Phoebe and Asher have been in love since high school. They were the couple that everyone thought would get married and have kids together. So when they broke up both Asher and Phoebe were inconsolable.
But then Riley walked into Phoebe's life, banda...
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❛Thought I was ready, ready for someone else But every time I get ahead of myself, every time I get ahead of myself Thought I was rock steady, that I didn't need no help But every time I get ahead of myself, every time I get ahead of myself.❜ - Ahead of Myself, X-Ambassadors
Three
No one knew where Phoebe was, the only person she'd contacted was Brooke. They were all worried sick about her but she wasn't answering her phone. Phoebe couldn't afford to answer a call; she was waiting desperately for Asher to call. He didn't, it was crushing her more and more each time someone called and it wasn't him.
She had to make one more call before officially turning off her phone and giving up.
"Hi Mum."
There was an exhale of breath, relief. Phoebe still couldn't manage to say much, she was too scared to, who knew what people thought of her now.
"Sweetie, thank goodness you answered. We've all been so worried about you, no one could get a hold of you and we started to worry. Where are you?"
Phoebe knew she could trust her mum but she was apprehensive to give anyone the address of the hotel, people might start coming and she couldn't handle that right now. But the more she thought about it, the more she gave in. It was her mother and Phoebe knew that if she knew she didn't want anyone to show up, her mother wouldn't tell them where she was. So Phoebe told her mum where she was, asking her not to visit for tonight, she couldn't deal with visitors right now.
"I love you, sweetie, I hope you know that. Your father and I support any decision you make, we want you to be happy," Phoebe smiled at her mother's words, she'd always loved her mother and father beyond words. They were two of the best people in her life, always supportive and loving.
"I love you too mum," she then hung up and turned her phone off. She was glad that she had talked to her mother, she deserved to know that her daughter was okay.
...
Time was passing slowly and Phoebe was lonely. She was sick and tired of waiting around for someone who wasn't going to call. She turned the TV on, trying to find something to distract her from her thoughts. She was doubting whether she had made the right choice, was Asher really worth all of this when he couldn't even call her? How hard is it to pick up the damn phone?
Picking up her phone and switching it on, she wanted to find a trace of Asher. Why did she have to miss him like this? She tried scrolling through her camera roll, not much stuck out. Phoebe scrolled through his Instagram but the last thing posted was from the time when they were still together, he never was a huge fan of social media. She resorted to looking through her music, searching for any of the songs that they used to sing to in the car.
Settling on the song that had always been their favourite, she let it fill the room as she allowed her memories to run wild.
The night of her cousin's wedding. Was it selfish to remember that night as the night they said 'I love you' for the first time? For the best moment of that night to be remembered as a moment spent between them and not the union of Stephanie and Marc?
The afternoon when they had a water balloon fight with all their friends at a park on their road trip. The time when Phoebe realised she had something truly special, something worth holding onto.
Phoebe couldn't bear to keep thinking of those times, the times that were easy and doing what her heart desired didn't mean heartbreak for someone she cared for. Phoebe never meant to hurt anyone. Deep down she knew if she married Riley without having closure with Asher then she would grow to regret and resent her decisions. She couldn't live with that. She didn't want to live a life full of regret, especially when it came to love.
She knew, somewhere within her, that she had made that right choice for herself, she wouldn't regret this decision.
Phoebe turned the volume of the TV up to distract her brain by focusing on the movie playing. She closed her eyes for a moment, taking in the lonely silence. She knew she had inflicted it upon herself, asking her mum not to come by today, but the crushing weight of her feelings still forced their way in. She pushed them aside, she wouldn't let them affect her now. She wouldn't let them make her feel miserable.
Opening her eyes, she turned her concentration to the movie, forcing a smile onto her face. If you force one, eventually it would become real, right?
...
The movie was basically finished by the time Phoebe tuned into it so she let the next movie lined up take her attention. It was a romance movie, she wanted to scream and cry. Right now she didn't want to see people in love and everything working out for them, no matter how bitter it sounded. She wanted something full of action or adventure, something that wouldn't make her think of her failed relationships and her desire to be held in the arms of the one she loves.
But she let it play on, ignoring the nagging feeling she felt in her heart. The movie seemed like a complete and utter cliché, the man who had longed for the woman was running in the rain towards said woman. And then he was standing at her door, ringing the doorbell. But how could that be, she could hear a knock on the door. Her door? She wasn't expecting anyone, the only person who knew where she was said that she wouldn't come tonight. What was going on?
She pulled herself off the hotel room bed and walked to the door with a slight hesitance to her movements. She feared what she didn't know, what she wanted, what she couldn't have. The smallest piece of her heart hoped it was Asher, but she talked herself out of the idea, it would never happen. She knew it would just be a stranger knocking on the wrong door.
As she neared the door she could hear the faint noise of rain falling outside. She looked back at the TV screen, seeing the rain still pouring and the man waiting for the woman to open the door. Phoebe was at the door, opening it before she could even realise her actions.
The air left her mouth in the beat of a heart, her heart. She couldn't breathe for a second, her heart stopped. She couldn't help but think, why?
