Tangled in Love

Chapter 4

Nolan looked down at his carbonated drink, biting the straw nervously, avoiding Isabel's eyes. He was shaking his leg, trying to keep himself from the realization of going on a date with someone who wasn't Maya.

"So how's your brother?" Isabel began, trying to break the awkward silence filling between them.

"He's great." Nolan responded, smiling a warm, white grin. The two of them looked at each other, Isabel was filling with warmth and comfort, joyful that their romance sparked. Nolan, on the other hand, was filled with guilt. He knew he shouldn't be with anyone but Maya, awake or not, but Isabel's light, shining eyes lured him into his conceived dream of being with Maya.

Nolan quickly shook away his fake idea of a date with Maya and saw Isabel's thick, honest lips raised in a sideways crescent giving off a deep grin that touched her soft, barely-seen dimples.

"I gotta use the restroom." Nolan announced, standing to the right of his black wooden chair and pushed his chair in with his left hand.

"Okay." Isabel agreed with a kind smile on her lips.

Nolan went into the restroom and the second he noticed himself in the mirror, he stopped and just sighed. He noticed the thick dark shadows circulating his eyes, the droopy flatness of his once lively blonde hair, and the lack of interest his expressions had. He looked at himself, the disappointing blankness in his face was unchangeable. He tried blinking energy into his crystal eyes, and forcing a smile on, but he couldn't. He was stuck looking at himself with a gruesome look of sorrow, face-to-face with someone once so confident, so strong, so happy, and now, so broken. So very broken.

Meanwhile Isabel was sitting alone on her date, as she had expected. She shook her head to herself, amazed that she'd gotten herself into a relationship she thought would never happen. She rubbed her forehead aggressively with her palms in regret. She'd been waiting for almost ten minutes and knew he didn't care she was sitting alone.

"How may I help you?" the waiter asked, pulling out a small notebook filled with pen scribbles of other customers' orders.

"Just a few more minutes, please."

Isabel nuzzled her chin into her fist, while settling her elbow comfortably on the table, and stared at Nolan's seat. She watched the empty scene for almost a minute, before hearing a soft vibrate emerge from the chair. She leaned to the right, allowing her eyes to see the black iPhone 5 Nolan had left behind. She debated with herself whether to take it or not, and finally agreed to just take a look.

Just a peek, she thought to herself. No harm will be done.

Isabel reached in and gently grabbed Nolan's phone, curiosity taking over her. When she pressed the home button to light up the screen, she noticed a text from a girl named Grace.

"Heyyyyy ;)," it read.

The excess amount of y's and the wink made Isabel suspicious, so she swiped the screen to the right, finding that she needed a password to access his phone.

Damn it! She thought to herself. Why does he have to have a password?!

Isabel tried four different combinations, and knowing the threat of the phone being locked for a minute was near, she made one final guess: his birthday.

She was wrong.

Isabel quickly slipped the phone back into his bag when she saw that it was locked, circling her brain for another clue or hint that would help her. She took a moment to think about what numbers she pressed, and suddenly a flash-black filled her mind. She remembered leaning on Nolan's shoulder, feeling his soft coat pressing against her ear. When she thought harder she remember looking at Nolan type in his password quickly, and seeing him press four of the same numbers repetitively, those numbers being 1.

Thankfully, the minute was up and Isabel took the phone from Nolan's bag, pressing the circular buttons. Her chest was tightening in anxiety of whether the combination was correct or not, scared that she would have to wait another five minutes for another shot at a guess. Luckily, the screen opened to a page filled with apps, and with relief, Isabel opened Messages.

She read through the conversation and saw the flirtatious texts they had sent, complimenting each other.

"I love the way your hair falls down ever so lusciously."

"Your eyes shine so gorgeously with the sunshine."

"I wish I could kiss you right now."

"Me too."

Isabel sat dumbstruck in her seat, not believing what she had just seen with her eyes. She quickly scrolled up to make sure that it was Grace Nolan was having the conversation with, and sure enough, it was. She noticed the date they began having such conversations: the day after Maya's car crash.

Anger started boiling up, heated by Nolan's unloyal personality. Isabel knew that he was a player, but never known him to cheat while being in a relationship! The water in her heated up quickly, realizing how fast Nolan had moved on from her friend and his soul mate. She slammed his phone with as much strength she had, straight into the wall. It shattered into many tiny pieces, cracks lining the once perfect phone and clear glass flying everywhere.

"What the fuck?" Nolan blurted as he stomped monster-like into the dining hall.

"Shut your mouth!" Isabel yelled back, confident that he had no right to curse over his phone being shattered.

Isabel walked swiftly to Nolan. She stood centimeters away, and hissed sharply in Nolan's face, "We are over." And with a disappointed frown, she turned her back and started walking in the opposite direction.

Nolan, alone in the cold hospital chair, watched his new phone explode with angry messages. His vision grew blurry as he sniffled, wiping away his tears. He shut down his overflowing phone as his chest pressed tightly, feeling as if his heart had been covered and pressed with sharp needles.

He looked down to Maya's silent hand and rubbed it gently, feeling her rough knuckles. He dug into his pocket and pulled out a small tube of lotion he had brought for her, and squeezed a penny sized dot of the creamy ointment and carefully rubbed it onto her delicate hands.

"Maya, my love. Oh my life..." he began, shaking. "My life is so messed up," He ran his fingers against her cheeks. "I guess I have been in a situation where my life isn't great before, but I've always been able to blame the situation at someone else, and allowed them to work to fix it. But this isn't like those times... Cause now it's all my fault. Now I am responsible for cleaning this mess up, and I'm not used to that. Babe, I don't know how to clean, I need you. I need you to teach me and guide me! Please, Maya!" He released his grip from her and covered his palms now with his hands. He let out a deep breath followed by an uneven burst of wails. "Please, I need you! Just squeeze my hand, please! Just one squeeze so I know you're alive! Maya, please!"

Nolan rested his face against her stomach, wetting it with salty tears, remembering the salty tears he had on the day she had sacrificed herself for him.

Slowly, his hand rested in her's was grasped, and without resting a beat, Nolan sat up, and saw his girlfriend's eyes open and sparkle glamorously in the light. He smiled, hoping for a greeting, but she said nothing.

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