It Was Always You

…Olive’s POV… "Is this the last of it?" My brother, Owen, asks as he picks up the last box sitting in the middle of the living room. I give him a small smile and reply, "It should be, but I'm going to take one more walk through to make sure. You can wait out by the pickup. I'm sure if there's anything left, I'll be able to carry it myself." He gives me a small nod and walks out of the apartment, leaving me alone in what's left of my most recent failed relationship. I look around at the now half empty living room and make sure that the only things left were the things that Tyler, my now ex, had here before I moved in. When I was sure it was exactly as I had originally found it, I moved my way into the bedroom. I took a moment to look at the mattress covered in old grey sheets with a throw blanket and his stupid blue neck pillow that always found its way between us at night sitting on the edge of the little metal frame I had been teasing him about since the first time he invited me over. All of the decor and nice bedding had been removed and shoved in a box, as I had been the one to purchase it. Any trace that I had ever lived here was gone. I heard a small knock on the door frame and turned around to see Tyler looking into the room. "It's hard to believe that I lived like this before I met you" he let out a sad chuckle. We both shared the same melancholy smile as we locked eyes. "Sorry, I thought you'd be done by now" he said, breaking the silence. "Yeah, me too," I replied "I'm just making the final walk through to make sure I got it all. Owen is waiting down stairs." He gave me a small nod of acknowledgment as I played with the ring that was weighing heavy on my left hand. I slipped it off and started to hand it to him "I should give this back..." I started to say until he put his hand up and said "No, Olive. I gave that to you. We may not be getting married anymore, but I want you to keep it. I bought it for you. It's yours." He pulled me into an unreturned hug as he said "I'm really sorry, Olive. You deserved better from me." "Yeah, I did." I said as I pushed myself out of his arms. I could feel the tears threatening to spill over and I knew that I had to leave before my mascara had the chance to run down my face. "I think I got it all. Just let me know if I left anything." I said as I made my way out of the little apartment that was no longer mine. As I walked down the 2 flights of stairs, I spotted my brother leaning against the pickup. "Ready to go? Lucas is waiting at the house to help us unpack all of this." Owen gestures to our vehicles. The familiar face of Owen's childhood best friend and business partner ran through my mind and I couldn't help but feel like things were going to get better. Moving in with them was exactly what I needed. A safe place to live that's not riding on my abilities to keep a romantic relationship afloat. I nodded to Owen, signaling that I was ready to go. I watched him climb into his pickup as I opened the door on my Branco and followed him out of the apartment complex, headed to my new home. My fresh start.