Starting New: A World Apart

Chapter 34 - Sparks

Emptiness.  That's all Gumball could feel at that moment. Did that really happen? Was this real?...Truly?

'Gumball...I can't...'

That phrase echoed in his mind over and over. It didn't seem to stop.

Everything...everything that he seemed to have built with her in their relationship...came crashing down. His heart then felt it. It was like it was shattering into a million pieces of sharp glass; and it was ripping his chest as it fell down inside his body.

He recognized that feeling. He felt it the day he got rejected by Penny at the mall. It was Heartbreak. The only difference he felt now compared to back then...was it was worse. SO much worse...

His gaze dropped to the ground as he slowly lowered the ring. The weight of his situation taking its effect. He needed to get away. To get away from her...from here...from it all.

With that, he quietly stood up and with his hand still rattling from it all, placed his ring into his pocket. He then spun and faced away from Nicole and looked over the hill towards the woods. He felt drawn to its presence. Maybe within it, could he find a sense of security and peace of mind. It was a place somewhere he could go. To run. To run far away...

He took a step forward before taking another, and another, and another; each one a bit faster then before. Soon he was full on sprinting down the hill. His pupils growing larger to acclimate to the lesser light as he left the hilltop with the fire, and Nicole, behind.

———

Nicole wept while looking towards the grass. Her vision was totally clouded by her watery tears. This all was too much for her to handle. This went on for several minutes until she heard Gumball move. Glancing up, through her murky vision, she saw him wordlessly stand back up and, shakily, place his ring back in his pocket before turning to face away from her. He then did something that frightened her. He started walking, then running. Away from her. Down towards the woods. Quickly coming to her senses, she wiped her eyes and reached out an arm in a feeble attempt to draw him back.

"Gumball!" She cried out, horrified that he had left her and was running away alone.

Despite every part of her screaming for her legs to stand themselves up and go after him...Nicole couldn't. She just couldn't. Her whole body was like it was locked in place. She couldn't move her body. She felt...so defeated.

Her rejection of Gumball's proposal had completely wrecked her. She knew why she couldn't go through with it...but she couldn't bring herself to stop feeling terrible about it. This was one of the saddest moments of her life...and she knew, just by how he looked, was one of the hardest, if not THE hardest for Gumball too. And the fact that he ran away...

Nicole's eyes widened.

He ran away...

'No...nononononoNO. NO!'

"NO!" Nicole screamed out loud.

One of her her biggest fears had just came true. Gumball...ran away from her. She didn't know where he was now...she was...alone now.

Alone...

"No...no..." She repeated weakly, hitting the grass below her with her clenched fist.

'I can't be alone...not again...not again.'

Nicole then slowly raised her head and looked in the direction in which Gumball ran.

"I can't be alone again..."

Clenching her fist tightly, she growled and with all her might, started to move her legs. She then slowly rose to her feet. It was taking every fiber of her being to do so, but she was doing it. Her chains of sorrow and shock were broken and replaced by determination.