It's been almost a week since the events of the Masquerade disaster occured. A total of five days since I've seen or spoken to Natalie. Everyday since then I've been trying to get a hold of her, but I'm always sent straight to voicemail.

Jessica told me that the next day, Natalie and Tristian officially broke up. Making it the end of their one year relationship because of a stupid mistake I made. I've been trying to make sure not to make it seem like Jessica is in the middle of it, I know she doesn't want to be involved, she just wants everything to be normal again just as I do. But I know it's not that simple.

But that's not the only thing Jessica has told me, apparently Natalie has arranged to stay at her mother's for a while. Which means she'll be a couple hours away. At first I didn't like the idea, because that means it'll be easier for her to shut me out. But then I realized that it was the perfect thing to do. Natalie needs time to get away from all of this, even if it means getting away from me. I know that she misses seeing her mom, and I'm sure right now she needs her.

I too know what that feels like.

Today is the day Nat leaves for her mom's, which means I only have an hour to try and talk to her once more in person before she's off. I know the chances of it going well are slim, but it would kill me if she left without me saying goodbye.

I hurry down the stairs and am greeted by the smell of bacon. When I walk into the kitchen I see Amy next to the stove making eggs and pancakes while Sylvia is sitting at the dining room table, eyes focused on the newspaper she's holding.

I'm a little taken back by what's going on, Amy never makes breakfast. And if she does, it sure isn't a whole meal.

 I look over at the counters and spot two bowls of fruit, one filled with strawberries, the other with pineapples. What the hell is going on?

Before I can open my mouth to speak I hear a ding coming from the oven.

"Oh, the muffins are ready." Amy said, as she bent down to retrieve them.

"Is the Queen joining us for breakfast today?" I joked, and Amy flipped her head over to me before placing the pan of muffins on top of the stove to cool off.

"Isabelle, you're awake." Amy said. Isabelle? There is only one reasonable explanation for this. I walk over to Amy and lean in so Sylvia doesn't hear.

"Are you stoned?" I whisper and Amy scoffs before ending it with laughter.

"Isabelle, since you've finally graced us with your presence, I think you should sit. We all need to talk." Sylvia said, placing the newspaper she was reading down onto the table.

"I can't, I have to go talk to Natalie really quick but I-"

"Clearly can't prioritize your family. We need to discuss some things before-" Sylvia started but was quickly interrupted by Amy.

"Go," she said. "We can talk when you get back."

I notice Sylvia shooting Amy a glaring stare but she ignores it, keeping her focus on me.

I'm tempted to ask what this talk we so desperately need to have is about, but I know I'll just find out later. Natalie is my priority right now, I don't know how long she plans on staying at her mom's house for. This could be my last chance to talk to her for the rest of summer.

I reach over and plop a strawberry in my mouth before hurrying out the door.

"I'll be quick!" I yelled out before closing the front door behind me.

A part of me feels like this talk will be about the fact that I've been shutting everyone but Jessica out since what happened with Natalie. I've been keeping myself busy, whether it's working out everyday, reading books in the park or staying at Jess's house. The last thing I ever feel like doing is staying home.

Lately Sylvia and Amy have been driving each other crazy. Everytime they argue I put my earphones in and listen to music, shutting them out. What's gotten them so angry with each other anyway? Sylvia has been here almost two weeks and I can already feel myself going crazy.

After finding a parking spot close to Natalie's dad's apartment, I get out of the car and begin walking over. Nerves quickly take over, and I can feel my palms getting sweater by the second. 

She hasn't seen me since that night, and I'm afraid that after her getting space from me, she'll realize she doesn't need me in her life anymore.

As I continue walking towards her apartment, I notice her sitting on the steps out in the front, but she isn't alone. To my surprise, Sofia Taylor was sitting right next to her. Great, I'm sure she has plenty to say about me.

"Just think about it, okay?" Sofia asks her, patting her on the back while giving her the fakest sympathetic smile.

