Chapter Thirty-Two

Chapter Thirty-Two

When Ian landed in Chicago he immediately took a taxi. The bad thing was that Kyle and Skylar lived in the downtown area, all the way on the other side of Chicago. He wouldn't get there as quickly as he wanted to. So he used that time to reminisce.

It was dark already and it was really cold, the strong wind didn't help at all. He wasn't in the mood to tell the taxi driver to turn on the heat. Instead he just rested his head back and closed his eyes.

"You have to be there for her," Christina had said before he left. "Say sorry. Make her realize that you love her so much."

He'd looked at her with kind eyes. "You're really saying that to me?"

"You and I both know that this just isn't working out," she replied. "You're in love with someone else. We made something beautiful, Ian. I love Emily to death, but she needs to grow up. We can't force things to happen. She's a smart little girl that learns from mistakes. And you need to learn from yours as well."

"I don't know-"

"Your biggest flaw is that you will always put others' happiness in front of yours. You love Emily, you're a good father. You tried your best to give her the family she wanted. It didn't work out. Now you have to do what makes you happy."

"I don't think I deserve her," he said with a solemn look. "She could do so much better. Be with someone that can dedicate his all to her. I'm always going to have other responsibilities-"

"But you will always love her, you always do your best to see that she is happy too," Christina explained. "Now go to Chicago and get her back.  Happy birthday, by the way."

And so he did. Not that going to see her needed much convincing. God only knew how much he had missed her. His beautiful, broken woman. His heart broke at the mere thought of how much she was suffering at the moment. If only he could be there to show her that he loved her so much and what had happened to her was just another bump in the road.

They had created another life together. Just the thought was overwhelming. But it was devastating to find out that that had been ripped away from them. When he had found out that Christina was pregnant, even though she'd just been a hook up, he'd been happy. Shocked and stressed, but happy nonetheless. He knew that having a child with Skylar would be equally as amazing. But that wasn't happening.

According to Kyle, she really blamed herself. He knew that she wasn't at fault. Things happened it and sucked, but she really wasn't the one to blame. She was already dealing with so many emotions to add that to the mix.

All Skylar wanted to do was curl up in her bed and just sleep. But because of what Kyle had said earlier, that was not happening anymore. She could not stay in the apartment if Ian was coming over. Nope. Not happening. How could she face him when she had killed their child? She didn't want to see his disappointment. Or maybe he just wouldn't care. Maybe he was just coming out of pity to tell her that what had happened was a good thing. No ties between them now.

So she made her decision, one that she should have made way earlier in the day.

She got up from bed and went to her closet to look for something to change into. She put on the first things that popped out to her: a pair of her gray leggings that she used to workout, a navy blue windbreaker, and snow boots. She grabbed her phone and headed out.

Kyle, Grace, and Heather were in the living room watching some reality show about bachelors. They all looked up at her when they heard her come in.

"Oh, you're up," Kyle said.

"Yup."

His eyes traveled to the change in clothing. "Where are you going?" he asked, standing up.

"To my parents' house," she replied in a monotone voice.

That's when it seemed to click inside of his head. "No, you're not. You're staying here. I just got off the phone with Ian, he's on a taxi right now. He really wants to see you."

She sighed exasperatedly. "Yeah, well maybe I don't want to see him. Have you thought about that?"

That was when Grace decided to stand up as well and approach her. "Honey, I know you're really sad right now, but you have to see him."

"Why?" Skylar demanded, tears threatening to spill out.

"You weren't the only one who lose a child," Grace pointed out. "He was a part of that too. He's probably devastated right now."

She shook her head viciously. "I don't care. I don't want to see him!"

She started to make her way around them but Kyle wrapped his arms around her. "You'll have to face him sooner or later. You know that."

"No, I don't," she said. "I don't have to. What happened is in the past. Tell him to go back to California. I don't need him!"

Now, she managed to pull herself free from Kyle. "Don't stop me," she pleaded. "I need to go. My Uber is almost here anyway."

She made her way to the door.

"Sky, don't," Kyle supplicated.

"Please," Grace pleaded.

"Stay," Heather added.

But she opened the door and walked out.

