Seeing Cory at the front row seat just makes me realize how much I missed him. It also makes me feel guilty I didn't realize he was missing till Noah brought it to my notice. Don't blame me, I've been too busy trying to get my brain in proper check after that kiss.
Just thinking about it again has my stomach doing somersaults.
"What are you waiting for?" Noah steps in beside me, completely oblivious to my inner battles not to yell 'YOU KISSED ME, YOU FUCKING IDIOT' at his face. "Go to him. I'll wait right here."
Gripping both my shoulders, he nudges me forward and occupies a seat at the rear end of the hall, watching as the movie plays on the screen.
Shoving all hormonal thoughts to the back of my head, I begin to walk down the stairs where the front row seats are arranged and as I near where Cory is seated, his full profile comes in view. Ruffled hair, puffy eyes, stubbled chin, a half empty bottle of beer in his hand— what the hell has he been up to?
"Stop staring at me and have a sit, would you?" He says without looking up. "I didn't think you'd find me here. I'm pretty predictable, huh?"
"I just know you so well." The seat compresses with my weight when I settle down beside him. "We have company."
I bob my head to the back seat and his gaze follows the direction. Seeing Noah sitting there brings a frown to his face. "What is he doing here?"
"He was worried."
Cory places a hand to his chest in mock gesture. "I'm so touched."
"You look like a mess." An unpleasant smell brushes past my nose, and I have to remind myself that he's been sitting here for hours and probably never got a bath.
"Thank you for your observation."
"Cut the crap, Cory," I almost snap. "What's wrong?"
"Everything, Okay? Everything is wrong," he replies in the same tone. In the dimly lit room, I see his lips quaver, and his eyes water as he squeezes them shut. "I'm leaving the country immediately after summer vacation."
"Military school?"
He nods weakly.
"It takes only few years for the training, right? How many years are you going to be gone for?"
His shoulders slump and he wouldn't meet my eyes. It makes my heart ache.
"Is it going to be a year?"
"Allie..."
"Two years?"
"Listen to me..."
"It shouldn't be more than four years, right?"
"You don't understand!" The slight raise in his voice startles me a bit. But then his features softens again, making him seem so weak, so vulnerable. "I'm never coming back."
The words aren't fully processed into my head. I heard him, but my brain refuses to acknowledge what he's saying. So I just stare at Cory in confusion as his face twists into some kind of expression I had never seen on his face.
A tear escapes his left eye, and I see myself reaching out to catch it before it falls down his chin. We don't say anything. We simply stare into each other's eyes, neither of us wanting to move our gazes anywhere else until I pull him to me and hug him tightly.
I had never seen a guy cry, never prepared myself on what to do if I ever witness one crying. Hell, I don't even know how to console a crying person. This right here, is me acting on instinct. His arms bands around my waist, all but fused there, as his shoulders vibrate from sobs that escapes his mouth.
"I hate him," I hear him sniffle. "I fucking hate him. He doesn't care what I want." His dad, that is.
"You'll come back. I know it," I soothe, even if I don't believe myself. "You'll be back for the sake of your mom. And my sake."
He lets me hold him tight as he cries himself into my shirt, allowing himself to be vulnerable.
After his crying episode, he pulls away from me, sniffling and rubbing at his eyes. His eyes meet mine again as he blushes in embarrassment.
"I-I'm sorry. I don't usually cry like this in front of people. And that means I trust you enough not to tell anyone about this." He gives me a look and I laugh.
"I won't tell anyone about this. I promise." I don't think I've ever seen him this upset, and the thought of him leaving slashes through me like a blade. Emotions rise up to fill my throat.
"I really hope you find happiness wherever you go. I'll kill you if you forget me." He chuckles this time.
"I'd keep that in mind. But for now, I could really use a hug."
"Uh... no. You could really use a shower," I place a finger on his chest to stop him from enveloping me in his arms. "You reek. Let's go back to the hotel."
"Not yet. I need to finish this movie first."
"Sure. I'll be waiting at the back." With one last smile, I adjust my shirt and climb up the stairs.
Noah is still sitting where I left him when I reach up the stairs. There's now a couple too in the hall, who don't seem to be paying attention to the movie as they're too busy devouring each other's faces. I look away awkwardly.
"You done smooshing?" I roll my eyes at Noah and take a seat beside him.
"We weren't smooshing."
"My eyes don't deceive. Dude was all over you," he frowns. "For some reason, I didn't like it."
"You never like anything."
"Wrong. I like one thing." Noah looks at me, a foreign emotion clouding his eyes. Something I'm not familiar with. "Want to hear something interesting?"
