The Next Step- Nochelle and Jiley One Shots

Before You Go Part 2

Author's Note:
I was bored... I hope this isn't too bad... *crosses fingers*
If you hate this, feel free to think that it didn't happen, and just think about the first part!

(About 6/7 months later? I don't really know...)

Richelle's Perspective:

I woke up to the clatter of rain on my window. Again. It'd been raining for a week straight, with not even a hint that it was stopping. Yesterday, I'd come into the apartment sopping wet, grabbed a blanket and buried myself in between the cushions. It was times like these when I wished that Noah was here.

"Stop, Richelle," I whispered to myself. I was thinking of Noah a lot lately, probably because of the rain. Reminding me of the day he left.

There hadn't been a day since then that I hadn't thought about him. And the more that I thought about it, the more I regretted it. I'd thought at the time that it was what was best for my life. Clearly I was wrong.

I'd even tried to move on, but the one date I'd been on had scarred me so bad that I refused to do it again. He just wasn't like Noah. No one was.

I cursed myself for that day. I'd asked him to hug me for a reason. Why didn't I hold onto him? Why did I ever let him go?

My life had only gone downhill since then. I'd lost my job and had to get a new one (working at the studio, coincidentally enough), my mother had passed away, making me feel even worse when the last piece of advice she'd given me was to go back to him. But I couldn't. I didn't even know where he was anymore, and I had no right to.

Getting myself ready was even a struggle. I hauled myself out of bed, grabbing my swollen stomach and holding it up a little to take some of the weight off of my legs. I walked drowsily to my closet, mindlessly picking out a shirt and throwing it on.

There wasn't much point in putting on makeup now, the rain would eat at it all day until there was nothing left. I kept my pajama pants on because they looked enough like real pants, and I wasn't really going anywhere.

Scrolling through the TV that evening, I landed on Friends, once again. It was so hard to stay away from this show, the humor in it dragged me away from the problems of my own life.

Unfortunately, the episode that was playing was when Rachel told Ross that he was the father of her baby. I rubbed my own stomach out of pure discomfort. I still hadn't told Noah. And I didn't plan to.

He didn't need to have his life ruined because of me. We were both 22, still had so much living to do, he deserved to enjoy it. And I was stuck here, raising our child, without him.

I pulled my blanket up to my chest again, not wanting to think about our unborn child. It was too painful. To know that this very issue would bring him back to me in a heartbeat, and to not be able to do anything about it... was torchure.

He, unlike me, had probably seen 10 other people. He always moved on fast, he had a span of 3 girlfriends in 3 years at The Next Step. 4 girlfriends in 5. He would've moved on from me. He wouldn't be dwelling on our past, he'd be focusing on his future.

At least that was what I'd thought, until someone knocked at my door. I didn't want to waste my energy getting up, so I yelled, "It's open!"

The door slowly creaked open, making me shudder at the sound. I really need to fix that, I reminded myself. I looked to see who'd come to the door, and nearly jumped out of my own skin.

"Hey, Riche," Noah said calmly.

I was beyond shock. "Noah? W-why?" I sputtered.

"My car broke down and I-uh, didn't know where else to go. I'm sorry." He rubbed his arm nervously and hung his head, a guilty expression on his face.