A Long Way From The Playground

CHAPTER 2

Time skip end of summer

"Ryleigh Elenor, please tell me you're not actually bringing all of this with you to college right?" My mom yells from the porch where I had started to bring my boxes outside. I shake my head and point to the label on the side of the boxes labeled donate. I chuckle to myself before turning to head back upstairs when I hear someone calling me.
"Ellie!"
I look over to see Aaron's car pulling up to the house, I turn on my heels and run to his open arms inhaling the scent of his cologne.
"Baby what are you doing here?!" I ask smiling
"I wanted to see you one last time before I leave, we are driving out to my school today but mom isn't letting me take the car out there till Sean gets his own car. So it might be a few weekends before I get to see you in person again. Plus I wanted to give you this." He pulls a small box out of his pocket and hands it to me.
"I know you're not one for fancy gestures but I figure this would be something you'd like to hold onto when times get tough."
I open the box and it's a gold heart locket with our first and most recent pictures together. I feel tears pricking at the corners of my eyes and I look back up at Aaron holding the necklace out and turning around, moving my hair off my shoulder so he can put it on.
"Thank you baby, so so much I love you and I love this! It's beautiful." He gives me a huge hug and one last kiss before resting his head on mine.
"We will make this work baby okay. I love you too much to give up on this Ryleigh Elenor Andrews."
"I love you too Aaron Hotchner"

Time skip 4 months into semester 1

It had been a few weeks since I had last heard from Aaron. Thanksgiving break to be completely honest. I knew he was studying hard in all of his classes and all but everytime I called him he was always busy or about to go out or some other lame excuse. After an hour of debating I decided to call his mom to see if something else was going on.
"Hello?"
"Hi Annie it's Ryleigh, how are you?"
"Ryleigh how nice to hear from you, everything is well, what can I do for you sweets?"
"Um I know this is going to sound weird but do you know where Aaron is? I've been trying to get in contact with him but he's been saying he's busy or giving me some other excuse and I just wanted to make sure he was okay. I was planning on asking him if he wanted to go see the tree during Christmas break." I ask biting my nail nervously
"Aaron didn't tell you sweets?"
"Tell me what?"
"He was going to see a friend of his in Delaware, said he'd be back by Monday."
I played with my necklace pondering my next question. I had a feeling I knew who he was going to visit and I was hoping I was wrong
"Miss Annie did he happen to say who he was going to see?"
"Yeah a lovely girl named Haley I believe. Sweet kid, he brought her over to visit a couple weeks ago. Did he not tell you? I asked if he was going to bring you as well and he said you had some paper to write?" I feel the tears pricking in my eyes threatening to spill out and my throat gets tight with emotion. Fucking shit Aaron, I take a couple deep breaths to calm myself down.
"I wasn't aware no, and I never received a phone call from him. Thank you Annie I'm so sorry to bother you, if you hear from Aaron can you have him call me please?"
"Of course sweets will tell him the next time he calls home love, take care."
I hang up before the tears spill out and I slam the phone on the receiver before falling to the floor in a ball of emotion. I hear the door to my apartment open and I know it's my roommate coming home. I get up when she comes past the door and she takes one look at me before opening her arms and pulling me into a hug. I tell her everything that Aaron's mom said and about Haley, a girl he met in his classes that lived in Delaware.
"If he doesn't get back to you by Christmas I think you need to let him go babe, you're only hurting yourself more." My roommate says. I nod wiping my tear stained cheeks with my sleeve, I wish this wasn't so hard.

