The Quest for Epic

Chapter Forty Two

Day 2 post Noah
"Ellie you're burning the eggs again"
I came to with a jerk just as the acrid smell of my burning omelette reached my nose. I quickly turned off the burner and carried the pan containing our ruined breakfast to the refuse bin. This was the second time in two days.
I caught Maya's eyes; a mixture of pity and concern as she regarded me over her steaming cup of coffee. With a grumble, I flipped open the lid and scraped off the charred eggs with the spatula.
"Are you okay?" Maya finally asked
"Yes", I all but snapped as I walked back to the sink to fill the pan with water. I watched silently as the steam wafted up from the frying pan, evaporating into thin air... Just like my relationship with Noah had.
"Excuse you", Maya raised her brow at me and gave me a look to let me know I was getting out of line.
"Ughhh", I groaned, plopping down on one of the stools opposite Maya around the kitchen island "When is this hurting going to end, Maya?"
Maya shot me a compassionate glance as she dropped her Us Weekly Magazine to place a comforting hand on my arm.
"You won't feel like this forever, Ells. It might take a while but time heals everything"
"I wish I could just be asleep until that time", I muttered distastefully
"You've been through a lot this summer... If this is rock bottom, I believe it can only get better from here on out", Maya gave me a small comforting smile "Don't stress over the eggs, I'll just whip up some waffles"
I tried to crack a painful smile back at her. She laughed at my attempt and with that, hopped off her stool and went to open up some cabinets for the waffle mix.
I silently rested my head in the palms of my hands as I closed my eyes and began to recall all that had happened over the past two days.
It was safe to suffice that I had stopped going to work since that awful night. I didn't want anything to do with any of the Stinson's. I got sick just thinking about it all.
It was unprofessional of me, I knew and I figured I would mail a resignation letter to Mr. Stinson later; I just wasn't quite up to it now.
I glanced over at my new phone sitting idly on the island. My phone hadn't stopped ringing from Noah's calls all through the drive from Nate's restaurant to my house and once I got home, I got fed up, switched it off and dropped it into the trash can in my room.
My new phone wasn't much, just an impulse buy I had made when I went to the store to get some things when I moved over to Maya's apartment. It was largely inactive, as just my mom and Maya had the number. I hadn't enabled internet access; I didn't want to get any pesky emails either. I just needed peace, quiet and solitude at least for the time being.
Maya had been nothing but welcoming and comforting. She had a little gig managing her dad's car wash but she had taken some days off from that to be with me. It was times like this that I realized how truly blessed I was to have a friend like her. I knew Noah would waste no time trying to find me. My mom had already called to say he had been at the house about four times since then and I knew it would just be a matter of time before he found Maya's place and came over.
I wished he wouldn't though. I wished he would never find me. I couldn't imagine seeing him again. I'm not sure I could handle it. Right now, I was in the worst pain imaginable. He made me fall in love with him, dammit... all for him to choose Shannon over me. Shannon offered him the life he was about, the future he wanted... Perhaps I was just a momentary distraction. Sure he said he loved me, and I knew he did... But it didn't matter because he didn't see me as part of his future.
That made everything hurt about hundred times worse.
I didn't know how long I had been in over my head but I dimly registered the smell of waffles wafting up into my nose as Maya placed a plate of waffles topped with syrup and butter before me with a smile.
"Eat up princess" she sat and watched me intently until I picked up a fork from her stylized lemon yellow utensil holder and cut into the stack of waffles.
She nodded in content and began digging into her breakfast. She didn't catch me chewing mechanically. I knew it looked great and should probably taste amazing but gosh darn, it tasted like sawdust.
Great, heartbreak killed my taste buds too.

Day 4 post Noah
It was Sunday afternoon. I was sitting cross legged on the bed in Maya's spare bedroom, with my laptop open in front of me.
My fingers flew over the keyboard as I typed away, trying to fashion my resignation email to Mr. Stinson.
I finished what had to be my seventeenth draft and settled back to read it.
