Room With No Windows

Elsa stares at her fiancee standing before her in disbelief, apparently in shock. He wouldn't look away from her. It was as if they were having a silent conversation; neither of them had to say a word to know what the other was thinking.
I couldn't help but envy him. He clearly shared a strong connection with Ellie. Not only that, but she probably thought he was ten times more attractive than me. He was just as tall, with light blue eyes and messy dark brown hair that every girl went crazy for. His arms were very muscular, and he had a well-sculpted jaw.
I didn't stand a chance.
He runs a hand through his hair. "Elsa, I-"
"What are you doing here?" she asks harshly, cutting him off. Well at least she was still mad at him.
A frown forms on his face. "To apologize. I said awful things to you, Els. I feel so fucking guilty."
"How did you even find me?" she mutters.
Isaac rubs the back of his neck, and it vaguely reminds me of myself.
"When I kept getting the same out of service message on your phone, I called your sister to see if she knew anything. She wouldn't tell me because she said I didn't deserve the chance to talk to you. Apparently, you'd already told her." He sighs. "I kept calling until she finally gave me a way to contact you. They said it was a wrong number." He takes a moment to tear his gaze away from Elsa to look at me, giving me a blank stare. "But I can see now that it wasn't."
I clench my jaw, my eyes narrowing.
Elsa shakes her head. "I still don't understand how you got here."
He returns his attention back to her, walking toward her and reaching her in a few strides. "I called your mom to see if I could get any more information, but I didn't tell her some random guy picked up the phone when I tried calling you. I didn't want her to worry. She was more clueless than me so I left it at that and called your sister. When I found out she was coming to find you, I begged her to take me. Nicky brought me here so I could try and patch things up." He rests his hand on cheek. "Els, I was so scared I'd lost you. I made a mistake, too many mistakes. I'm so sorry."
"Isaac," she whispers and I feel the panic rising in my throat. No, no, no. Was she seriously letting him swoon her right now? After all that he did?
Fuck no.
I approach him, pulling Elsa away and standing between them. "The way I see it, you haven't earned the right for her forgiveness."
His jaw twitches. "And who the fuck are you to tell me?"
"The one who fucking took her in when you threw her to the side of the road like she were a dog you just ran over," I growl. "If you were really fucking sorry, you would have turned back around the instant you started driving away. You're not sorry. You just want to reclaim her as if she were your property."
He laughs. "What, you think she's yours?"
I feel the blood rush to my face. This bastard was about to get a broken nose.
Elsa holds onto my arm, hiding behind me. "John, stop defending me. You don't get to have a say."
I turn to her, incredulous. "I don't have a say?! You really think I'm going to let you just walk out of here with him?! It's not fucking happening!"
"Don't fucking yell at her," Isaac growls, grabbing my shoulder and shoving me. "You don't make her decisions."
Just then, Nicky runs in to prevent things from escalating any further. "Isaac! Cool it. John, you should probably leave."
"This is my fucking house!" I shout, pointing at Isaac. "If anyone's leaving, it's this asshole!"
"And Elsa is coming with me," he shouts back.
"No she is fucking not-"
"Yes I am."
My heart twists before sinking to my stomach. What?
I look back at her. "Elsa-"
"I need to go, John. I'm sorry."
"Why are you apologizing?" Isaac scoffs. "He's no one."
She stares at him but I pull her face back to me, my throat threatening to close up. "Elsa, please," I croak. "I'm not letting you go."
"I have to go," she whispers, her cheeks strained with tears.
"Y-you can't," I start to say, but she pulls away from me, walking around to stand by Isaac.
He rests his arm around her shoulders, pulling her in to press his lips to her forehead. "That a girl," he murmurs, his arm dangerously close around her neck.
My skin pricks. She couldn't leave with this guy. I know that I lied to her, but she couldn't let that sway her. I look to Nicky for help. "Nicky, come on, he hurt your little sister. She-"
"Sorry, John," she sighs, looking sincerely sad. "I really appreciate you looking out for her, but Elsa belongs back home."
Elsa pulls away to slip her arms around my waist. I hug her for all I was worth, refusing to let her go.
"Thank you for everything," she whispers. "Thank you for letting me stay."
I swallow the lump in my throat. "I'll miss you. Goodbye, Ellie. Take care of yourself, alright?"
Ellie nods as I feel her slip a hand into my back pocket. "I will."
She slowly pulls back, and she has to pry my arms from around her. I grit my teeth. This wasn't how things were supposed to happen. She was supposed to go back home to talk to her parents, tell them things were over between her and Isaac, and come back to me so we could be together, so I could give her more piano lessons. I'd only given her one. We never...
I never even got to tell her I love her.
Her sister rubs Elsa's back as they walk out, while Isaac gives me a hard look. Suddenly, a smirk appears on his face before following them.
I stand by the door as I watch the three of them climb into the car, pull out onto the road, and drive off. Just like that, she was gone.
That was it.
I walk over to the couch, collapsing in defeat and putting my head in my hands. I pull my hands through my hair, all but wanting to tear it out. I felt cold to the bone; I felt empty.
My hand was shaky as I ran it down my face. What the fuck was I supposed to do now? I was back to being alone, and it was worse than I could have ever imagined it. They'd ripped her away from me. It was like pulling off a bandaid, except there was no relief, only pain.
She didn't even take her things, I think, knowing that she'd only left with her own jeans and my sweatshirt.
I stand, looking around the room for everything that belonged to her and setting it down on the bed. I find her hair clip on the night stand and sit down with my legs crossed, weighing the clip in my hands. It was completely fucking useless now.
I chuck it across the room, angry. I roll all of her clothes into a ball and stuff it under my bed, keeping one of her shirts. It was the first time in months that I really felt like crying.
Frustrated, I groan and rub my eyes. I take a deep breath and try to wallow with the fact that she wasn't coming back.
My chest was heavy with the feeling of missing her, of needing her. I actually needed her.
I realized for once in my life that I was referring to a different her. Elsa had become the center of my world, but just like before, I had to let her go.
Laying down, I feel something in the pocket she'd stuck her hand into. I reach inside, my eyes widening.
I pull out and stare at her engagement ring.
She...gave it to me? Or did she just want to take it off? My mind was racing at all of the possibilities. Was she trying to tell me something? I had no idea what it could mean.
This had to be some type of statement she was making. I just didn't know what.
I sigh heavily, resting the ring on the night stand. I hold her shirt in my hand and catch her scent. God, I was going to miss pressing my nose to her hair and breathing her in every morning. I knew one thing for sure, and that was that I couldn't sleep here tonight. I couldn't take being alone in my own bed.
I catch a whiff of something else, something burning. My head snaps up as I remember the chicken Elsa mentioned was in the oven and rush into the kitchen just as the smoke alarm began to ring. I cover my mouth with my arm and open up the stove, waving away all of the smoke.
It took twenty minutes for the chicken to cool down enough for me to take it out. It was burned to a crisp. I sigh and throw out the scorched food, reaching for the smoke alarm to set it off and start storing the rest of the food in containers to put away in the fridge.
Even after I took out the garbage with the chicken in it, the condo still filled with the smell of burnt food. The scent was so thick it reached the garage.
I guess I really couldn't sleep her tonight.