Stay (Completed)

Chapter 34- This Is It

THIS IS THE LAST CHAPTER!!! I am really sad, but also really excited because I loooove this chapter! There WILL be an EPILOGUE! so make sure you read that as well :) I hope you like this! Please comment and vote! I love hearing from you and votes always make me smile! :) Enjoy!!

~Hannnah :)

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Evan’s POV:

I pulled myself up and over the railing and stumbled my way through her open doorway. She was sitting on her bed, curled up in a ball and I could instantly tell she had been crying. Rachel was next to her and by the look on her face she couldn’t decide if me being there was a good thing or a bad thing.

“Maria, I’m sorry for coming in like this, I just feel like we really need to talk,” I pleaded my case, walking into her room slowly, my legs wanting to run over to her and pick her up in my arms and hold her close, telling her it would all be okay, but I held myself back, knowing that wasn’t the best approach right now. She had already ran away once.

“Yeah. I agree…want to go for a walk?” she asked, wiping her eyes and giving Rachel a look that probably meant ‘It’s okay’ since Rachel stood up like she was about to protest the idea.

Maria said nothing as she walked out of her room, wiping her eyes and grabbing a jacket. I followed silently, letting her take the lead.

We walked out of her house and down to the beach that was lit with the soft glow of moonlight. It would have been beautiful to my eyes, but all I could focus on was the girl walking with her head down beside me. I wanted to take her hand or wrap my arm around her but I didn’t want to scare her off.

“I’m going to talk…just give me a minute to organize my thoughts alright?” she asked, barely glancing at me before looking back at the sand.

“Of course,” I agreed easily, she obviously had some stuff she wanted to say and I needed to let her say it, no matter how hurtful it was going to be, because the look on her face told me that this conversation wasn’t going to be the happiest one of our lives.

That minute she requested turned into five and finally she stopped walking and turned to face me, her back to the water and her face backlit by the moon behind her. “Evan…I can’t let you stay.”

Those words came out of her mouth sounding so sure, and yet her face looked like she had just told a boldfaced lie. I opened my mouth to reply but she held a hand up to quiet me.

“I can’t let you stay because I can’t do that to your family. I can’t take you away from them. They already lost one family member and I can’t be so selfish as to let make you stay here with me,” she said, pure honesty coming through in her voice. She believed every word she said, but I couldn’t look at that side of the arrangement. All I could focus on was the fact that I wanted to be with Maria, and if that meant not being with my family then that’s what was going to have to happen.

“You aren’t making me do anything. Maria, I want to stay. I want to be with you!” I said, louder than I intended but her eyes looked up to meet mine and I saw her mind start to waver. I needed it to waver. I needed her to let me stay. “Don’t you want me to stay?” I asked hesitantly, afraid beyond belief of what she was about to tell me.

“Of course Evan! I just…I can’t be that selfish! I can’t be that girl who takes her boyfriend away from his family! You have this great family and your brothers look up to you so much! How can I take you away from them?” she asked, clearly terrified at the prospect of me being separated from my brothers.