Warning: if you haven't read CME yet but plan to do so, this chapter will include spoilers for that story (a brief summary). If you don't plan on reding Call Me Ella then don't mind and just read freely.

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I was right, Cece has no trouble making Ariel feel at ease. He has her laughing and smiling honestly in no time. I know that even if I'm not around Cece will look after her, and for some reason I have a feeling he sees Ariel as his own child already.

At some point, when I'm about to leave because I still have work to do at the office, I feel someone grabbing my arm and making me turn around. I encounter brown eyes and a very agitated Gareth, almost as if he just ran here. He even takes a few seconds to catch his breath while I just stare at him, surprised he's here.

"I thought if I didn't run I wouldn't catch you. You disappear so fast lately. Sometimes I even doubt I saw you at all," he says and I feel terrible for acting like this, but I need space to learn to control my own emotions and to help me move on. If I stay around him I'll only fall harder.

"I'm sorry," I mutter, looking down and then at the hand that is still holding my wrist. "I didn't think it was so much work."

"I understand. It's just... a pity you're not around. It's not the same," he says and I can't help it, my eyes dart towards his face, meeting his gaze and noticing that small smile that stirs my heart. "I mean, who will stop Jerry now?"

I chuckle lightly, breaking the eye contact. "He's an awarded director. He can't ruing the film. I mean, not that much," I say but Gareth looks concerned, so I laugh again. "I still have meetings with him and try to make sure he's not going crazy and making out of Typhoon another teen romance."

"I'd be great if you could do that and still be around," he mumbles and I can't meet his eyes. His voice is melancholic and I have the feeling he misses me... almost as much as I miss him. But if I ever want to be around him without feeling like this, so hopeless and fragile, then I need to avoid him for a little bit longer.

"You know how important doing a good job is for me. I'm really giving my hundred and ten percent here," I whisper. I don't know why we're talking in such low voices.

"I know and you have my total support but still..."
I look at him, meeting his eyes once again just so he can see I'm doing this for the best. I think he knows pretty well that I was basically exposing my heart when I asked him about relationships. And I know he consciously rejected me. The way he looked in my eyes when he said he wouldn't pursue a relationship no matter what was as if he was talking to me. I'm almost positive he is aware of my feelings, but he also considers me his friend and he is sorry it has turned to this.

I want to tell him it's okay, I'm doing this for the two of us. I just need him to understand why I'm staying away.

He lets go of my wrist and I think he does now. Somehow, he can read exactly what I want him to see in my eyes and he is letting me go.

I bow my head in a goodbye to which he just nods, before I walk past him, away from the set and towards the car that is waiting for me. I leave Gareth behind, but the ache in my heart stays with me for the whole day.

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Although I spend a lot of my limited free time with Cece and Pete, today I want to talk to someone who doesn't know about this. Someone who will not try to cheer me up because my first love failed like this. I love Cece and Pete to pieces, but I don't want to keep talking about Gareth to them, as if the actor was the only worry in my life.

That is why I end up visiting Ella at the end of the day when I'm heading home. She is not working at this time, but I text her to join me for dinner now that I'm back in town, and she agrees merrily. That's how we meet at the same café we went before and seeing her makes me already feel better. There's something about Ella that I like. Maybe it's her strong and independent aura, or that happy smile that invites you to smile, as well, no matter what hardships you're going through. Or maybe she's just delightful and I like her.

"Ann! It's been so long. How are you doing? I'm so glad you texted me. I was wondering if something had swallowed you up," she jokes as I take a seat across from her.

"Paperwork swallowed me whole!" I joke along, her fake shocked expression makes me laugh. "I've been really busy with work. Producing a film isn't your regular job."

"I bet! Are you even having fun or enjoying it? Because otherwise it's just torture," comments Ella and my smile comes naturally.

"Despite everything, yes, I enjoy it. It's hard and overwhelming, but I like it and I'm learning a lot," I reply.

Ella gives me one big and happy smile, but her green eyes look concerned. "Then why do you look so blue? It doesn't seem to be just exhaustion," the blonde girl points out, surprising me with her sharp senses. "You have to be blind not to notice the difference between the girl I met and the girl in front of my eyes now. And I'm not talking about the haircut, which by the way suits you a lot."

A small chuckle escapes me. Ella reminds me a bit of Cece, that ability to make even a serious question seem a bit lighter with their humour. It certainly makes it easier for one to open up. It takes a bit of the pressure away.

"It's such a personal thing. Nothing that anyone else hasn't gone through," I reply, trying to dismiss the issue but Ella doesn't even blink.
Luckily, the waiter comes at that moment to take our order. So we get some of their special sandwiches and drinks. Whilst we wait, Ella pushes me with her stare. She doesn't say a thing, she just looks at me, waiting for me to give in and tell her what's wrong. It makes me very nervous and I realise now that I would totally succumb under any interrogation. I'm not good under pressure. I'd blurt out all I know. Goodbye, government secrets!

"It's just that... I like someone but he doesn't like me back and that has me feeling a bit sad, that's all. Nothing extraordinary, you see?" I finally confess, Ella nods, her serious look not changing.
"I think it's more than just liking, considering how sad you are about it. And how do you know he doesn't like you back?" she asks next and I can't help the deep sigh I heave.

