Rachel Riott (Preview)

Chapter 8

Ella's focus continued to be captured by the necklace as she looked at the little boy, smiling happily. He was as proud of the tiny object as she had been all those years ago. To say the least, she was happy to see that it had found a good home. The boy showed his excitement as his little voice echoed into her ears, and Ella looked deep into his eyes. That was one of the things that impressed her about Thomas. She had worked in an extreme business setting for so long that no one ever looked her in the eyes. They claimed that her gaze was that of the devil, yet there was also the fact of who the boy's dad was. He was probably used to an intimidating glare.

"My mom gave this to me; she said it was very special to her, and she passed it on to me because I'm very special to her," Thomas explained the best he could, as his sentence made Ella's heart flutter.

"I bet you are very special to your mom," Ella said, then looked up at Allison, who blushed while looking down at her old friend.

Standing back up and breaking her eyeline with the boy, Ella looked at Allison. She didn't know how to feel about being in her presence again, but she knew they shared the same thoughts as their eyes locked into place. Remaining neutral in the matter, Allison looked at Ella solemnly. Then, before Ella could speak, Allison cut her off, leaving Ella's heartbeat to increase in speed once more.

"I gave it to him because I didn't think I'd ever see you again," Allison said.

"Alli, I get it. You don't need to explain it to me; I just can't comprehend why you kept it for this long. I was a B-" Ella stopped abruptly before the word she intended to say slipped out while a child was present and corrected her statement. "Bad friend, so why would you keep it?"

"Well, like I said, I thought you were right, and I prayed that I'd run into you again one day or you'd come back, but you never did. So I wore that necklace every day for years, hoping to give it back to you if our paths crossed. Then, it was too late; I figured it would be a great gift for my son since he embodies the emotions I had for you and then some. That being said, you can't have it now." She said, relieving the tension as Ella cracked a smile.

"Don't worry. I'm glad it found a nice home. With that said, I don't want to take up your entire day, but maybe we can get dinner tonight and rekindle what once was," Ella replied as Allison acknowledged the request.

"I would love that, but are you okay if Thomas comes along? I can't leave him alone, and we're between babysitters since the last one kind of ran away with my husband." She retorted, causing the smiles between all of them to fade. Having to think fast, Ella looked down at the little boy as he played with the jewelry pieces.

It hit her hard, knowing that they weren't in college anymore. They couldn't just go out and head to a club or a bar now that Allison had a kid. That was a reality she had to somehow accept. Everything seemed so perfect, and in a way, Ella saw it as a second chance, but it wasn't. The kid reminded her of that. The time she and Allison once shared together in the past was but a regretful memory now. They had adjusted to new walks of life; if anything, this was Ella's last chance to simply have a friend again.

"Absolutely. I can order some chicken strips wherever. Does he have a favourite place?" Ella asked as Allison turned to the boy, intently watching them.

"Did you hear that, Thomas? Where would you like to go for dinner with Mommy and her friend?" She asked as Thomas put a sarcastic finger to his lip.

It was rather adorable to watch him think as if seeing the wheels turning in his head he pondered the question. Then, inevitably, he gave his answer with such childlike excitement.

"I want to go to Super Pizza Fun Time." He blurted out while throwing his hands up in the air.

It was obvious that Ella had no idea what that was or what she should expect, but his answer seemed to brighten Allison's mood. Celebrating with her kid for a moment, Ella stood there awkwardly as she looked around and saw that other people were finally starting to arrive at the farmer's market. To which Ella looked back at Allison, who had returned her eyes to Ella. Again, with a reignited smile.