A/N:

| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Four Years Later

I was busy cleaning my apartment when I got a call. Yes, I still live there. It was one of the things I got from Blue Eyes that I get to keep.

The caller ID read: "Dan-Dan". I smiled instantly and answered the call while plopping myself down on the couch.

"Hey, future cousin-in-law!" He exclaimed. My smile faltered. "Why are you still calling me that, Danny?"

"Because it's the truth," he answered. I rolled my eyes and scoffed. "Oh come on, Danny. Cut the crap. Nathan is not coming back and that's that."

He chuckled on the other line. "Oh please, Vane. He is coming back. Believe me," he said. "Oh really? He moved to Remington, Danny. He has a girlfriend. What makes you so sure he's going to come back?"

"You know absolutely nothing, future cousin-in-law. Look, just trust him, okay? He still loves you and he always will. Just be patient."

I huffed,"You're saying that to a person who's been waiting for four years. I graduated, Daniel. I got a job. I've been working for three years now and where is he?"

"Gone to the city of Remington with his precious girlfriend," I sang. "Just calm down," he said. "Calm down?! Yeah, I'll show you calm, Dan! You–"

"I have a surprise for you," he cut me off. "What surprise?" I asked. "Just wait. You will see it at just about six o'clock in the evening," he informed me.

"Well, that's oddly specific," I commented. "It's something that you have always wanted but couldn't exactly get it."

"Why is that? What is that? And how do you know that?" I questioned. This is all just too weird for me. I don't know anything that I've always wanted.

Ever since I got a job, I could get myself whatever I want. "It was kind of unreachable. You'll see six o'clock sharp. I've always known," he responded to each of the questions.

"You know what? Fine. I'll wait for your damn surprise. I hope it's really something good," I shared. "It's way more than good, Vane. Anyway, I'll talk to you soon."

He didn't give me a chance to respond before dropping the phone. I wonder what this surprise will be. It's been a long time since I got any presents or gifts.

I continued on with cleaning my apartment with the music of One Direction filling the home. 'Infinity' was currently playing.

As I was cleaning the cabinets in the kitchen, I started to sing along.

"How many nights does it take to count the stars? That's the time it would take to fix my heart. Oh baby, I was there for you. All I ever wanted was the truth. Yeah, yeah."

"How many nights have you wished someone would stay? Lay awake only hoping they're okay. I've never counted all of mine. If I try I know it will feel like infinity...infinity...infinity...infinity..."

I can definitely relate to the song, considering my current situation. I never got to contact Blue Eyes and he never got to contact me.

It's sad, to be honest with you. Not being with the love of your life for four years and watching him being lovey-dovey with some girl on social media.

It hurt more when I found out he moved to another city. He went there to take over his family's business. It was like my whole world crumbled.

That girl he was with, was with him on every picture. That didn't make the situation any less painful. I always wondered why I still hoped.

And if I should still continue trusting him. I did think at one point, that maybe it's harder to get his parents behind bars than he had thought.

But a whole four years? That's totally absurd! Could his parents be that hardcore? And thinking that it could even be longer than three years saddens me even more.

Why doesn't he even try to call me? At least send me a text? I've been left out in the dark for all those lonely years. Danny didn't want to tell me anything, using Nathan as an excuse.

I sighed and kept on scrubbing the shelves.

For all these years, my siblings and friends have supported me. They have been with me in tough times. Even when we had lost our mom.

That was the most devastating experience of my life. But then of course, Blue Eyes wasn't there so I felt like I wasn't complete.

Like there was a piece of me missing, no matter how cheesy it sounds.

And there still is something in me missing. It's only him. This guy must have bewitched me or something! Any other girl out there would have moved on the second they saw a picture of him with that Layla girl.

But no. I trusted him too much and I still do. There's still a part of me that believes he knows what he is doing and will come back soon.

The bigger part of me keeps telling me to give up. That I just wasn't good enough for him and that's the harsh truth.

I refuse to let negativity take over. Yes, to others I act like I have completely lost all hope however, I really haven't.

It's just that, hearing them trying to reassure me and telling me repetitively that he still loves me, makes my heart leap.

