Take Me Home {Completed}

Chapter Seventy-Nine

Unedited

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"If you do not go after what you want, you will never have it. If you do not ask, the answer will always be NO. If you do not step forward, you will always be in the same place."

- Unknown

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Chapter Seventy-Nine:

"Have you been enjoying your time here?" Mrs. Sims asked Nola as she walked out on the back patio.

Nola, who had been looking off at the endless sea, smiled and turned her head to face Mrs. Sims. "Yes, I really appreciate y'all inviting me to this beach house for the weekend. I've never been to a house that is right on the beach. It's beautiful."

Walking over to Nola, Jennifer saw the dog in Nola's lap. "Let me hold my grandpuppy," Mrs. Sims scooped up the puppy in delight before taking a seat in a chair next to Nola. "Glad you like it here because after you marry my son, one day, it will be yours. So, get used to it."

Before Nola had spent the weekend with Mrs. Sims, Nola would have normally chuckled at Jennifer's jokes and insinuations that she was going to marry her son. However, Nola was now used to Mrs. Sims saying something along those lines. So, Nola had reached a point where she just smiled at Jennifer. But this time Nola gave a frown because her mind was preoccupied.

It was Saturday night, the last night of the trip. They would leave in the morning to go back to their lives in the city. The weekend had been the best couple of days of Nola's life. She had gotten to know Parker's parents some more and even learned more about Parker.

While it had been a great weekend, Nola was haunted by what happened with Mitch. Not just the meeting but her past with him. She had been so strong during their meeting Thursday. However, as soon as she left the jailhouse, Nola became distracted with the memories of Mitch. She stayed up that whole night and mulled over several questions, like could she truly ever be happy after all he had done to her? Could she ever get better?

Parker had noticed Nola being distant after the meeting. He had tried to pull out all the stops to make her happy and cheer her up. But, nothing worked and Nola felt guilty because she knew that he was trying. So, at some point during Friday night, she began to pretend that she was happy and fine. Parker had seen through her and she knew, but he never said anything and neither did she.

"Nola, are you okay? You've been acting like something has been on your mind the whole time." Mrs. Sims poked, hoping to know what had been on Nola's mind. "A penny for your thoughts?"

Nola glanced back out at the sea, "I'm leaving," Nola choked out.

Furrowing her eyebrow, Mrs. Sims was confused about what Nola meant. "You're leaving the beach house? Tonight? I mean, I get it we are a crazy family but we can turn it down some."

Nola forced herself to smile, "No that is not it. Y'all are the perfect amount of crazy, don't ever change that . . . I'm leaving the country after Parker takes me home tomorrow."

"Leaving the country?" Mrs. Sims had no idea what had gotten into Nola. "Why? Does Parker know this?"

Nola shook her head, "No, I plan to tell him soon. . ."

"We never talked about your meeting with Mitch. I'm not talking about the time I took you and you never even saw him. But, two days ago when Parker took you to see him. Does this have something to do with that? Do you think he's going to escape or something and you feel like you have to leave the country?"

"What? No, not at all. I mean, yes it does have something to do with Mitch . . . I talked with my mother that night, after seeing him. She knows some great mental health place that will help me." Nola looked back at Mrs. Sims. "I need some professional help and I need to get away for a bit."