53. The message

Chapter 53: The message

Kelsey's POV

*****

"Mr. Wilkinson, please come in," a tall lady with dirty blonde hair tied in a neat bun said as she came out to greet us in the waiting room. For some reason, I felt myself getting nervous at meeting her, even if she wasn't going to be my employer.

"Ms. Perry, very nice to see you," my dad said as he got up from his chair and shook her hand, walking inside with her as I trailed behind. "This is my daughter Kelsey, the one I've told you about," he said as soon as were inside her impressively large office, with a window so big that it allows you to see everything.

"Kelsey, I've heard a lot about you from your dad. He's very fond of you. Tells me you're very talented in acting and writing," she said as she shook my hand before gesturing for us to sit down, doing so herself.

I took a quick glance at my dad before speaking, feeling myself starting to get nervous. I always got shy when it came to talking to people I didn't know, and the fact that the woman standing in front of me was my father's new boss did not make it any better. My cheeks started heating up as I tried to find the right way to answer, not wanting to seem braggy or say the wrong thing.

"Erm, yes," I nervously answered.

"Alright then, Mr. Wilkinson, I reckon you've already had a lawyer read over the contract?" She asked my dad, who gave her a small nod before telling her that he had.

"Very well. Now you have to understand that this contract covers at least two years," she continued, making my eyes widen before I tried as hard as I could to mask my shock, not wanting to seem rude.

I couldn't believe that I was going to stay there for two whole years. My father had told me that we were staying for a long time, but hearing it come out of his employer's mouth made it more final, more real.

"Yes, I understand," my dad replied before looking at me and giving my hand a reassuring squeeze, probably realising what had been going through my head.

I could feel my phone buzz as my dad and Ms.Perry were talking, and as I made sure that they weren't taking any notice of me, I quickly took the phone out of my pockets and opened Meg's text, a smile appearing on my face. She told me that Jake had taken them to the funfair as a surprise, which was the place where he and Meg had started talking. Yet the thing that brought tears to my eyes was the photo attached to the message.

It was a photo taken in front of the Ferris wheel, the one where Ethan and I had almost had our first kiss. Ellie was on Meg's back, a toothy smile on her face, while Lara was on Jake's. Noah and May, on the other hand, were holding hands, the sides of their heads touching one another's. Every single one of them had beautiful smiles on their faces, and all I wanted was to burst out crying, something which I couldn't do in front of my dad and his new boss.

I started smiling like an idiot as soon as a new message came in reading 'a photo just for our favourite person'. I didn't care if Ms.Perry would think that I was mental if she saw the smile on my face, nor did I care that my cheeks were starting to burn because of the smile. The amount with which I loved and cared for every single person in that photo was crazy.

"So, here's a pen, you can reread your contract and sign whenever you're ready," Ms.Perry said as she handed my dad a fancy looking silver pen. My heart sank as I realised that he was about to sign the contract, making our stay in New York more final.

I glanced up at my father, only to see him looking at the phone in my hands, his face in an unreadable expression. He looked back at Ms.Perry, shooting her a smile before taking a deep breath, seemingly preparing himself for what he was about to do.

"Ms.Perry, I can't thank you enough for this job opportunity. My dream ever since I was a little kid had been to become a music composer, and here I am, about to live out my dream," he started off. "However, my daughter is more important to me than any job. Making her happy is my dream now, and it has been like that for the past seventeen years." My eyes widened at the implication of his words, shaking my head in disbelief at what he was doing.

"I can't sign the contract if it means making my daughter unhappy for the next two years. I know that she would eventually get over everything, but until that happens she will be hurting a lot, and I can't stand to see that. She came all the way over here just so I can follow my dream, she left her house, her friends, everyone, just to come with me, and honestly, I can't take all of that away from her, and see her so unhappy," he said, my mouth opening slightly in shock. I was stunned, not knowing what to say or do. He was about to give up everything for me, and I didn't know how to feel about that.

"Dad what are you saying?" I asked, my voice trembling.

"I'm saying that if you're so unhappy here, we can go back home," he replied, filling my heart with immense love for the man sitting beside me, who was willing to give up everything for my happiness.

"Dad, you can't give up everything for me," I said shaking my head, a tear slipping from my eyes. He had been through so much to get to the point he had, and once more I was going to be disrupting it all.

"Princess, you gave up everything for me. You gave up a lot more than I'm about to give up. I can always find another job, but you can never find friends as amazing as the ones you have back home," he continued as he nodded towards my phone, the photo that was sent to me still visible.

Ms.Perry cleared her throat, glancing between my father and I in thought. She smiled the moment her light blue orbs met mine, gently nodding. "Mr. Wilkinson, what you're about to do for your daughter is very sweet, and although it would be very sad for us to let someone as talented as you slip away, I understand that your daughter comes before everything. I happen to have a daughter as well, and if anything ever happens that makes her unhappy, I would do anything to bring back the smile on her face."

My dad smiled at her words before turning to look at me, seemingly waiting for an answer from me. I, on the other hand, just sat there, frozen. The only thing that could have made me happy was being offered to me, but I was afraid of what that would mean for my father. I saw how hard it was for him to find a job, and I couldn't risk him losing everything just for me. He was giving up so much.

"I-I don't know," I stuttered. "What about you?" I asked, his face softening at my question.

"Alright, I'll tell you what. If you decide to stay, I would like to give you, Kelsey, the chance to audition for one of my friend's upcoming movies. Looking at the beautiful person you are, I feel like you would be fit for the role," Ms.Perry started off, making me look at her with my mouth agape, my mind needing to take a while to process the fact that that woman was offering to make all of my dreams come true.

