Chapter 26 - Gone Forever(2)

***

Valerie met Gabriel at the lounge, a place where she first met him at. She poured her heart out to him that one drunken night and after that her life changed rapidly. Gabriel changed her, she was mature enough to admit that. Some people would say he changed her for the worst, but she liked the new her. She wasn't a push-over anymore, nor did she operate in the shadows, hoping someone would notice her even though they never would. She took charge and a lot of people would feel offended by that. Now it was time for her to let go of caring about what others thought of her and live her life the way she wanted. She was getting there, but she was also aware of the fact that there was one person in her life who was holding her back, not wanting her to change. She needed to decide if she'd let him or she'd make things perfectly clear to him. That decision, however, would have to wait. Tonight she had to deal with a drunk boyfriend and an awkward conversation about his past.

Valerie headed to the bar, Gabriel was already there sipping from an amber colored drink. He was quietly talking to the bartender, the guy who served drinks looking like he enjoyed the conversation. It was a casual conversation about the latest movies playing in the theatres. She couldn't remember the last time she went out to see a movie, but apparently Gabriel was getting the latest tips from the bartender, movies which he couldn't pass on.

Approaching the bar she took a seat beside her boyfriend and ordered a sweet cocktail, something different from the usual bitter drinks she preferred.

Gabriel was the one who broke the silence first, "I was worried about you."

She knew that, he called multiple times and left tons of messages. It was hard to miss, it's why she decided to respond back. She was upset, but she didn't hate him. She just wanted the ache she felt to stop.

"I know."

"I'd like it if you'd never run away from me again when we're having an argument. I hate the feeling of not knowing if you're okay."

He spoke quietly, but as she took his profile in she could tell he was holding back.

"I'm sorry, I just couldn't deal with you at the time."

He let out a chuckle, it wasn't because he found anything she said amusing. It sounded like he was mocking himself. He knew this conversation they were going to have wasn't going to work in his favor. He needed to lower his pride and confess, apologize for things she hadn't been involved with to begin with. It was going to emotionally wreck them both, she hoped they'd be able to get past this hurdle though. She hadn't been with Gabriel long enough to really understand the person that he is. She hadn't seen all the beautiful parts yet, but she hoped she would see them some day. They just needed to move past the ugly first.

"The thing about Tiffany is that I knew her first."

She got that part, they hadn't lied about that.

"Ethan caught our eye and we made a plan to use him to work our way up in the world."

It was ugly, but also something she figured out on her own.

"As I got to know Ethan I grew closer and closer to him while I drifted away from Tiffany. She never got that connection with him. She liked him, but she wasn't in love with him."

Valerie played around with the straw in her brightly colored drink, "She was in love with you."

Another chuckle which was mocking toward himself. She hated that he felt that way, ashamed of what happened between Tiffany and him. He had no control over her feelings and neither did she. It was part of the consequences when they made the decision to target Ethan because of his money. They couldn't change their decision, but she had a feeling Gabriel didn't want to change anything he did. Tiffany, however, was a different story.

"She threatened you because you were no longer in love with her."

Gabriel met her gaze, "I haven't been for a long time now, Valerie."

She narrowed her eyes on him, "Don't feed me the 'love at first sight' bullshit."

"It wasn't." Gabriel told her without blinking, "I know exactly when I fell in love with you. I also know exactly when I stopped loving Tiffany. She just couldn't accept that."

She tightened her grip on her cocktail, the sweet drink still untouched.

"Then why did you keep seeing her?"

Gabriel tossed back his drink, she didn't know how many he already tossed back but when the bartender gave her a look she knew he was probably having one too many. She flashed the man a smile, letting him know she got this. Gabriel's driver was probably around, waiting to pick him up and take him home. There was no need to stop him. She knew he needed the liquid courage to keep talking and he wasn't incoherent yet. He knew when to stop and if he didn't, she'd stop him.

