"I don't get it" Annie sighed sitting down at Noah's next to Irene.
"What?" Belle asked looking up at the younger girl.
"How you can say you love someone and then hurt them" Irene smiled sadly and put her arm around her "it's just life Annie"
"Are you talking about Mattie and Ric?" Martha cottoned on to what Annie was talking about when she noticed her glancing over at Ric who was sat in the corner.
"Yeah, I went over to Tony's last night and Mattie was so upset. I thought he loved her so why he do that to her?"
"He does love her. But sometimes you hurt the people you love. It makes you realise how much they actually mean to you. Ric didn't want to upset Mattie; he was just being a normal teenage boy but ended up losing not only his girlfriend but his best friend. No one's perfect and Ric made a mistake but he regrets it. He really does." Sally explained softly wishing Ric and Matilda would sort things out as they were one couple that were right together. She knew there was only one girl she'd want to see Ric with and that was Mattie.
"Do you think they'll ever get back together?" Annie looked around and the group of woman nodded confidently.
"Eventually. They've been through a lot together and really do love each other. Once Ric gains Mattie's trust back and they start rebuilding their friendship again they'll get back together." Belle explained.
Mattie closed her eyes from where she had been stood listening to her friends. She wanted so much to be with Ric again but she couldn't trust him anymore and wasn't sure if she would ever be able to again. She knew she'd hurt him the past but never as bad as what he'd done. Mattie wiped away a few tears and headed down to the beach.
"Young Matilda, are you ok?" Alf turned around noticing the teary girl. She shook her head and he approached her slowly.
"He still love you"
"I know that's why it hurts so much" Mattie admitted.
"You know he'd never do anything to hurt you again"
"You don't that though, he used to tell me all the time he'd never hurt me and that we'd be together forever and look where we are now" Mattie looked at him hoping he'd understand and drop the conversation.
"You know if you really loved him you'd learn to trust him again and give him another chance"
"Why are you acting as if I'm the one in the wrong? The reason why I can't trust him is because I love him!" Mattie shouted running her hands through her hair.
"If you think about it you'd realise you are just too scared. Ric doesn't deserve this and neither do you" Mattie shook her head and walked away not knowing what to do. In a way she was right she was scared. She didn't want to be hurt or left alone again.
"Mattie, wait! Please" Mattie stopped as she heard Ric and waited for him to catch her up. She couldn't help but smile at him still not used to the fact that the boy she loved and had trusted more than anyone else in the world had hurt her so badly. She looked down at the floor before he could notice the smile.
"What do you want?" she asked roughly looking up at him again. She noticed the look of guilt and sadness in his eyes. She knew everyone was right about him and deep down she knew what Alf had said was true as well; she just had to accept it.
"Ric maybe we could start again and build things up slowly. You mean so much to me and I want to learn to trust you again. I need you." Ric leant forward and wiped away her tears as Mattie smiled again glad to have got it out in the open.
"Thank you" Ric whispered. Alf smiled from where he was stood watching the two of them. He felt guilty for being so harsh but someone had to be. He couldn't watch the two of them fall apart.
