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Chapter 11
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2024-10-29 19:42:56Cole
I couldn't control my frustration, so I walked off. Is that really how Ophelia saw me? Does she see me and a man-shore? And if she does, why does that bother me? I've spent years building up my barriers. I wouldn't fall for someone who would only use me. Girls want me for two things, money and power. I've never met someone who genuinely liked me for who I am and not what I have. But, that statement might not be true anymore.
I walk over to my locker and see Mason and Jacob there. Jacob gives me a look, and I know that he can sense my irritation. Mason looks down the hall and, with no doubt sees Ophelia walking away. I know that he's going to have questions, and I don't know that I want to answer them.
"Spill it. You look pissed off, and Ophelia looks guilty." Jacob says.
I'm shocked to hear him ask. The boy very rarely talks, and he isn't the type to want to talk about feelings or anything of the sort. Mason busts out laughing, and I smile at thi
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Ophelia I walk into the counseling office and see a mid-aged woman with beautiful chestnut hair. She smiles at me and walks toward me. She puts her hand out to shake my hand. I get the feeling that she is going to be someone that I can talk to. "You must be Ophelia. I'm Mrs. Adams, and I am your counselor." She smiles brightly. "It's nice to meet you. Ms. Henson told me that you would be working with me on my plans." I smile as she leads me to her office. We both take our seats after she closes the door. I look around her office and see that she has a neat and organized office. I notice that, unlike my last counselor's office, there are no motivational posters all over the wall. There are none of those little nicknacks that have words of wisdom on them. "So I spoke with Ms. Henson and she let me know that your last school didn't seem to have a very good counseling program." She says giving me a week smile. "Yeah, they were more foc
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Cole I look up when I hear the door open, and in walks Ophelia. It amazes me how the girl can light up a room even when she isn't trying. She's dressed the way she would any day of the week at school, but she looks absolutely beautiful. She looks our way and smiles, heading toward us. Then for some reason, she looks around the place, and her smile drops. I follow the direction she is looking, and there sits her sister. Katherine has a murderous look on her face, and Ophelia pales a little. The one thing that she is afraid of happening did happen. Katherine has this need to be on top and to take everything away from her sister. As far as I can tell, Ophelia has done nothing to warrant any of these actions. "Hey, guys. I'm not late, am I" She asks smiling. Pearce pulls her to sit next to him and gives me a look that can only be described as a smirk. The boy thinks he's being slick, and that I don't know what he is up to. He wants her for himself, but th
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Ophelia I have never in my life felt more self-conscience than I do at this moment. The events of this evening have been the opposite of what Mason said. He told me that this would be a friendly gathering of the guys and me going to a movie. It has turned into a date with Cole. He has managed to pay for my food and ticket, and he has held my hand since we left the pizza place. The turd even managed to talk me into giving him my phone number. Throughout the movie, he has kept an iron grip on my hand. He laced our fingers together, and my inner girl couldn't help but notice how perfect our hands fit together. His hand is warm, and I can feel him running his thumb along with my finger. I feel my heartbeat rising every time I start to think about our joined hands. I notice that when he doesn't think that I am paying any attention to him, he is staring at me. He has a smile or a smirk on his face, and it's beautiful. The boy could not bathe for days and never take
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Ophelia I have been lying on this bed for the last ten hours thinking. I have a steady stream of tears running down my face, but I'm in control of myself. As much as I love Maggie, I now know that there is no one here that I can trust enough to stay. Maggie has never given me a reason to not trust her, but with Cole being her brother I don’t know how far it will go before she ultimately picks her family over me. If Cole is bent on ruining me or making my life unbearable then at some point it is going to start affecting our friendship. I want to believe that she would choose me over him, but they are family and they seem to be pretty close. I make my way over to the table where my bag is and grab my wallet so that I can call in some food and have it delivered to me. I haven't eaten since the couple of bites that I took at lunch. I order a pizza and sit back and think about how my eighteenth year of life has been more messed up than I could have ever imagined. On my ei
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Ophelia I know that I can't hide in this hotel forever and it's making me sick to my son teach to think about it. Saturday evenings are meant to be fun and relaxing, and I'm here worrying about what I'm going to say to my family. I can't keep putting this off, so I grab my keys and head out the door. I need to get the answers to my questions so that I can make the best choices on what to do. The drive over is calm, and my nerves have settled a little. I park in the driveway and see that all of the cars are there. I take a deep breath and head to the door. I ring the bell and wait for someone to come. My father opens the door, and his eyes widen at the sight of me. "Ophelia, where have you been? People have been calling and showing up since last night looking for you." His words shock me. "I need to talk with you, mom, and Katherine. If you could please get them into the living room." He nods and lets me in the door. I sit down in an armchair a
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OpheliaI turn my head and see him standing there, grey eyes burning holes into mine. Cole’s dark brown hair pushed back away from his eyes and looking like he had just rolled out of bed. The smile on his face was a genuine one that went all the way to his eyes and held happiness. Part of me wanted to know what had put that happiness in his eyes. Part of me wanted to put that look there. Even though years had passed and I had loved my husband deeply, I still had some feelings for Cole. And that thought scared me. How could I have feelings for someone who had hurt me so deeply? What person in their right mind even entertained the thoughts of liking the person who shattered their heart? But then again, I think about how old we were when everything happened. Can I really hold a grown man who is doing well for himself, accountable for the actions he did as a stupid teenage boy? The answer is yes and no. What Cole did was horrible and should have never happened to anyone. But the Cole sta
