Forest Edwards is always running. Either literally, because of his dog, Fletch; running to escape his tiring work life; or, well, running away from the possibilities of love.
But when Natalie Dayholt, together with her dog, Bailey, waltzed into his...
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HER REPLY CAME a brief second later, but that brief pause felt like a whole agonising minute to him.
"He's my boyfriend, Forest." Natalie replied, a sweet smile plastered on her face as she drummed her fingers absentmindedly on the table. "You know, it's just been so long since I last met him. I wonder how he is doing over there."
Forest swallowed, and he could only stare blankly at the crumpled paper bag in her hands as she finished off the last bit of the croissant.
He wouldn't never admit it — especially not in front of her, but hearing these words hurt. They didn't just hurt. It was a different kind of pain altogether — heart wrenching, and he felt like the air had grown so thick it became difficult for him to breathe.
Then he choked out a reply. "Oh, I see."
Her words swam around in his mind, but they just wouldn't register. They couldn't register, even if he had wanted them to. Because a part of Forest refused to believe that Natalie had a boyfriend.
"Yeah."
But how could she not have a boyfriend should have been the question to ask himself. She was one of the most down-to-earth people he had met, always cheerful, always happy and sometimes a little too soft. Just enough for one to want to be able to protect her. Of course she'd already have someone who would want to spend the rest of his life with her.
Forest nodded blankly again in reply, his eyes now trailing to the bowl of creamy yellow hollandaise at the side. "He's... really lucky." He murmured under his breath, soft enough so Natalie couldn't hear him.
And though she didn't hear him properly, she could sense that something was off about him.
Natalie's green eyes had an equal mix of concern and confusion. "What's wrong?" She asked, leaning forward a little to look at him. "You sound and look —" she furrowed her eyebrows, thinking of the right word to describe his emotions.
"Weird." She finally said, after careful consideration. "You're not this quiet. Are you sure you're fine?"
Forest nodded, giving her a small smile. Shifting his eyes away from her gaze, he chuckled. "Don't worry about me, I'm good. So, what was it about Theodore that you said?"
Natalie looked at him doubtfully for a moment or two before nodding her head unsurely. Perhaps it would have helped his situation a little if Natalie didn't sound that happy thinking of Theodore.
"Well," she looked outside of the clear windows, smiling fondly as the cold breeze outside carried a few golden leaves from the maple tree along with it.
"Theodore's really, really great. You know, I actually haven't met him for really long — like for at least a couple of months. He goes all the way to the States to study, you know? He's got a scholarship there. He's a really smart boy."
