AN: I hope everyone is enjoying this story. Thank you for the amazing reviews. I hope you like this next installment.

Chapter 6

"What the hell was that about?" Rochana stood in front of the shop with her hand on her hip and a barely concealed snarl lay just below her annoyed expression.

"I just knew her from a long time ago," Henry said softly, turning to look over his shoulder as he watched Elizabeth disappear around the corner. Henry never expected to see Elizabeth. More than that, he never guessed that he would have such a strong reaction if he did see her again. Rationally, he knew his actions would cause her to hate him. He knew that even as he walked away that day. But to see the hatred in her eyes, when once there had been kindness, and even adoration. It was more than he could take.

Rochana threaded her fingers in his bringing Henry back to the present. "Well, you've definitely moved up. That chick's homely." Rochana arched an eyebrow at Henry as if daring him to challenge her.

Henry surveyed his girlfriend and realized that beauty had very little to do with physical looks. He'd always thought Rochana, with her dark hair and eyes, was very beautiful. Now, after hearing how she spoke about Elizabeth, someone she didn't even know, Rochana was the most unattractive person he could imagine. "It's time we're done Rochana," Henry said through gritted teeth. "You'll find your things in a box outside my door later today. I don't ever want to see you again." He pulled his hand away and walked down the street to his apartment.

Henry vaguely heard the insults that Rochana lobbed his way, but paid no attention to them. His thoughts were on Elizabeth.

Early October 1986 (2 weeks later)

Elizabeth leaned back in the moulded plastic chair and linked her fingers together, stretching her arms back behind her head. She stared across the study area on the library's third floor and sighed. Everyone else had their heads bent down in concentration, studying, or furiously scribbling notes. Introduction to Philosophy was getting the better of her. Running her fingers through her blonde tresses, she huffed. "Why can't philosophy be more like math? Math makes sense. Math has a solution, a correct answer," she muttered under her breath. With midterms coming up, Elizabeth realized that, as much as she didn't want to admit it, she was going to have to go to the learning center and get a tutor.

That afternoon, she walked into the student union and made her way past the restrooms, the mailroom, and the student government office. The student learning center was a glass walled office, with several cubicles set up where older students or area majors tutored students who were having difficulties. Elizabeth had been there a couple of times to interview to tutor lower level math classes, but typically the tutors were at least juniors or even grad students. They had told her to come back in a couple years.

She checked the schedule and added her name to the list before taking a seat. Fifteen minutes later a young man emerged from the back and Elizabeth immediately recognized him from her class. Seeing Elizabeth, he grinned. "That guy explained more in an hour than the professor has all semester. I totally get it now." He walked out with a bounce in his step and Elizabeth felt the tension in her muscles ease a bit. The tutor would help her and everything would be fine.

Elizabeth briefly closed her eyes while she waited, but sat up straighter when a shadow crossed the end of the room. One of the tutors was hunched over the sign in sheet, looking to see if he had someone waiting.

He made a mark on the paper and turned to face the chairs, occupied by three students. "Elizabeth?" he called, his eyes finally gazing over the people in front of him.

He didn't even get the first syllable of her name out and Elizabeth had risen and was headed toward the door. The pressure in her chest was great and she needed to escape. "Of course it would be him," she muttered under her breath.

Henry watched the recognition sweep over her and her immediate retreat. "Shit," he mumbled as the few other students looked concerned at her reaction. Dropping his handful of papers on the table, he followed her out the door.

"Elizabeth, wait," he said, as he caught up to her. "Look, you signed up for tutoring. I get that you don't want anything to do with me. Geoff works tomorrow. Let me make you an appointment with him. I don't want you to not seek help because of me."

Elizabeth looked up and met Henry's eyes. A combination of exhaustion and strong emotion swirled within her. She wanted to hate him. She had survived by hating him enough that she could succeed-to spite him. Now, he was looking at her with the same expression he had when he took her to the secret garden of violets. He wanted nothing more than to help, but he wasn't sure he was doing the right thing.

Despite her best efforts, Elizabeth's heart softened at the memory, and the feelings of anger dissipated into the hurt, confusion, and abandonment she'd felt at the time. Tears sprung to her eyes and she brushed them away quickly. Before she could stop herself, the question escaped her lips in nothing more than a whisper. "What did I do that drove you away?" She forced herself to hold his gaze. She suddenly needed to know. "Why am I so unworthy?"

