Read: Old Connections

Chapter 8 - A Talk With Kate Riechel

Mark's Phone
Text Conversation
April 11th, 2020
09:32 pm

Mark: Kate are you awake?
Mark: I just want to apologize for how much of a dick I was to Jake.
Kate: Go away Mark.
Mark: Please Kate... listen to me. I'm sorry for being unappreciative of what you've done for me and Nicole. I know you had good intentions.
Kate: Sorry my ass! Do you even know how much trouble you've given us? The problem is, you literally have no balls to man up and face her again.
Kate: Like do you even know how much you've made Nicole cry when I told her that you weren't coming back?

Flashback: April 10th, 2020
Kate's POV

"I'm sorry Nic, my brother tried to convince him. He just doesn't want to see you again." I said.
"But why Kate? Doesn't he know how much I miss him?" She cried.
I hugged her to comfort her.
"I'm so sorry Nicole. I really thought he'd come back for you. Just know that as your friend, I'll always be here to support you. I promise I'll help you move on. You got that? Now cheer up!" I said.
"Thanks for coming back into my life Kate. I miss you so much" She said.
"I miss you too Nic" I said while still hugging her.

Present
Kate: No wonder you don't have any friends Mark. No wonder you're such a loser. We never should have helped you!
Mark: Yeah?! Well who gave you the right to intervene with our lives to begin with?~
Mark: I thought I'd be able to finally move on and find peace with myself. I thought Nicole would be able to live free from her dark, depressing past!
Mark: But you ruined everything between us! Nicole's going to look everywhere for me and she won't stop until she finds me. This is all your fault Kate! It was your idea to get Nicole's memories back after all!
Kate: I never knew how much of an asshole you were Mark and this proves it...
Kate: All we wanted to do was help you guys get back together because we knew you had a second chance and Nicole wanted to know everything about her past.
Kate: But no matter what we do, you'll always shut us out.
Mark: Kate...
Kate: Haven't you ever thought that if Nicole didn't recover her memories, she'd be out there looking for another guy without ever knowing that you existed in her life?
Kate: It's because she remembers who you are that you still have a second chance with her!
Kate: But if you really don't want us to help you recover her memories then fine, we'll stop. 
Kate: You're on your own now...
Mark: Kate wait!
Mark: I take back everything I said!
Mark: Please Kate listen to me...
Mark: ....

You: (What have I done... I've only made things worse... I can't let them down knowing that they've been helping me out. I have to keep on apologizing. Please Kate, forgive me...)

Mark's Phone
Text Conversation
April 12th, 2020
07:28 am

Mark: Kate I'm sorry for everything I said last night please forgive me.
Kate: Mark... 😣
Kate: Please don't feel sorry.
Kate: I shouldn't have gotten mad at you to begin with. You just wanted to apologize and I didn't listen. It's just... I don't know man. I tend to get pissed off easily and I'm really sorry if I lost it.
Kate: Look, I know how hard it must have been for you when you thought you almost lost Nicole...
Kate: I just want to let you know that we were just doing our job as Nicole's former friends. And I hope you understand that all along, we've had nothing but great intentions for her.
Mark: I understand Kate and I thank you for your effort.
Mark: To be honest, I really do miss Nicole. And even though I want to see her so badly, I don't want the past to haunt us both. I want to wait until both of us are ready to see each other again.
Kate: Okay Mark I get it.
Kate: Don't rush yourself into a relationship if you feel like you're not ready yet because that's how they go downhill.
Mark: Yeah. I'm just tired of things. 
Kate: Seriously dude, if you really want to be commited in one, you gotta be ready to face ups and downs but if you decide to stay single for a while, that's fine too.
Mark: Thanks for your advice Kate.
Mark: Can you do me a favor? Please take care of Nicole for me. 
Mark: Reassure her that even though I'm gone, she still has good friends to lean on. I don't want her to feel sad and alone while I'm not there.
Kate: Leave it to me man!
Kate: You know, being in a relationship is amazin but at the same time it's also hard. One day, it's all fun and laughter and then the next day, it's all tears and heartbreaks.
Kate: I mean like... I always get into fights with my bf because he literally has no idea what's going on around him and I'm always pissed af over the littlest of things. 😂
Mark: Yeah you do get pissed off easily 😂
Kate: Shut up Mark! 😂
Kate: Bruh Jake told me that you actually visited Nicole at the hospital. Did you even get to see her when she was conscious?
Mark: Actually, this was what happened the second time I saw her again..

Flashback: March 9th, 2020

"Are you sure you really don't want to see her again?" Emily asked.
"I don't want her to remember all the pain I've caused her." I said.
"Was she a close friend?" She wondered.
"More than that." I said.
"Relationship issues?" She asked.
"Well... Yeah..." You looked down in embarrassment.
"Whatever you're going through, I hope it'll all work out in the end..." She said.
"I remember back in the day when I had relationship issues as well..." She told me.
"When was that?" I asked.
"I think this was way back in 2007? When AIM was still a thing. I used to chat there all the time with this guy... Well long story short, we made it work out before graduating college." She smiled.
"That's good Emily." I smiled back.
"Just please don't tell Nicole I came here. I just wanted to see if she would be in stable condition before being discharged." I said.
"Well if you say so..." She said.
"Thanks for everything Emily. Thank you for saving my bestfriend's life." I smiled.
"I'm just doing my job here Mark. I'm glad she survived as well." She smiled back.

Present
Mark: I visited her at the hospital one last time just to see if Nic was okay. I gave Emily my thanks.
Mark: I never get to see Nicole ever again after that day...
Kate: Woah... Really? 😕
Kate: Wow, and you were so close to seeing her again too.
Mark: Well, I'm slowly getting over it Kate.
Kate: If you ever need help with anything Mark, always feel free to text us.
Kate: Once you see Nicole again, you should totally text us first. We'll be rooting for you back here. 😉
Mark: For sure Kate. 😁
Mark: I should still apologize to Jake though. I blocked him last night. I hope he's forgiven me, even if I was a bit harsh.
Kate: Yo I already got you covered don't even worry about it. 😌
Kate: I'll see you later man. Best of luck to you wherever you are and you better treat her right when you see her again or else. 😌
Mark: I will Kate I will 😊
Mark: See you later.