Ian was almost at their building. He was already in the downtown area, surrounded by the pretty skyscrapers and the snow that was falling heavier and faster. And the closer he got, the faster his heart beat. He'd be with her soon enough, wrap his arms around her, and, if she let him, kiss her senseless.

His cellphone started to ring, the caller ID said it was Kyle. That worried him a little. What was happening with Skylar now?

"Dude, where are you?" Kyle demanded. He sounded frantic.

"A minute or two away," he said. "What's wrong?"

"She's leaving," Kyle explained. "She just walked out and is heading out to catch an Uber or some s.hit like that."

"Why?" he asked, but he already knew the answer. Yeah, it did break his heart a little that she didn't want to see him.

"Doesn't wanna see you, dude," Kyle explained.

"Of course," Ian said bitterly. "Look, I'm almost there." He hung up.

Ian looked at the driver and asked, "Could you maybe go a little faster. It's an emergency."

"There's a speed limit," the driver said sharply. "We're two blocks away, what are you complaining about?"

Ian sighed. In fact, they ended up slowing down because they'd hit a traffic jam. So close yet so far. What the hell?

"F.uck this," Ian said. He took out money and handed it to him. "I'll be getting off here."

Ian, in his rush to get the airport as soon as possible had not even packed anything, so he didn't have to worry about luggage. He stepped out of the car and made a run for it. The cold gusts of air nipped at his skin, and the rapid falling snow wasn't helping either. But her ran as fast as his legs could carry him. Cars weren't going anywhere, and he could hear sirens, maybe there was an accident. But that wasn't going to stop him.

And then there it was. Kyle and Skylar's apartment building. He almost laughed with joy, but he wasn't done yet. He could barely make out faces in the snow that was falling but there she was. Standing in front of the building, craning her neck to see better, her face looked impatient and sad at the same time. The harsh winds made her hair fly in every direction, and she hugged herself to keep warm. She wasn't even wearing a jacket.

"Skylar!" he called out as he ran towards her.

She looked in his direction and froze at the sight of him, and maybe the frigid temperatures as well, but mostly him. Well, seemed like there was no avoiding him at the moment.

And then he was right in front of her, looking at her with his green eyes that she loved so much. Wow. She hated the way her body responded to his presence. They were over, so why was she still crazy about him?

"You don't have to be here," she said. "You can leave."

Ouch. That wasn't the welcome he wanted from her.

"I'm not going anywhere," he said.

"Fine. I am." She started tapping at her phone. "My Uber driver is almost here."

"Your driver is not coming. There's a huge traffic jam, and some sort of accident happened." He stared at her, his fingers twitching at his sides. His lips craved the taste of hers.

"Fine, I'll walk then," she said stubbornly.

"Skylar, it's twenty below zero. It's snowing a lot. You are not dressed appropriately for this weather, you'll freeze."

"Better than talking to you," she said bitterly. Okay, that had been uncalled for, she knew that. But she started walking either way.

Ian wasn't having it though. "Skylar, I will put you over my shoulder if I have to," he stated. "Can we just talk like adults? Inside, please."

Skylar knew she didn't have many options at this point. It was either go back inside or walk in the middle of a snowstorm while she froze to death.

The elevator ride up to her floor was as awkward as ever. She stood by the corner as Ian watched her with curiosity, and of course, or so thought, pity. She didn't need his pity at the moment. She just wanted him to leave. She wanted to be left alone with her sorrows. Hers. Not his.

Finally, they reached her floor and she just walked out as fast as she could. Ian trailed behind her, but he didn't say anything as he watched her walk. They would speak, but he would let her have her moment right now.

"There you are," Grace said, a look of relief crossing her features.

Skylar ignored them. She walked into her bedroom and slammed the door. There was no way of getting her out of there any time soon. She highly doubted they would knock down the door.

"Hey, what's going on?" Kyle asked Ian.

Ian's eyes were fixed on the door that she was behind. "She doesn't want to talk to me," he explained.

Grace patted his shoulder. "She's going through a tough time, Ian," she said. "But she needs you. No matter how much she says she doesn't, she does."

"Doesn't seem like it," he said.

"She's not coming out of there if all of us are here," Heather said. "Maybe we should go get some coffee or something. Ian can stay here and try to talk to her."

