What I Wish Happened

Chapter Twenty-Three

I step into and the small coffee shop, and walk to the counter, I request mine and Leo's drink and as I am stood wait for them I feel two warm hands on my arms, I spin to see Leo stood smiling happily and our two drinks get placed on the counter in front of me. We both pick up our drinks and make our way to a small slightly isolated table in the corner. I sit down on the chair as Leo sits on the section of the booth seating. "So, Nova, how have you been?" I smile and place down my mug. "I've been okay, you?"

He smiles as he looks at me and shakes his slightly as he starts to laugh to himself, "I hate small talk." I smile and nod slowly whilst I look over to him and smile slightly, I run my hand through my hair and look up to him, "So you're engaged?" He sigh and nods. Letting a small smile seep through at the thought his fiancée. "I am... her name is Emily. She's wonderful, I think you'd really like her. I nod slightly and look up to him and as his smile disappears slightly. "I want you to be there at the wedding, it's in three weeks, if you're interested." I look down at my hand and then back up at Leo through my eyelashes. "Why would you ask me to do to that?" He sighs and takes my hand in his. "Because you're important to me and I want all the important people in my life at my wedding." I sigh and shake my head slightly.

"I've seen the photo's of you and her... in magazines, and on the TV and stuff. You look happy..." he smiles slightly and looks down at his hands as he pulls them away from me. "I was happy with you. I wanted it to be you. But you didn't want that." I shake my head and take a large deep breath.

"I wanted that more than I wanted to breath. I want you more than anything. But you wanted me to leave with you there and then. I couldn't give you that. But when you left and I realised I had lost you again. I wanted to go with you. I ran after you and you were gone. I looked for you. I was going to chase you around the world but the next time I saw you, your were with her. On a date, kissing her... holding her, like you held me..."

His eyes widen and leans back in his chair to taken my mini monologue "Did you expect me to wait forever?" He shakes his head as he lets a single tear roll down his cheek. At the sight of Leo's tear I feel a few of mine bubble over, "No but I thought I was your forever like you are mine." I swipe them away from under my eye.

He gasps and shakes his head becoming visibly angered. "Forever? You didn't want to leave with me!" I take a deep breath because I know that I am about to blow.

"You gave me thirty seconds to decide if I wanted to run away and leave everything in my life! When you left, I realised that losing you was worse than losing anything, I ran after you I was going to say yes!" My voice has risen, I don't want to be having this conversation right now I just shake my head.

"I wanted you it to be you hermosa." His words hurt. His old nick name reminds me of a time I was happy, a time I want to go back to. A time I can't go back to. "Then how are you with Emma?" I need to change the subject, I need to be talking about something other than the past, anything but the past. "Emily!" I shake my head and feel another single tear roll down my cheek. I swipe the tear away as quickly as I can. "I know Leo, but saying her name hurts me." He nods slightly and look down towards my hands as I pick at my nails."I needed to move on because missing you hurt me." I simply huff in response. "Missing you hurts me now! Two years later and I still want to be your Mrs Black." His eyes widen, as if he doesn't believe what I am saying. We sit in silence for a moment before he opens his mouth and some very hard considered words come out. "Nova... you are the best thing that has ever happened to me, after everything with my parents I though that I was destined to be in prison by the time I was twenty, but here I am twenty-two and about to get married. You saved me from my self-destruction." I sigh

"I regret everything about us Leo." As the words leave my lips I know that my words are a lie I just want to hurt him the same way he has hurt me. over and over again today. "I have no regrets when it comes to you but hurting you makes me want to scream off the roof tops. I am so sorry, but you need to move on..." every atom in my body begins to scream at the sound of his words. "Those words there. They hurt Leo, more than anything in this world." I raise to my feet and turn to leave the building. I bump into a gorgeous woman, she skin, she has a skin tight plain beige dress. She has her brown hair curled loosely which cascades down her shoulders. She has an extravagantly large diamond placed on her engagement finger. I look at her face and immediately recognise her. "Emily?" She gives off a large white toothy smile as her bright blue eyes burrow into mine. "NOVA!" She jumps in her brown six inch heels and pulls me in for a bone crushing hug.

"Nova. Please have a drink with us. I'd love to get to know you." I fake a smile and sit back in my chair as she slips into the seat beside Leo. He wraps his arm around her and pulls him in tightly to her. "So Nova. You're even more beautiful in person." She giggles to herself slightly. Her voice is almost sickeningly sweet as she smiles and spins her engagement ring around her finger. I smile "Thank you... so how did you two meet?" She smiles looks to Leo. "I was his assistant actually about two and half years ago, he went travelling with Kaci and came back and things just started happening between us, then here we are." She smiles at her fiancée and he smiles back at her. She's too nice and polite to ever dislike.

I lean forward and grab a napkin from the holder in the centre of the table, letting my necklace fall from inside my top. Emily leans forward and picks up the ring laced through the chain. "My goodness that's beautiful." I smile and quickly tuck the necklace back out of sight. I smile and nod as I do so. "I got it in Paris about two years ago." She smiles and nods as she lace her fingers with Leo's. "I going to get a water." She raises to her feet and walks to the counter. "You kept it?" I look up at Leo through my eyelashes as I see his cheeks go bright red. "I could never give away a gift like that." I unclip the necklace and place it his his hand. He shakes his head and attempts to give it back to me I simply shake my head back and pull away before I raise to my feet and leave the coffee shop as fair as I can get.

I let one last strand of hair fall from the barrel, backcomb the curl and pin it to behind my head. I swipe on dark brown lipstick as a finishing touch and stand in front of the full length mirror slightly regretting my decision to wear this outfit. I'm wearing a burgundy satin wrap dress with a large slit to my upper thigh I wear black caged front heels and extravagant accessories. Alexis and River knock on my bed room door. "Ready?" I nod and pick up my bag and car-keys that still have an oversized black pompom attached as a key ring with a pair of flat shoes just in case.

I take a last deep breath as I walk out the door, to my ex-boyfriends wedding.