Chasing the Stars

Rijksmuseum

Plane rides are the worst sometimes. Our flight was delayed three hours, and I was sick for the whole flight. I sipped ginger ale while trying to read An Imperial Affliction for the hundreth time this trip. I fell asleep about 9 hours into our 11 hour flight. Thank goodness when I woke up I felt much better. We had just landed in one of my favorite places in the world.

The limo, quite like the one Gus picked me up in to go to the airport for our Amsterdam trip, dropped us off at our hotel for the next few months, the Hotel Filosoof. Gus being amazing, arranged for me to have my own room, near Isaac's room, and our parents were staying a little further away. I was to be staying in the Heidegger room, the room Gus stayed in last time I was here. My parents were staying in the Kiekegaard room, the room I shared with my mom last time I was here.

Who would have thought I ever would end up back in Amsterdam. I can finally go visit all the places I didn't get to see, and I can tell Augustus all about them. Tomorrow, we are going to the Rijksmuseum with Lidewij and her niece, Angelina Everheart. Gus said he wanted to visit the museum, but we never got the chance, seeing as he had just a touch of cancer.

"AMSTERDAM!!!!" My parents were screaming while banging on my door to wake me up.

"Shhhhhhh, I'M SLEEPING!" I insisted.

In the end, I lost, and I ended up getting a quick shower and heading out to greet my family in the hall. We proceeded to the museum, which was intriguing. We saw statues and paintings and carvings that were extremely detailed, but I realized Gus was right, there were pictures of death all around, but not one of the was a person dying of cancer. Like he said, cancer is not a very noble way to die. However, we had a great time and saw some famous artwork and artists like The Night Watch, Rembrandt, and Vermeer. Plus, Isaac and Angelina hit things off. I hope they get together because they would make a cute couple. She was tall and thin, maybe 5'9, and she had beautiful, flowing blonde hair. However, her attitude was the best, she reminded me of myself a little. Oddly enough, she had had the same cancer Gus had, but her surgery had been 4 years ago and she was going to be fine.

After a relaxing evening of lounging in a chair, I knocked on the door connecting my room to Isaac's. When he opened the door, I saw Angelina lounging in his room. I was really happy for him; she was a great girl.

"Hey guys, I'm starving, where should we eat tonight?" I asked.

"Well I talked to our parents. They're going out for a 'grown ups dinner' so we were on our own, with a budget of $100 a piece, courtesy of Van Houten and Gus." Isaac replied.

"I've heard of a great restaurant around here called Oranjee." Angelina added.

"I've been there before, I think we should go, but I would like to get my own table outside if you guys wouldn't mind." I said in reply.

"That's fine with me, but I think we will dine outside too if you don't mind. You can still have your own table." Isaac said to me.

We finally agreed and headed to Oranjee. The waiter was the same as last time, and he gave me the same table I had last time. There were two reservations already made there, one for Ms. Angelina & Mr. Isaac and one for Ms. Hazel Grace Waters. I sat down and sipped the champaigne that tasted like several luminous balls of fermented, bubbly plasma were sliding down my throat. I ordered the chef's special, like I did with Gus. In actuality, I ordered two, one for me and one for Augustus. Once the waiter put down the food, he asked about Mr. Waters. That was the moment I lost it. I broke down into a heap of tears and cried until I had no fluid left in me. He was not here with me to see the flower petals floating around us, or taste the amazing food or champaigne. Gus was not here and he wouldn't ever be again. I decided I might as well admit to myself that even though he will never be here again, I would never stop loving him. He was, is, and will be forever, the star-crossed love of my life.

After my little outburst, I ate in silence, and I watched the flower petals, which seemed far less beautiful this trip. I watched Isaac and Angelina. Isaac was feeding her from his fork, and they did the horribly cliche thing where they link arms and drink champaigne together. I couldn't prevent the small giggle that I let out. I wonder if that's what Gus and I were like when we were here.

The check was dropped off after I finished my dessert. However, when I opened it, there was only a few scraps of paper inside. The first one read: Hazel Grace, a gentleman never lets a lady pay on a date. I have already taken care of the check. Please enjoy the next piece of the story. - Augustus. P.S. I hope Isaac and Angelina have hit it off, I thought they would be good for each other.

That night, I pulled out Gus' old shirt and snuggled into it. It smelled just like him and the temporary comfort it gave me was great. I pulled out the next installment of his ending to AIA. Just as I was about to start reading, a soft knock came on my door. I opened it to find Isaac looking at me.

"Well let's read it." He said.

I was touched that even though he had a great evening, he had parted with Angelina to spend the rest of the evening with me reading and most likely sobbing.

"Okay." I said.

After AIA:

We returned to my new husband's home near Anna's grave for the week after our honeymoon. I went to Anna and told her most of what happened, leaving out some of the less appropriate details. "The Dutch Tulip Man and I have decided to re-adopt Sisyphus the Hamster, which her current owner was fine with. He has a giant cage now and can roam around all day. His hamster wheel is giant also. Sarah called and asked about the honeymoon, which was amazing. We swam and went scuba diving and snorkeled. Along with a few other things that I won't mention.

We have a house in Amsterdam now, and are thinking of doing a little traveling. We'll see. Anyway, when Sarah called, she dropped the bomb on me. I am going to be the maid of honor in her wedding, which is in six months. Chuck proposed last night, they were at the hospital because Chuck's sister was having a baby. He had been trying to propose for a while, but he finally did it. Of course she said yes, and the rest is history. It's funny because Sarah caught the bouquet at my wedding. I guess there might be some reasoning behind that old tale.

Sarah sent me a picture of my dress for her wedding, and it is amazing. It's strapless and turquiose with black flowers running down the dress. I can't wait to see her dress... goodnight, Anna. I love you"

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A/N: Thank-you all for 2k reads!!!!!!!!!!! You are the best readers ever!!!!!!!! If you have time, maybe go check out @our_fallen_angels she is upset because she doesn't have a lot of reads. She said she needs motivation, and I love the story she is writing, so maybe you guys could help me motivate her. I dedicated this chapter to her because she is a great writer and always knows how to cheer me up.  Anyway, comments, requests, etc. are always accepted. THANKS!!!!!!! -Liz