𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 • 𝐬𝐚𝐩𝐧𝐚𝐩

fifty two

the soonest flight ailee could book was for january 8th. five days from the day her life had been filled with nothing but pain. she hadn't even recognised if she loved the boy. hell, they had only been properly dating for a week and she had thought of it as just a strong liking.

but a strong liking doesn't hurt this much.

she felt breathless, anywhere she turned she had been reminded of him. no one had heard from her since that day, it was the day before her flight and she sat in the hotel room she had found refuge in as soon as she had collected what was left of her thoughts after the fight had taken place. clay had tried to text her multiple times, leaving many voicemails and messages asking if she was okay.

clay had only heard nick's side of the story, but he had known how out of character that was for ailee, and the emphatical way she had portrayed her hatred for those who cheat on their significant others. with no luck, clay was very worried about the girl, and how she had been holding up regarding charissa's sudden entrance into nick's life as his last hope of a rebound.

ailee had not seen the messages clay had left, in fact she had not seen anything but the wall of the hotel room. she had done nothing but lay silently, unmoving in the bed for the four days she had been there, and she intended on doing nothing but that for the last day she had left before her flight the next day.

the tireless vibration of her phone eventually got on her nerves, however. she picked up the device to see who had been endlessly calling her for the past few days, and felt the first calming breath enter her lungs after what felt like eternity when she saw clay's contact illuminating the dark pain she suffered with.

she answered the call.

"oh what the fuck you answered" was the first thing she heard her best friend say. it made her laugh. the sound felt so foreign as it filled every corner of the eerily silent room. the air felt lighter in a sense.

"are you okay, a?" clay asks. the sympathy lacing his voice created a soft tone that even made ailee feel empathetic towards her own situation for the first time since it had occured. the tears threatened before ailee could even breathe to answer the question.

"no, clay. he thinks i cheated on him and so he cheated on me" she whispers and clay's suspicions were confirmed. she didn't cheat on him, and he knew that nick was too stubborn to accept his wrongs, and even more stubborn to back down from the commitment he had made to make her feel as he had felt reading the messages. nick was cruel.

"i know. he told me that you cheated and sent me the screenshots, i didn't believe it for a second. hes so fucking blind" clay consolidates with the broken girl, oblivious to the silent sobs ghosting the unfamiliar room she had been holled up in.

"he said he didn't trust me, clay. he said he didn't even remotely trust me. what if he never even liked me?" she cries out, the thoughts invading her own involuntarily, covering any trace of happiness that she could muster up.

"of course he liked you" clay whispers, almost convincing himself as he questions the same thing the girl does.

"if he liked me, why would he be so quick to leave?"

the question hung heavily for a few eery moments. neither dared to make a noise, the query was playing in both of their minds, and ailee was the only one brave enough to say it.

neither could provide an answer.

"when are you coming home?" clay asks, and although he feels horrible for avoiding the question, the girl was grateful that she could be distracted somehow. "tomorrow. my flight is at noon" she says. "ill pick you up from the airport" clay says, a soft smile evident in his voice at the fact his hurting best friend wouldn't be alone.

clay was currently not too fond of nick. in fact, clay had not spoken to nick since he had learnt about charissa. as had george, although nick really did deserve it. news travels quickly and emotions get involved even quicker.

that brings us back to current day. ailee was sitting beside the demonic child as her sorrows drowned her unapologetically. she still had not spoken to nick, not that either of them had attempted to reach out. although ailee knew the truth, and however deeply she still feels, and may always feel, for the boy, nothing hurt more than her boyfriend confessing he had no trust in her.

the faint taste of cherry still haunts her lips, the unfamiliar flavouring being one that she now hopes she would never taste again. not if it reminded her of him. it was too soon.

ailee realises now that the three year old spawn of satan was now asleep, and however much she hated it, she has to admit that she missed it. it distracted her.

getting off the plane, the girl collects her luggage before making her way to the area that she and cay had discussed on the phone the day before. she sees the familiar tall brunette and runs towards him, the friends arm's wrapping around each other hurriedly as the comfort drowned ailee's mind. she feels another pair of arms wrap around her as she lifts her head to see george making it a group hug. "i didn't know you were still here" the girl whispers to george, to which she is shushed and told to just enjoy the hug.

and she did.

until she saw another familiar face walking out if the terminal.