Time skip to Christmas break

I still had yet to hear back from Aaron and my brother was coming to get me for the holidays. It was going to be a rough break and I could feel it. I see Evan pulling up and I wave before he stops, unlocking the car so I could get in the passenger seat. I smile at my brother but it doesn't quite reach my eyes and I know he can tell but does the best thing and doesn't ask. The car ride is quiet other than the hum of the engine and the song playing on the radio.
"Do I wanna know what has my baby sister so torn up or is it better that I don't ask?" Evan questions glancing over quickly before returning his gaze to the road ahead. I shake my head and mutter a quick no before forcing myself to look out the window. After a 2 hour drive we pull into the driveway and I couldn't be happier to get out of the car, the tension was unbelievable and I know it was killing my brother to force himself not to ask me again what was going on. I turn to face him and grab his arm.
"Just don't bring it up okay, not now, it's just been a rough couple months okay." I ask before unbuckling and running for the door. After avoiding everyone's questions as to where Aaron is and what he's doing for the holidays, the phone rings and I run to grab it hoping it's Aaron.
"Hello?"
"Ryleigh, it's Aaron..I heard you wanted to talk to me."
I scoff before turning to close the door to the kitchen to give myself some privacy.
"Aaron I haven't heard from you in weeks, you run down to Haley and you have the balls to tell me 'I heard you wanted to talk to me' grow up. What the hell is going on?"
"Can we talk in person..please? I at least owe you that." He replies softly and for a moment it feels like he almost feels bad for ignoring me.
"Fine our spot in 20 min and if you're not there in 20 minutes well, i don't know what to tell you aaron." I hang up before he gets a chance to respond yelling down the hallway to anyone listening that I'm going out and that I'd be back shortly. I grab the car keys off the hook, pulling my jacket on, I slam the door shut and unlock the car desperate for the warmth to melt my tears that turned to ice. I don't even bother with the radio knowing that it'll do nothing but anger me more than I already was. Why would Aaron go down to see Haley when he has me? Maybe they were studying together genius. It's not always a bad thing. But I'm sure there's plenty of other kids he could've studied with. Why her? Because she's a hot 18 year old blonde who isn't 3 hours from their boyfriend duh. I wrack my brain trying to figure out why everything has been so distant between us and I want to be able to trust him but it's hard when I'm 3 hours away from him all the time. I pull up to our spot, which is really just the playground behind the middle school at the edge of town, and wait for Aaron. I look down at my watch and angrily run my hand through my hair hoping to release some of the built up tension in my body. Headlights flash into my rear view mirror and I look up seeing Aaron's car pull into the space behind me & the lights turn off. Unbuckling my seat belt I take a deep breath knowing that it's going to take a lot of self control not to cry, pulling on the handle I get out of the car wrapping my jacket around me a little tighter.
"Aaron"
"Hi Ellie..how are you ?"
"How am I? Aaron I haven't spoken to you since thanksgiving. I called your mom to see if maybe you went home one weekend and you know what she tells me Aaron? That you went down to Haley's for the weekend..a-and that weekend you went home WITH Haley..y-you told your mom that I had a paper due. A paper Aaron really?! You never even called me to ask me. Your poor mom sounded so surprised when I told her you hadn't even talked to me about it. I knew that Haley was going to get in the way, from the moment you first told me about her being in your class I knew. So how do you think I am Aaron?" I cry out of anger. I couldn't wrap my head around why this was happening.
"Ellie.."
"No. You don't get to call me that anymore. It's Ryleigh or Ry..
"Ryleigh..I'm so sorry. It's not you, I just couldn't deal with the distance anymore, and I know it's not that far but between you studying for your advanced classes and me studying for mine it felt like we barely spoke anymore. And Haley was there. At first it was just studying together, but then we went to a party one night and something happened and I made a mistake baby. I'm so sorry. Please let me make it up to you.." Aaron said shifting his weight from one leg to the other and it almost felt sincere except he couldn't make eye contact with me.
"Aaron.. if you're gonna apologize at least have the decency to look me in the eye when you do it.." after a pregnant pause of neither of us speaking and he still couldn't make eye contact with me it finally clicked.
"..you're still seeing her aren't you.."
He nodded and looked up at the sky, I scoffed blinking back tears and sniffling.
"You're not sorry you did it, you're sorry you got caught. Aaron we're done. Good fucking luck to you.." I spun on my heels and ran to the car before speeding off to the house, I could barely see the road, my eyes blurred with tears. 3 years 5 months down the drain and for what girl? A blonde bimbo?! You don't need him, he was only holding you back! I pull into the driveway and turn the car off but I can't find the willpower to move my body. The porch light comes on and the door opens and I look up, Evan is standing there waiting for me to come inside, furiously wiping at the tears I unbuckle and force myself out of the car keeping my head down.
"Ryleigh...what's goi-"
"DONT. JUST DONT!" I scream, tears flowing faster than I can wipe them. I run past him into the house avoiding the pointed stare's from my family, I can't be bothered to deal with them right now. I run up the stairs into my room slamming the door locking it behind me and sliding my arm across the desk, knocking everything to the ground. I hear my mom coming up the stairs more than likely to try and interrogate me about why I'm crying.
"Ry honey, please open up.. what's going on? Did Aaron do something baby?"
"GO AWAY! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!" I scream back from under the covers letting myself curl up into a ball. I cried myself to sleep that night and it was not the first time.

2,112 words
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A/N:
Let me know what you guys think so far! The chapters are going to start getting longer from this point forward. There might be a few that are shorter than 1,000 words. Hope you enjoy xx