A knock on the door interrupted Elena's crying session and she frantically wiped the tears off her face as she stood up to greet her guest. "What are you doing here?" she asked Javier, cringing when her voice cracked.
"To get answers for why you broke up with me," he responded, crossing his arms.
She sighed. "Come in." Elena was surprised he hadn't confronted her sooner after she reluctantly ended their relationship three days earlier.
He followed her inside, taking note of the massive pile of tissues on her table. "The break-up came out of nowhere, and I'd just like to know why."
"I told you that I didn't want to interfere in your relationship with Helene. You two deserve to get to know one other without me getting in the way. I was an unwanted third wheel, and it was just easier to take myself out of the picture."
Javier scoffed. "Bullshit, Elena."
"Excuse me?" Elena glared at him, wishing she could work up the energy to get angry and actually fight with the man she loved.
"Ruby, Helene, and I just remembered the time loop." He dropped that bombshell like it was nothing, and Elena's mouth dropped open.
"Oh," she finally responded, at a loss for words. She squared her shoulders. "Then you know exactly why I ended things. It's better this way." Maybe if she said it enough times, Elena could convince herself of that.
"And that is where I call bullshit again. We love each other, Elena - we said those three little words to one another, and I'm saying it again. I love you, and I will fight for you. I love Helene more than I ever thought I could love anybody but my daughter is an adult. It's not anybody's fault that her mother's gone and you're not her. I have no doubt that the three of us can work through this together, as a family." Javier felt so much lighter now that he had put himself out there. He wanted to be with the woman he loved and to have a relationship with Helene. Yes, it wasn't going to be easy but these kinds of things never were.
"I'm doing this for you both, Javier. Helene should always be your number one priority." Damn it, Elena was going to cry again and she couldn't afford to be that vulnerable right now.
Unamused, he lifted an eyebrow. "Trying to be selfless, Elena?"
She nodded, knowing if she was said another word, she really was going to crack again. Elena cleared her throat before attempting to speak again. "Please go," she begged.
Javier tapped his foot and shook his head. "Not happening because we're hashing this out right now. You're not getting rid of me that easily," he joked.
Despite her own heartbreak, Elena chuckled. "You'll see this from my point of view eventually," she finally tried.
"I don't think I will. Elena, we're both miserable. This has been a really shitty three days, and Helene keeps calling me on my attitude. Only got worse once the island made us remember, and then I had to stop Ruby from confronting you - she's going to visit later, by the way," he informed her.
Elena finally let out a sob she had been holding in and didn't protest when Javier wrapped her up in his arms. He kissed the top of her head. "I love you," she murmured.
"I love you too. Again. Are you ready to give us another try?" a hopeful Javier pressed.
Elena reluctantly backed out of his arms. "Helene hates me, Javier."
"I promise that she does not hate you."
She didn't believe him, that much was obvious, but she sighed and fell into his embrace again anyway. "There's been a ticking clock spelling out our doom ever since Helene showed up. I thought it was only a matter of time until we ended things. And it's absolutely not her fault, and I would never blame her - or you - but that's just the way life works. We have to be realistic."
"This is just one obstacle of many that we will face over the course of our relationship, Elena. Neither one of us should run at the first real hurdle. I don't blame you for panicking, though."
Elena glanced up at Javier and smiled when he kissed her. "I'm sorry for being overdramatic."
"I'm sorry I didn't see how upset you were about this entire situation. This is partially on me." He smirked at her.
"Why are you smirking at me?"
"No reason. Time loops kinda suck, don't they? My favorite loop, though, was when you clearly stopped giving any fucks and showed up to dinner drunk off your ass. Might be partial to it because of the drunken love confession and it went kinda off the rails in general but I enjoyed that one anyway," Javier teased.
She flushed. 'I'm never going to live this down, am I?"
"Probably not."
Elena still needed to mend her relationship with Helene but she wasn't about to give up, especially now that all their cards were on the table. The island brought Javier and Elena together and introduced Helene to them for a reason, even if they weren't aware of why yet. The three of them were going to build a family together, come hell or high water.