"However, if you feel like you want to go home I will do whatever it takes to find your father a job as closest to you as possible. I know people, and they might be happy to have such a great man working for them," she continued.

I blinked rapidly, wanting to make sure that the beautiful soul in front of me was not just a fruit of my imagination. She genuinely seemed like she wanted to help us, and I couldn't thank her enough. Her offer made the choice even more difficult for me, especially since both offers had something with the potential to make me happy. On one side stood my dream of becoming an actress and the possibility to inspire multiple other people, but on the other stood my chance to be with Ethan, Meg, Noah, and the rest of them back home.

"I don't know what to say, thank you Mrs. Perry. We will go and think about it and I'll call you," My dad said as he stood up, shaking her hand.

"As you wish." The smile she was wearing on her face made her look even more beautiful than she was before. Her daughter must have been very lucky to have a mother as gorgeous and as caring as her.

"Thank you so much. Your daughter is very lucky to have you, Ms.Perry," I said as I took her outreached hand and shook it.

"I do all I possibly can to make people happy honey," she smiled. "And remember, no matter what decision you make, it will be the perfect decision if you follow your heart."

I nodded, her motherly advice meaning more to me than she could have possibly thought. That advice was the kind which I knew my mother would have given me, and despite not knowing what decision to make, I knew that my heart would let me know when the time came.

The car ride to taco bell was quiet, my father and I both absorbed in our own thoughts. Both my father and I's faith stood in my hands, and I was petrified of making the wrong choice. My father insisted that he would be happy with no matter what I chose, but I couldn't help wonder whether he was being honest, or simply saying that because he was putting me before himself.

"Thank you for what you did back there dad," I finally said as we were eating. "I'm so blessed and lucky to have you."

"It was honestly no problem baby girl, and you heard Mrs. Perry, I will have a job either way, so this decision is up to you. I'm happy as long as you are, and I need you to remember that," he said as if having read my previous thoughts.

"Thanks dad, I'll think about it," I replied as I gave him a kiss on the cheek and ran upstairs, knowing that I had a very tough decision to make.

An offer like the one Ms.Perry made me was a once in a lifetime thing, which certainly did not come around everyday. Was my lifelong dream worth being away from everybody who mattered to me? Was going home better than achieving what I had always wanted to? The decision only became more difficult as the time passed, and I could feel myself becoming sick to my stomach as I could not find an answer.

*Listen to the song...Listen to it on loop if possible till the end of the chapter :P*

I looked over to the bedside table, noticing the CD player my father had gotten me for me to be able to listen to Noah and Ethan's songs. Ethan's words came to mind, reminding me that there was a specific track he wanted me to listen to. Taking the player and placing it on my lap, I pressed on the last song, my heart beating, not knowing what I was expecting. My cheeks instantly started to heat up as I heard the song, the lyrics making my eyes widen. I was about to turn off the track as soon as the song finished, but Ethan's voice stopped me halfway, making my heart stop beating.

'Hey princess. You're half way across the world right now, and even though you haven't left yet while I'm recording this, I already miss you like crazy. I agreed to your decision to break up because you were right, but that won't ever stop me from being in love with you. The thought of you finding love with someone else breaks me. I love you, and I want to see you happy, but I kind of want to see you happy with me, and our three children,' he said, chuckling in the last part.

I was so emotional that I couldn't even get myself to cry, realising that I was a bit too emotional. The raw emotion in Ethan's words hit me, and I found myself entranced by the beautiful sound of his voice.

'I want you to know that I will always be here for you, I love you so freaking much Kelsey, I'm madly in love with you. No one has ever made me feel this way. Being with you drives me crazy, and you've flipped my whole world upside down in the best of ways. I mean every word sung in this song baby girl. You are my princess, my whole entire world. and I'm so proud of you for being so supportive of your dad. Maybe you'll get an offer to do what you love, and I will be right here supporting you and being proud of everything you've achieved. However I beg of you, please don't forget me or the love we shared. I doubt that I will ever find someone that makes me as happy as you did, and constantly do. You make my heart feel funny, you are the light of my life, and no one can compare to you. I love you my princess.'

As Ethan stopped talking my tears started falling uncontrollably, my sobs making me feel breathless. I couldn't explain the emotions brought to me by that one message, but they all added up to the same conclusion. I was happy to have found someone as amazing as Ethan, and I admired him more than he could ever realise. I was in love with everything he did, and I found myself turning into a fool just for that one boy.

Placing the CD player back on the bedside table, I ran downstairs next to my dad. Smiling through my tears, I told him the one thing which I had been wanting to tell him ever since we stepped foot in that country.

"Dad, let's go home."

A/N: Hey guyssss, OMG I'm in love with this chapter, we finally know how Ethan really feels about Kelsey, I mean we knew he loved her but not that he was such a sweetheart <3 OMG I'm shipping them so hard right now I can only imagine what you guys must be feeling. I hope I earn flowers, preferably roses, thanks to this chapter U.U

Anyways, sadly the book has almost come to an end. There are only 2/3 chapters left and before you say anything I want you to understand that I can't keep stretching a book out because eventually it will become less interesting and I also will not be doing a sequel because honestly I'm not a fan of sequels, even movie sequels. But as I said I will be doing bonus chapters, the first one will come out exactly after the last chapter and the rest of the bonus chapters I will leave up to you. After the book finishes I will ask you guys what bonus chapters you would like, like if maybe you want to see how a certain thing happened like maybe...How the kids happened *wink* No just kidding you don't have to ask that xD

This is a family friendly book everyone, let's keep it that way! But yeah you get the idea.

Anyways enough with this boring thing. I'll see you guys on Wednesday

Stay perfect,

Love,

~M