Soulmate

10

It's been 9 days and I've barely seen Isaac at all. We still have choir together, and he still walks me home every day, but other than that I haven't been able to see him. I always offer to spend a day or an afternoon with him, but every time he does the same thing. He kisses me on the forehead, and tells me that Owen needs me more. And maybe he does, but I miss spending time with Isaac.
Today is the 10th day. If Owens countdown will ever resume, it will be today. He's scared, so scared. We're staying up until midnight, just in case. But both of us are starting to lose hope.
"Olivia, it's ok, you can go to bed if you want." Owen says dejectedly.
"No," I protested. "It's already 11. I can wait up with you for another hour."
"There's no point, is there?" He says. "She's gone. I know it."
She can't be gone. She just can't be. How can I live out my happily ever after if my best friend won't get one? And how can I tell Isaac how guilty I feel? How could I possibly take away his hopes for happiness like that?
But before long it's midnight. And nothing has changed. Owens countdown remains stuck at 12d 15h 03mm 47s. And it will stay there, forever.
"I'm so sorry Owen." I out a hand on his shoulder. "You didn't deserve this."
"It's okay I guess." He said. "It's not your fault."
He sighed, "go home Olivia. Get some sleep. I'll be okay."
I knew it was a lie, but I was too tired to care. "Okay, if you say so," I said, yawning, "goodnight."
I walked next door to my house and immediately called Isaac. "Meet me in the park?" I asked. I knew he was probably asleep, but I needed to talk to someone.
"See you in ten."
I ran trough the park to our spot and sat down on the bench. Before I knew it I had started to cry. Poor Owen. What would he do? What would I do?
"Don't cry." Isaac's gentle hand wiped the tears off my face. "There's nothing you could have done."
"You know?" I asked him.
"No, but I can guess." He said, sitting next to me. "Why else would you call in the middle of the night?"
I smiled through the tears. "What do I do?" I whispered.
"There's nothing you can do but be there for him." Isaac said gently.
"I don't know if I can" I sobbed. "I've missed you so much."
He scooted closer, taking my hands. "I've missed you too. But we talked about this. Owen needs you."
I looked into his eyes. "But I need you."
He pulled me into his arms, holding me close. "I'm sorry."
I felt so at peace in his arms, better than I'd felt in days. I knew that he was telling me how sorry he was, and how much he needed me too.
"Please don't leave me." I whispered.
"Never." He whispered back.
Suddenly my mind was filled with worry for Owen, and his plight. It was easy to forget when I was so happy, but I knew how much he was hurting.
"What do I do, Isaac?" I whispered, "I know that I need to be there for him. I know that he needs me. But I'm so happy with you right now and I feel so selfish for forgetting his pain."
"Then I'm selfish too." He replied, "because I never want to let you go."
"No," I told him, "you've been telling me for days to spend time with him, even though it meant less time with me. That's not selfish at all."
The tears return. "I just don't know what to do."
"I know, I know." He said. "I'll tell you what, meet me here, at midnight, every night. During the day we'll proceed as usual, at least for now."
"I don't know how you do it." I sighed.
"How I do what?" He asked.
"I don't know how you can be so selfless." I said.
"It's because I know I have you waiting for me." He said. "And I know that if we can meet here every night, I'll be just fine."
"Okay." I whispered. "Every night."
We pulled away, heading back to my house. The moon was so bright tonight, the lights along the path were barely needed. As we walked hand in hand, I couldn't help but think about how lucky I was. Yes, it was hard, but I had this beautiful boy to help me when I couldn't cope any longer. I loved him. I knew that I did, but I couldn't tell him, not yet. I worried that if I told him I'd scare him away. And I couldn't bear to lose him.
We reached my door, and he kissed me goodnight. "Everything will be alright," he promised, "I'm not going anywhere."