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Ophelia“I never thought that in all my life I would see you again.” I look up to see a smiling Dominic. That proud smirk sitting on his face proves that he may have changed, but the same old Dom was still in there. Standing up and hugging him was the first instinct that I had, so I followed it. Part of me felt angry at myself for doing it, but most of me was happy to see an old friend. No matter what had happened in the past, it didn’t change the fact that somewhere deep inside, I still considered him a friend.“Never thought I would be here.” I say..“I’m so happy to see you. Knowing that I’m incredibly late with it, I’m sorry. As your friend, I should have told you up front about it all. Hell, I never should have taken part in anything so stupid. I’ve learned my lesson and would love to make all this up to you.” Dom says.“It’s over and done with. Don’t let this mistake stay with you forever. Were you right about what you did? Of course not. Do I forgive you for being a stupid kid
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ColeBusiness trips have been the bane of my existence since I started working with the company. Dad had always told me they were a great way to get some alone time. I found they sucked the life out of me. Running from meeting to meeting, trying to make things work, was something that I hate. Henson Tech has taken over my life for the last five years.Since I found Ophelia and made my peace with our relationship, I have focused solely on work. Gaining peace about Ophelia really just means that I want her to be happy. I still love her more than anything in this world and I would drop everything to make her happy. When her husband died, it took all of my willpower to not see her. I wanted to console her and tell her that everything would be alright. I wanted her and her son to feel safe and loved.I knew that if I did, I would cause her more stress. Instead of giving in to my desires, I ask Maggie daily how she was doing. I have removed any problem that could have come her way. I never
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Ophelia The time flew by while getting everything ready for the move. Ethan was over the moon, knowing that he was going to have his Papa in the house and that his Grandma Bess was coming with us. I put the house up for sale with all the furnishings left in it for the sale. We packed away all our things and hired movers to get them to Frankford. We have grown closer each day because Bess has been a lifesaver. Bess got out of her lease and sold all the things she didn’t want to take with her. Bess has been talking about how excited she is to meet Dad and to see the town that made such an impact on my life. I always tell her the same thing, you’ll be surprised. “Mommy, can I take some art stuff in the car with me?” Ethan asks as we load up the car. “I already set a bag of things in the seat for you.” I smile at him. “Yay!” I hear Ethan yell as he jumps up and down. “That child is always wanting to do something creative. He
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Ophelia Monday morning came all too soon, and I felt my nerves getting the best of me. The weekend had gone quickly, with Ethan and me playing at the park and painting. Ethan loves to teach me how to paint. I’m not the greatest at it, and he loves to tell me when I do something wrong. I have been out of practice since high school and it shows. I left him with Grandma Bess this morning. He adores her, and she feels the same about her. They like to spend their time doing many things together, and I think the child loves her as if she were his grandmother. Bess is nowhere near old at 52. But to Ethan, she is the right age to be his grandmother. Bess has always lived alone and has never been married. She said that there has never been a man that is good enough. I have often wondered if she and Dad would be interested in one another. Both of them claim to have never found someone who lights their fire. Maybe next time Dad’s in town, I should invite her over to meet him. I walk into th
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OpheliaThe sound of the doorbell brings a chorus of squeals from the stairs, and I know Ethan has heard it. The child gets more excited to see Alex and Emily than he ever does me. I can’t help but laugh at the tiny body flying through the house, racing toward the door. Ethan knows to not open the door until I get there, but that doesn’t mean that the kid won’t stand by the door, dancing around impatiently, waiting for me. If I could have a quarter of the kids’ energy, then I would be in great shape. And getting more work complete than I thought possible.“Okay, okay, calm down there, big guy. I will let them in.” I say, watching as my child is wildly jumping around.I no sooner get the door open than Ethan runs and jumps into Alex’s arms, and I hear them both laughing together. Alex has been a positive force in Ethan’s life, and I do not know where we would be without my friends. Chris wanted them to be the Godparents for Ethan, and I made sure that wish was a reality. “I’m thinkin
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Ophelia The saying goes that some people are in your life for only a reason or a season. The question for me has always been, is it only the bad people or is it anyone that can disappear from your life? Does that mean that those that leave are only there for a season, and those that stay are there for a reason? I had been living the last four years of my life in pure happiness. I married a man that loved me and we had a beautiful son together. The problem is that he was only in my life for a season. I lost Christopher when our son turned a year old. The car accident happened just two days after his birthday. A drunk driver took him away, and they left me a shell of a person with a small child to raise alone. If it wasn’t for Emily and Alexander, I don’t know that I would have made it through. They helped me pick up the pieces of my life and move forward. Chris would have wanted me to live my life regardless of whether he was here. This thought alone helped me through many nights o
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Ophelia Once the door closes, and Cole is gone, I turn to look at the people who mean the most to me in this world. I am hoping that they are not angry at me for lying to them for four years. What I see makes me almost cry. I see love on their faces. Not a single look of anger, hurt, or even hate is there. "So, does this mean we should start calling you Ophelia?" Emily asks with a smile on her face. "Yes. I am going to change it all back. Now that my family can't get to me and I am finally free from my past, I want to be me again. Are you guys upset at all?" I silently pray that there is nothing that is upsetting them. "Are you kidding? We are just glad that you finally opened up to us. We are
