Roman was a tired mess when he and Seth finally landed in Iowa. They made it through baggage claim and then dodged a few fans in the airport. They finally got to the parking building where they found Seth's car and got in.
"Wanna go to my place first to freshen up?" Seth asked.
"No, I wanna see her," Roman said.
"Alright," Seth said.
Seth drove the car out on the road and Roman was a nervous mess for the 45 minutes it took to get to Talise's place. Her car wasn't in the driveway but she could have chosen to park it elsewhere to get people off her back. He jumped out of the car and ran up to the front door. He tried the door handle but it was locked. He started banging on the door while Seth made his way up to him.
"Talise!" Roman called.
Seth watched as Roman kept knocking and calling her name. It was clear Roman had lost his heart to this woman.
"I don't think she's home," Seth said.
"She has to be," Roman said.
Roman ran around the house and looked in through all the windows. Everything looked like he remembered but something strange crept over him. Something didn't feel right.
"Roman, the neighbors are gonna think we're trying to break in," Seth said.
"Her car isn't here," Roman said.
"So let's go back to my place and try again later," Seth said.
"Drive me to her shop," Roman said.
"It's not open this early," Seth said.
"Drive me to her god damn shop!" Roman snarled.
"Alright. Relax, big man. I'll take you there," Seth said.
They drove downtown and parked as close to the shop as they could. Roman ran from the car and Seth sprinted after him to keep up. Roman made it there first and stared in horror.
"No, no, no," Roman said.
Seth made it to Roman and looked at the sign in the window. It said the shop was closed for good.
"Roman," Seth said.
"Where is she, Seth?" Roman asked.
"I don't know," Seth said. "Let's go back to my place and come up with a game plan."
Roman nodded and followed Seth back to his car. They drove to Seth's place and Seth brew some coffee. They sat down with a cup each when Roman's phone started ringing. He nearly knocked over his coffee cup when he saw Talise's name flash on the screen.
"Talise?" He asked.
"Hi, Roman," she said sadly.
"Where are you? I went by your house and your shop. Why is the shop closed? What's going on?" He asked.
"You're in Iowa?" She asked.
"I went home with Seth since you didn't answer my calls," he said.
"Don't you think that's a bit extreme?" She asked.
"Why are you dodging my question?" He asked. "Where are you?"
There was a short pause on her end and then she let out a sigh. His heart was breaking. He knew he wasn't going to like what she was about to say.
"I'm gone," she said.
"Gone where?" He asked.
"I can't do it, Roman. Your so called fans are tearing me apart. Since the pictures of us went online, I had reporters show up at my house all day yesterday. I had to flee while cameras were being shoved in my face. You might like being in the limelight but that life is not for me. I'm sorry but I can't do it. I'm changing my number today and putting my house up for sale," she said.
"No!" He raised his voice. "Please, Talise. My lovely water woman. We can figure this out."
"I wish you nothing but the best," she said.
She hung up and he immediately tried to call back. She had already turned her phone off again. He broke down crying and felt Seth put his arms around him.
"She's gone," Roman cried.
"Do you know where she went to?" Seth asked.
"California. She has a brother there. She mentioned she had thought about moving there," Roman said.
"Okay, so that's a start," Seth said. "Maybe you can..."
"No!" Roman cut Seth off.
Roman moved out of Seth's arms and shook his head.
"No, Seth," Roman said. "I've fucked enough with her life. This isn't about me and what I want. It's about what she wants, and she doesn't want this life. She doesn't want reporters and fans tearing her life apart. It would be selfish of me to try and convince her to. I have to let her go but it fucking hurts, Seth. It hurts so bad."
Roman dried his eyes and stood up.
"I think I'm gonna get some sleep," Roman said.
"Roman," Seth said.
"Not now, Seth," Roman said. "We can talk later. I appreciate everything you've done for me but I really need some sleep."
"I'm sorry, Roman," Seth said. "This is my fault. I posted her picture and asked people to find her."
"I'm not mad at you," Roman said. "If it hadn't been for that, I wouldn't have found her at all. At least I got to be with her for a short while and those few days made me much more happy than I've been in a long time. It just fucking sucks her life got ruined because of it but that's a burden I have to carry and figure out how to live with. I'm not gonna mess with her life any further. She deserves to be happy."