Had this been anyone else, Melanie would have made a remark towards their rude gestures. No one just told her what to do on their time so rudely, but from the way Mrs. Walker looked at her, Melanie could see the false cheer in the older woman's gaze. It was weird seeing such familiar eyes have such coldness in them towards her. Melanie wasn't mistaken at all. She bit down a sigh and jerkingly nodded, watching as Mrs. Walker swept out of the door, leaving her perfumed scent behind.
Mrs. Walker knew about Melanie and Noah, and Melanie knew that when you were in the position of being guilty, you didn't get the right to be mad.
Melanie wanted to call Noah, but what good would that do, especially if she were mistaken. So, she didn't say anything and went to meet Mrs. Walker at the coffee shop she had spoken of. The air in the coffee shop was thick, nearly suffocating Melanie, but for everyone else, their breathing was fine as light-hearted chatter filled the room along with the aroma coffee and fresh pastries. Melanie and Mrs. Walker sat across from each other at a small quaint table tucked in the back of the coffee shop. Melanie nervously tapped her foot against the ground against her will as she tried to find the right words to say with hopes that she wouldn't have to say anything at all. On the walk here, Melanie's mind repeated one single word— deny. Like a melody, that single word played in her head; deny, deny, deny, and it wouldn't get out.
But as Melanie sat in front of Mrs. Walker, she found that she couldn't do that, found that she didn't want to do that, found that she was tired of lying about her relationship with Noah, and wondered when the lies would end. How long would she have to lie before the truth was brought into the light? How long would she have to pretend that there was nothing between Noah and herself? Nothing could remain a secret forever.
Mrs. Walker took a sip of her coffee before she sat it down and gracefully laced her hands together, looking Melanie straight in the eye.
"I'm just going to get straight to it. Please, stop seeing my son."
Melanie shakily placed her own cup of coffee down, wincing. She had always imagined this moment. When she realized she had feelings for Noah, she knew this would be inevitable, a moment that would happen no matter what. But no matter how many times Melanie imagined this moment, nothing compared to it actually happening. It felt like an arrow had been shot in her heart, washing her over with shame. Melanie's face flamed up so bad that even her dark skin could not hide it, and she could do nothing to wash away that shame as her heart felt guilty and heavy, and had been feeling this way since the moment she started everything with Noah.
"I'm sorry," Melanie said because it was the only thing she could say. She looked down, unable to look Mrs. Walker in the eye.
"I don't need your apologies," Mrs. Walker said, her voice breaking as she leaned forward and harshly whispered, "I need you to leave my son alone. You're his professor. You should know better."
Melanie bit her lip as she tried to keep control of her emotions. She knew what she had to do, knew this moment would come, and yet it didn't hurt any less. The next words Melanie said made her feel hollow.
"I'll leave him," Melanie promised. Her tongue felt heavy and thick, and her heart the same.
"Thank you, Professor Bryant. I hope that we don't see each other again and that you keep your promise," Mrs. Walker said, getting up on her feet before sweeping out of the coffee shop.
Melanie sat there alone in silence, stunned, trying to wrap her mind around what just happened. But the moment it sunk in, Mrs. Walker's words and the promise she had made to her, Melanie broke. She could not stop the tears falling from her eyes. Her heart hurt, and it wasn't because of the shame. It wasn't because Mrs. Walker had all but looked at her like she was a horrible person. It was because Melanie knew it was the end. It was because she knew she couldn't be with Noah anymore. Melanie bent her head down low enough for her forehead to press against the table as she sobbed.
For so long, she had searched for love, and for a while, it had almost seemed impossible until she met Noah. She had never felt love like this before, and never thought she would experience it with Noah, but she had. She felt it every time she was with him. Noah had her heart and more. And to know she would soon lose that broke her in a way she could have never imagined.
They were so close. That day at the cabin felt like a new beginning, and the promises Noah had given her, Melanie had almost believed it. The future he presented her, she cradled it as if it were her own dream. She had let herself be swept away into a dream that would never come true.
She felt humiliated, bamboozled by her own desires, and stupid. She should have never given in. She should have never tutored Noah. She should have never befriended him. She should have never fallen in love with him.
Melanie continued to cry until she was jostled out of her own misery when she felt the table move. When she looked up, she was surprised to see Mrs. Walker again, who was grabbing the pair of gloves she had forgotten on the table. Mrs. Walker stared at her, frozen as she looked at Melanie's red eyes before her lips pressed into a thin line, and she stormed away without a word. Melanie had never felt so small in her life before, and love had gotten her to this point.
CHAPTER
45
NOAH
N
OAH BROKE HIS PROMISE TO MELANIE AGAIN.
He wasn't late again on purpose, but with the team heading into the Frozen Four, Coach Benson had been extra hard on them as of late. Coach Benson wanted them all at their best, and though it was exhausting running drills and plays, Noah couldn't help but feel the same. He wanted their team to be at their best too. He wanted to win too. Noah wanted to take the trophy and place it on his father's desk, showing him that he was a great hockey player with or without him. So, Noah stayed, practicing harder with the rest of the team until hours passed by, and he was extremely late.
The worst thing was that this morning he had taken Melanie to the university in his truck since he had spent the night again. At first, she had told him that she wanted to drive separately to Weston, but with his desire to spend more time with her, even a forty-minute drive, he insisted on her driving with him to the school. She told him not to be late, and he assured her not to worry, but now he was hours late. What had he been thinking? Once Noah realized the time, he immediately left practice and raced across campus to Prince Hall, where Melanie's office was. When he got to her office, he shouldn't have been surprised to see a note left on her door with her office lights off.
I’m taking a taxi.
Noah frowned, though he knew he had no right to be angry. He just thought it was strange that she left without even shooting him a text to tell him that she had left. Clearly, she was pissed if all she left behind was a note.
Noah sighed, balling up the paper and then tossing it in a nearby trash can in passing as he left the building. He hopped in his truck, and instead of going to his dorm, made his way over to her place. If he wanted to avoid a fight, he would have to apologize for his tardiness. He was wrong, and he shouldn't have come late, especially after he badgered her into hitching a ride with him. Hopefully, she wouldn't be upset for too long so he could spend the rest of his night with her in peace and maybe get a nice bath too. His muscles ached everywhere, and what he needed now after a long hard day of practice was rest.
But when Noah made it to Melanie's apartment, the last thing he expected was for her to be this angry. When he stepped inside her apartment, immediately, he was greeted with a box filled with his things.
“What the fuck?” he said baffled because those were the only words he could find in his moment of confusion. This was something he expected from young girls his age; childish tantrums that would result in them being upset for thirty minutes or so, give or take before they gave in and showed that they really weren’t that angry to begin with. But Melanie wasn’t one of those little girls. She wasn’t childish, and she wouldn’t waste her time putting on a show like this if she didn’t actually plan on kicking him out.
“I told you not to be late,” Melanie said, her lips pressed together in a firm frown with her arms folded together. She stood in front of him in silk cream pajamas. The thin press of her lips and the angry glint in her brown eyes told Noah that Melanie was serious. Noah couldn’t believe this was happening. It felt like he had stepped into an alternative universe because there was no way that Melanie was kicking him out for something so little.
