CHAPTER 32
ELLEN
Austin, Quebec, Canada
To make sure that Ellen wouldn't find any last-minute reasons to cancel, he had decided to organize two weeks of meetings where the executive team, of which Ellen was now a member, had to be present in Montreal. And those weeks were a week before and a week after the party.
Robert Caldwell hadn't gotten to where he was today without a cunning mind.
Ellen had mixed feelings about the situation. First, she couldn't see herself not going considering how important her sister was in her life, but it also meant socializing with the people who would be there, especially Leah.
Ellen was still angry with Leah from their last conversation last February. She was irritated that Leah had interfered so much, for no apparent reason, in Ellen's opinion, in her love life with Roxanne. And, mainly, she was angry that Leah was right not to trust Roxanne.
To this day, Ellen wasn't ready to admit that to herself. She had a clear plan to do everything in her power to avoid Leah. But the plan only lasted five minutes after Ellen arrived at home. Leah was coming out of the bathroom at the same moment Ellen went past.
"Ellen!" exclaimed Leah when their two bodies collided, neither of them able to avoid the impact.
"Hello, Leah," Ellen replied curtly, before continuing her way to the living room where most of the guests were gathered. She wanted to get her plan back on track.
"Can we talk, please?" Leah asked. Ellen was unable to ignore the pain that resonated in her friend's trembling voice. Her voice was tinged with a desperate plea. "In private."
"Fuck," Ellen muttered through clenched teeth before closing her eyes for a few seconds and turning back to her. "Alright, Leah, follow me."
Ellen turned back the other way before climbing the stairs, Leah following close behind. She opened her door and let her in first. She took a few deep breaths to keep her emotions under control.
"Wow. Just like I remember it. Not a thing changed at all. I can't remember the last time I walked into your room." Leah had just fallen into nostalgia about their relationship, which, honestly, annoyed Ellen, who was not in the mood for that at all.
"Okay, Leah, what do you actually want? It's Jessie's party, and I don't want to spend the whole evening in my room. We both should be downstairs for her. So, spill it."
"Yeah, you're right." She looked just like she did when she first saw Ellen downstairs. The sorrow hidden beyond a few memories. "I wanted to apologize to you."
"Uh, okay, what about this time..." asked Ellen, even though she knew the answer. But she didn't want to make it easy for Leah, and she also wanted to hear it.
Clearly, it took a lot of humility on Leah's part to continue what she had started. "About having messed up at game night."
"Okay, but you've already done that," Ellen pointed out.
Leah admitted, "And for telling you things about Roxy before I even knew her."
"Roxanne, you mean," Ellen said. Leah looked at her, a puzzled expression on her face.
"Listen, Leah, I'll spare you the details, but it seems you were right all along.
She wasn't being honest with me, and was not in my life with honest intentions.
" Ellen's voice threatened to break at any moment.
"But I suppose Taylor and Jessie already told you all that. "
"Oh, Ellen," Leah exclaimed, taking her hand. "No, I didn't know. I was asking, sure, but they kept saying it wasn't their story to tell, and if I wanted to know, I should talk to you. And I thought it would be better to do it in person."
"Thank you, I appreciate it," she said, her voice soft.
"I would have loved to be wrong, I swear. It sucks that things didn't work with Roxanne and you."
"Yeah, I know," Ellen said. "Shit happens."
"Yes, but no," Leah added, revolted by what she had just heard.
"You deserve everything, Ellen. You deserve someone who can give you everything.
And if that girl can't understand how lucky she was to have you in her life, well, she's more stupid than I thought.
I speak from experience. I should never have left for LA.
" Leah took a deep breath, as if gathering her courage.
"There's something I need to tell you. About us. "
Ellen looked at Leah, confused and unsure of what to say. Apart from their disagreements over the past few weeks, everything seemed to be going well between them. Their friendship had survived their breakup and Ellen's relationship with Caroline.
What's bothering Leah so much? Ellen wondered to herself.
"Okay… Are you alright?" Ellen asked.
And then a forced smile appeared on Leah's face. As if she had just given up on her plan. "Yeah, sure. Um. It's just that I miss my best friend terribly."
"You still had Taylor, who talks to you almost every day," Ellen replied with a small smile.
"You know that our friendship is different from the one I have with your sisters." Leah let out a little sigh that seemed so heavy. "Are we both okay?"
