“What’s that supposed to mean?” Nick frowned, the same sympathetic look plastered on his face.
I sucked in a deep breath as I tried to control the tears. It was no use. I couldn’t control anything at this point. “My mom can be a bitch, Nick. I know that. My mom and I had been having problems understanding us for a while. She told me from the beginning that I had to leave you. But I refused. I would refuse her forever, Nick. Ever since she had first met you, she told me to leave you. She said she wouldn’t support me if I continued to see you.”
He looked down, obviously ashamed that he had never known this before. I continued.
“But then I didn’t have to refuse her,” I whispered. “Because you left.”
“I left because of your mom,” Nick touched my hand with his. “She came to me. The night before it happened.”
I turned the ring box over in my hands and continued to open and close it, making sure everything was real. The diamond ring shimmered back in my eyes. I heard a knock at the front door and a smile crept across my lips, expecting Rachel. I opened the door and my smile quickly fell as I realized it was Rachel’s mom. “Oh, h-hi, Mrs. LaRoe,” I smiled. She plastered a fake smile on her lips as she stared back at me.
“Nick,” she muttered. I opened the door wider and she walked in.
“Is everything okay? Is Rachel okay?” I asked her. She sat down on my couch and I sat down on the one across from her.
“Actually, things aren’t okay, Nick,” she said dryly. “You see, my Rachel is very special to me. She has big hopes and dreams and I don’t want anything to ruin those for her.”
“Of course, I understand,” I nodded. “I feel the same way. She has an amazing talent when it comes to writing.”
“She doesn’t want to write, Nick,” Mrs. LaRoe muttered rudely. “She wants to be a lawyer for her father. She wants to make a life for herself. And frankly, you aren’t helping her. You’re hurting her.”
Even though I knew she was only saying that to make me feel bad and it wasn’t true, I couldn’t help but find the truth in the statement.
“I think you should leave, Nick. It’d be best for you and Rachel, both,” she said and stood to her feet quickly. It was apparent that she didn’t want to stay any longer than she had to. “You’re ruining her life by staying with her. If you truly love her, you’ll let her go.”
After Nick told me what had happened, I lost it. All the anger and sadness poured out of my soul and onto the bed we were sitting on. I could almost feel Nick’s comfort through his stares, but it wasn’t enough. So he pulled me close to him as he finished the story. I rested my head on his shoulder, feeling safe being this close to him again. “The next day I went to your house to tell you about what had happened and how much I hated your mom,” he began.
“I can’t believe you!” I heard Rachel scream from outside. “How could you just send me away like this? Do you actually believe it’ll change the way I feel about him?”
“Rachel, people like him are meant for girls not like you,” Mrs. LaRoe yelled back. “As long as you live under my roof you will do what I say.”
“You can’t send me off forever,” she yelled. I could tell she was crying.
“It was then that I realized I needed to step back and leave. I couldn’t hurt your relationship with your mom, even though I hated her. I couldn’t be the person that caused any kind of hatred between you two,” he explained.
“Too late,” I muttered and wiped at my eyes as I pulled away from him. “Sorry.” A small smile formed over my lips as I looked down at his shirt and saw tearstains splashed over it.
“Ah, it’s just a shirt,” he laughed and shrugged it off. His facial expression became sober and he looked deep into my eyes. “I’m sorry I left you.”
“I’m sorry you left me, too,” I grinned. I gasped as his lips overpowered mine in a soft, sweet kiss.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Wow, thank you for the reviews! Please keep them coming!
Oh! The italicized sections in this chapter are told by Nick, if you couldn't figure that out by the contents.
Oh! The italicized sections in this chapter are told by Nick, if you couldn't figure that out by the contents.
