Leap of faith

Still looking a bit nervously as she broke eye contact from time to time to hide from Laila's all-telling stare, Maria swallowed loudly before continuing. "I guess I just don't know how to handle him and that makes me a bit scared. To add to that, he seems to be able to look right through me and read my very thoughts, which makes it impossible for me to push him away or fool him for a moment in order to settle my heart and mind. All the while he seems completely unaffected by whatever I do or say, despite me having said some pretty mean things since I have gotten to know him. He just appears so fully in charge, while I am just being pushed around by his directness and his sudden actions."

Maria turned silent for a brief moment before she scooted closer to Laila and looked at her directly with eyes that showed the fear she was feeling. "It's just that I can't help but feel that I am always clueless about what is going on in his mind, while he is able to clearly to see what is going on in mine. Because of that I have a hard time figuring out if he really means what he says and what his intentions really are. If only I had a way to know if he was being real or that it is just a way for him to claim me as his own and then toss me back to the side." Maria then looked away again and muttered in a soft voice, "Maybe he just sees me as a challenge and once the chase is over, so will his idea of wanting to be an 'us'.", before lifting her face back up with a vulnerable look in her eyes and a sad smile on her face.

These words had made Maria appear so fragile. To a degree that she had never seen before. Though Laila wanted to offer Maria words of comfort. Especially since she was sure that Noah had already looked into Steve's intentions and had made sure he was serious before approving him courting Maria. But Laila continued to remain silent as it was clear that her friend was in the process of finally speaking the truth not only to her but also herself. She was facing her feelings as she spoke of them and she didn't want to interrupt this process when it was clearly something she had been struggling with by herself, perhaps subconsciously, for longer than she might care to admit. Shortly after her decision to remain silent, it paid off as Maria added another part to her confession.

"It is just that he is so direct with all his feelings and I am not used to that. But when I am honest with myself, I know that I don't hate him being that way. I find it refreshing in a way compared with the men I have dated before. I think it simply catches me off guard each time. So, I suddenly don't know what to do or say. Making me act like a fool or be mean in response. Now knowing that Noah is aware of everything as well and has even witnessed our interaction from before I am sure I will act like a fool even more than before."

Feeling like she had heard all that there was to say. Even more than what she had expected considering the simplicity of the conversations Maria and Steve had actually shared in the living room in the past fifteen minutes. But her pushing had apparently broke the dam and all of what she had been feeling came pouring down. Laila pulled Maria in for a hug, something which seemed to catch both Maria as Steve off guard. Only Noah seemed unsurprised and simply showed a gentle smile on his face as he witnessed it. He then pulled Steve back in conversation in order to give Maria and Laila another moment to themselves.

After Laila broke the hug and held onto Maria's arms she said with a smile, "Oh my sweet, sweet friend. I am so happy that you are finally able to be honest with your feelings. Let me take away some of your friends as a reward. First, let me address what is clearly your biggest concern, Steve's intentions. Though he tells me that he and I have known each other for a long time, you and I both know that the me he knows is a different Laila. So, I can't vouch for him myself but Noah cares more about you than you might think and he has made sure that Steve is in this with the right intentions. In his own words, 'I have never entered a relationship with someone I wasn't serious about'. At least according to Noah."

While moving one of her hands to cover the tightly clenched hand of Maria that was resting on her lap as she was clearly listening with an anxious heart filled with doubt, Laila continued telling her, "And you can be certain that if Steve ever intentionally tries to hurt you that Noah will personally teach him the word 'regret'. Speaking as someone who has seen plenty of your interactions and has seen the way he speaks about you, I too can tell that he is being genuine about you. I can't guarantee that you won't get your heart broken somewhere down the line and that you won't ever break up but as your best friend I can say that he is a leap of faith worth taking. At least right now it is clear that he truly cares about you and he has everything that you need in a man."