Letting Go 🤎

Four

Isabelle knocked on the front door softly as she let herself into her brother's house the following morning. "Beth?"

"Izzie? That you?"

"Yeah." She went into the living room to find her sister in law laying on the couch, watching tv. "Hey! I brought you some of those blueberry muffins you love."

Beth grinned, sitting up, "thank you so much Izzie."

"Of course." Isabelle sat on the couch next to her, "how are you feeling today? Think you can keep it down?"

Beth sighed, "I can try."

Isabelle gave her a small smile as she handed her a muffin. Beth had stomach cancer and found it hard to keep most things down lately. She watched her eat the muffin slowly as she leaned back on the couch.

"Thank you Izzie."

"Of course. What are best friends for. Maybe you and Stephen can try and come out to the lounge for wining and dining. I can always watch Eddie."

Beth groaned, "every time I try to leave the house, I get sick."

Isabelle felt her grab her hand as she felt tears welling in her eyes, "Beth.."

"Wait. I'm sorry Izzie."

"Sorry? Sorry for what? You have nothing to be sorry for."

Beth shook her head, setting down the muffin as she started to sob, "because without you we wouldn't have been able to even have Eddie and now I won't even be able to see him grow up to a man."

Isabelle shook her head, moving to sit on the coffee table across from Beth, "Beth, stop. You could still go into remission."

"No. I won't. They don't think I have much longer. I need you to promise me you'll take care of my boys when I'm gone, Izzie."

Isabelle sniffled, wiping her nose on the end of her sweater, "Beth, I don't.."

"Promise me!!" Beth clutched onto her stomach as she grabbed the bucket beside her on the floor as Isabelle groaned.

"I promise Beth, you know that I will."

Beth nodded, groaning as she patted the couch next to her, "sit with me for a while?"

"Of course."

Isabelle sat back next to her friend as she cried silently, resting her head on her shoulder.

✨

Nick watched Isabelle enter the lounge just after 11 in the morning. "You're late! And here you were worried about me being professional." He saw her turn to face him, glaring at him with red, swollen eyes. "Izzie, what's the matter?"

"Nothing! Remember, you know nothing about me. Sorry I'm late. Let's just do this." She shoved sheet music at him before sitting at the piano. She picked up the guitar next to her, facing away from the piano, towards Nick.

"Why this song?" He looked over the lyrics.

"Because. He wrote it for his mother that had cancer. Just sing it. Please Nick."

He nodded, seeing her eyes welling with tears again as she started to play the guitar. "Okay. I'm sorry."

🎵 She says it's cold outside and she hands me my raincoat
She's always worried about things like that
She says it's all gonna end and it might as well be my fault
And she only sleeps when it's raining
And she screams, and her voice is straining
And she says baby
It's three a.m. I must be lonely
When she says baby
Well I can't help but be scared of it all sometimes
And the rain's gonna wash away I believe it
She's got a little bit of something, god it's better than nothing
And in her color portrait world she believes that she's got it all
She swears the moon don't hang quite as high as it used to
And she only sleeps when it's raining
And she screams, and her voice is straining
And she says baby
It's three a.m. I must be lonely
Oh, when she says baby
Well I can't help but be scared of it all sometimes
And the rain's gonna wash away I believe this
She believes that life isn't made up of all that you're used to
And the clock on the wall has been stuck at 3 for days, and days
She thinks that happiness is the mat that sits on her doorway
But outside it stopped raining
And she says baby
It's three a.m. I must be lonely
When she says baby
Well I can't help but be scared of it all sometimes
And the rain's gonna wash away I believe this
Well it's three a.m. I must be lonely
Well hell, when she says baby
Well I can't help but be scared of it all sometimes🎵

He smiled, turning back to Isabelle to see her set the guitar down before rushing away to the bathroom. "What did I do?"

Charles shook his head, "it's not you."

"Then what is it."

Charles shrugged, "not my story to tell dude."

Nick sighed as he watched Isabelle come back from the bathroom. "Fair enough." He walked up to her at the bar, "can I take you to lunch?"

Isabelle groaned, "no. I'm okay Nick. Thanks."

He sat on the bench next to her as he heard her let out a long sigh. "Please? I just want to get to know you a bit better."

She looked back at him, seeing the sincerity in the soft blue eyes of his. She sighed, "only if you promise not to ask why my eyes are red and swollen."

Nick laughed, standing up. He put up one hand with two fingers up, "scout's honor."

She laughed, "were you even a scout?"

"Well no... but still counts, right?"

"I don't think so, but I appreciate the sentiment. Come on Nicky." She smiled as she heard him laugh as she pulled on her jacket.