"Dear Mr Stinson", I read aloud "I hereby tender the notice of my resignation. While interning in your prestigious establishment has been a tremendous learning experience, I regret to inform you that due to some personal reasons, I would be unable to complete my tenure. I do hope it would not be much of an inconvenience to you, as I had just two weeks left to the end of my stay. I thank you immensely for giving me the opportunity. It was an unforgettable experience and the highlight of the beginning of my career. I wish you all the best. Ellenore Rose Wyatt".
I didn't realize I would be this emotional, but I had a box of Kleenex sitting beside me I had been putting to good use. I dabbed away at my red rimmed eyes as I imagined Elena reading this email, and then forwarding it to Mr. Stinson.
He would know Noah was the reason I had to quit and he wouldn't inquire further. Probably Elena would fire off an email in reply that said, "Mr. Stinson appreciates and thanks you for your service. The entire Stinson & Co. team wishes you the best in your future endeavours".
And that would be it; the end of my summer internship and one of the best experiences of my life.
It was sad it had to end this way, I wished I could have finished my stay and said my proper goodbyes. I wished Noah didn't choose Shannon over me. I wished I never fell in love with Noah Stinson.
But that was over and done now, I couldn't go back in time and reverse the past. And now I couldn't take walking back into that building and seeing Noah. He was meant to be the love of my life, but he had ended up betraying me.
The email was as good as it could be. I reached out for another Kleenex to dab my watery left eye once again and I reached out to tap the Send icon.
I hesitated for just a second, but that second was enough for Maya to come breezing into the room.
"Noah's here", she informed me simply and breezed out just as quickly as she came in.
"What the f-?" I shut my laptop closed and sprang off from the bed, following Maya down the hall and into the living room.
"Maya wait up..." I called out coming to a stop as she did at her front door. I looked around, discerning quickly that Noah was nowhere in the apartment "... Where is he?"
She pointed a finger at her door. "He's right outside. He banged on the door for almost an hour give or take so I had to answer and tell him you didn't want to see him"
"Oh", my heart did a little ka-thump as I realized just how close Noah was from me... a measly couple of steps actually.
But I didn't want to see him... I couldn't see him.
"I think you should see him", Maya dead-panned
"What?"
"He passed this under the door", Maya reached into the back pocket of her jeans, pulled out a folded up note and came forward to hand it over to me "I think you should read it".
I unfolded it slowly, my hands a bit shaky as I did. My eyes scanned over the page briefly, taking note of Noah's scrawled handwriting before I settled to read it.
It was a short note.
It read: "Ellenore, just give me five minutes and I swear I will never bother you again"
I gulped, my hands trembling now as I refolded back the note.
I glanced at Maya. "What do you think?"
She shrugged and then crossed her arms over her chest. "I think he's good for five minutes. That's... if you can handle it".
"Okay", I nodded, trying to muster up some confidence. I did feel like I needed some closure after all. "Is he still there?" I asked Maya, rubbing my increasingly jittery palms together.
"See for yourself", she gestured at the peephole on her door, making way for me as I came forward and leaned up to peer through it.
Sure enough, I was looking at Noah dressed in a hoodie and jeans, his hands buried in his pockets as he looked down at the floor. Damn, even the distorted image of him was enough to send my heart into frenzied overdrive.
I just then became aware of how awful I must look in my ratty grey tank top and short shorts and my hair piled up in a messy bun. My eyes were still slightly red and my nose looked about as red as Rudolph's.
"Damn I look like shit", I muttered.
Maya grunted and began pulling off her navy sweater, tossing it at me.
"Take your hair down, no excuses"
I took just a second to smirk at how crazy she looked ordering me about in just her jeans and a hot pink bra, and then I was gratefully pulling the sweater over my head (thankfully it was a chic oversized one on Maya and just a tad snug on me) and finger combing my hair out of its bun.
Maya flashed me a thumbs-up once I was done. "You're good to go. I'll let you guys have some privacy"
And with that she walked away and out of sight, presumably to a safe distance where she could eavesdrop.