I miss his voice, I miss his touch. Overall, I miss his everything.

I can only hope he misses me and loves me the same way I do him. Many guys tried to pursue me but I turned them all down.

Of course, they were attractive but not to Nate's level, in my opinion. My sisters would disagree with that. They were trying to set me up with other guys but right after a month, they gave up claiming I love this 'Nate' too much.

And it's true.

They have been more frequent in my life now. They knew I needed a major support system. I've always been the most sensitive and emotional between all of them.

I continued on by cleaning the stove. That's when someone barged in my apartment. I mentally scoffed. They still do that.

"Sister, deary!" I know that voice all too well. I dropped the cloth and ran into my sister's open arms. "How are you doing, little sis?"

I smiled and pulled away, placing my hands on her shoulders. "I'm doing very good, big sis. And you?" She grinned. "I'm doing absolutely perfect. So, what are you doing?" She asked.

I removed my hands and walked back to the stove. "It's Saturday. I have no shift today so I thought I should just clean my apartment. I really haven't had time recently. I was only lucky, today."

"Must be hectic to be a doctor, huh?" I shook my head. "You have no idea." She laughed at that. "How are you...coping?"

I knew that question.

"With what?" I asked. "You know...with Nate's absence?" I rolled my eyes. "You ask that question every time you visit me. Why is that?"

"I just want to make sure my sister is fine. I don't want any surprises like finding my sister in a bathtub committing suicide just because she misses her sweetheart."

I shuddered. "Don't say that, ever again. I'd never commit suicide. Yes, I love him and I miss him but I highly doubt I would kill myself because of that."

"Good. Now, back to my question..." She trailed off. "I–I'm fine, okay? Just hanging in there hoping that one day he will come back. I'm not ready to give up on him."

"You really trust this guy, don't you?" She inquired. I nodded my head. "Vee, a word of advice. Don't trust too much, don't love too much and don't hope too much. Because that 'too much' can end up hurting you so much."

"What are you trying to say, Zan?" I questioned. She sighed,"Look, it's been four years Vee. I just think you shouldn't trust him and love him too much. You saw the picture of him and another white girl. You know he moved to another place."

"You think he's forgotten about me?!" I exclaimed. "Sorry to say this, but yes. It is highly possible. But that's not exactly what I'm trying to say–"

"Then, what are you trying to say, Zanniah?!" She took a step closer to me. "That don't get your hopes up. This guy you trust so much, might not come back. Think of all the possible scenarios."

"No. He will come back. I know he will," I whispered. "If you say so, sis," she gave up.

"So...I was hoping for some sister time, maybe watch movies then go out to get something to eat," she suggested.

"That would be great. As soon as we finish cleaning this place though," I joked, making her laugh. She started helping me with the cleaning, while listening to some music.

A few hours later, we were done and started watching some movies. We started with 'Fallen'. As we were drawing closer to the end, Zan broke the silence.

"The wings are so amazing!" She squealed. "I know, right? And most people were complaining that the book is better than the movie," I told her.

"Really? Well, I've never read the book," she said. I nodded at her. "Yep. Me too. Another person even said that it was like they were reading off the script. There was no emotion."

She laughed at that,"Well, we'll never know until we read the book." I smiled. "Agreed."

We watched two more movies after that, and I was starting get hungry. "I think we should go get the food now, Zan. I'm hungry," I told her.

"Finally! I have been waiting a long time for you to say that. I was hungry hours ago," she informed. I chuckled, "You could've just said so, you know?"

"You were so engrossed in the movies, I didn't want to interrupt that," she whined. I rolled my eyes. "You are 39 years old, Zan but still acting like a child," I commented.

"It's in my veins, sister," she said. I nodded, "I can see that." We stood up and proceeded to leave.

We arrived at Spur in a few minutes. I've been coming here a lot now. With my friends and sometimes alone. I would sigh sadly whenever I watched a guy proposing to his girlfriend.

I want that to.

We stepped inside and took a seat. "How is being a dental therapist?" Zan asked. "It's amazing, actually. I must admit though, I feel disgusted when patients come with yellow and black teeth which is kind of hypocrital for me since my teeth are not naturally white," I replied.

