His Debt

31st Debt

First Love

NOAH WAS DEVON'S first love, and hearing Chase mention his name totally caught her by surprise. She didn't speak. She just stared at Chase, bewildered by the revelation. Why did he tell her? 

        For the first time, Devon stared at Chase's face intently. It was the first time that she ever looked at him keenly; she noticed Chase's resemblance with Noah, especially their upturned eyes, although they were of different colors—Chase had green eyes, and Noah had blue ones. But still, they shared the subtleness in common. 

        Why hadn't she noticed this before? 

        "I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier," Chase uttered apologetically. 

        She didn't really mind, after all, what she and Noah had was all in the past. "Why are you telling me this now?" she asked. 

        "For a selfish reason," Chase answered. He scratched the back of his head and looked at her sheepishly. 

        "Specify this 'selfish reason.'" 

        "I . . . I like you, you know. And I already know that the probability of you returning my feelings is 0%, because you're in-love with someone else . . . ," he trailed off, "but I was hoping that maybe my connection with Noah would somehow help me have a chance with you. I'm sorry." Chase looked like he regretted what he did. His shoulders were tense, and nervousness flashed across his face. 

         Indeed, it was a selfish reason. One of the things she learned about love is that, it makes people selfish, because we become jealous and will always long for a person even if we weren't supposed to want them. 

        "Yeah, that is selfish," she agreed. "But I forgive you." She saw relief in his expression. "When you said his name, it fazed me. But despite that, it didn't make me doubt my love for Nathaniel," she said. "When Noah sacrificed his life for me, I kept blaming myself. I was the one who was supposed to get hit by that truck, but he bit the dust in my stead. I hated myself for 10 years, and I blamed me for everything. I always asked why it had to be him, when it should be me. He deserved to live more than me. But I realized that his sacrifice wasn't my fault, and that I should stop blaming myself; he did it because he loved me. I've already let Noah go, but that doesn't mean that I've eliminated him completely in my heart; he will always be special, and he'll always be a part of who I am." She placed her hand on her chest. "He may be gone, but he'll always live in my heart." 

        "I'm glad you're happy." Chase smiled. "My brother's ghost will finally stop visiting me!" he jested.

        She couldn't help but laugh at that. 

ONE NIGHT, Devon had a dream with Noah making his appearance. It had been so long ever since she dreamt of him. 

        Devon and Noah are sat on a river bank, watching the flow of the water and listening to its sound as it crashes with the gargantuan rocks. It's a peaceful morning; both of them can hear the sound of the birds tweeting. 

        Noah is the one who breaks the silence. "It's been a long time, Devon Gale," he says, smiling his usual lopsided smile; his icy blue eyes radiate in the sunlight; his sandy blond hair looks gold when exposed to the sun. He's always liked calling Devon by her full name. 

        "Yeah," she replies. 

        "I miss you, you know," he admits with a slight hint of dolefulness on his tone.