CHAPTER 8

"Felicity!" Felicity's dad approaches closer and Felicity wishes that she could wake up from this nightmare.

"I am so sorry." Felicity looks apologetic at Oliver and her friends, who looks at her and the new arrivals with confusion, and walks angrily toward her father and Ray.

"What are you doing here?" and gives Ray an enraged look. "You!"

Felicity's dad ignores her question and turns to Oliver and points at him accusingly.

"Dad! It was my decision to come here!" Felicity can't believe her dad. What was he thinking bringing Ray here?

"Oliver was there for me while this coward left your daughter at the altar and went to quench his thirst in some bar!" Felicity says sarcastically.

"Just listen to him." her father says.

"Really dad? You seriously going to take Ray's side over mine? I am the one who was left at the altar! Me!" She screams the last word to add emphasis in the hopes that her father will finally see her. She closes her eyes and tries to calm herself down, 'don't cry, don't cry.'

"I know I made the biggest mistake of my life. Forgive me." Ray steps closer to Felicity.

"Why? Because you humiliated me? Or is it because you couldn't look me in the eye and commit your life to me?"

"Felicity this was my speech. I just got cold feet." Ray hands Felicity a piece of paper.

"Okay so now you're ready to say your vows? Save your breath!" Felicity has never been this angry before. The guy has the audacity to come to their honeymoon after he dumped her in front of everyone they know.

"We are meant for one another. All the signs, all our plans, nothing has changed. You have every right to be mad at me, I was a coward." Ray says meekly and his eye falls on her ring finger.

"You haven't taken the ring off. That must mean something." He says hopeful. "Or did you move on in less than a week?"

"You have embarrassed yourself and Felicity enough!" Oliver just had about enough of Ray and her father and steps in.

"This isn't the time or the place" Oliver says knowing their friends are a few feet away looking at the heartbreaking display.

"What kind of coward are you!? You come with a woman whose heart is broken and go on honeymoon with her?" Ray turns to Oliver and looks as if he is about to jump him.

"You are one who broke her heart!" Oliver says not willing to back down.

"With your history it seems I should be the one to protect Felicity from YOU!" Ray says smugly as if he just gave Oliver the winning blow.

"That's it! Come home now!" Felicity's dad commands.

"Whatever has happened, Felicity, if you can forgive me, then I can forgive you." As soon as the words leave Ray's mouth Felicity's hand connects with his face and she runs off.

Oliver looks at Ray in disgust and does what he has wanted to do since the engagement party; he punches Ray right on the nose.

"Felicity! Felicity! Wait!" and runs after her.

Felicity turns to the one person who has always been her voice of reason: "Please Oliver I don't expect anything from you."

"This week, you and me, we…" Oliver breaths heavily and wants more than anything to take Felicity in his arms and make all of this go away.

"I know it didn't mean anything Oliver. You are on your way again anyway. This was never going to be more than a few days with an old friend you felt sorry for, who got ditched at the altar." Felicity says sadly.

"You are wrong, and you know it. It did mean something. It has always Felicity! Always!"

"What do you want Oliver?"

"I was never good enough for you!" He says with tears in his eyes.

"You are completely right about that! I warned you to stay away from her." Felicity's dad reaches them.

"What?" Felicity asks dumbfounded.

"We told him to stay away from you. Your mom and I decided that we were not going to just stand by and see how this good for nothing destroys your life. He isn't good for you and he has never been." Felicity's dad says with superiority.

Felicity looks at her father speechless.

'So Oliver would never have left? Is that what this means? Can it be? Why am I even surprised?

Once again my father is the one to come between us. It has always been my parent's ego that pushes a wedge between her and Oliver. How can this be my flesh? How can he hate what I love so much?'

Felicity looks at Oliver with hopeful eyes. 'Can it be that he didn't leave because he didn't want me but to protect me?'

Oliver cannot tear his gaze from Felicity. He wants to stay and fight for her, tell her that he never wanted to leave her. That it was the most difficult thing he ever did. He wants to hold her and tell her this will be the last time she hurts this much. But he cannot. He cannot promise her anything, because even after all these years it still feels like he is that insecure boy who had nothing to offer the prettiest girl in the world - nothing but trouble.

"Listen to your dad Felicity." Oliver says dejectedly, clenches his fist to keep himself from losing control and walks away, again.

"Come let's go home!"

"You had no right to do that! You had no right! You cannot control my life, and you have no say over who is part of it!" Felicity walks away leaving her father on the beach.


The next day Sylvan says farewell to all the guests and greets each couple as they leave the resort.

"Mr and Mrs Richards! I have never seen a love like yours! You are a beacon of hope to all of us!" He gives the elderly couple a group hug and turns to watch them leave.

"Margooooo!" Sylvan sings while opening his arms to Margo.

Margo smiles and walks into his embrace. "Thank you!" Margo says. This man did more for their marriage than she ever can put into words.

"Sylvia!"

"Ben!"

The two men embrace and slap each other on the back.

"Thanks my man! We will never forget you my friend!"

Sylvan bows humbly and turns to Felicity standing alone with the unspoken question in her eyes.

"Ms Felicity, he took the last flight out."

"Thank you for everything Sylvan." Felicity says trying to smile and gives Sylvan a brief hug.

Felicity walks past her dad and Ray holding the car door open for her and follows the couples to board the shuttle taking them to the airport.