She scrunched her nose up. "Hmm. I can imagine. Which is why I just chose Accounting. I work behind a desk now."

I rolled my eyes. "Lucky you. I still love my job though." She just shrugged and the waiter came.

I contained laughter at the sight of him, but I guess I failed. "Jefferson?" I questioned, with a loud laugh. It's been a while since I've seen him and his name is still funny but a little bit more now.

Particularly, because he looks buff and strong now; the name just doesn't suit him anymore. Eventually, Zan joined in the laughter.

Poor Jefferson was blushing in embarrassment as we continued to laugh at his name. Everyone in the restaurant started glaring at us but we didn't have any care in the world.

Laughter is the best medicine, people.

After a while, we managed to compose ourselves and wiped tears that had come out.

"Hey uh...Jefferson." I laughed. "We'd like to order two rib burgers please. With a side of chips," I finished.

He nodded and wrote down our orders. "For drinks, we'd like chocolate milkshakes," Zan ordered on my behalf.

I was still trying to suppress my laughter and it was harder than I thought. Soon, Jefferson left us alone.

Haha. Never gets old.

"I can't remember when last I laughed like that," Zan said, making me chuckle. "I know, right? And everyone was looking at us as if we were crazy people," I told her.

"Can't they mind their own biz?" I laughed at her comment,"I guess they can't."

We sat down in silence after that and I decided to scroll through Facebook. I saw a new post. Layla's post. A.k.a, Nathan's girlfriend. I scoffed at that.

It was a selfie of her, and Nathan in the background. Her caption was 'Going back home!'. Going back home?! The post was posted three hours ago.

Does this mean Nathan is coming here? I don't want to face him yet! I–I'm not ready for that. Not after what he put me through.

"Vee, what's wrong?" Zan asked, probably noticing my distressed look. I simply showed her the post. She gasped when she saw it.

I placed my phone on the table and gulped. "Are you ready to see him?" She questioned. I narrowed my eyes at her and replied,"Of course I'm not!"

"Well, seems like it doesn't matter if you're ready or not. This is a small town, sis. He could see you wherever," she said.

"I know that," I told her. "You're going to be fine. I'm sure of it," she tried assuring me. "Danny said he has a surprise for me," I changed the subject.

"A surprise? When will he give it to you? I want to see it before I leave!" She exclaimed. I rolled my eyes. "He said six o'clock sharp," I answered.

"Aww. I'll be gone by then! It's like 17:20 now," she complained. I shrugged. "Sorry then." She sighed exactly when the food came.

We instantly dug in the delicious burger. Twenty minutes later, we were exiting the restaurant; not before waving and laughing at Jefferson.

We drove in total silence back to my apartment.

"I can walk you inside," Zan suggested, as I got out of her car. "No, there's no need. You go back home. I'll see you soon," I said and turned around, walking inside the building.

I was humming a song all the way to my apartment. When I arrived, I went to my room and took off my clothes. I wore some pyjamas and walked back to the living room.

I turned on the television and started surfing through the channel. I found High School Musical playing, so I clicked on the channel.

I watched the movie while munching on my chips. A few minutes after it started, there was a knock on the door.

My gaze darted towards the clock right on top of the T.V. The time was six o'clock. Excited to see Danny, I threw the chips on the empty space next to me and ran to the door.

I swung it open, only for the air to be knocked out of my lungs. I gasped at the sight in front of me. He looked so different now. Older.

His beard was growing, the hair was shining with gel and his suit was tight on his body. He still looked amazing. His grin was as wide as ever as he gazed at me.

"Princess," he whispered. I involuntarily took a step back in utter disbelief. Am I dreaming? I feel like I am.

"N–Nathan?" I breathed out. My heart was hammering in my chest and the tears were threatening to spill out.

In a split second, his lips were on mine. I responded almost immediately. The kiss was rough and passionate as we stumbled to my room.

And guess what happened?

We made love that very night.

------------------------------------------------------------------

A/N: B

--°Sauce°