Chapter 16
As much as she felt she had to get up, today was one day when Stacy felt she really should have stayed in bed that morning. This was definitely something she wouldn't have regretted missing.
"Stacy," spoke the voice she definitely did not look forward to hearing. Everything had been going so well, but now her "dream come true" had turned into a nightmare. Or so she thought.
Slowly and grudgingly, Stacy turned to face her fears and stared down the man who she'd let single-handedly ruin her life.
"Yes, that's mine, and yes, I was looking for it," she affirmed. "Thank you," she breathed through her clenched teeth. Stacy snatched her purse from those monstrous hands and attempted to step into the elevator before the doors shut, but something held her back. That something happened to be Scott's hand gently gripping her upper arm and pulling her back to him.
"Can I just please speak with you for a second?" he spoke after an awkward silence filled with countless emotions. He pleaded her with his eyes, and when Stacy looked into them she spotted a presence she thought had vanished. Scott wasn't about to hurt her.
"Fine, but let go of my arm," she said with clear hostility.
"Look, you have every reason to be mad at me, and I accept that. I know what I did was wrong but I want you to let me make it up to you. I'll be better, Stacy. I promise."
"What kind of idiot do you take me for, Scott? You think I don't remember how many times you've said that to me in the past? You want me to come back to the life I used to have, the life I hated? Staying up all night waiting and all I get for that is you coming home drunk and looking for someone to just throw around and hurt? I can't life through that again. I want to believe you, but it's the same thing every time. I was stupid to trust that you were telling the truth the first… I don't even know how many times! It won't happen, not again, no. I've had about enough of you and your bullshit and I deserve better. I stuck around hoping you'd stop drinking, but it didn't turn out that way, now did it?" Stacy yelled, almost in tears. It felt good to get that off her chest, though, and to the one person that seriously needed to hear it.
"I'm in rehab. I'm trying really hard to make it better," Scott replied, triggering the immediate shock and surprise that overwhelmed the blonde Diva.
"You're in… You're not going to… Rehab. You're in rehab?" Stacy blinked vigorously in attempt to chase away the tears and allow this information to sink in.
"Yeah. I admitted myself when you ended up in the hospital," he muttered quietly, looking away from her astonished gaze.
"But I've been in the hospital before and you didn't - -"
"But that time you didn't come back," he interrupted, speaking softly. "Something was wrong, so I made a decision. I decided to do something about it. I've caused you incredible pain, and I'm aware of it; I know it can't be erased or forgotten but I want a second chance. I want to prove to you that I'm really the man you fell in love with, the one you laid under the stars with, the one who took you to those romantic dinners, and the one who made a fool of himself for you because you wanted him to karaoke."
"Oh, please," Stacy chuckled, "you had, like, five too many beers."
At the last comment, both of them smiled, remembering the night when neither of them could sleep because of the unstoppable laughter that brought tears to their eyes.
"Look, um," Stacy hesitated, "as good as that sounds, I really don't know what to say. I can't just come back to you because you said something that sounds promising but might not end that way. I've found something while you've been gone… That little thing called happiness. I appreciate what you're doing, but, now if you'll excuse me,I have someone upstairs waiting for me."
And with that said she walked away, taking the stairs rather than waiting in a grueling silence for the elevator.
Author's Note: Sorry, it's a bit of a shorter chapter, but… no cliffhanger! Lol. I hope you enjoyed it, please review!