Chapter 41
Slamming her bedroom door shut Hannah jumped on her bed crying into her pillow. ‘Too good to be true, if it’s my life we’re talking about things were bound to end in disaster since before they began,’ she thought to herself kicking her shoes onto the floor. They landed with two deep thumps. Raising her head up she saw the picture taken of her and Nick at Disneyland. ‘So happy, so loving…so fake!’ she spouted at the glossy print shredding it into pieces. Plopping back down she stared at the ceiling as tears dripped down her cheek into her long hair. “How will I ever be so happy again?” she asked as the door knob to her room turned.
“Hannah, honey, is something wrong?” he mother peered into the shaded confines of her room. “Did you tell Nick the news?”
“Oh I told him alright! And things are just swell, never been better,” she sniffled wiping her eyes. “That boy loves me more than life itself he says. We’re going to get married. We’re going to live happily ever after…but what’s he do at the first test of our love? Bails on me!” she waved her hands in the air and dropped them dramatically in her lap.
“What?!” her mother gasped taking a seat beside her on the bed.
Her hair tossed and eyes wet Hannah’s lips crumbled, “He,” she stopped to catch her breath, “He dumped me.” Bowing her head she cried into her hands. “Oh Mom, I was so stupid. I believed that this whole fantasy was real.”
“I just don’t understand, why? How could this happen?” her mother asked rubbing her back softly.
“I…don’t…know,” Hannah sniffed wiping her nose. “He doesn’t want a long distance relationship, he says they never work. I told him that it could work for us if we tried hard and all he could do was call me selfish. Me! Selfish! How can I be selfish when all I have in my mind right now is us, and our love?” She laid back down pulling the sheets around her. “And then I told him that he was just using me for sex and that’s all he wanted.”
“Hannah, I’m sure that’s not true.”
“I don’t know, and I don’t care! If he’s not man enough to face the fact that I have a life of my own then I don’t want him. How could I have been so stupid? Deep down I knew this would happen. I told myself not to get too caught up in him, not to get blindsided. But of course I did. And now look what I’ve done to myself. I’ve fallen so hard!”
“Maybe this will all just blow over. Couples have fights dear, you two can talk this out and everything will be just fine. You’ll see.”
“I really don’t think so Mom, he sounded pretty final. I just wish that I’d never met stupid Nick Carter!”
“Well what can I do sweetheart?”
“Just order the greasiest pizza known to man. There’s no need to keep a nice figure now that I’m swearing off men,” she hugged her pillow. Her mother placed a small kiss on her forehead and left the room. There in the dark Hannah fought to push all thoughts of Nick from her mind but she couldn’t help but wonder what he was doing and remember all their time together. That smile of his, she wondered if she would ever see it again. His stunning blue eyes, would they ever sparkle for her again? His breathtaking voice. His heart-melting touch. All things so familiar to her now, all things she would probably never see again. ‘I have to forget him,’ she lectured herself. ‘What I need is a distraction for the next week. Once I get to California I’ll be so busy that I won’t have time to even think the name Nick Carter. All I have to do is get through this last week and I’ll be fine. I’ll be just fine.’
Rolling out of bed she switched on her light and decided now was the perfect time to start planning for her new life and Los Angeles. There was plenty of time to pack but right now she knew it was the only thing that would keep her sane so she went to her closet and began sorting through the things she wanted to take with her. Beyond clothes there was so much stuff to go through. Boxes from her childhood, souvenirs, and trinkets. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted the prom picture of her and David. “Yet another perfect guy who turned out to be a huge creep,” she sneered tossing the picture in the 'Garbage' pile.
Rewards, ribbons, and certificates of honor…all prized achievements from her work in journalism, Hannah could not help but smile at how her hard work paid off. ‘Just one more week and it’ll start all over again,’ she forced herself to remember putting the lid back on the box. “You’re pizza’s here,” her mother walked in the room carrying the box and plenty of spare napkins. “Oh, you’ve started packing, smart thinking!” she smiled setting the box down on the carpet and picking up a picture of Hannah’s sophomore year baseball team. “Wow, I almost forgot that you ever played that silly sport,” she laughed.
“Yep, not that I was very good,” she took the picture from her mother’s hand studying the photograph. “It’s really weird going through all this stuff.”
“Yea, I bet. You know, seeing you do this reminds me that I should probably start going through your father’s things. Do you want to help?”
Struck by the words Hannah stared at the sorted piles on her bedroom floor. “Gee mom, I really hadn’t thought about that,” she answered. Throwing her hair up in a sloppy ponytail atop her head she shuddered at the thought of throwing away anything that belonged to her father.
“Look, if you’re not ready I perfectly understand. It was just an idea hun, here have some of your pizza I’ll be downstairs.”
“No,” she touched her mother’s shoulder as she stood up to leave, “it’s not that. Isn’t it weird? Thinking of going through his things.” She paused to think and after a moment nodded, “Let’s do it. Not now, I’m working on this, but say tomorrow you and I will start going through his belongings. We’ll do it together.”
“Sounds great, it’s a plan,” she stood up. “If you want any help with this stuff just ask. I’m going to go watch the news for a bit. And sweetheart, I’m so proud of you. I want you to know that. It’s going to be lonesome not having you around but I’m so happy for your internship…and I’m sure Nick is too. You deserve this.”
“Thanks, but I wouldn’t be too sure about Nick. He’s the ass hole who doesn’t want me to do anything unless it meets his criteria.”
“Oh, sounds like you really better start on that pizza,” her mother laughed walking out of the room.
Biting her lip Hannah opened the box of took the largest, most cheesiest, slice and continued dividing the contents of her closet into piles. ‘I will get over him. I will forget him.’
The phone rang, rubbing the grease on her pants Hannah bent over to answer it. “Hello?” she munched on her pizza.
“Han, it’s me,” an all too familiar voice spoke. Not sure what to say Hannah just sat there with the phone to her ear not muttering a word. “Are you there?” Nick asked.
“I’m really busy now. Gotta go,” she hung up the phone. Moments later it was ringing again and she hollered down the stairs, “Don’t pick it up Mom! It’s Nick!”
‘The nerve of that ass hole,’ she kicked her way across the room to the doors which lead to the balcony. Standing outside under the full moon she swallowed the tears the sadness lumping in her throat and blinked away the stinging tears. ‘You are stronger than this,’ she hit her arm. ‘I don’t care what it takes, but I will get over him. I am not going to allow myself to be crippled by his bitterness. I fell in love, and just as easily I can fall out of love. This I can do,’ she nodded as she heard the phone again ringing inside.
Chapter 42
Crossing Paths Main
Homepage