Don't Give Up On Me ✔

Chapter 47 ~ Make yourself happy

Isla's POV

I seem to always be running away when my friends are fighting with each other, especially when it is about me. I wonder if they even still want to be my friend. Why did Luke have to kiss me? And the look on Hayden's face...ugh. Why does my life have to be so messed up? For once I just want to be happy and not have it ruined by something or someone.

The kiss. There was so much emotion in that one kiss. It brought back all the old feelings I had for him. What if I like Luke more than I realize? But no. I know I have feelings for Hayden too, and maybe even some for Killian. I can't do this. I don't want to hurt any of them. It's better if I push all feelings that are more than friends aside. If I want to keep them all in my life, I have to keep them as friends. If my relationship with one of them were to evolve into something more, then I could end up losing the others as friends and I don't want that. For the sake of everyone, I can't be anything more than friends with any of them. No matter how strong my feelings may end up being.

As I'm driving to who knows where, it starts to get harder to see. The snow has really picked up and with the wind blowing in all directions, there is no way I am going to be making it back to the cabin safely. My only goal now is to find somewhere safe to park and get out of this storm before I freeze to death.

I've somehow made it to town and to my luck, there is a small diner that is open twenty-four seven. Stupid me. I didn't bring my coat when I ran out of the house. The door to the diner is so far from where I parked. Well, not really, but in this weather, it seems like it's twenty miles away. I give myself a mental pep talk and say a silent prayer that I won't slip on ice, before I run into the diner.

I wasn't even outside for two minutes, but I am now frozen to my core. I'm grateful that the little diner is warm. I take a seat at a small both that is as far as possible away from the door and windows. I want to stay away from the coldness.

An older woman brings me a menu. She is short and plump and reminds me of my grandmother. Her smile is warm and welcoming. "Hi, sweetheart. Oh my! You must be freezing, let me get you a blanket and hot chocolate." The lady rushes to the back of the diner before returning with a blanket and hot chocolate."

She sits the hot chocolate down and front of me and then wraps me in the blanket. "Silly girl, where is your jacket? This is no type of weather to be out in."

"S—sorry. I—I k—kind of f—forgot it on m—my w—way out," I say, my teeth chattering from the cold.

"It looks like you're having a rough night, sweetheart. Feel free to stay here as long as you need to." She chuckles. "Not that I would let you leave in this storm anyways. May I suggest the soup or chili? Both are delicious and will help you warm up. By the way, my name is Letty."

Letty makes my heart swell. She reminds me of my own grandmother, who I miss. Letty makes me feel taken care of. Not that my friends don't do that either, but it's a different feeling. At this moment I get to feel like a child, not as an eighteen-year-old who has to carry the weight of the world on her shoulders. "Thank you, Letty. I'll have the soup please." She gives me her warm smile before walking back into the kitchen to drop my order off.

She soon comes back with my soup in hand and sits it in front of me. She then takes a seat across from me. "Mind telling me why a youngling such as yourself is out all alone on a cold night like this?"

Normally, I wouldn't confide in a stranger, but she is just so warm and welcoming that I feel like I can trust her. I end up telling Letty everything. From being adopted at age five, Luke moving away and coming back as Lucas, Chelsea and Kaira, Tyler, my parents dying from the fire, being in the hospital, Luke kissing me, and about the fight my friends got into tonight because of all the guys liking me. Letty sits there the entire time listening and letting me tell her and explain everything. She offers me words of comfort when I cry and laughs with me at parts that are funny. By the end of me telling her everything, I felt like a weight had been lifted off me.

"Sweetheart, I want to give you some advice. I think you have some strong feelings for one of those guys who likes you. You may even have feelings for a couple of them, but don't let your friendship get in the way. You're meant to be with one of them. I know this."

"But how do you know? And what if it causes me to lose the others as friends?"

She pats my hand. "Call it old lady's intuition, and if the others are really your friends, then while they may be slightly upset at first, they won't turn their back on you. If they are your true friends, then their friendship with you will mean too much for them to just end it. They would want you to be happy."

"Thank you, Letty."

"If you really want to thank me, do me a favor."

"Of course!" I reply quickly. "What favor do you need?"

"Isla, make yourself happy. Honey, I think you're afraid of your own happiness. From what you told me, you care so much for others, but you need to also care for yourself. Don't leave those guys waiting. Find out which one makes you the happiest and take a leap of faith. Trust me, you won't regret it."

Letty goes back into the kitchen to take care of some stuff, leaving me alone in the front of the diner. I let her words sink in for a moment. Maybe it would be okay if I started dating one of the guys. Nick and Sofia are so happy. I want that happiness too, but I am afraid. What if I choose the wrong guy? What if the others want nothing to do with me anymore? How do I even know who to pick?

I try to sort through my thoughts. First is Luke. I had always thought that him and I would end up together. When he kissed me, I felt the love he has for me, and I know I still have feelings for him—I love him, but....but when he was kissing me, I also saw the image of him kissing Chelsea in my head, and I don't know if I can move past that. I mean we have so many good memories, and so much history. I had always pictured a future with him. Can I really allow one mistake to take all of that away from us? I did promise him that I would never give up on him....

Then there's Hayden. Hayden almost seems like my other half at times. Our beliefs and the way we see life in general is so similar to each other. When things were at its worst, he stood by my side. He hasn't once doubted me, nor have I once doubted him. I feel so safe with him. The trust I have for him can't be described by words. When I am in his arms I want to stay there forever. He makes me whole and I can't picture life without him.

And then Killian. Killian came into my life like a whirlwind. From the first time I met him I felt sparks. It was like he could just see into my soul and I didn't have to say a word to him, but he understood. He knows my pain because he too is broken, but then again it seems like everyone around me is broken. The way he takes care of his sisters is the same way I take care of my sibling and it makes my feelings towards him grow even more. Killian has everything that I would want in a person.

Last is Tyler. Tyler has changed a lot in the past month or so. I wish he would have told me about his feelings instead of doing all the bad things he did to me. Maybe if he had, my feelings towards him would be different, but as of right now, I only see him as a friend. I've forgiven him for trying to force himself on me, but I haven't forgotten. Part of it was my fault, though. Not the part of him forcing himself on me, but even if he had tried to tell me that he liked me, I would have ignored him. I wasn't able to trust anyone because of Chelsea.

I'm sitting there, lost in my own thoughts when the bell rings signaling that someone is entering the diner. I look up and I am alarmed to see...

What in all that is holy are they doing here?