Page 66 of Finding My Forever

“This was perfect, April.” His smile was sad. I knew he was hurting, too, which made this all the worse. Neither of us would be in pain if he just had a little faith.

“It was.” I stepped back until I hit the wall. I need the support to keep me from crumbling.

“Bye, Sophia.” Liam and Eli waved while the doors slid shut.

The second we began descending Sophia wrapped her arms around me, holding me up.

“I know that it doesn’t seem like it now, but things will work out.”

Did she not hear Liam dismissing me? It was over. My soulmate didn’t want me. She didn’t understand what this meant. If we didn’t end up in love in the next three weeks, I’d break the spell on the necklace. I’d be the one to take it away from every other girl in my family.

Oh, gosh. I would do exactly what Elise had almost done. The one thing I mocked her for. How had this happened to me?

I bit my lip and shook my head.

“April, I promise. A guy can’t look at you the way Liam does without being in love with the girl. He’s probably thinking he’s doing the right thing for you.” She dropped my hand as we got out of the elevator and walked to our room.

I fell onto my bed and she sat next to me, rubbing my back and reassuring me in dozens of ways that things would work out as more tears escaped. I didn’t bother holding back my sobs.

She finally fell quiet when I rolled to face the wall, and stared ahead, out of tears but still in pain.

“I’m going to get us food.”

I didn’t say anything, but a few seconds later the door closed.

Alone. I was going to end up all alone. This must have been exactly what Elise felt when Dallin left her. He came back though. Liam wouldn’t. He wasn’t a short drive away. He couldn’t think about it for a few days then appear at my house. This was the end.

The thought to call my sister came to mind, but I couldn’t do it.

Elise had Dallin now. They lived in the same city when they met. Their biggest struggle had been trusting each other. Liam and I faced an entire continent.

There wasn’t anything Elise or Beth or Grandma could tell me that Sophia hadn’t already said. I knew she was trying to make me feel better, but right now I couldn’t see a light. There was no lesson to be learned or better opportunity to come along. He was my soulmate.

I would probably never see him again, even if I came here next year. The school was big and the city was bigger. It’s not like I would go to his house expecting us to start right where we left off.

Sooner than I expected, Sophia was back, bringing with her an intoxicating scent of greasy food, causing me to sit up.

Her eyes looked sad but I appreciated her effort to smile. “One gluten-free cheeseburger and chocolate peanut butter cup shake.” She handed me one bag and took the other to her bed and sat down.

“Can I say one more thing, then the topic of boys is off-limits?” she asked.

I nodded while sucking in on the milkshake.

“Remember the good times. Don’t dwell on the ending, okay? Every time you’re sad, think about all we did here.”

Was that even possible? All of my memories of the city were tied to him. How could I think of a single day here without ultimately thinking of Liam, and the fact that he was gone?

How could I let go of the pain of having him in my life for a blink, only to lose him?

It was my worst nightmare, which sounded dramatic, but this wasn’t just some holiday fling. He was my soulmate, and he walked away.

I let down my family. Skylar. She was supposed to be next, and I ruined her opportunity for her to find her true love.

How could I face anyone?

I had to. It was my only choice. I couldn’t let this failure define me. I would have to find a way to heal and move on.

“Okay.” My voice was barely a whisper. “I’ll try.”