It Had To Be You

Chapter 19: Dark Dungeon

Noella's POV

1st August. The day my mother was being murdered. 

It makes me so angry and sad that she hasn't got any justice till date. And what is more saddening than this is that I won't be able to visit her like every year. 

It was 5:30 in the morning and here I was, not being able to sleep at all and staring outside the window. The sky was dark, no stars or light but with just the lonely moon. I would be lying if I said I didn't think of committing suicide after my mother's death, as I had no one to hang on to or to support me. I felt like my whole world came crashing down. Even my boyfriend and the person, who I assumed to be my best friend, left me. Left me to rot in my own dark dungeon. I felt like the lonely moon up in the sky right now. 

If Violet was here with me, she would have said how dramatic I sounded right now. A small smile played on my lips, in between the tears that were making its way through my eyes, staining my cheeks and making my eyes blood red and puffed. 

A week after the incident, Violet was being hired in the cafe I worked in Virginia. I was not able to concentrate at work after the incident, so she helped me a lot at that time, by covering my shifts, whenever I was unable to attend work. We eventually became friends. Best friends, infact. 

She was the one who showed me that there is always a purpose to live. She taught me that no matter what life throws at you, no matter how many times you stumble and fall, no matter how many people leave you, you need to stay strong. We never know what the future has in store for us. There is always hope for the future. We should hold on to that. And that's what my mother has taught me too. Never lose hope. Those were her words whenever we, or rather she, went through hardships. She truly was a strong woman. My alarm went off, cuing me that it was time I stopped mourning and got ready for the day.

****

"Noella!" I heard my name being called as I was about to exit the class. It was our last class and we were done for the day. I turned around and saw Ivy, my classmate, was the one who called me. 

"Hey, Ivy. Where were you this whole week?" I asked her. She was a timid yet kind-hearted girl. We have the same classes together and that is how we ended up becoming good friends. 

"Oh, my mother was sick and I had to take care of her." She gave me a small smile. "Oh. How is she now?" I asked, concerned. Her parents were being divorced. So she lives with her mother now. "She's good now." She said and I nodded smiling. 

"Anyways, I wanted your notes and help in homework. You know we are having a test next week. So..." She hesitated a bit. "Sure. Let's go to the library then? We can study together for the test if you want?" I asked, grinning. She nodded and grinned back. I decided to shoot a quick text to Juliette and Karla about my whereabouts. 

I also texted Mrs. Peterson that I won't be able to make it to work today. She agreed to it and I was good to go.

*****

It was almost 7 pm. I stretched my arms and Ivy stifled a yawn. We looked at each other and let out a chuckle. 

"Should we wrap up for the day?" I asked her. 

"Yeah. Thank you so much for your help Noella." 

"No worries. And we got to study for the test, which trust me, I would have pushed away to the weekend and then I would've panicked! So thank you." I chuckled.

We got out in the campus garden and there were only a few students around who had their night classes. The sun was in its horizon, indicating that the sky was about to wrap itself in a dark blanket. Ivy and I exchanged our goodbyes outside the college gate and went our separate ways.