If Only I Knew

CHAPTER VI

"Will, what the hell are you doing here?" I questioned him. He wasn't supposed to be here, he wasn't supposed to come back into my life like a storm and distort everything again.

I immediately looked towards Noah who was clearly too shocked to mutter even a single word. He opened his mouth but shut it without speaking a thing. My eyes divested towards Sam who was confused as he looked at the well built, tall and brooding stranger in front of him.

"Who's this man, Mommy?" Sam walked a few steps towards me and held my hand. I looked down at him and he tried decoding the mystery of a man standing in front of him.

"Mom!? Is this...Brooke, is this?" Will looked horrified as he looked at Samuel with confusion. Of course! He never thought I would actually get married and have kids. He thought that I would always be hung up on him. In a way, I still was but he didn't need to know that. Nobody needed to know that!

"Samuel, this is uncle Will. He's an old friend of Mum. While I catch up with him, why don't you go inside and turn on the geyser? We surely need a hot bath after such a long day."

He complied obediently, unlocked the door and walked back inside. There was an awkward silence when it was just the three of us left in the corridor.
I couldn't help but look at Will so closely after such a long time. The last time we bumped into each other in the mall, I was shocked and could barely breathe. I didn't even get the chance to ask him how he's been and how did life turn out for him, could he accomplish the things that he always wanted to?

Noah coughed and broke the uncomfortable silence. "Hey! Nice to meet you. I'm Brooklyn's husband- Noah Cooper." Noah extended his hand towards Will and he accepted it gladly.

"I see, you're the lucky guy! I'm Will Sanderson. Although you should know Noah, your wife was the dream of many men in her youth, including me." My eyes widened in horror. Even though Noah was familiar with the 'history' that I shared with Will but he wasn't supposed to say that!

"Will!"

"Oh, Brooke, you've lost all you humor! She was all prepped up to be a comedian when she was 22. You would have run in the opposite direction had you seen her that time." Will's sly remark made Noah smile and the mood lightened.

"That's not true. I always dreamt of becoming an actor. You know that!" I said.

"I do." His words did the trick. It was just him and I. Nobody else, just like any other time. I was lost in his eyes and he in mine. The moment was pure bliss, a bliss I hadn't experienced in years.

"I think you guys should catch up. I'll head inside now. Will, you're welcome inside but only if you'd like to." Noah looked at me expectantly as he offered the proposition. He was hoping I'd decline talking to Will. It turned out that I didn't even have the choice to respond before Will said "No, thanks. We both will just head to the park nearby. This area is really posh."

Noah was rendered speechless and simply walked back inside but not before saying, "Be back soon, okay?"

I smiled softly and as soon as he closed the door shut, I turned towards Will. "Are you seriously out of your mind? How could you say all that?"

"It was all true, except for the comedian part, I guess" His infectious mischevious grin found its way to my face as well.

"Let's head out. Shall we? There's only so much time we've got."

"We shall." He was quoting the dialouges from one of my recent love stories.

Both of us didn't bothered to speak up until we reached the park. Since it was a Sunday, the park was black with people. We simply enjoyed each other's company but we knew better that the inevitable talk was yet to come.

"So, you did get married."

"Yes, I did." I couldn't think of a reply more appropriate than that.

"Truth be told, I never imagined that YOU- Brooklyn Hedge would be married by the age of 24, have a child and be well settled by 30." I looked at him with tenderness in my eyes. His earnest thoughts coincided with mine.

"Honestly, I never could have ever imagined that myself. I always thought that I'd be doing something big, something that I always wanted to do- "

"Something like acting." He completed my sentence and I looked at him with an uncomprehendable emotion.

"Yes. Something like acting or singing or-" He interrupted me once again and snorted "You sing like an owl. Your cacophony is enough to end the world, no need for an apocalypse!"

My mouth opened in playful shock "I do not and for the record I'm not 30 years old yet!"

Looking at him I realized that I spent one of the best times of my life with the person standing in front of me. It was then I knew that I had to ask him what I meant to.

"Why are we here, Will?" I no longer commanded my own body. It felt like I wasn't speaking, the words were just flowing out of my mouth.

"We're here to talk. We met after such a long time and I wanted to catch up-" It was my turn to intervene.

"No, Will, why are we here? It was no coincidence that we met at that mall! It was no coincidence that you've been trying to reach me through mails and calls."

"So you did receive my messages." His face reflected resentment.

"Yes, I did."

"And yet you chose not to respond to them." His response left me speechless. Of course I knew he tried to reach me several times before. I spotted him at some of my signing events as well. But I couldn't let him into my life again. It was not an option for me.

"Yes, Will. I did not respond to any of your letters or mails or calls because I cannot do that to Noah and Sam. They're my life. They're my everything and I love them the most."

My justification did little to convince him. "Are you sure about that, Brroke? You know what? This was a mistake. I never should have come here." He pointed towards us and sprinted towards the opposite direction.

Before walking away he turned and said one last thing. "Oh, and you want to know why did I come back to meet you? Because I stil LOVE YOU! I always loved you and will continue loving you till my last breath. Clearly you don't!"

I stood there completely frozen on my tracks. The passion that those words screamed were all that I'd wanted and looked for with Noah. His love was safe and protective. But what I'd experienced with Will was something that couldn't be put into words. It was fulfilling and incomplete at the same time. It pushed me to the edge and yet let me be comfortable. It's fire only brought warmth to my heart.

He walked away from me and as he did I knew where I was meant to be.

but i knew you'd linger like a tattoo kiss,
I knew you'd haunt all of my what ifs.

Author's Note:
A major cliffhanger!! So it was a struggle writing this one. Super busy and tired these days :( but wrote this anyways. Hope you like this chapter. If you enjoyed reading this then do comment, vote and share this story. Also thank you all for your positive feedback and support :)
love you all and sorry this chapter is a bit shorter than the usual ones!!

Sara