My ears perk up. "What?"
"See that movie playing on the screen?" I divert my gaze to the screen. "It's a love story. We both have the same names of the two main leads."
"You're joking."
"It's called 'The Notebook'. The movie is almost ending. Want to hear the full story?"
Even still in awe, I nod, not removing my eyes from the screen.
"At a modern day nursing home, an elderly man, Duke, reads a romantic story from his notebook to a fellow elderly patient," he begins, his voice strong and steady. "In 1940, South Carolina, poor lumber-mill worker Noah Calhoun sees seventeen year old Allison Hamilton at a carnival, pursues her and they have a summer romance."
"Noah takes Allie to an abandoned house that he intends to buy for them. They try to have sex for the first time, but are interrupted by Noah's friend Fin with the news that Allie's parents have the police looking for her. When Allie and Noah return to her parents' mansion, Allie's mother calls Noah trash and not right for her. They ban her from seeing him."
I tear my eyes from the screen to look over at him. "What happens next?"
"Noah walks out and Allie chases after him; an argument ensues; leading the two to breakup."
"Well, that escalated quickly," I say. "And then what?"
"The next morning, Allie's mother announces that the family is returning home to Charleston. Allie attempts to contact Noah, But is unable to find him, so she asks Fin to tell Noah that she loves him. When Noah gets the message, he rushes to Allie's home, only to find the house gated up and empty."
"Noah writes to Allie everyday for a year but her mother intercepts the letters so that they never reach Allie. Noah enlists with Fin to fight in World War II, where Fin is killed in battle. Allie meets a young lawyer who comes from old southern money and after a few years of being together, the two become engaged, to the delight of Allie's parents. When Noah returns from the war, his father has sold their home so that Noah can buy the abandoned house."
"While visiting Charleston, Noah witnesses Allie and her fiancé kissing at a restaurant. He still hopes that if he refurbishes the house, Allie would come back to him."
"Did she?" I interrupt.
"Let me finish. While Allie is being fitted for her wedding dress, Allie is startled and faints when she sees in the newspaper that Noah has completed the house to the specifications she made years before. After Allie asks permission from her fiancé to take a little trip before the wedding, Allie returns to Seabrook to find Noah living in the restored house. The two rekindle their relationship and have sex."
I gasp. "She cheated!"
"Chill out. She confesses to her fiancé and eventually returns her relationship with Noah. In the present narrative, it is revealed that the elderly patient who the story is being told to, is dementia stricken Allie, Duke is actually her husband Noah. He had been told by Allie during the early stages of her illness to re-read their journals to help her recall their past. She briefly remembers Noah but soon forgets, her ensuing panic forces medical personnel to sedate her."
"Noah suffers a heart attack too and is sent to the hospital, while Allie is sent to a dementia ward in the same hospital. Noah visits Allie's room at midnight, causing her to remember him again. He proceeds to remind her of her illness and reassures her that they can do anything with the love they share. They kiss, hold hands, and fall asleep together. In the morning, a nurse discovers that they have died in their sleep, with their hands still clasped together."
I feel a soft warm hand cupping my cheek and wiping away the tears I didn't even know were falling down my face. My sight is blurred but I can still see Noah's ridiculously handsome face staring at me.
"That ended on a sad note." I recoil from his touch and wipe the tears off myself.
"It's just a movie."
"I know," still sniffling, I open my mouth to say something but shut it my eyes lands on his scar by the side of his face. I can't help but feel curious anytime I see it. He said it was caused by a fight, did his brother do that? What did Miss Renee mean by what she said about his brother in her office that day?
"That scar," I begin. "Did your brother do that to you?"
Noah's face hardens. "What the fuck do you mean by that?"
"Miss Renee's office, the other day, after you and Cory fought. She said something about it being too much for your mom to handle. You also told me that scar was caused by a fight. Did he do that?"
"Now listen here, you foolish woman," his voice turns icily cold and a chill runs down my spine. Maybe I shouldn't have asked. "What you heard Renee say is none of your fucking business. You have no right to ask about my family that way. Stick your nose somewhere else."
It would be a lie if I say his words didn't hurt, because it does. I swallow a hot lump that forms in my throat. "Is it bad that I care?"
There's a quiet, guarded look on his face as he stares at me that makes my stomach drop. I watch as he runs both hands over his face and plunges deep into his hair. "If you ever tell anyone about this, Allie I swear to God, I'll really start avoiding you."
"I can't tell anyone? Not even Simone?" His eyes shoot daggers at me. "Fine, Fine. I won't tell."
He gives me one last glare before looking somewhere else. "My brother is in jail for second degree murder."
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