Chapter 44

Until the Day That I Die

Abbie shook me awake at seven in the morning. I groaned and sat up, my tongue felt all furry and my eyes felt icky from crying myself to sleep.

"It's about time to go," she said. "You sure this is what you want?"

I nodded groggily. "Last night, when we had sex… he hurt me."

"Hurt you? What do you mean?"

"He was really… aggressive… He was drunk and pissed off and… he's lost everything and he can't handle it. He can't handle stress and I don't wanna raise my baby around someone like that!"

She shook her head. "I wish I could just leave you, but I know you wouldn't go back to Elliot, you'd go live in a box or something dumb like that." She sighed "Why'd you two have sex, anyway? Couldn't you just talk or something?"

"He didn't wanna talk. He was upset, Abbs. I guess he just wanted to do something mindless."

"I suppose," she muttered. "Well, get the rest of your shit together, Luke will be here in about twenty minutes, and then we're all gonna hit the road."

I was happy about leaving Park Hills, since the only really great memories I had in the town were with Elliot. It just killed me that I would never see him again. I kept reminding myself that it was my choice, but that didn't really help.

The drive to St. Louis was depressing. All I could think about was what I was throwing away, but for some reason I just couldn't turn around, not after I'd much such a big deal about leaving. We'd mostly moved in, I just had a few boxes to unpack. All of the big furniture was already arranged, so I went straight to my new room and flopped down on the bed. I had to suck it up, I was living with two of my closest friends, I would be fine.

Well, it didn't take me long to realize things weren't going to be as peachy as I'd hoped they would be. I'd ended up changing my phone number because I'd gotten so many calls from Elliot and the guys. Hearing their voices killed me, so I decided that running away was the best solution; lame, I know. To top it all off, I was feeling lonelier than ever. I got so jealous whenever I watched Luke get all excited when Abbie's baby kicked.

A miserable five months later I gave birth to Ava Rose. It was the first happy day I'd had since leaving Elliot. It was bittersweet though, since I was alone in the delivery room. Abbie had just had her baby, so she wasn't really up to coming with me. Things started getting better after I had Ava, though, I had someone to get up for every morning. She was the spitting image of her father and she was almost always happy. I knew she'd grow up to be gorgeous; and, no, I wasn't just saying that because I was her mother. I'd gotten a job waitressing at a bar downtown. I hated it, and the people were mostly assholes, but it kept Ava fed and clothed, so it as going to have to do until I could find something better. Abigail had a baby boy, and she and Luke had named him Alexander James. The two babies made a hell of a lot of noise, but none of us regretted keeping them.

Ava and I sat in front of the TV on Christmas Eve. Abbie, Luke, and Alex were at the grocery store shopping for Christmas dinner. It was hard to believe that this time last year I'd been in Alabama with El. A year had passed so quickly. It seemed odd that now, I didn't even know where he was. Every time I looked at my little girl I felt a pang of guilt over breaking his heart. My mind began to wander, and soon I found myself replaying the peaks of my relationship with Elliot. The sound of the front door opening snapped me back to reality.

"Chayse! I brought you a present! Luke and I are taking Alex to the toy store, so I'll just leave it in the kitchen!" Abbie called excitedly, and the door shut again.

I didn't move from the couch. I wasn't really looking forward to Christmas this year. I should've been happy, since it was my baby's first, but it just felt so lonely. It was my own fault, I decided, but it didn't make it suck any less.

"Noah, go say hello to your sister," I heard Elliot's warm voice drawl.

I nearly dropped Ava. I had to be imagining things, had to be going insane. There was no way Elliot was here. I was too stunned to move.

"Baby!" I heard Noah chirp. He slowly made his way over to me and ran a hand over Ava's hair. My eyes instantly flooded with tears as I finally turned around and looked at my ex-boyfriend.

""Hello, Chayse," he said softly, he was biting his lip so hard that it had to be bleeding. His eyes began to water as quickly as mine had.

"What are you doing here?"

He ventured into the living room and took sat down on the loveseat. "I ran into Luke and Abbie at the store. I hardly ever make it over to this side of town, but Noah has been really picky about his food, and I can only find it at the Wal-Mart over here… I can't believe… seeing you again…. You look amazing."

He didn't look bad himself. His muscles were a little more defined, his face a little more angular, but his eyes lacked the spark they had once held.

"So this is my girl, huh?" he asked, beaming at the baby. "What's her name?"

"Ava Rose," I said, handing her over to him.

He took her from me, his eyes growing moist again. "Hi sweetie," he cooed. "God, if she isn't just the spittin' image…"

"She's beautiful, huh?"

"Very," he murmured, "You named her Ava… thank you."

"It was the least I could do. Elliot, I am so sorry. I just—"

"Shh. I know." He smiled slightly. "I went to rehab over the summer."


"Been clean ever since. I don't miss it as much as I thought I would… but I guess that's because I have Noah."

"Wait, what? Noah's living with you now!?"

He nodded solemnly. "Danielle…" He sighed. "Danielle was in a car accident. She didn't make it. I wanted you to come to the funeral, she would've wanted you there, but I didn't know where to find you." He frowned. "As much as I wanted to have Noah with me, I didn't want it like this."

The tears I had been holding back now ran down my cheeks. I couldn't believe it. The woman who had been so kind to me after I'd taken her place, the woman who had befriended me when I was all alone in Alabama, was gone. Noah had no mother, and Elliot had suffered yet another loss. I was just glad they had each other.

"Oh my God," I whispered. "When?"

"August 23. Right when I started my new job… it was tough." By the look on his face, I could tell "tough" was an understatement.