Henry's heart broke when she asked the question. Why had he been so short sighted? Why hadn't he tried to make her understand? His shoulders sagged and he rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. Henry sighed and watched as she fell deeper into the pit of self loathing. "That's not it. That was never it," he said, his voice cracking. "I-I…" He looked around for someplace more private. He wasn't sure what he was going to say, or even wanted to say, but he knew he didn't want it to be in a busy hallway outside of the restrooms.

"Why don't we sit down?" Henry gestured to a couple of chairs around the corner. Not completely private, but at least it was more out of the way.

Elizabeth nodded and moved to sit down. She expected Henry to sit in the chair opposite a small side table. Instead, he took her jacket and backpack from her and tossed them there, and Henry knelt at Elizabeth's feet, much like he did that day in her room.

He immediately covered her hands with his own, but she pulled away, crossing her arms in front of her protectively. Henry felt that familiar stab of guilt and placed his hands on his thighs and stared at the floor trying to figure out how to explain his actions so she could see that she wasn't the cause.

"First, I'm sorry. It all came to me so suddenly and I didn't think through the ramifications of what would happen. I just knew it couldn't happen and I needed to leave. I needed to go." The creases in Elizabeth's forehead deepened as she tried to make sense of Henry's words.

"I was drawn to you when I very first saw you on the day you arrived at the boarding school. Then I talked to you and I saw myself in you. I saw the anguish, the devastation, the feeling that you didn't belong." Henry paused, choosing his next words carefully. "I just wanted you to know that someone cared-that you weren't alone."

A sharp sound grated across her vocal chords releasing what might have been a laugh if anything had been funny. Elizabeth eyed him. "And yet, you ditched me anyway."

"It was never my intention to fall in love with you." The words tumbled out before Henry could stop them and Elizabeth froze.

Her eyes narrowed and her lips formed a tight line. "You could've said so many things. Lying like that wasn't necessary." She tried to stand. She needed to leave. She'd figure philosophy out on her own. "I've got to go."

Henry held her arm to the chair. "Please. Just give me a minute to explain. I wouldn't lie. I swear."

Everything in Elizabeth's rational mind told her to push him back and walk away. But then she found herself sitting back down. "That makes no sense Henry."

"I know. I didn't plan it and I didn't even know it happened until that day I was sitting in your room." He looked up and tried to gauge her reaction. "It started the day you told me that your mom liked violets and from then on, all I could do was try to come up with a way to make you feel better."

Henry reached up to where her hand lay on the arm of the chair and he began tracing her fingers. "Then when you smiled that afternoon when you saw the garden, I wanted nothing more than to make you smile again. All summer I thought of you and how you were doing. Then we started the letters and I saw the real you."

"I woke up the day that it had snowed and I knew that everything had closed down. My only thought was that I wanted you to be able to get out if you needed to. Hell, Elizabeth, I didn't even know if you were there. Does that sound like rational thought?"

Henry leaned back a little, creating distance. "We had the best time that day. I was happier in that moment than I'd been since before Mom died. And then-" Henry buried his head in his hands.

Elizabeth watched all of this unfold. She'd been determined that she wasn't going to fall for his line of bullshit and that was cemented when he said he loved her. Now as his anguish was evident, she found herself questioning. Was he telling the truth? She watched him curiously to see what would happen, her stomach rolling in anticipation of what would come next.

"And then, I looked at you and I felt the connection so deeply and I wanted you. I wanted to show you how much I loved you. But, I couldn't. I had to put distance between us. I had to get away."

"I would've given you everything," Elizabeth whispered.

"I know," Henry said, solemnly. "And that's why I couldn't stay. You would've given me everything because you trusted me as a friend, not because you loved me. You were vulnerable and I didn't want to take advantage of the situation."

Elizabeth was reeling and she wasn't sure what she should believe. It was such a different scenario than what she'd crafted in her mind, but Henry seemed so sincere. He'd never lied before. The air seemed to get thin and she couldn't catch her breath. "I need to go," she said, as she pushed to standing. "I'll come back tomorrow for help on my philosophy," she whispered, as she grabbed her things from the chair nearby, and she disappeared around the corner leaving Henry to wonder exactly where they stood.