's your bet?"     

However, Rion kept silent and sat beside her while she stayed lying on the ground.     

"Hey, you defeated me. Now, tell me what is it?" Her hand reached out to touch his. "Tell me."     

"It was more like a wish than a bet. You don't have to worry about it."     

"Tell me," she insisted. She wanted to know what made him so uneasy.     

He stared at her for a long time, and Sara felt like she was being devoured by the intensity of his gaze to her. Rion knew it wasn't the right time, and she wasn't ready. However…     

"Marry me."