"So you got fired?" I felt so out of touch. So much had happened in six months.

"Well, Weaver made a deal with me. She didn't want to make it so I could never work again. I think deep down she always suspected we were together. She told me if I resigned, she wouldn't mention my relationship with you, so it wasn't too difficult to find work here in the city. I'm staying with Jess for now, but I plan to get an apartment over the summer. I'm just so busy right now." He shifted nervously, stroking Ava's cheek. "I'm doing all of the talking, what's new with you, Chayse?"

I blew out a big breath; he'd accomplished a ton since we'd parted ways. I'd done nothing, except for have a baby. "Not a whole lot, really. Waitressing at a bar downtown, it's called Redbirds, you know it?"

He grimaced. "Been there a couple times with Jess. It's not the best place for a pretty girl like you to be working. It's kind of a dive."

I barked a laugh. I'd sort of let myself go since I'd had Ava. I'd dropped a lot of the weight, but I rarely bothered to straighten my hair or put on make-up. I wasn't looking for a lover; I had no one to impress.

"Yeah right!"

"I'm being serious; you're just as beautiful as you always were."

It seemed strange that I felt so comfortable talking to Elliot. He didn't seem angry, like I'd always imagined he would be if we ever crossed paths.

"So, you seeing anyone?" He asked awkwardly.

I shook my head. "Right now I'm just focusing on my kid. I'd really like to move out, though. I adore Luke and Abbs, but it's awfully crowded, and I'm sure they'd love some alone time."

"I kinda feel the same way with Jess. He adores Noah and all, but he can be handful." He gave Ava back to me and grabbed his son before he could take any of the decorations off of the tree. "Don't break their pretty Christmas ornaments, champ." He smiled. "See what I mean?"

"Does he ask about Danielle?" I inquired, nodding towards Noah.

"Occasionally he cries for her, but he's too young to get it just yet. I'm hoping to find someone before he gets too old, so that he'll be close to her."

He stood up and moved to the couch, so he was sitting thigh-to-thigh with me. "I know I fucked up a lot, baby. I kick myself every day for all the mistakes I made. When you left, I didn't think I'd ever be able to forgive you, but it didn't take me long to realize it was my fault you ran away. I don't know how you managed to stay as long as you did… all I know is that I love you more than I've ever loved anyone Chayse, I never stopped. And even if you turn me down again, and I walk away feeling rejected, I'm still going to love you until the day that I die."

He drew in a shaky breath. "How would you feel about giving things another try? Starting all over? I'm different now, I'm clean, I'm working hard, I'm a dedicated father, and I'll be a good boyfriend, I swear to you. I know you've given me way more chances than I deserve, but I feel like this can work, and if I screw up again I promise I'll leave you alone forever… but I don't think I will. I think this will work… and even if it doesn't, at least we gave it a try."

I nodded, an enormous lump forming in my throat. "Okay. Let's do it. Like we never knew each other at all." I tried to put my feet up on the coffee table, so I'd look at ease; I was just hoping he wouldn't see how much I was panicking inside. I knocked over my glass of chocolate milk with my foot and I groaned. So much for not looking like I was have a fucking anxiety attack. At least this time it hadn't actually spilled on him.

"I'm Elliot," he said.

"I'm a freaking clumsy loser, but you can call me Chayse."


Well, everyone, the "chayse" is over! I guess he kinda ended up chasing her in the end. I know that I said two more chapters, but looks like I was wrong! I hope you guys enjoyed reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it! I'm feeling all emotional, this story has been a part of me for a long time, it'll feel weird not writing it! I appreciate all of your reviews, and your interest in my writing. I'm sure eventually I'll go through and edit, right now, my aunt is doing that for me!

Make sure to keep an eye out for my next story, if it does half as well as Chaysing Elliot, then I'll be very proud! I'm going to hope to see a lot of your names on my new reviews, I'll miss you, if not!

Aww... My final Chaysing El Review Replies. '

Holly Young--Glad you loved it!

A. Nicole-- Aww, sorry my story made people look at you funny! I hope this ending doesn't make you wanna cry anymore! It shouldn't!

IGNIS Elementi--Yes, but all is well that ends well.

Miss Deelylah Rose-- I hope that this unbreaks your heart!

Miss Retro--And my final update is pretty quick, too!

OTPieCrystal--Well, thanks for reviewing! Poor Elliot was devestated, now he's undevestated.

Phantom'sluv--I could never let my story end so sadly!

HopelessDreamer07--Originally he wasn't going to get caught, but a brilliant friend of mine suggested it.

kate1689--Well, they're not married, but they'll be happy.

Mindy--I know it was sad. :

VanillaxO--Yes, Chayse is super angsty.

karate369--I think you'd be the only one to buy it!

blondiexoxo--There's really not enough drama to write a sequel! But I'll have a new story very soon!

Melody--This story drove me nuts, too.

Indian Princess--don't worry, no one understood Chayse's reasoning.

Alenor--but they live happily ever after

KL-90--Well, she didn't exactly go back to him, but it worked out!

bLuESkYBaBy--Well, all the depression can be over now!

Mistress-K99--Our dear Chayse isn't the brightest crayon in the box, I'm afraid.

cheesenips--El is my favorite too, don't tell Chayse.

Stefucknie--you and the rest of the world.

Mariah--Yes, poor El is quite damaged.

The Jury--Don't feel guilty for not reviewing, at least you reviewed last chapter!

reallyinnocent2007--Well, I'm sorry if this wasn't all you expected.

Marisa Gittinger--Well, glad I got you hooked, and now it's alllll over!

Thanks again for reading guys! You all mean the world to me!