I'm now right in front of them, and have nothing to say. Everything I thought about saying last night has disappeared in my mind. When I imagined myself talking to Natalie, I didn't imagine Sofia would be there too. Why is she here anyways?

Sofia looks up at me and stands up from the stairs, smiling at me as she begins to walk away.

"Goodmorning," I say to her. With Natalie here, it wouldn't be the smartest thing to do to pick a fight with Sofia right in front of her.

"It was." She responds, walking past me, her heels clicking with every step she takes.

I ignore her comment and look down at Natalie on the steps right in front of me.

"Since when are you and blondie BFF's?" I ask her, as I sit down on the bottom step right beside her.

"Since you hooked up with my boyfriend." She answers, her eyes focused straight ahead, not even looking at me.

"I guess I deserve that." I said thinking out loud. Every comment she makes towards me I deserve.

"Oh please don't talk to me about what you deserve." I feel a pit start to grow in my stomach as the conversation continues. I knew Natlie would still be mad at me, but still everything she says hurts a little more than the last.

I sat on the stairs with her for about a minute in silence before I spoke up again.

"I'm sorry about Tristian. I know how much you loved him." I start. I turn my head over to face her and notice a tear fall from her cheek.

"Natalie I'm sorry about everything. Everything you said- you were right. I did it because I was hurt that things didn't work out with Aiden. I do a lot of things when I'm hurt, and that doesn't make it okay. But the last thing I would ever want is to see you hurting like this. I promise you, I-"

"You should have known." She interrupts, finally connecting her eyes with mine. "You're my best friend, Elle. How could you not have known?"

I didn't have an answer to her question, because she's right, I should have. I was too caught up in my emotions to give myself a chance to look.

"Everytime I look at you I see him kissing you, touching you, wanting you. It kills me." I watch as more tears start to fall, and I look away. "I don't know how long it's going to take for me to look at you the same."

I nod at her words, I didn't expect her to forgive me right away. It's like what Jessica said, time heals.

"I just need space." She says, "from all of this."

"I understand." I say, I reach over at Natalie's hand on the stairs, and put mine on top of it. "I just wanted you to know that I love you, and I'm sorry."

For a moment I see a slight smile appear on her lips before she turns away from me.

"Have fun at your mom's, okay? Take all the time you need." I say, before standing up and walking back over to my car.

I expected to be walking back to my car in tears, but at this moment I wasn't. Natalie and I didn't argue, we simply just talked. But even though only a few words were exchanged, I know it helped. I know that I'm not going to lose her, and that's all I care about.

***

Once I arrive back at home I sit in my car for a moment. Summer has barely just began and in the meantime I've had sex with a somewhat stranger, got dumped by Aiden, and almost lost my best friend. The scary part is, I know it was just the beginning.

After getting out of my car and closing the door I walk back towards my house. I scrounge through my purse to try and find my keys and when I open the door, Amy and Sylvia are both sitting on the couch staring at me.

"What's going on?" I ask. I look back at the dining room table and notice all the food perfectly placed on top of it, but one thing caught my eye- there were four plates.

"Isabelle, I think you should sit down." Amy instructed.

Something's wrong, I can feel it in my stomach that something isn't right. Sylvia isn't lecturing me on how late I am, it's noon and Amy is fully dressed, and the house smells like Christmas morning.

I knew my feelings were right, it was in my gut that something else was about to happen.

But what else?

I thought, what more could happen to me? I've had enough emotional rollercoasters to last me the summer, and I didn't know how much more I could take.

Both Amy and Sylvia remain quiet, for the first time Sylvia has nothing to say.

"Isabelle?" I hear behind me, and my heart drops.

That voice, I've heard it before, and I knew exactly who it was coming from. I slowly turn around, my heart practically beating out of my chest.

And there she was.

Right at the bottom of the stairs stood my mother. 

Hello everyone... thoughts?

How would you feel if you were Natalie? Could Elle be forgiven?

I know it's been a little slow, but I promise you it picks up after this chapter. Thank you for taking the time to read my story! Please vote and comment down below if you're enjoying It so far!

See you in the next chapter 🖤