She looks and Ben and Margo and smiles at the way Ben can't stop touching his wife. He is holding her so tight that you would swear she will disappear. Margo doesn't seem to mind one bit.

And then there is Mr. and Mrs. Richards. They are the definition of true love. There is no way that it can get better than this. It must feel so amazing to be enough for someone. To be their world. To be their forever.

'Will I ever have my happy ending? Is my forever after destined to be like this? Alone?'

Felicity looks out of the window and cannot help but see Oliver's face. His face when he just woke up, his face when he was being mischievous and planned their sightseeing trip, his face when he was concerned over Mrs. Richards's health, his face when he held her face between his hands and kissed her, his face when he stood up for her with her father and Ray, his face when he left her, once more.

Oliver…


"I will let you know as soon as I finalize your accommodation, and I also emailed you your ticket this morning. Did you receive it?"

"Yeah, thanks." Oliver talks to his agent via Skype.

"You won't regret this you know. You were made for this. So keep me posted to how it is going yeah?"

"Of course."

"Chat soon."

"Cheers." Oliver says and signs off.

He looks out through his window and doesn't notice the trees, or the beautiful sky. All he can think about is Felicity and what she might be doing.

'It is best that I left. How many times can someone hear you are no good and not believe it? What do I have to offer her?'


Oliver stands in the kitchen with his mother and Walter. He has been home for two days now and one thing he knows beyond a doubt is that Walter is crazy about his mother. It makes his decision to leave so much easier. He hates leaving his mother alone.

"You have to be honest. What do you think?" Moira takes one of her latest concoctions and pops it into Oliver's mouth.

"Mmm very different." Oliver swallows without chewing. He misses being his mother's guinea pig with her new baking recipes.

Walter cannot stop smiling at Moira, Oliver looks at them awkwardly and clears his throat, not sure if he should leave or stay.

"I am going to start working on the bird cage."

"Let me help you." Oliver says.

"Will meet you outside."

He might be known for the guy without a plan but this is one thing he is going to see through before he leaves.

Oliver and Walter start rebuilding the foundation that has been torn and damaged through years of neglect. Oliver can't help but think that Felicity would have loved be part of rebuilding what meant so much to both of them.


For the next couple of days Oliver spends his days helping Walter to rebuild the bird cage. With each passing hour he feels more determined to see it restored.

He has such good memories of Felicity in this bird cage. He remembers the first time she stepped into the cage.

She is so animated. She looks at every detail with fascination. She is so used to the finer things in life and yet can't manage to stay away from a stinky old bird cage and a boy who has nothing but his adventurous streak.

Sometimes they play in there for hours, pretending to be whoever and whatever they want to be. This is more than just a birdcage. It is their escape, a secret place, a fantasy world.

He remembers so well Felicity's laughter, her smile. For those moments she was happy, with him.

And then it was all ruined.

Her father and mother storms into the yard and finds them playing in the birdcage. He looks at her parents and smile because they finally came to see their magical birdcage, but then Oliver looks at Mr Smoak's face and knows that they are not here to watch them play. While Felicity keeps going on about their adventure trip into a fantasy world Felicity's father steps into the cage and yanks Felicity out.

Oliver grabs Felicity's hand, knowing he isn't strong enough to compete against her father. He holds on with everything in him and as her fingers starts slipping; he looks at her and his heart breaks with every tear streaming down her face. 'No! No! Oliver! Oliver!' She keeps screaming over and over again.

He has felt helpless twice in his life and this was one of those times.

Walter assists Moira with the tray filled with drinks and snacks. They both bend over the table at the same time and accidently bump their heads: "Sorry, come sit." Walter tells Oliver's mom shyly.

Oliver looks at his mom and Walter and smiles. His mother will be just fine.


Meanwhile Felicity has bought back her bookshop and has been spending most of her time preparing for the launch of her long awaited dream!

This is the first time she can really smile since leaving the island. There is still so much cleaning and packing to be done but it is so satisfying! 'I should never have given it up. This is my second chance, some dreams do come true.'

Felicity is determined to give this her all. She bends to pick up a couple of books and sees a story book she hasn't seen in a long time. She smiles and takes a seat on one of the chairs and reads the first page.

* 'There was once a boy named Milo who didn't know what to do with himself-not just sometimes but always.'

Felicity smiles as she remembers reading this story to Oliver.

She sits crossed legged on the pier and Oliver lays sprawled on the pier with his head in her lap listening to the story about an adventurous Milo. He gets so excited about Milo and keeps saying 'I want to be just like him! Brave and strong!'

Maybe that is exactly what he became. Maybe he is living his dream. To be on one adventure after another.

She was just hoping that he would take her with him. Wasn't that the plan?


"So what is your plan son?"

"Mom you know I am the man without a plan." Oliver says to his mother and winks at her.

"Please look after my mom and thank you for everything." Oliver tells Walter and shakes his hand.

"You should come and visit."

"I would love that. I love you so much my beautiful boy." Her eyes start to water as her bottom lip trembles, desperately trying to control her feelings.

"Mom…" Oliver hugs his mom and just hates what he is doing to her. It seems that he is always the one to make the women in his life cry.

"My beautiful boy." Moira hugs Oliver back as tight as her arms can.

Walter walks over to Moira and hugs her, trying to comfort her as she waves goodbye to Oliver.

Oliver gets in the cab and takes one more look at his mother before he turns back and tells himself that he is making the right decision.

* Excerpt from the book The Phantom Tollbooth by Diana Wynne Jones