"Sounds like a good idea," Kyle agreed.

The three of them put on jackets and wished him good look. When they were gone, he sighed and shrugged off his coat. Then he considered his options. He could leave Skylar alone, or he could beg her to open the door. He hated that she seemed so against the idea of speaking to him. Why couldn't things be simple? All he wanted was to have her in his arms. Was that too much to ask for?

He walked over to her door and knocked.

No answer.

"Skylar, please open the door," he begged. "The rest aren't here. It's just us."

Again, no answer.

Skylar couldn't hold back the tears anymore. His voice was so beautiful and comforting. But she couldn't allow him to see her like that. She was a disappointment. So she settled for sitting on the floor and resting her head on the door.

"Fine, don't talk," Ian said, he sounded resigned. "I can do that for both of us." He also sat down on the floor. It would be a while after all.

"Please leave," she pleaded.

It broke his heart to hear her voice so...sad...and broken. "I am so sorry that I couldn't be here for you, baby." His voice cracked. "I'm sorry that I was so blind. You don't need to go through this alone. I'm here for you."

Hearing his words, Skylar shook her head. "You don't need to worry about me."

"Yes, I do," he said. "Skylar, please let me inside. We need to talk face to face. I need to see you."

She sighed and wiped away her tears. "I don't want you to be here, Ian. I'm a piece of s.hit person. Our baby died, how the hell am I supposed to be okay? It's my fault. I can't even do that right."

"It's not your fault," Ian said.

"Yes, it is!" she disagreed. "And now everyone looks at me with pity, and I hate that! I just want to deal with this on my own."

By now tears were slowly falling down Ian's cheeks. Yeah. He cried too. "It's not your fault, cara mia."

She was taken aback by that term of endearment. She didn't realize just how much she had missed him calling her that.

She heard him clear his throat and let out a big sigh. "It really isn't. Miscarriages happen, and it sucks, I know. It hurts me, too, you know. I would have loved to have a child with you. But it just wasn't meant to be. You're so young, my love. You still have time."

She stayed quiet at that. What was she supposed to say? That having his kid would have made it easier to be away from him because she would at least still have a part of him?

"Just go back to Emily and Christina," she finally said.

"Emily told me something, you know," he said. "She realized that Christina and I just don't work. I realized that too. I was so caught up with trying to be the perfect father, giving Emily the perfect family, that I didn't realize that I'm nothing without you. I wanted you to be with someone else so that whoever that may be could give you all his attention, all devotion to you. I thought that I would never be good enough for you because I will always have other priorities as well. But I love you, Skylar. I can't keep going day by day pretending that I'm okay without you, because I'm not. I'm really not. I love you and I want to be with you. So here I am, asking you to give this stupid man one more chance."

Not the words she had been expecting. Not one bit. She'd been expecting for him to call her a disappointment of a woman, a disgrace, and unworthy to be an actual mother. But he hadn't said any of that. She felt stupid, why would she expect him to say those things? Ian wasn't like that. He would never say those things to her.

Ian stood up and rested his forehead against the door. "Please say something," he said. Her silence was killing him.

It was then Skylar also stood up and rested her fingertips on the doorknob. She bit her lip as she contemplated her next movie. There were several routes that this moment could lead to. All she had to do was make her choice.

With a deep breath she opened the door...

OMG, I know. Cliffhanger. I'm such a bitch, guys! Please don't kill me. But there you go. Yes, I did lose all my previous work, but I got a new computer and I rewrote everything. I'm back in business, ya'll!

HERE IS THE DEAL, GUYS. I WILL BE MAKING A Q&A FOR THE FINALE OF THE SWEET ESCAPE. SO I WANT YOU TO GIVE ME YOUR QUESTIONS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW AND DROP THEM DOWN IN MY INBOX. WHATEVER YOU WANT. I WILL BE MAKING A VIDEO REPLYING TO THOSE QUESTIONS. SO, YES, YOU WILL SEE MY FACE AND GET TO KNOW ME A LITTLE BIT. YOU CAN ASK ME ANYTHING ABOUT TSE, ME, WRITING, WATTPAD, WHATEVER YOU WANT.

PEACE X