I turned to face the door, taking a deep breath and brushing my clammy hands over my short shorts.
Here I go, I thought as in a single move, I reached forward and turned the knob on the door, pulling it slowly open.
As my eyes crashed with his sad ones, I realized he looked almost as bad as I did. There was no spark in those hazel orbs; they just looked dull and lifeless, sunken in his face. He had eye bags, his blonde hair was stringy and hidden in his hoodie and he was sporting the beginnings of a scruffy beard.
Being in such close proximity to him, and looking at him face-to-face and all the emotions and anger I had been trying so hard to keep aside, save for the lonely nights when I cried myself to sleep came rushing back.
How could he? How could he love me and break me so badly?
"Hey", he managed to croak finally, sounding quite different from the self assured, confident Noah I knew.
"You have five minutes", I snapped
Noah inhaled deeply and took a few steps forward. I took the same number of steps back. Noah noticed and stopped, looking up at me with anguish mirrored in his eyes.
"I'm sorry baby"
The words made me want to melt into a puddle and scream with frustration all at the same time. How could I love him so much and hate him so much all at the same time? Well, the last part was a lie. I could never hate him.
I blinked away the tears that had formed in the corners of my eyes, threatening to betray my emotion.
"That doesn't change the past, Noah. It doesn't change what you did to me", I replied in a small voice, all my earlier sass suddenly dissipated.
"I know..." he shook his head and I could see his fist clenching and unclenching at his side "And I haven't stopped feeling like absolute shit ever since that day. I hate that I hurt you, Ells and I hate myself for causing you pain. I love you and I know I can never love someone else as much as I love you. I just... I need you to know that"
"I just..." I shook my head "I don't know if I can trust you ever again, Noah. How could you claim to love me so much and then turn around and betray me like that?"
"It's not what it looked like at all, Ells. I can't explain everything right now but I just need you to forgive me. Ellenore, I can't live with myself knowing that you hate me"
"You can't even explain yourself and you expect me to forgive you?" I all but spat at him as a lone tear escaped my eyelid and slid down my left cheek "I will never forgive you for this, Noah! I trusted you, I gave you everything I had and you broke my heart!"
Noah turned his face away but not quick enough for me not to catch the tear sliding down his face.
"I never meant to hurt you, Ells", he spoke in a soft voice "I was trying to protect you"
"I don't need your fucking protection, Noah. I only wanted you to choose me! And I sure as hell don't need you in my life anymore. If you actually cared a lick about me, you would spare me the heartache and leave me alone"
"Ellie, I..."
I held up my hand. "Just stop. We're through, Noah"
His hazel orbs glittered and he nodded, looking down at the floor. "I understand"
I almost choked because the pain in my heart was strangling me.
"I guess we're done here then", I said softly, hot tears brimming in my eyes
"One last thing", Noah spoke up quickly, his eyes lifting to meet mine "I don't want your life affected because of me. You need to go back home, your mom is worried sick about you and..." he took in a deep breath "I've left Stinson and co., you can go back to work. You've worked too hard to not complete your stay at least"
I shook my head in bewilderment. "What the hell, Noah? You shouldn't have done that"
I couldn't believe it. He was quite possibly throwing away his future. All for what? For me?
It couldn't be. He already proved he didn't care about me.
"I had to..." he looked away, his voice icy cold. He cleared his throat "I'm sorry I hurt you, Ellie. I won't be bothering you anymore"
"Okay then..." I exhaled in a breath. The finality of it all was a devastating blow to my heart.
Noah gave me a long look, from head to toe as if trying to burn my image in his brain. Then he put his hands in his pockets, turned his heel and walked away.
I watched him until he was out of sighting.
Watching as the love of my life walked out of my life.

A/N: I'm back guys whoop whoop lol. Hopefully going to be bringing more regular updates as the story concludes. 2016 was busy af. Here's to 2017. Happy New year guys! Don't forget to leave a vote, comment and share. Xoxoxo
-Crystal