Chapter 4

Lou's POV

It had been 8 weeks since my accident had happened. I had heard no news from William Traynor. No calls, nothing. I thought by this time, I would forget about him. I wouldn't let my heart ache over him. But nooooooooo, my heart was hopeful that we would meet someday; only God knew when.

Flashback

When Treena came to be with me in New York, I could not hold it back. I cried and cried. It felt good to cry and let it all out. It was good to have her and I was comfortable around her. I told her what had happened to me and with Patrick and with Will. She just couldn't believe my dumb luck, to meet someone that rich, handsome, and so caring.

Treena would tease me at times about how I would marry a rich man some day and live a fairytale life. I knew she was doing that only so that I would not focus on the sad things of our lives. The stress and the pressure of our financial problems.

"We are going to be fine, Lou. Don't worry about it." She smiled at me.

"Well, I hope we will. I don't know where to find work when we get back." I looked at her raising my eyebrow.

"You need to think about your healing first. Everything will come together and we will figure something out. I can find a temporary job and postpone Uni for another six months until you are up on your feet and can help mom and dad". She said smiling. I still wasn't convinced.

"What about all these medical bills that I have to take care of once I get discharged?" I asked her. "What about flying home?". I started hyperventilating thinking about all these medical bills.

"Stop Lou! We can't afford getting overwhelmed by all these things. We got to put our heads together to figure these things out" She rubbed her forehead. Suddenly I remembered that Will had left an envelope for me along with a note. I did not dare to open that envelope. I asked Treena to open it.

"Oh, he is got you so good sis!" She chuckled. As Treena was opening the envelope my heart started beating faster. This was so strange.

"Hmm. He left us a note. Oh wow, look an airplane ticket confirmation number, and a couple of hotel cards. How fancy!", She said. "Read it to me", I asked her.

Dear Louisa and Treena Clark,

I am writing this letter in a hurry as I need to get back to London as soon as possible. I am sorry that I will not be with you both and I won't be able to spend much longer here. Life throws you in situations that are incomprehensible. I have left you my hotel keys if Treena needs to stay overnight. Louisa, I hope that you will get better soon. It was a pleasure meeting you indeed…

I also wanted to let you know that your medical bills have been taken care of and your tickets back home. In addition, I have left my best friend, Nathan, a voicemail letting him know of your situation. He is the best in his work. He is a physical therapist. Please don't hesitate to call him and make an appointment with him. Again, I have taken care of that as well.

William Traynor

Both Treena and I were quiet for a few minutes. I could not believe someone that generous existed. How could someone without knowing another person cared for them that much? It was weird because when I met him, he didn't seem to be a type of person who would do that. How wrong was I? How judgmental was I towards him? Treena and I looked at each other still processing everything.

End of Flashback

It felt good to be home with my family. I had missed them so much. Mom and dad had been so welcoming since we got back. They wanted to make sure that I had the best care and that everyone in the house put my needs first. I was living like a princess. It was so generous of them. I still felt so bad and wanted to do something for the family, but they kept telling me that everything would be okay. I just needed to think about getting better.

One night as I was getting ready to go to bed I heard my parents talking.

"Josie, love. I don't know where else to look for work", dad said whispering.

"It will be fine Bernard. You are too worried. Treena is going to work six days a week. I think we can make it for this month. And what if we don't? We can cut back on some things or sell some of our stuff. Or we can pack up and go back home. I miss our home", mom sighed. I didn't realize things were that bad. I limped back to my room and started crying. How stupid was I to think that everything was fine? I thought that my family was honest with me and that they didn't need my help so soon.

That night I could not sleep. My mind wandered through every possibility of what and how I could help my family. I could not walk that well yet but I could try to find a job for cleaning things standing up, or maybe babysitting without the child running around. That would be impossible. Unless the family had an infant baby. But again, I was not strong enough to lift a baby. What if I made baskets or painted someone's nails? Oh God, what would I do? I put my non-broken hand on my face and wept until the sun came out.