"More than not liking me back it's that he doesn't want any sort of relationship and he doesn't really believe in love. He told me looking me right in the eyes that no matter what he would never pursue a relationship. So he basically shot down all my hopes with that, and I'm pretty sure he did that consciously so I would start working on moving on instead of falling deeper," I explain and Ella's expression changes, becoming softer and a bit distant, as if her mind wasn't really here.
"From my own experience I can tell that not believing in love won't save you from actually falling in love," she says next and now I'm the one looking at her with intensity and curiosity.

She chuckles, understanding I'm dying to know more about that, hoping to even get a bit of hope for myself out of her past experience. But the waiter comes back right then to deliver our order so Ella can't continue. However, once we are alone I lean forward, resting my elbows on the table and cupping my face in an expectant posture. I don't have to utter a request for her to know I want to hear her story.

"It's been over two years now, and you know what? It's still vivid in my mind," she starts and I want to squeal in excitement. "My family has a retreat centre for celebrities, maybe you have heard of it considering you're in the industry." My expression must tell her I don't know of any retreat centre for celebrities. "Doesn't matter. The point is, I worked there and during my last summer before I started uni, I met certain guy. You need to know that I was the worst back then," she laughs.

"How so?" I ask, completely ignoring my sandwich.

"I hated all celebrities alike. It was because of my stepmother, you know? My way to fight her and rebel. Childish, if you ask me, but well, my world was very narrowed back then and I practically lived to go against her." It's hard for me to understand that attitude, but I try to respect her and understand her. "So even if I didn't know this guy, I hated him just for being a celebrity. I didn't even give him a chance, you know?

"Every summer there's a ball and because it is also during my birthday, I joined that one. It was a masked dance, and it was just another way to rebel against my stepmother, by doing something she disapproved of. Anyhow, in that dance I spent almost all my time with him, unaware of who he was. For as long as he had his mask on, I didn't see him as a celebrity and gave him a chance.
"Long story short, I ran away from that dance without telling him who I was and I thought the story would end there. But he looked for me after that. Without knowing he was the same guy I danced with I started to give him a chance to get to know him. After I learnt who he really was I still kept quiet about our meeting during the ball, yet I continued meeting him, growing closer.

"You know what happened, right? I fell for him and I thought he just liked the girl he met at the ball and didn't see the real me. It happened that he always knew it was me, even before I knew it. And that's how me, a girl who hated all celebrities alike, ended falling in love with one and learning many things along the way. I grew up a lot as a person after that."

"Are you still together?" I ask, trying to contain my excitement after hearing such story.

"No. I told you I lived to go agains my stepmother, right? Well, she knew that as well and played her game perfectly, making me break up with him. When I fixed that I decided not to go after him. Even if I loved him so much, I thought he didn't deserve to be with someone who had defined herself in terms of hatred. I needed to get to know myself first before being with someone else. So no, we're not together. A part of me still misses him, a lot, and I guess there will always be a piece of my heart that belongs only to him, but that wasn't the time for us. By now it doesn't even hurt that much to think of him and I can actually talk about him without feeling like my heart is being ripped off."

I cover my mouth with my hands, not knowing exactly what to say to that.

"I don't regret what happened. It was one of the best moments of my life, even if it was brief. I see him everywhere," she chuckles. "He's that famous. But when I see him I just feel warm inside now, because he brought so many good things to my life. He taught me many things and helped me get rid of my own hatred."

"Who is he, if I can be so bold to ask?"

"Niall Horan, from One Direction," Ella confesses and my mind is blown.

"Really? Wow! Just today I met his band mate, Harry," I tell her and her eyes look so affectionate.
"Oh that idiot... how is he? I miss him, too. He's such a pushover," Ella laughs and even if her words are insults, she says them with such tenderness that I can only tell she actually loves him, too. Very differently from how she loves Niall, though.

"He's great. Looked extremely happy," I reply and her smile makes me want to call Ariel right now so she can call Harry and bring him over. But I have a feeling Ella wouldn't like that.

"I'm glad. Maybe one day our paths will cross again. I like to think our fates are somehow connected," Ella comments and by the tone of her voice I can tell she doesn't want to look for them, she wants to leave that to destiny, and I respect that.

"If you ever wanna meet him again, let me know. I can make that happen," I wink, making her laugh.
"I'll have it in consideration. But Ann," Ella says, her voice more serious now. "Don't try to move on. You can't force that to happen and being in love is actually a wonderful thing. You should enjoy your own feelings. And unless he pushes you away, then you should be happy and have fun. You won't ever have another first love. Don't kill it that fast. And you know, sometimes your own feelings tear down all your conceptions and even ideologies, so don't give up just yet. He might surprise you in the future."

Her words are so nice and invigorating, hopeful and honest. And I find myself that I want to believe her. I want to listen to her and do as told.

"Thank you, Ella. You're right. And who knows? Maybe without trying I'll naturally move on."

"Who knows?" she repeats after me, still smiling. "He might naturally fall for you, too."
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Did you miss Ella? She will keep appearing in the story (; let me know your thoughts about this chapter.

I can't give the dedication today to the best previous comment because I'm updating from my phone but I'll look for it and edit this when I can.

Bel, xx
NU: Tuesday