Chapter 4 A second chance

Selena's Pov.

The past few years had been pretty lonely. I'd tried dating other people, but nobody seemed to measure up.

Not after him.

It was hard not to think about Arthur. Even though we'd had our differences, I still thought of him from time to time.

And I missed him.

But, it was probably just a meeting. Nothing more, nothing less.

I arrived at the cafe before he did.

I ordered a coffee and sat down at a table near the window.

It was a beautiful day outside. The sun was shining, and the sky was blue.

I sat there, waiting.

When he finally arrived, I was surprised by how good he looked.

He was wearing a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. He looked casual, yet sophisticated.

He looked good.

He ordered a cup of coffee and sat down across from me.

"Hi," he said.

"Hi," I replied.

There was a moment of awkward silence between us.

"So," he began, "how have you been?"

"I've been fine," I replied.

"That's good," he said.

"How have you been?" I asked.

"I've been good," he replied.

Another moment of awkward silence passed between us.

"Look, I'll just cut to the chase," he said.

"All right," I said.

"I want to get back together."

I was shocked.

I didn't know what to say.

I hadn't seen him in a while, and he wanted to get back together.

"Look," he said, "I know it's been a while, and I know we've both changed, but I think we should give it another try."

"Why?" I asked.

"Because I still love you," he said.

Those words took my breath away.

"I still love you, too," I replied.

"Then let's give it another shot," he said.

"I want to. I genuinely want to.." I paused and looked at him for a brief moment. I saw his eyes lit up, and I remembered all the nights I spent looking at them.

"But I can't." I could hear him gasp.

"I need you to know that I loved you so much. I did, but I can't. It would just be a mistake. We're not the same people anymore."

"No," he said, his voice soft. "We're not."

"I'm sorry," I said.

"No, I understand. It's okay. I'm sorry, too."

He got up and walked out of the cafe.

I watched him go.

I couldn't believe what had just happened.

I'd spent so long wishing for this, and now that it had happened, I couldn't accept it.

But, I had to.

I couldn't let him back into my life. Not now. Not after everything we'd been through.

And even though it broke my heart, I knew it was the right thing to do.

The right thing for me.

As I walked out of the cafe, I saw him again.

He was standing by the side of the road, looking lost.

"Arthur," I said.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you for trying. It means a lot."

"Of course," he replied.

"And, if things were different, I'd give us another shot in a heartbeat."

"Me, too."

"But they're not. Things aren't different. So, I'm sorry, but this is the way it has to be."

"I know."

I reached out and squeezed his hand.

"Take care of yourself, okay?"

"I will," he said.

And then, I turned and walked away.

He yelled after me. "I'm not going to give up on you, just so you know."

I didn't reply.

I couldn't.

I didn't know what to say.

I didn't want to hurt him any more than I already had.

So, instead, I kept walking. And I didn't know when I started to cry. I loved him, and I was starting to realize that this was going to hurt me more than him.

But, I had to do it.

I had to.

For both of us.

I knew it wasn't fair. I knew it wasn't right. But, sometimes, the things that are hardest to do are the ones that need to be done the most.

And so, I did it.

And even though it broke my heart, and his, I knew it was the right thing to do.

The only thing to do.

And that's what made it so hard.

That's what made it hurt so much.

I had to let go of the love of my life.

I had to walk away from the man who'd broken my heart.

And I had to do it all for myself.

Because, in the end, that's what's most important.

That's what matters the most.

That's what counts the most.

And, even though it hurts, even though it's hard, I know it's the right thing to do.

I ran back home and cried my heart out, but it lasted only a few hours. Then I was good. Or so I thought.

Life moved on.

The days became weeks, the weeks became months, and the months became years.

I started dating other guys, and some of them were good. Some of them were good.

But none of them were Arthur.

None of them were the man who'd broken my heart.

None of them were the love of my life.

And I knew, deep down, that no matter how hard I tried, no matter how hard I worked, no matter how much I gave, they'd never be able to measure up.

They'd never be able to come close.

And that was okay.

Because, as hard as it was, as painful as it was, as difficult as it was, I knew that letting go of the love of my life was the right thing to do.

For both of us.

Even though it broke my heart, and his, I knew it was the right thing to do.

For both of us.

Even though it hurt.

Even though it was hard.

Even though it was the hardest thing I'd ever had to do.

Because, in the end, that's what matters the most.

That's what counts the most.

And even though it hurt, even though it was hard, I knew it was the right thing to do.

I just knew.

And, even though it wasn't fair, and it wasn't right, and it wasn't easy, I did it.

On one random day, I got a call from a dude named David. He said he wanted to hire me for an event.

"Hello, my name is David, and I run a catering company called A Perfect Fit," he introduced himself.

"Nice to meet you," I replied.

"Likewise," he said. "I've been working with a lot of caterers, and you've come highly recommended by one of my clients."

"Thank you," I said, surprised.

"I'm having a dinner party at my house next week, and I was wondering if you'd be available to cater it," he continued.

"Sure," I said holding back my emotions.

"Great. Here's my address," he said, and then gave me the details.

"No problem. I'll see you then," I replied.

"Great," he said. "I look forward to working with you."

We hung up, and I started making plans for the event.

A Perfect Fit was a catering company that specialized in high-end events. I'd always wanted to work with them, but they were very exclusive and rarely took on new clients.

But now, thanks to a referral, I was finally getting my chance.

And it was all thanks to David.

David was the founder and CEO of the company. He was also a very successful businessman.