Chapter 25
Kendall tried to get used to life without Isabel after returning from Almonia. The days passed, but his longing for her only deepened. It weighed down on him, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.
He didn’t want to give up so easily. He wanted to fight for himself one last time.
He applied for a graduate program in Almonia, thinking that it would be easier for him to appear before Isabel and show her that he cared if he were closer to her. He would chase after her as she’d chased after him in the past. Perhaps she would one day accept him again.
On Kendall’s first day in Almonia, he headed to the college where Isabel was. She’d switched majors, but she was still a student at one of the country’s top colleges.
She was briefly dazed when she saw him. Everything that had happened in Nord City seemed to have happened a long time ago–long enough that she could almost forget what Kendall looked like.
She continued smiling and chatting with her friends as she ignored Kendall’s raised hand. She brushed past him as if they were complete strangers. Disappointment washed over Kendall, and his hand stiffened in mid–air. His heart felt empty. However, he didn’t give up. Even if she kept ignoring him, he insisted on showing up where she was.
When Isabel went to a cafe for coffee, he would sit in a corner of the same cafe and order what she’d ordered. He wanted to get used to her current tastes. When she studied at the library, he would sit opposite her. His gaze was on his book, yet he would pay attention to her every move out of the corner of his eye.
After three months of this, Isabel finally stopped and looked at Kendall. The familiar way she looked at him made his heart soar. He thought he’d finally gotten another shot with her.
However, she merely approached him and asked flatly, “Have you had enough of this, Kendall? Why have you become a stalker now? You’re just making me despise you now!”
He felt like he’d been dunked in ice. She’d once only had eyes for him, yet she was now saying that she despised him.
His eyes reddened, and he looked at her pleadingly. “I’m sorry, Izzy. I didn’t mean to disturb you. I just… I just missed you too much. I’ve been feeling like a zombie since you left. I can’t eat or sleep.
“I’m miserable, and I only feel alive when I look at you. Can you please give me another chance, Izzy? Please, I’m begging you.”
Isabel was no longer affected as she listened to his pleading. She looked so calm that Kendall panicked. He pulled a wooden ring from his pocket and looked at her carefully.
“Do you still remember this, Izzy? You carved this for me and gave it to me on my 20th birthday. You said you wanted to use this to bind me to you, that we’d be together for-”
Isabel snatched the ring from him and threw it into the manmade lake nearby without hesitation, not even giving him the chance to finish. “Wake up, Kendall. The ring is gone, and there’s no chance of anything happening between us anymore.”
Kendall’s breathing sped up. He darted toward the railing before the lake and turned to look at Isabel. Then, he jumped into the water without hesitation. It went without saying how difficult it was to find a ring in a huge manmade lake, but he didn’t give up. He swam back and forth in the lake, searching every part of it. He even dug through the seaweed at the bottom, not wanting to miss anything.
He searched from day to night, and several students stood on the bank, trying to talk him out of it. All he did was shake his head and take a deep breath before plunging under the water again.
The ring was a symbol of his and Isabel’s love. He believed that she wouldn’t leave him as long as it was still around. One day, she would return to his side.
Finally, Kendall saw the small wooden ring hidden underneath a rock. He picked it up and clambered onto the bank excitedly. Then, he circled the lake, wanting to find Isabel. She was nowhere in sight, though.
She’d long since left.
