To Girls You've Ever Loved | ✔️

Chapter 21

Dahlia Meadows

A day passed by and I have't contacted anyone yet. I wanted to be alone, this was my worst choice as a coping mechanism. There were a lot of unread messages that came from Dallas, and January. I'm sure they tried contacting me but I had my phone on airplane mode so no one was able to call me.

I always had to stick to my head that I have to accept it, my aunt won't stop. I woke up in the morning and my doorbell rang again. I was sure that it was my aunt who came here again to just scold me, over and over again. The only thing she wants me to do is to finally say that I'm not interested on having relationships, I have to find a job first.

Since I heard a ring from a phone outside, I hurriedly leaned as I could hear a familiar voice. I was right, it was Aunt Helen.

"Ate? I've talked to Dahlia. I think we should let her go." I stood, shocked as I thought my aunt was against the idea of having a boyfriend, I suddenly realized I overreacted. I had to open the door, and apologize. "I haven't told her yet. She won't probably accept that I am biologically her mother." I grabbed the doorknob and opened it. She loosened her grip on her phone, and slowly called my name. "M...my. mother?"
"Dahlia." I looked at her as I was outraged with my feelings.
"Do not fucking tell me that!" I shouted hysterically.
"I-I'm sorry, Dahlia. Please hear me and your parents out." It felt like my heart was tainted with the biggest blister, it was like my heart had been stabbed by a knife as it twisted.

"You guys painted the biggest lie. That biggest lie was my fucking being!"
It was like my life was all painted behind a lie, that could cover the biggest deceit of my whole life. That I had belonged to the wrong family. "I haven't told you yet because I know you're gonna be like this!" She tore up and came closer.
"I'm not gonna be seeing you for a while." I looked at her, trying to hold my anger. "Why? Are you going to leave this city because I heard the truth? Or you're gonna run away like Ma and Pa did? You know what go, I don't-"
"It's because I have cancer! I was just diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. You're not gonna be seeing me, I'm going to Canada to get treated. Happy?" Everything silenced down – all the tears I had left finally welled down as if I thought I was out of tear. I was now destroyed.
I couldn't break down any words and I stood as she left. My knees went weak when I knelt, breaking down as I thump on my chest. I had one person left to think: it was my biological mother. I had to follow her. I had to let Dallas know about this, so tears dripped over my phone. I made a phone call.

—---------------------—————————
Dallas

"Dallas.." her voice cracked, it sounded like she had cried."Are you home?" I asked her gently, I didn't wanna trigger her by asking What happened? Are you okay? It was like Are you home was more an appropriate approach to her. "I am."
"Dallas, tell me if my heart's beating right."
"It is, Dahlia." as I swiftly sat on my bed.
All I could hear was sob that she was halting.
"Do people like us have such fragile hearts?" Like us.
"I don't think so."
"But, why am I shattered?" Her tears and her voices sounded so broken. I wish I could come, but who was I to? I was very afraid of her sadness, that it could ruin the side of her that meant so much to me. I was afraid she'd continue resenting herself and just never say it when she can. Both ways, I didn't like myself as much as I was without her.
"I don't think we should do this, Dallas." I nervously rippled out a voice from my throat. "Do what?"
"Do this relationship." I sat in shock. I couldn't spit out any words anymore, my heart was so tight I couldn't feel myself breathing anymore. "Why not, Dahlia. Please give me the reason why." I was getting teary.
"I'm moving somewhere soon." The heaviness pressed into my chest, it was like a death threat. My ribs were holding the heaviness, it's like ripping apart and about to puncture down my heart. My eyes were filling up like a well, but I managed to find the strength in my voice to talk. "I'll follow you."

"You can't follow me, I won't be enough. You following me won't be enough, Dallas." she choked out. "Please."
"But I love you," my voice cracked.
"I love you so much." I covered my eyes as she talked. I got flashbacks of what we did together. It broke me, she easily broke my heart just like that. "But don't follow me. Don't rely your life on me, build it around yourself. Please."
"I can't build my life when I'm a wreck without you."
"We're out of time, Dallas." She hung up on my call.
Losing someone who finally could see straight through me was awfully terrifying.
Maybe it was all a fucking lie. Life. Love? Or even the person I'm meant to be with.

I grabbed my phone, as I called Alex. It was a good thing that he was with January, while I'm out here becoming insane."Alex. I'm on my way there." I had to fix myself up, so I can open up about this. I was completely clueless how to chase her back. Should I go to her house? She wouldn't like that. Maybe I'm asking too much.

I finally arrived at Alex's house, then I looked at them. My eyes were so swollen, I couldn't properly speak as my voice would start cracking. "What happened?" as I
glimpse at January, pouring water for me. "I talked to Dahlia. We were okay later on. Then, her aunt came." I grabbed the water, and gripped it tightly. "Then, she started telling me we couldn't be together. She was leaving somewhere." They both stared at me as I gulped down on the water. My hands were shaking, they were out of control.
"Did she tell you where?" January asked, curiously. My breath was so heavy, it felt so suffocating whenever I talked. "No."
I had no information on where she would be flying to. I was clueless, it was like I was just thrown out just like that.
"Don't you wanna see her?" Alex spouted it out, the question I've been longing to hear after she ended the call. I do.
"Desperately." Four words and it was all it could make rush over to her house.
If I only could.