Before You Say Goodbye

CHP 41: INTERNSHIPS

After their finals were done, the internships were now about to begin. The high school was set up for the internship programs and everything was right on track. Various companies had sent their interviewers and advisors to the school to hand over internships and recruit many willing and capable students.
Some students opted for the internship program, while some opted for the University program to attain their degrees in some specific courses. Kate and Jennifer had opted for the university programs since Kate wanted to study psychology further while Jennifer had no clear idea of which internship to apply for, so instead, she chose to continue her studies and pursue Law.
The others decided to opt for the internship programs. Their group wasn't getting as much time as they did before to meet up. Though everyone was busy, Kate and Michel always hung out with each other, and Cheryl and Felix were always seen together in the Canteen hall.
Since his breakup with Jennifer, Oliver introspected and started accepting that he was wrong on his part. He was wrong to have impulsively asked out Jennifer like that, he was wrong to have dated Jen when he hadn't even completely let go of Cheryl. But now, his rational and too generous side had given up. His ego had already taken over and hence, he never texted Cheryl or Felix even once after his breakup. He never asked Cheryl for any clarifications about her relationship with Felix, he never went up to Cheryl to try and clear the misunderstandings. He even had stopped talking to Jennifer since she had been ghosting him for a while. The reason for this was the piles of work for the University programme and Jennifer really hadn't been using social media much these days. Also, the university course timings were such that they clashed with the free time the internship students had.
But all that Oliver could see was that Jen wasn't contacting him. He was too mad to go and talk to Cheryl or Felix. He felt he should talk to Kate but then realized that she was helping Michel get back to his normal self and also, she had her own university work; so, it's better to not bother her, he thought. Oliver had almost isolated himself and gone into a shell; just like he was before meeting all his friends. He used to come to school, attend his lectures and leave quietly, avoiding any of his friends who tried approaching or talking to him. He often saw from the back, Cheryl and Felix laughing and chuckling together, giving each other short hugs, and basically, just being in their own zone.
But even so, he tried his best.
Oliver Jade James did everything to convince himself that he still loved Cheryl a lot and must tell her how he feels. But after his breakup with Jennifer, Cheryl was even more convinced that Oliver was nothing but a playboy. According to her, he himself led Jennifer on by kissing her, then dated her for a while and then, left her, just like that. Cheryl was unaware of the fact that it was Jennifer who had asked for the break-up and not Oliver. She did not even bother asking Jennifer about the breakup. The reason Cheryl was behaving so indifferently was because she was actually dueling with herself. Her heart was telling her that Oliver was not entirely at fault, but her brain told her otherwise. The plain facts were right in front of her! A lot many past experiences in her life had made Cheryl very sensitive and honestly, she wasn't ready to go through another emotional turmoil.

Oliver, on the other hand, had been sorry for everything. When Jennifer told him that he had kissed her and not Cheryl, he felt ashamed of himself. Oliver tried his level best to explain to Cheryl that whatever happened that night was a mistake and he had never intended to kiss Jen. In fact, he had mistaken her for Cheryl. But, Cheryl never gave him a chance to come out with his entire apology and chose to very conveniently ignore him. Oliver now had enough of all this. He realised that he wasn't always wrong and right now, it was entirely Cheryl's fault for not even listening to his side of the narrative. He remembered the last time they argued and this is exactly what she had done then as well. Oliver was now fed up with running behind Cheryl and trying to explain to her. So, he decided to ignore her as well. He convinced himself that first love never succeeds anyways. And just like everybody else, his first love also was a childish mistake, and that he must now move ahead in life, thinking of loving Cheryl, to be nothing but a bitter memory.
"Oliver?" called a deep voice, bringing him out of his thoughts.
"Huh? Yes, Joe...what is it?" asked Oliver when he saw his batchmate calling him.
"Have you..hff.. Have you...Have you checked out the Internship list?" replied Joe, panting heavily.
" List? What list? Which list!"
"The internship results are out. The companies have released the list of students selected. They've also mentioned who all are going abroad for the internships and those students who will stay here. Some have even failed to get recruited. You should go check as soon as possible!"
"Ohh! Where is it displayed?"
"On the notice board, rare staircase side of the second floor"
"Ohkaayyy... Thanks, buddy!" said Oliver and dashed to see his internship programme company and placement.
As he reached there, the place was crowded with extremely eager students wanting to know about their placements. Some were exceedingly happy to get an internship abroad since they were getting an opportunity to work in multinational companies and hence, could earn well; some were interning under well-known well-established people, some were in the practice of accountancy with good finance companies, some working as assistants to renowned psychiatrists. In a nutshell, this internship program was quite the big deal. Some students were also placed in their hometown (i.e here).
He met an elated Michel there. Mike told him that he secured a placement abroad and he was exhilarated. Oliver too was very happy for him. After all the hardships he had to go through, this was honestly the best possible thing that could've happened to Michel. He gave Michel a huge hug, congratulated him, and made his way through the crowd to see his own results.
He saw Cheryl and Felix there and accidentally overheard their conversation.
"Finally! Fe! I got an internship, that too abroad. All my hard work paid off!! I'm so happy...Yes!"
"Absolutely..I've seen you work hard for this. You completely deserve it. Congratulations!...I got placed here itself. I'll be staying home and working. But to be honest, it would be fun working here. I don't think I could've managed alone abroad."
"For sure...it'll be fun Felix! But... But I won't be here... I'll miss you" Cheryl hugged Felix.
"Hmm...but would I miss you? I don't think so" chuckled Felix.
"You...won't?" Said Cheryl making a puppy face and then started to laugh.
As Oliver heard the news of Cheryl moving abroad, he felt a pang in his chest. He just stood there all numb, cold and speechless. He was happy for her, happy that she was getting closer to achieving her dreams, her goals, but...but the thing which he had delayed telling her for so long... the confession that he had to make, the life he had envisioned to live with her, what about that? All these thoughts just crammed his mind.
He then slowly regained his composure and checked the list to see his own placement. As he saw the list, his name appeared among those who had to stay here for their internships. He was placed in a multinational company which his father himself, sub-held.
He was happy to attain his spot, but somewhere deep down, he felt it was his own father who didn't let him go abroad. The richest man in the town can most definitely have some power over what goes on with his son in his high school, right?
Though Oliver thought what apparently his father had done, was wrong, that wasn't his point of focus at that moment. The thing that had all his attention was, how to clear the misunderstandings between him and Cheryl and how to confess to her. Him and Cheryl had ended on the worst possible note ever, and this is just not done!

Would he be able to tell her? Will Cheryl ever listen? Will things get back to normal between them or had time just slipped out of his hands and all he had left was regret?