My routine now consisted of seeing Nathan twice a week. When I got back home from New York, Nathan had ordered me to see him three to four times a week. The only reason I agreed to go was that Mr. Traynor (William) had instructed me to go so I could get back on my feet. Thank God for him. Thankfully, I was healing fast so I did not have to go see Nathan that often anymore. He was very impressed with me healing this fast. But I still had a few milestones ahead of me. Now I had to use a cane to get around but it was fine. It wasn't that bad. I was hoping that I would be able to walk independently by the next couple of months, even sooner.

I was lost in my own thoughts as we were approaching Nathan's clinic. I had wanted to ask for Will's number so many times, but I did not have the courage to do so. "Top of the morning, Louisa. What's the matter?" Nathan asked.

"Not much". I shrugged my shoulders. I think he saw in my eyes that there was something up. We usually did our routine of working on few exercises and at times we talked about how things were going in our lives. Today, I did not have the courage to speak or even look at Nathan. I was so exhausted by my thoughts and sleep deprivation that I wasn't even paying attention to what I was doing.

"Slow down Louisa! You're going to hurt yourself", he said loudly. "Let's go to my office. Right now!". This came more like an order. I looked down and tried not to take it personally. I knew Nathan was going to interrogate me.

"Louisa", Nathan said calmly. I looked up at him. He seemed calmer now. "I have noticed that you haven't taken these exercises as serious as when you started coming here. And today, frankly, you look terrible. One of the things that you need to let me know is if there are other things in your personal life that are an obstacle to your recovery. I did not want to bring this up at all, but I know that my friend Will has paid for your appointments, so you should not worry about that at all. So, what is going on with you?"

I sighed. It was so hard for me to talk about our problems to other people. I had never done this before, not even with Patrick. I thought of Nathan as a big brother and I knew he would at least be able to calm me down.

"Where should I start", I sighed. "Look Nathan. This is really uncomfortable for me to talk about and I really don't know how to start". "My family… we don't have a lot of money. We are not rich. We barely can afford things…", I was whispering at this point. "It has been really hard for my dad to find a job. My sister is doing her best working six days a week. And as you can see, I am pretty much useless at this point. I don't know what to do. Right now, we are in a very hard situation…". "I am really grateful for your friend, Mr. Traynor to help us out. Thank God for him. Otherwise, I would not be where I am today. He was an angel sent by God", I said shyly. There was silence. I knew Nathan was thinking hard. I didn't know if he understood our situation. I didn't know if he ever endured difficulties in his life. But now that everything was out there, I was not too scared anymore.

I looked at Nathan again. He started writing something on his notepad. This was strange. He handed the note to me. "What is this?" I asked. "Look, Louisa, I understand that this must be really hard for you to share with me about your financial situation. There is a party coming up on Saturday. This is the address. I will put a word with the caterer for you. You can pass out foods. Can't you? I will let them know about your physical situation. Don't be too hard on your leg. The money is good and you don't have to work that much. Be there by 5 pm. Only thing, don't be late!". I was shocked. I opened my mouth to say something but couldn't.

"Nathan, Thank you". He smiled at me.

XXXXXXXXXX

It was Saturday morning and I didn't know what I needed to wear. I had already forgotten to ask Nathan about my attire. I didn't know if this party was formal or casual. I didn't know if I needed to go shopping.

"Louisa, love. If it's a catering job, then just wear a jean and a T-shirt. You don't need to go all fancy serving food" mom said. I still wasn't sure. I was so nervous. I had never done this before.

"What's the worst thing that could happen tonight?" Treena said. "You could either make a fool of yourself or make some big bucks for all of us! My dear sister, I will bet on the first one" she stuck her tongue at me. I slapped her shoulder and said, "Oh if I only could have one wish, what would I wish? Hmm.. a difficult choice that is. To have a sister or have a million bucks". Dad came in and joined the party. "Are you turning out to be Yoda?" my dad asked. Everyone laughed. Despite our difficult situation, I would never ever have wanted to change my family or to be born in a different family. I loved my family so much. I knew everyone had their problems and I knew that everyone in this world had to go through different sufferings.

