I knock on Grayson's door and a few seconds later, he opens it and looks down at me with confusion.

"Well that was fast." He says.

"Yeah. I didn't exactly go home." I say with a frown.

"Are you okay?" He asks, looking at me with concern written all over his face.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine. I just didn't want to drive there and back, I guess." I laugh to myself. There's no way that I can tell Grayson about Ryan. Not yet, at least. He'd start to view me as a burden. He'll think that this situation is far too much to handle. I can't deal with it right now, that's for sure.

"Oh. Well, you look great. You always look great." He smiles before standing to the side and letting me in.

"Do you think this is good enough for whatever we do tonight?" I ask.

"Absolutely." He assures me.

"Okay, great." I say as I take a seat on the couch.

"Water?" He offers, handing me a cup full of ice water.

"Thank you." I say, smiling up at him.

"Anything for you." He smiles in reply as he takes a seat next to me.

I know from the look on his face that he can tell that something is wrong, he just isn't sure what the problem is.

"Can I ask you something?" I say quietly.

"Of course." He nods.

"Do you think it would be okay if I stayed with you tonight?" I ask, feeling embarrassed for even asking. What if he doesn't want me to stay over again? We're not exactly official or anything. We're not sleeping together, either. So there's a good chance that he won't want me to think this is more than it is or move too quickly.

"Yeah, of course." He replies instantly. Relief washes over me at his words.

"Are you sure? I know it's totally last minute and random, but-"

"I'm positive. Do you have everything you'll need for work in the morning? Sofia has a bunch of stuff if not. Or, you can wear something in my closet." He says.

"I probably have something in my car that I can wear." I say.

"You should honestly just bring some clothes over here." He replies.

I'm shocked at this reply, but pleased to say the least. He gets nervous by my lack of response as he quickly adds, "I mean, only if you want to. It just might make things easier in case you ever want to stay over here again. You don't have to if you don't want to."

"No, I was honestly thinking that it sounds like a good idea." I laugh. "Thank you, Grayson." I say as I lean over to kiss the man who surprises me more and more every day.

"You're welcome." He says, kissing me once more before turning the TV on.

"Do you think maybe we could stop at my place later tonight so I could get some stuff?" I blurt out.

"I thought you didn't want to drive over there." He laughs in reply.

"Yeah, I know." I reply.

"We can, though. If you need to." He adds.

"Will you go in with me?" I ask nervously.

"Into your apartment?" He asks.

"Yes."

"I mean, yeah. Only if you want me to, that is." He replies.

"Okay, cool." I nod. We're silent for a few minutes as.

"I did want to talk to you about something." He mutters as he turns to face me. He looks tense and it unsettles me immediately.

"Okay. About what?" I ask nervously.

"About us." He says as he inhales deeply.

"Okay.." I say, giving him my full attention.

"I'm not seeing anyone else." He says.

"Okay." I laugh softly. "That's good, because I'm not either." I answer honestly.

"Good." He says with a nod. "I just kind of want to know what you're thinking in all of this. You know, about me." He mutters.

"I really like you." I say. "Like, a lot." I smile.

He smiles in reply and nods at my statement.

"I really like you too." He adds. "It's kind of crazy. I just never imagined that someone like you even existed."

My heart swells at his words. I honestly had no idea that someone like Grayson existed, either. The fact that Shane began to warn me in the beginning of our relationship comes to my mind. I have no idea how he would even think that I wouldn't want to be with Grayson. He's proving to be so perfect.

He's too good for me.

"Really?" I ask. "Why do you say that?"

"I haven't dated anyone since I was eighteen. God, it's been ten years. That's kind of a long time. I'm about to turn 29 and it's just kind of crazy to think about it." He admits.

"So tell me, why is a guy like you single?" I ask.

"Am I single?" He asks with a small smirk. I feel the heat rush to my cheeks at his words.

Is he single? Hell, am I single? Is this something that we could make official?

"I mean..." I start, not even knowing where to begin. I'm smiling and blushing like a damn school girl and he's loving every second of it. I can tell.

"We'll circle back around to this, don't worry." He says. "I'm in no rush. Don't feel pressured with anything, please." He says.

"Okay." I answer, feeling the breath I was holding leave my body.

"I guess I just haven't ever been with someone who really understood me. I've never fully felt like myself with anyone except my family and Shane. Even some of my family I don't really feel like myself around." He says.

"Really? Like who?" I ask, wanting to know anything he's willing to tell me.

"My dad and my brother. I don't know, we just didn't really ever click. Something about me just wasn't good enough for him. My dad absolutely adores my brother, though. Which, I understand. He's cool. He's a good guy. Me and my dad get along, we just don't really understand each other." He shrugs.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"He always wanted me to play sports and rush in college. I don't know, he just wanted me to be everything that I wasn't. I focused in school and made really good grades, but I didn't really have any friends. He was thrilled when I started hanging out with Shane. Even if he did only view him as a dorky mormon guy from Utah." He says.

"And playing sports and being in a fraternity was more important than doing the things that you wanted to do?" I ask.

"I guess I just didn't fit the mold he wanted. My brother did, but I didn't." He adds.

"And you aren't close with your brother?" I ask.

"Not like how me and Sofia are with each other. Sofia and him barely even talk. I think that's because of the age difference, though. But then again, me and her about as far and my brother is to her." He says.

"What's his name?" I ask.

"Jason." He says.

"Huh." I say. "You all have such different names from one another." I say.

"Really?" He asks, "I guess I haven't noticed."

"So you're close with your mom and your sister. And Shane, of course." I say.

