Chapter 13: Part Ways

\[Rue’s POV\]

I breathe heavily while I stare at Mr. Owens, who is clearly in shock from my sudden outbursts, but I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

“Ah,” I sigh, realizing I should have just done this from the beginning. “That feels so much better.”

As I speak, I let a laugh escape me.

Shit. I was overcomplicating things, worrying and agonizing over how I was going to get over what was happening, but in the end the solution was so simple.

“Now,” I say, fixing my gaze on Mr. Owens. “You can reject me.”

Once he rejected me, my years-long love would be over, and I could move on.

A rejection would leave me without any possible hope, and that was exactly what I needed.

“Please,” I push as he stares silently.

What the hell was he doing?

Was my confession that shocking that he wasn’t able to say a thing?

“Mr. Owens,” I say slowly. “Please reject me. Once you do, I will be able to move on, and then one day maybe we can actually be family like you want.”

For a moment, Mr. Owens continues to remain silent, his gaze unreadable, and when he finally seems to come back from wherever it was he was, he gives a nod.

“Right,” he says, and I brace myself for what is coming. “I think it goes without saying that there is no way that you and I could ever be.”

There it was.

The rejection that I knew would come, and even though I am prepared for it, it doesn’t stop the sting that I feel in my chest.

“I’m married to your mother.” He continues, only adding salt to the wound. “And I was once your teacher. Even if your mother wasn’t involved, there is no way that we could ever be.”

“I know,” I murmur, though for some reason I don’t feel like Mr. Owens believes what it is that he is saying. “I knew,” I continue, deciding that I was just imagining it because there’s no way that he would even consider such a thing. “From the start I knew that it was impossible, and yet I still continued to hold on childishly.”

As I speak, I feel tears start to prick at the corners of my eyes, but even then I keep a smile on my face.

“And with that said and done, I think it is best that we head back to the resort.”

I don’t wait for Mr. Owens to say anything before I turn and start to head out of the castle, and then when I reach the forest, he falls into step beside me.

The trek back to our jet ski is an awkward one where silent tears fall down my face, and when we are on the ocean with water hitting us with the sea breeze, I’m thankful that he can’t properly see me.

When we return to our resort, I head straight to my room and begin packing. Once I finish, I open my phone and book a flight back home that night. After that’s taken care of, I collapse on my bed and stare at the ceiling while wondering how exactly my life took such a turn.

Now that there was no way that Mr. Owens would ever consider me, did I really need to return home and take on a job at my old high school, or would the best thing be to get a job somewhere else?

Of course, my mother would be disappointed that plans changed, but I was certain she would get over it. At least, I hoped that she would.

I originally only planned to come back so that she wouldn’t be alone, but now she had a husband to keep her company.

“Oh well,” I murmur, deciding that these issues were something I would worry about when the time came.

Getting up, I grab my suitcase and head out into the living room, which, with luck, is empty. This would save me from having to hear my mom try to beg me to stay. I could only hope that Mr. Owens would tell her that I headed home first and that he wouldn’t tell her what took place on that island because I was certain it would break her heart, and that was the last thing I wanted.

After giving the room around me one more look, I head out into the hallway and then into the elevator, where I find a familiar face, and as the doors close and his gaze meets mine, I smile politely.

“Leaving so soon?” He asks, eyeing my suitcase. “Weren’t you on a family vacation?”

For a moment, I don’t speak as I stare at Mr. Owens’ brother while wondering why he was even trying to start small talk with me.

“Don’t look at me like that.” He chuckles. “I figured that since we are family, we should try to get along, right?”

“No,” I respond. “I don’t think we will be seeing each other again after this, so it isn’t really necessary.”

“Never say never.” He laughs as the elevator arrives at the lobby. “You never know what fate will bring.”

Frowning, I take him in, and when I realize for the first time that he has a suitcase in hand, I wonder if, like Mr. Owens, he too didn’t live on the island permanently.

“Oh,” he says, noticing my gaze. “I’m heading out too. Heading to the airport too? I can drive you.”

Opening my mouth, I prepare to decline his offer, but then decide against it since it would save me on cab fare.

“Alright,” I sigh, suddenly feeling exhausted. “Thanks, I appreciate it.”

The ride to the airport is a quiet one, and I’m thankful for that because I took this guy as a talker, but in the end he allows me a bit of peace to try to process my thoughts and feelings since I had yet to really give myself a chance to do so.

When we reach the airport, he even helps me out of the car and takes my luggage while we head inside, and when we head toward the same terminal, I can’t stop my curiosity.

“Where are you heading?” I ask, eyeing him. “You can’t possibly be on the same plane as me.”

“I’m going back to my college.” He explains, and I find myself wondering if there was actually a way that could be happening. “What about you?”

“Same,” I admit. “What’s the name of your college?”

“Western U,” he responds, and my eyes widen.

“No fucking way,” I hiss and then cover my mouth. “Sorry, I didn’t mean…”

“No,” he laughs. “It’s okay. It is actually pretty amazing that we happen to go to the same college but never actually met.”

It was. It was the most amazing thing, and I find myself wondering if this was a twist of fate. But if it was, what exactly was it pointing toward? Was it saying that I should use this man to get over Mr. Owens like I originally planned, or did our story hold so much more?

I wasn't sure, but in the end I wasn't going to think too hard on it either. There was no way of knowing if we would even cross paths again once we returned and if we did, wasn't that fine? After all, even if I didn't want to admit it we were somewhat family.