"Yes, Leah, we're fine." Ellen closed the distance between them and hugged her.
Leah responded by hugging her tightly while holding back her tears.
Ellen finally broke the hug and stepped back to make sure Leah was looking at her properly.
"I'm sorry too. I may have been a little intense in my reaction to you. You know I love you, right?"
Leah stood there speechless for a few moments before regaining control of herself. "Yes, I love you too, El." But, unfortunately, Leah knew it wasn't the same love they shared. Another brief stab in her heart.
Ellen stretched out her hand toward Leah and said, "Come on, let's go downstairs. Would you like to be my date for the night?"
"Yes, I would really like that."
***
Ellen and Leah entered, hand in hand, fingers intertwined, into the living room where most of the guests had already arrived, except for Jess and Blake. The first person to notice them was, of course, Taylor.
Taylor walked toward them, her stern gaze shifting between their fingers and Leah's increasingly uncomfortable face. "Hey," she said cautiously at first, "what's going on?" The question seemed to be directed at Leah.
Ellen looked at her twin sister proudly and replied, "Well, Leah and I had a conversation we should have had a long time ago, and she agreed to be my date for the night."
"Oh, really?" Taylor was still staring at Leah. She wanted to know exactly what they had talked about.
"Uh, yeah," Leah began. "You know, Tay, the one where I wanted to apologize for how I acted toward Roxanne."
There was a brief silence before Taylor said, "Oh, right. I see. That discussion." Once again, Taylor stared at Leah, a mixture of irritation and deep discouragement.
Leah, still holding Ellen's hand, wished she could crawl under the carpet if it were humanly possible to do so, and squeezed Ellen's hand tighter. Ellen noticed something and asked, "Is everything okay, Tay?"
Taylor broke eye contact with Leah and turned to her sister, this time with a much softer and admiring look. "Yes, Twinie, everything's fine," she said, placing her hand on her twin's shoulder. "I'm glad you two have sorted things out," she added, glancing quickly at Leah.
The answer satisfied Ellen. Taylor couldn't help wondering whether Ellen really had no idea about Leah's feelings or whether it was pure wilful blindness.
Jess arrived twenty-five minutes later and was completely surprised, much to her delight. She knew there would be a dinner, but not on this scale, given that it was in their house in the Eastern Townships. It was the gathering place for the immediate family.
The Eastern Townships had always been a place for Ellen to escape, especially since her mother passed away. This house was one of the few remnants of her mother’s time in their lives. It might be the place where their mother still feels closest to them and her late mother.
It was one of the things she has missed most since moving to Australia. However, even with her sisters and Leah's presence, the missing was not enough to make her appreciate the moment. She was still missing her mother, and… Roxanne.
The evening progressed and Ellen's impression was growing stronger. She felt the effects of the alcohol without it being inappropriate.
As the evening winded down, Ellen found herself with her family: Taylor, Jess, Blake, Leah, who wouldn't leave Ellen's side, and Robert.
Jess was mid-story, recounting a story to Blake, who had planned a birthday date the previous day.
They were taken aback that their relationship wasn’t public, considering the incredibly romantic nature of their date.
Blake kept interrupting to add forgotten details, which made everyone laugh even harder.
"I'm just lucky to have this wonderful woman in my life," said Jess, before stepping closer to Blake and kissing her with a smile. It was, quite simply, a beautiful sight.
Taylor lifted her glass, a soft smile on her lips, and toasted, "Aw… To the beautiful messes we insist on calling love."
Amidst the cheers and clinking glasses, Ellen kept her gaze down, not joining in the laughter. As the questioning looks bore into her, she raised her glass and, with a forced smile, declared, "Cheers to getting exactly what we deserve, I suppose."
An obvious uneasiness filled the room, as if there had been a drastic drop in temperature. Jess, always the first to protect Ellen, lowered her eyes, not quite sure what to say.
For Ellen, the most painful thing was to see her pain reflected in Taylor's eyes.
Ellen closed her eyes immediately, cursing herself inwardly for opening her mouth. She took a deep breath, ashamed. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. If you could excuse me," she said before anyone could speak, quickly heading upstairs to her room, managing to make it without stumbling.
Leah moved to follow her when a hand grabbed her arm. "Wait, Leah," Taylor said. "This is a job for Jessie and me."
***