"And you." He adds.

I smile at this, loving that he even included me in his list of people that he feels close to. I feel close to him, too.

"And me." I smile. "So why? Why only us? You have so much to offer." I say. Although I already know why, I just want to hear him tell me. I want to know that he trusts me with this.

"Well, I'm not exactly like everyone else. I have a hard time connecting with people. I just don't understand them, I guess." He sighs.

"Why do you think that?" I ask.

He looks at me and lets out a long sigh before running his hand through his hair. It's getting longer now, and I absolutely love the length. Grayson complains about it becoming unmanageable, but is trying to keep it long for me. I'm convinced that he'll do anything to keep my happy.

"So, when I was younger my parents could tell that something was different about me. There would be periods of time that I wouldn't talk to anyone, really. I could never explain why, either. I just assumed it was bad anxiety. That's what my teachers would always say, at least. I was tested for autism when I was six years old or so. It wasn't quite autism, but it wasn't considered normal either." He sighs. I can tell that he's tense with the way that he's sitting. Sometimes when he gets really nervous, he'll pick at the thread on his jeans. If he's wearing sweatpants, he'll pick at the cuff on his ankles. It's something I don't even think he's noticed, really.

"So what is it?" I ask, already knowing this answer.

"I have Aspergers Syndrome. It's a high functioning autism. Like, extremely high functioning. I don't even think they're calling it Aspergers anymore. I think it's just considered to be on the spectrum. This explains why I am the way that I am. It's hard for me to pick up on social cues and facial expressions. It's hard for me to relate to other people and their emotions. I can't pick up on humor easily and it's hard for me to even tell my own jokes. I can come off as rude to some people and not even notice. I won't ever read between the lines. I have anxiety in groups and hate public speaking. Meeting new people stresses me out completely and that's why I have Shane do everything HR related. I've always excelled in computers and anything that has to do with technology. It's something I found interesting as a young kid and it just stuck with me ever since then. When I find a hobby, I become completely obsessed with it and want to know everything about it. That's how I learned everything that I know right now. That's how I was able to become fluent in Spanish and that's ultimately how I built this company. It's embarrassing most of the time and It's not something I'm proud of. It almost defines me in a way, even though I know it shouldn't. I was terrified to even tell you this because I was afraid that you would look at me differently. Honestly, I'm still nervous that you'll look at me differently. You've viewed me as your equal. You never treat me like I'm awkward, even though I know that I am. I don't know. I didn't really ever want to tell you, but you deserved to know the truth." He explains.

I have absolutely no words for what he just told me. He's so brave and honest. He's everything that I always wanted in a man but never felt that I deserved. It doesn't matter if I already knew the truth from Shane. Hearing these words from Grayson himself gives me a new light on the entire situation. Despite how early all of this is, I truly believe that I could love this man.

"I think I need you to say something." He says nervously.

"I'm sorry, I'm just speechless is all." I say, shaking my head at myself. Of course he would be nervous at my lack of response.

"I just want to let you know that I understand if this makes you want to slow things down. I know that this is a lot to take in, but I just wanted you to know the truth. Especially with the way things have been progressing with our relationship. You deserved the right to get out if this is something you don't want to deal with. I would understand." He says in a sad tone.

"What? No! No, this doesn't change anything at all, Grayson." I say quickly, taking his hand in mine. His hand grips softly on my own and his thumb begins to caress my skin gently.

"It doesn't?" He asks softly.

"Of course not. Grayson...I don't want you to ever think that this would change things between us. I'm not perfect. You deserve to be with someone perfect. You're everything that someone could ever dream of having. If anything, you should be the one with a way out of this. I'm a lot to handle at times. I can be insecure and overbearing and completely irrational. I've tried controlling all of this around you because you're so...perfect. But it won't always be easy, you know?" I say.

"I don't think you're any of those things." He says.

"You just haven't seen it yet." I say.

"Well, I'd like the chance to see that side of you. I want to know everything. I want to be here through the good and the bad." He says.

"Can I say something without you completely freaking out?" I ask.

"Absolutely." He says with a nod.

"I think I'm like..." I say, not even knowing how to tell him this.

"Can I actually say something first?" He asks, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Yes."

"I really don't want you to freak out." He says.

"You're making me nervous."

"I know this is all happening quickly and this is all so new, but I know that what I'm feeling right now is real. I don't know how I know this, but I just do. Natalia, I'm falling in love with you. And I know this is way too soon to be saying all of this, but I just have to get that off of my chest. I don't want you to think this is possibly anything else. This is all very real to me, and I've never experienced this before. I just...I don't know." He says almost frantically.

The second I hear his words I lean in to kiss him. He pulls me in and holds me close to him. I love the feeling I get when I'm in his arms. I haven't felt this close to someone in a long time. I had no idea I could feel like this, really. He's everything that I could want and he's the last person I would have expected it from. These feelings are so strong and we haven't even had sex yet. He feels this way about me without having to sleep with me yet. What he's feeling is real.

I know it is.

"I'm falling in love with you, too." I say, smiling into our kiss. I can feel his smile as he moves his kisses to my cheek before pulling away.

"So with all of this being said...can we circle back around to the original question?" He asks with a small smile.

"Are you single?" I ask with a smirk.

"God, I hope not." He laughs.

"Good. Because you aren't single. You're all mine."

-

Okay, this was so cute to write. I love the honesty that Grayson is beginning to show. We'll get more of him soon, don't worry. There's still A LOT that these two have to work through and figure out. Things are about to get really sticky for these two love birds.

Thanks for reading!

-ac