When I typed in the address on the Google maps, I realized that this place is where I grew up. My face lighted up. "Mom, dad, this is right next to the castle back home". Everyone was so happy and even cheered me more.

XXXXXXXXXX

I arrived at the destination at 4:15 pm. I wanted to be as early as possible. I had never in million years would have thought that this party would be in my hometown. Who could have guessed? As much as my family wanted to come with me, we couldn't afford three train tickets and staying at a hotel all together. So, I went by myself.

The plan was for me to stay Saturday night and leave for home on Sunday afternoon. I promised my parents that I would go say hi to our old neighbors.

Passing around this town in a taxi brought old memories back, happy memories. Right then I promised myself that I would make something of myself and I would bring my family back here one day.

The taxi approached a house. Well, a big house. I would have never dreamed of walking around a house like that let alone work in it. Multiple families with their children could live here. I smiled thinking about that.

There was a bellman in front of me, looking strangely at me. I knew I wouldn't have fit here but I still was a human being. I deserved to be treated nicely. "Pardon me. Where are the catering staff?" I asked him, holding my head high. He just pointed to a door towards the back of the house. I slowly walked and tried to observe everything as much as I could. I stood there and gulped. Wow… So beautiful. Someone must be getting married tonight, I thought. There were lights on every side of this house. There were expensive bouquets of flowers on every corner. The smell of lavender and roses were filled in the air. The trees and the gardens were beautifully decorated. Everything was heart-warmingly touching. I wondered who decorated the place.

"Are you going to just stand there, or are you coming to help?" someone had said. I looked up suddenly at a lady holding an apron for me. I apologized and went inside quickly. Everyone was working and running around. There was the head of catering who brought everyone together and gave each person a schedule of what was happening. Thankfully, Nathan had put in a good word for me and I wasn't given the dishwashing or the liquor job. I simply had to stand in between the crowd and offer them appetizers. I just hoped that I would not screw this up.

The night began slowly as the guests arrived one by one. Some looked fancy and some were wearing casual outfits. Even those who were wearing casual outfits had to be wearing Gucci or Prada. The atmosphere was filled with the most expensive perfume smell. Their conversations felt so bizarre and too superficial for my taste. Someone talked about their vacation in Bali and the other complained about their mileage points. Others were getting drunk. I stood at one place and offered cheese and crackers and occasionally I would move a little to not put too much pressure on my foot. I tried to give my best smile and pretend that I was good at my job.

I was lost in my thoughts again. If I ever became rich, would I go this far to pretend that I was somebody? Would I change everything about myself and wear expensive clothes? Would I try to take vacations every few months?

"What do you got there young lady?" an old gentleman asked me. I smiled at him, "I have gouda, creamy brie, manchego, and cheddar with a hint of smoke". "Ahhh, I don't know which one I want to pick. To be honest I love all kinds of cheeses. What do you recommend?". This was a strange man I thought. "Hmm.. for a starter, I would try the creamy brie, then I would add gouda on top, and finally eat the cheddar cheese. I wouldn't mind throwing a couple of salty olives in there. Don't forget to close your eyes when you try this. You want to give your taste buds the best experience of their life time ever". The man laughed out loud. I realized that I had said too much. Why didn't I just say the names of these cheeses and let him try it one at a time? I hoped I was not in trouble.

"I will remember that! Thanks for your amusement. I like her already" he mumbled walking away. Leaving me even more confused to myself.

This party was tiring me out already. It was about 9:30 pm and I was ready to leave. I still could not guess who was hosting this party. Some people had already left and a new and younger group of people had joined the party.

As I was ready to go back in, I saw a group of blonde girls walk past me and giving me a dirty look. What the hell was wrong with them? I didn't do anything to deserve it.

Trying to not think about those girls too much, I started to walk towards the kitchen when I saw him. He was standing in the crowd, so handsome. It was like God himself sent an angel and dropped him there. I was trying to keep an eye on him from my distance and see what was going on. He picked up the microphone and congratulated someone or something, then everybody clapped.

