"Chase, I don't think this is a good idea." I looked at Sadie Mae, her dark auburn hair twisting in long curls, her freckles prominent on her nose because of the summer sun. The fire that blazed behind her blue eyes was now dimmed and the shine there was gone.
"Humor me?" I gave her the biggest smile I could muster and relished when she started to consider it. "I got you something, I saw you eyeballing it while at the signing so I had someone go buy it for you." She gave me a weird look as I leaned over the backseat and reached for the white box I had hidden.
I held it out to her and she laughed, "donuts?"
"I saw how you were staring at it, like you haven't had sweets in forever. I know you Sadie Mae." She took the box from me and opened it.
As she reached for one, she sighed in her seat and looked at me with a sadness I never wanted to see again. "I wish you'd stop calling me that." Her eyes began to swim in an ocean of water, "it hurts too much."
My heart broke and I knew in this moment that one small donut couldn't change the past.
"I'm sorry," I whispered.
She shrugged her shoulders and wrapped her arms tightly around her stomach, "please take me back." I put my truck in gear and drove back to the racetrack.
**
"At least let me carry your stuff to your room?" The hotel Sadie was staying in was nice, but the elevator was broken and she was on the third floor. "It's the least I could do." She didn't answer me but turned on her heel and I followed her.
The long corridor reminded me of a time long ago where my parents would rent a room far away from home when I was racing dirt and Sadie would surprise me in the middle of the night. It was reckless and wild. We'd get into so much trouble but it was worth it, all of it.
Then one morning I woke up and looked down at Sadie sleeping in my arms and I saw a future there. One of her walking down the aisle in pristine white, her laying in a bed with her pinkie in the hand of our newborn baby, and then one of her looking at me with so much love and adoration it took me a second to realize that this image wasn't a vision, but reality.
It scared me to death and from that day forward I pulled away because I wasn't ready for that.
Today I realized that no one is ready to fall in love because it just happens. And not everyone gets a second chance like I do.
"This is me." She pointed to the door and I handed over her suitcase.
"I'll pick you up tomorrow, okay?" She shook her head in agreement and opened her door. I watched as she walked in and started to close the door, but I shoved my hand out to stop her. "I know I sound like a broken record, but I'm sorry."
The door shut in my face, but not before I saw Sadie's shocked expression and suddenly, the door was opened again and she reached out for me.
YOU ARE READING
Remind Me « Chase Elliott »
FanfictionChase Elliott had it all - a promising racing career and possibly the love of his life by his side. But what scared him the most wasn't the racing, nor moving up in the NASCAR series, it was the fact that he was so in love that it caused him to ste...