The bartender refilled his drink, Gabriel immediately reached for it and sipped from it, "Call it convenience." He placed his glass back down, not meeting her gaze once because of the shame which she clearly read in his eyes, "But it might also be because I hoped we could go back to the way things used to be. The feeling never returned though. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't love her the same way I loved her back in high school."

"People change." She placed her hand upon his shoulder, "The things you like and dislike change, your preferences change. Things which made you love her back then could make you hate her now. It's part of life, Gabriel."

"Part of life." He repeated.

She didn't let go of him, needing the contact to ensure herself that he wasn't going to disappear from sight.

"I've changed." She admitted to him, "I'm selfish and I only think about what would work in my favor rather than pleasing those around me."

He met her gaze, a genuine smile spreading across his face, "You changed for the better." He moved closer to her, his eyes taking her in while he carefully asked her, "But did I?"

"Change for the better?" She quietly asked him, running a hand through his hair. "You did. I think you made the right call giving Ethan a chance and staying loyal to him. Tiffany can't blame you for the way you feel about the man you accepted as a brother." She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him in, her lips gently brushing over his in reassurance, "If she does blame you for it she is the one who needs to question herself."

"When Tiffany tells Ethan the truth he'd hate me forever."

She wanted to tell him that he was wrong, but she could understand completely why Ethan would hate his guts. Their friendship was built on lies. Gabriel's feelings were genuine now, but it wouldn't soften the blow. Ethan would realize the people he saw as his real family betrayed him from the start. She could only imagine what would happen next.

Valerie released Gabriel and reached for her purse, handing the bartender her card, "We're going home." She quietly told Gabriel, "Call your driver and tell him to come pick you up."

Gabriel's eyebrows shot up, "Home?"

"My home." Valerie clarified, "We're going to sleep and talk about this tomorrow morning." She grabbed onto his hand when she noticed the doubt in his eyes, "It's going to be okay, I promise. We're going to take control of the situation, Tiffany won't ruin things for us."

Gabriel didn't look convinced, but he did as he was told. She paid for their drinks and left the lounge together with him, holding tightly onto his hand to let him know she wasn't walking away.

***

Once Gabriel was sleeping away in her bed, Valerie left the bedroom and closed the door quietly behind her. She joined Rachel in the living room who had prepared them some hot chocolate and a bowl of popcorn. The popcorn was untouched while the soft sound of laughter was heard in the background because the TV was on. Rachel wasn't paying attention, she was more curious about the current situation and Valerie couldn't blame her.

"Tiffany is on a war path, if she doesn't get what she wants she's going to ruin everything." Valerie quietly told her sister, her eyes trailing to the hallway leading to her bedroom.

"She wants Gabriel."

Valerie nodded, "And I'm not going to give him up, so we have a problem."

Rachel shook her head, not agreeing with her at all, "We don't. Ethan hasn't showed up yet with the intent to kill so we know Tiffany hasn't made a move yet. Maybe she's focusing on having Ethan back by her side to isolate him from Gabriel."

"That's possible."

"You need to make sure Ethan doesn't let that woman get to him."

Valerie sipped from her hot chocolate, the drink far tastier than the cocktail she left untouched at the lounge.

"I need to make Ethan hate Tiffany's guts so she won't ever have an in again."

"Right, also reminding him he's better off without her."

Valerie smiled, "That he's better off with my lovely sister?"

Rachel grinned, "Something like that." The smile dropped as Rachel continued the serious conversation, "He cares about you, if you tell him that you feel hurt by the situation. About the fact that Tiffany is still going after Gabriel, he'll be pulled back to reality."

"I also need to make sure Gabriel insists on Ethan not seeing Tiffany again."

Rachel reached for the bowl of popcorn and placed it between them, "If Ethan won't listen anymore Tiffany will be gone forever."

Valerie faced the TV and turned up the volume, ready to watch whatever series Rachel had picked to watch, "I like the sound of that."

Her sister agreed, "Me too."