𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐎𝐅𝐅, ᵐᵃˣ ᵛᵉʳˢᵗᵃᵖᵖᵉⁿ

THIRTY-FIVE

9th december 2023, baku

MAX WAS MORTIFIED TO WAKE UP ALONE. He called after Antonella, but there was no reply. He stretched, and quickly threw on shorts and a tshirt before going to find her. "Gorgeous?"

Max entered the living room to find Ella stood next to the kitchen. "Good morning," he smiled. But Ella looked quite upset. "What are you doing?" He asked suspiciously, it was then he noticed the packed bag in her hand. "I'm sorry Max."

"What are you talking about?" He was very confused, Ella could only shake her head in reply. She took a deep breath as Max's heart raced. "On my first day you warned me if I fell for you, you would fire me. Consider this me doing you a favour."

Ella made a beeline for the door, before Max blocked her from it. "Ella, what are you doing? Where are you going?"

"I'm leaving Max, I can't do this..."

"Ella, come on. Stop. Sit down, let's talk." He begged, gently lifting her empty hand as he pleaded. Ella fought back tears. "Max please. I need to go."

"Can you at least tell me why?" He said calmly, the last thing he wanted was to get angry at Ella. But she was already so worked up, it seemed as if she was getting angry with him.

"You can't blame me for freaking out." She snapped, "You freaked out too! What about when you treated me like shit for three weeks because you decided you couldn't have feelings for me! You're allowed to have a momentary freak out but I'm not?" She breathed heavily. Max took a deep breath and tried to remain calm.

"I didn't leave you Antonella. It's very different." He said slowly, "I'll admit it, I was a dick. But I acted like that because you didn't love me back. You know for a fact I have very, very strong feelings for you so forgive me if I'm having a hard time understanding." He dropped her hand, Ella moved it to the door handle, but she wasn't leaving just yet.

"I'm sorry, Max," she repeated.

"You mean you are actually going to leave?" He furrowed his eyebrows, his voice broke slightly but Ella didn't notice. She nodded. "Yes. I mean just that." She said shortly, the same reminder repeated in her head. Don't ask him to wait if he doesn't ask you to stay.

"This is what you want?"

I don't wanna leave, but I have to go. She said with her eyes, Max read them easily. But he had to let her do this. He couldn't let himself hold her back. "It's like I said... On my first day you warned me if I fell for you, you would fire me. I'm doing you a favour."

Max nodded slowly. He wasn't sure what to do. It seemed as though no matter what he tried there was nothing he could do. So he said only what he could manage, and nothing more. "Well go ahead. But you should know, if you did happen to fall for me, never in a million years would I fire you."

"Goodbye Max." She opened the door finally, rushing through it. He watched her walk away quietly, she was distraught. Max wanted to run after her, carry her back and never let her go. But he couldn't. If she didn't want to be here, if she didn't want to be with him, then she didn't have to be. But Max wished she had given him a reason, on some level he knew. However he wanted confirmation, he wanted reassurance it wasn't anything he could've prevented. Maybe, even after all this, Max and Ella just weren't meant to be.

"I'll see you soon, Ella. Don't forget me." Max called after her, as she ran down the hallway. He shut the door calmly, and closed his eyes for a second. What the fuck just happened?

Everything happened so suddenly, and fell so rapidly. Max couldn't believe it. He had absolutely no idea what had just occurred, or what he was meant to do in that situation. Was he meant to fall to his knees and beg her to stay? Was he supposed to get angry and tell her to never come back? Was he meant to say nothing at all?

He wasn't sure how long he had just stood there thinking for, but eventually he went and had a shower, packed the stuff from the hotel and went to pick up his daughter from his mothers hotel nearby. "Are we going home now, Daddy?" She asked, Max shook his head.

"We're going to stay at Auntie Victorias, we'll go home soon. I promise." He told her, but he wasn't sure he could keep his promise. He wasn't sure he could return back to Monaco without Ella.

netherlands,

"What's happened?" Victoria asked after Millie had finally went to bed. Max didn't have the words, he couldn't breathe. "Oh my god. She left me." He panicked, Victoria got up from her seat and hugged her brother gently. Max cried silently into his sisters embrace as the reality of the situation hit him.

"How can I do this without her, Vic?" Max complaiend, Victoria comforted him to the best of her abilities. She couldn't believe Ella had left, but she didn't judge her for it. She simply prayed she would see Ella again soon.

"You've done it alone before, you can do it alone again." She promised, Max buried his face in his hands. "I don't want to do it alone again. Now that I know how amazing things are for Millie and I with her, I don't want to be without her. What about the plans we made? What am I supposed to do now?" Max pleaded for answers that Victoria couldn't give him.

Ella was gone. And Max was ruined.

a/n
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