Pov, William
"I'll take a cup of iced coffee, please."
A soft voice nearby sends shivers down my spine. I look over at those cherry lips, which are barely smiling.I slowly look up at her face, my eyes widen, and my heartbeat accelerates as I recognize her. I remain staring at her beautiful face, but I can't say a word.
I can't believe it.
"Rose?" I say, and she looks at me.
I'm at the spot where we first met.
This is where our love story began.
This café. Wasn't it closed seven years ago?
I used to work as a waiter in this place, and I used to secretly watch Rose every time she came. She always chose the same place, watching intently from behind the window as every person passed by, counting the number of raindrops hitting the glass. She never got tired of it, enjoying the sun as it caressed her skin.
Her strange behavior piqued my curiosity, and she became the focus of my attention. I found myself attracted to her more and more each day.
I take a few steps toward her and stand in front of her without getting tired of staring at her. I ask, "Am I dreaming?"
She doesn't answer. She just smiles.
I swallow hard. I'm at my wit's end. I grab her by the arm and force her to leave the chair. Then I use the hug to ease the feeling of missing her. I close my eyes and take in her scent. Then I feel her arms wrap around my body and rest her head on my chest.
"Why did you leave me? Why didn't you consider my feelings at all?"
I only said a little bit of the bitterness I had kept inside. She pulls away from me and raises her head, and our gazes meet. I notice her sleepy eyes, which are slightly red. She frowns and says in a tone that shakes me.
"I'm sorry. "
I close my eyes as she puts her hand on my cheek, and then I grab her hand and push it away. I didn't have to deal with the pain of your absence for years just to make up for what you did with a simple apology.
"Do you think that'll be enough to heal the wound you caused? Do you think that's enough?"
She shakes her head in denial and says, "I think you now know why."
I bite the inside of my cheek and look away from her. What would she have lost if she just told me the truth?
I let out a laugh of disappointment as I turn back to look at her. "You hid from me the truth of you being a goblin, and not only that. I just found out I have a son, too. How nice."
I take two steps back and put my arms out to the side. I try to hold back the tears in front of her, but it's impossible.
"When you left me, I realized our love was a lie."
I see the shocked look on her face at what I said, and she just keeps quiet. I step out of the café, hoping our meeting won't end in a fight, but she stops me. She wraps her arms around me from behind and rests her head on my back, and I can almost feel her warm tears wetting my shirt.
"You're wrong. I really loved you. I was just worried about how you'd react. Honestly, I had no choice but to run away, but I know I made a huge mistake. I regret it. Even if I hadn't lied to you, you would've found out on your own. I wouldn't be surprised if you rejected my apology. You have every right to do so."
I'm not sure why, but I always feel like the victim here.
Or is she just trying to play innocent so I'll forget what she did?
I turn around and address her in a tone that makes her take two steps back, staring at me with widened eyes.
"Then you shouldn't have fallen for me in the first place!"
I keep looking at her, angry, until she lowers her head and lets some of her pink strands of hair fall to cover a small part of her face, clasping her hands together.
But then, I realized what I had just said.
"Dad!"
My son's voice catches my attention, and I raise my eyebrows, looking for him, but he's not here.
But then I feel the ground shake, and I totally freak out. Rose is starting to disappear from my view, and then it's just total darkness.
"Wake up!"
I let out a gasp, totally freaked out, and I open my eyes really wide. There's that goblin's face right in front of me, and he's not giving me a chance to figure out what's going on. He grabs me by the arms, lifts me up, and hugs me super tight.
Tears are streaming down my face, and his calm voice at my ear is reassuring me.
Was I crying in my sleep?
I'm curious what he said, so I move away from him and ask, raising my eyebrows. "What're you sorry for?"
I see his nervous expression, and he looks away like he's trying to avoid answering.
That's when it all made sense.
I look at him with angry, disapproving glances, then I decide to leave the room without saying a word.
I open the fridge, looking for a drink to wet my throat, and I flinch when he jumps on my back, clinging to me from behind like a koala bear to a tree trunk. His childish tone is disturbing me as he begs me.
"Don't be mad at me, Dad! You're the best dad ever! I was just trying to make things right between you and Mom!"
"Evander, get away from me!" I try to scream to get him to let me go, but I can't. He's stuck to me like glue.
"I won't until you tell me you're not mad at me!"
Harry and his mom are having dinner in peace instead of helping me deal with this monster, like they're used to his shenanigans. "Get him away from me, Harry!" I beg him.
He finally manages to push him away from me, grabs him, and holds him on his shoulder , heading out of the kitchen.I exhale, relieved, and his legs start dangling from side to side until they disappear from sight.
His screams are loud and clear until he stops when Harry tempts him with a piece of chocolate.
"William, I want to talk to you about something important." My dad's sitting on the couch in the living room, and he's talking to me. I raise my eyebrows when I see the serious expression on his face.
I go over to him and sit on the couch next to him, waiting with curiosity for what he's about to say, even though I don't think it'll change anything between us.
He moves closer, takes my hand, and says, "It's about your mom."
I really wasn't expecting my mother to be the center of the conversation, or for my father to mention her.
That's the strangest thing.
I look at him with raised eyebrows, and he sighs deeply and says, "A few months after your mom left, she came back again. She came back for you, William, to get you back. I remember I shouted at her, and we had a fight. After she insisted on knowing where you were, I told her that you'd escaped the house. While in reality you were playing in the woods near the house. I was angry at the time, and I don't know why I did it."
"She slapped me and said I was an irresponsible father. I wasn't fazed by her total breakdown. I don't deny that I felt like I was avenging her. No matter how much she searched for you, she would never find you. I know I was being selfish and cruel, and I don't think you'll be able to forgive me for that." He bites his lower lip and looks pretty sad.
"She even left you a note on the table. I read it, and she wrote her address on it."
The shocked expression on my face says it all.I'm pretty disappointed. I get up from the couch and say to him, "Why'd you do that? You're unbelievable! How could he hide something like that from me?"
He knows how attached I was to her and how much her leaving me affected me. He has no right to prevent her from seeing me.
I keep glaring at him and breathing heavily as my fingers run through my hair.
I'm at my wit's end.
On the other hand, he just sits there with his head down and doesn't say a word to explain what he did.
"Where is she?" I ask, my heart suffering, and he looks at me. He says, "She's still in London. She never left. She hopes you find her."
...