Well, at least I finally saw him. Why did my heart have to start beating again? He left me that day without a goodbye and I promised myself I would not get emotional. I needed this money for my family. So, I started to concentrate on my work. For the next hour, I focused on handing out more deserts and along the way, some very generous men had given me nice tips. Some even had eyeing me, and I wasn't sure why. It was probably because again I was a commoner among these people. I would never fit with them. I was so tired and I could not hold out anymore so I decided to end my shift early.

"Here you go, Louisa. The father of the host told me to double the money I was originally going to give you" the catering lady told me. I had already forgotten her name. "Why?" I asked. "I don't know why. But he mentioned that you had amused him somehow". I was shocked. He was the father of the host. Wow… Go Louisaaa! "Well, thank you for letting me help out tonight," I said. "Here is my card, let me know if you want to work with us", she said. "That is fantastic. I will consider it and I will call you in a few days to sort things out. Thank you so much" I said giving her a hug. She smiled at me and left me there.

I was really tired and had no energy to stay there any longer. I was really excited about the news of finding a new job here but I didn't know if I would have to move here or commute back and forth. This was great because at least there was an opportunity for me to start working again.

I would need to get Nathan some flowers and a thank you card for helping me out.

As I was trying to find my way out, I got lost. I think I landed in their third garden. Oh, brother! There were some people singing and drinking still. Some people were kissing each other. This was turning out to be so weird. I limped my way to the nearing exit door so as I thought. I heard a familiar voice near me.

"Is this who I think it is?" someone said. "Louisa Clark," he said. Every single hair on my body stood up hearing him say my name. I turned around and it was him, William Traynor. He was wearing a white buttoned up shirt with jeans and a blazer. Oh, how handsome he was…No words could describe this gorgeous man. It had been so long since I heard his voice.

"Hello, William Traynor. How do you do?" I said politely. As he was about to say something, someone nearly tripped over him. A beautiful blonde hair with the most beautiful eyes appeared out of nowhere with her friends. He held her tight so that she wouldn't fall. She might have been drunk. I don't know what was going on. She didn't even notice me standing there.

"Hello, my darling," she said. "Oh, how I missed you" she gave him a kiss on his lips and squeezed his cheeks. The girls started laughing and chanting Will's name. This was so awkward. Without even looking up at them, I started running away from them. I couldn't look at them. I wanted to talk to him, to thank him, but why did he have to show off his girlfriend in front of me? I was a nobody and I needed to get the hell out of that situation.

"Louisa. Louisa!" I heard my name multiple times. I was already embarrassed so I kept going straight forward and didn't even look behind me.

When my feet couldn't carry me anymore, I stopped. It had been at least ten minutes looking at my watch. I was panting and couldn't go any further. I needed to rest, I needed to sit down. I had put too much stress on my legs and I felt the pain shooting up and down my body. As I was trying to figure out where I was, I noticed my surroundings. It was dark and it was getting cold.

Oh no. This couldn't be true. I was lost in the same place like a few years ago. How stupid was I to be here again alone? This time not drunk. Thank God, I was sober tonight.

I was in the maze again…

I needed to focus and I needed to put all my energy on walking, but I couldn't move. Not even a little bit.

My throat had closed up on me. It was as if my voice was taken away by Ursula, the sea witch from The Little Mermaid.

I heard noises around me. I felt like someone was watching me. This couldn't happen again. Not my luck. I tried my best to shout for help but nothing came out. I tried again. I wanted to call his name to scare off whatever was coming at me.

"Will. William Traynor. Come out please". I shouted. "William Traynor I know you are here". I heard noises around and something or someone was getting closer to me. I would fight this person, I would not let this happen again to me.

No, I wouldn't be able to survive it again if it happened. I shook my head, trying to push away my negative thoughts.

I found a large rock and made myself ready to throw it at whatever was coming at me.

"Louisa…" I heard him say. "Louisa, I am here. It's me". He came closer to me.

I let go of the rock. My legs gave out and I fell into his arms crying.