Chapter 28: The Kiss

Gwen blamed the alcohol for that delusion. It was not possible that Finn was actually there. She had been thinking about him the entire night, and now was starting to see things. That man was going to make her insane. But the more she blinked, the clearer his figure became.
“Where have you been?” his voice crossed the air like an arrow straight to her heart. He was pissed, and also drunk. Not that she wasn’t either, but she could tell just by the tone of his voice. It still amazed her how she still knew Finn so well after all those years.
“Finn, what are you doing here? Where’s Steph?” Gwen asked, looking around, searching for her friend.
“She left. I told her that I’d watch Cody while you were out,” he explained, taking a few steps in her direction.
Gwen could see that he was a mess. His shirt was creased, he wasn’t wearing a tie anymore, his hair was messy, and his cheeks were flushed.
“Why are you here anyway?” Gwen asked, crossing her arms. “I’m tired and you've already ruined my night, so can you please just say what you have to say and leave? I need to sleep,” she continued, locking her eyes on his.
Finn clenched his teeth.
“I ruined your night? How so?”
Gwen sneered out of frustration.
“You're kidding, right? You knew I was going to have dinner with Clyde, and coincidentally, you showed up at the same restaurant with Vivienne and asked join us at our table?”
“What’s the big deal? It was just a friendly dinner,” Finn replied, with a poker face that made Gwen clench her fist and want to punch him.
“Don't be an idiot, Finn. You know what I’m talking about. You hate Clyde, you keep saying that Vivienne is not your fiancée, yet you’re with her all the time, and suddenly you feel like having dinner with both of them?” Gwen asked, starting to feel hot and impatient.
She dropped her purse on the table and took her coat off, feeling the temperature increase as she got angrier.
Finn took a few more steps forward.
“I do hate him and I told you why. Yet, you still accepted to go on a date with him,” he said, furious. “And I’ve already told you that my situation with Vivienne is complicated.” He passed his fingers through his hair, messing it even more.
“Yeah, yeah, you keep saying that, but it’s not what we see, is it? She’s always around you and hanging on you like a keychain,” Gwen burst out.
Finn looked at her a little surprised, but pulled himself together immediately.
"I'm not here to talk about her, I’m here to talk about you… and Clyde,” Finn continued, changing the subject.
“You shouldn’t even be here, for starters. And what I do or not do with Clyde is none of your business.”
“What if it is?” Finn asked, ending the distance between them with just one more step.
“I don’t see how that could be your business,” she stated, swallowing and making sure that she didn’t stumble with his imposing figure so close to her.
He was too close for her own good; close enough for her to feel his intoxicating fragrance, to sense the magnetic field between them, pulling their bodies towards each other. That didn’t happen with Clyde, no matter how attracted she was to him. It was an entirely different feeling. With Finn, everything was much more powerful, like she couldn’t resist the nature of it all; like they were meant to be close to one another.
She could tell that Finn was feeling the same. His eyes moved from her lips to her eyes, and his breath was erratic. She also almost forgot how to breathe properly for a few seconds.
“It is my business, because no matter how hard I try, I simply can’t accept you being with him,” Finn whispered, trying to stop staring at her lips, even though they were begging to be kissed.
Ever since he left the restaurant, he couldn’t stop imagining what Gwen could be doing with Clyde, and just the thought of anything more intimate then a handshake made him incensed. He knew he had no right to interfere in her love life, but he still could try to win her back. So why wasn’t he doing anything?
And then he decided to act, but by the time he arrived at Gwen's apartment, she wasn’t there. Stephanie had said she didn’t come back from dinner yet, and his blood boiled with the idea of her sleeping with Clyde.
He didn’t know if that had even happened, but he was sure he didn’t want to find out. He had to act and make Gwen realize that he was the right man for her, not Clyde or anyone else.
Feeling an uncontrollable impulse, Finn wrapped his arm around her waist and grabbed her neck with the other hand, pulling Gwen towards him with passion and urgency. His lips met hers with incredible hunger, as though his life depended on it.
At first, Gwen didn’t know how to react. She was caught off guard; she didn’t think he was actually going to do that, even though she had imagined it, or even wished for it deep inside. She was still mad at him, but at the same time, she couldn’t pretend her heart wasn’t hurting by being so close, yet so far from him.
For a minute, they forgot about every single thing that could ruin that kiss. It was their moment, one that they both dreamt of for years, and it was finally happening.
Finn was holding her tight, his hands running up and down her body, and Gwen finally gave in to her wish as well. She grabbed Finn’s neck and pulled him towards her, like it was possible for them to be even closer. But she didn’t care. At that moment, she was able to forget everything. The suffering, the years without him, the hardships with Cody, everything she went through ever since that day…
And suddenly, something occurred to her and she came back to reality. She couldn’t do that. She couldn’t kiss him. Cursing every single cell in her body, Gwen gathered the strength to push Finn away.
Her body physically hurt when he released her from his arms.
“I can’t do this, we… can’t do this. You have a fiancée,” Gwen repeated for what it seemed to be the millionth time.
Finn rubbed his hands on his face out of frustration before answering.
“She is not my fiancée, Gwen. Not anymore. Not since the day I met you five years ago, okay?”