Every once in a while, something would remind Noelle of Noah, and she'd take a moment and think of what could have been.
She could have stayed and went to a nearby university and lived the life everyone expected of her.
She could have married her high school boyfriend and had three kids and
She could have been stuck in a perfect life with the perfect man.
That was the problem with Noah, wasn't it? He was too perfect.
But she didn't want perfect. She wanted real.
And Ronnie. Ronnie was real.
First love stays with you. A little section of your heart will always remember the person who you once thought was forever. The person who was yours. The person who, with you, created 'us' or 'we'. Because that was a part of your life happened, unchangeable and done. In the past. And the past matters. Without the past there would be no present or future.
You may hold on to your past. But, don't get stuck in it. Don't feel bad about what didn't happen and embrace what did. Be glad that you are where you are in this brilliant world and be in the present. All you have to do to live is show up. So, with that logic, show up. Just be there. For everyone and everything. Be that person who is always around to help, to volunteer their time, to comfort a friend. Be that person who is always there, and trust me, you will live.
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About five years later, Noelle and Ronnie got married. They had three beautiful daughters after moving into a two-story house in Cardiff. Noelle grew to be a bright, happy woman and very much enjoyed her occupation as an English professor at Cardiff University. Ronnie was a professor at the school as well accept he taught Physics.
No one heard much from Noah. All that Noelle knew was that he was still stuck in the small town, alone. Maybe he was just one of those people that had no luck when it came to love. Maybe Noelle was his soulmate, but he wasn't her's. Maybe it didn't go his way because of the timing of things.
Timing is almost as important as chemistry. For, if the timing was right, if Noelle had met Noah when they were older, they might have been together for longer. But, that's the thing with these situations; no one knows what could have been. We only know what happened. We only know what's over, what's done.
And now, my dear friends, this story is over. It's done. Thank you for joining me on this adventure. For, it has been quite the adventure.
The End.
Goodbye
~ Bay
