A Hidden Destiny

Past and present

Jason

I opened the door to my apartment, threw my keys on the bench along with my jacket and closed the door behind me. Or wait, technically it was her apartment and not mine anymore.

As I glanced around, expecting to see her things scattered around as usual, I noticed that the hallway looked strangely empty. Only one jacket left on the hanger, which was usually overflowing with jackets and scarfs. Maybe she went out without me realizing. Or maybe she had just decided to tidy up? Ha, like that would ever happen. “Maddie?” I called out. No answer. Taking a look around the living room, everything seemed normal. Her business magazines were scattered all over the coffee table along with a small stack of papers with a blue pen on top of them. I went to my former bedroom, the one we were supposed to be sharing, just to smell her again, her faint scent still lingering in the air. I missed her so much. As I sat down on the bed, I took a look around her bedroom. The bed was neatly made with two pillows piled perfectly on top of the covers. The curtains were drawn and the sunlight lighted up the whole room. The bed didn’t always look this neat, not when I used to live here. I missed the days when we would just stay in bed; I missed having my way with her. Just thinking about it made it hard for me to concentrate on my real mission.

I’ve had this weird feeling in the pit of my stomach for days now that something was off. I haven’t seen her here in a while. Everything was so neat and perfectly placed, as if it wasn’t used anymore. It was too clean, too quiet, too empty. Trotting back through the living room, I went straight to the fridge and swung it open, almost ripping the door off in the process. Empty. It was freaking empty. Something was most definitely wrong. I swore under my breath and pulled my phone out, aggressively typing on the screen, feeling angry at myself for letting her slip away without me knowing. What did you do, Maddie!?

Maddie

Panic rose in my chest as I re-read the message. An unknown number… But I had a feeling regarding who could have sent it. Only one person would have the audacity to ask me that. Me leaving without saying goodbye was intentional. I didn’t want him to ask any questions about why and where I was going. As a matter of fact, why did he think he had the right to know anything about my life? He was not a part of my life anymore!

“Ugh”, I groaned out loud. All kinds of thoughts were racing through my mind. Should I give him a piece of my mind, which I really wanted to right now, or should I just ignore his futile attempt to get in contact again? After almost a whole month of silence, he decided to text me now. Wait. How does he even know I left? Was he watching me? Or maybe my apartment? And how did he get my new number? God, I was feeling a bit paranoid at the moment, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he was watching me. I shook my head and picked up the spoon up from the plate, digging into the pie once again, before taking another bite to let the sweetness of it calm my nerves.

I was well aware that he didn’t agree with us not dating anymore. We dated for 5 months, but I broke it off before we got too serious. In the beginning, he was so kind, charming and romantic, everything a girl wants. Eventually, he got a bit too dominating and controlling for my liking. Always asking me about my whereabouts, who I was talking to at work, why didn’t I come home straight away. Stuff like that. I didn’t like it. Not one bit. So I broke it off. It seemed like the right thing to do at the time. So after almost another month of him messaging me constantly, him asking for another chance, I went in for the kill. I changed my number. The silence was welcomed and I felt happy for the first time in a while. That was when I decided to research my heritage, as some sort of diversion, and now I’m sitting here in this God-forsaken place eating delicious apple pie. Wow, relax Maddie. His text really managed to kill my mood.

"Leave me freaking alone" I muttered to myself as I deleted the message.