The Fairest Stars

Chapter Thirty Two: 'Parting is such sweet sorrow.'

ONE YEAR (and a bit) LATER

Isis couldn’t quite believe she was here. Had you told her a year ago that she’d be at theatre college in a year’s time, she would have laughed, knowing it to be almost impossible.

But here she was, putting her things in order in her room, not at Lear College, but at another college, one relatively nearby to where she lived, and one which had, miraculously, offered her another full scholarship.

She’d had to give up the first scholarship. Though she’d been desperate to go to university, and Harry had urged her to go, he’d soon gotten so ill that the doctors didn’t think that he’d live more than a few months. She’d cancelled all of her plans, dropped everything, and focused entirely on nursing him back to health the best she could. And, of course, she’d had to give up on going to university. She wouldn’t have had time.

Hanging her last piece of clothing neatly in the provided cupboard, Isis surveyed her new room with a satisfied smile. Since her mother had dropped her off, she’d been working hard to get as settled in as she could, liking to be as organised as she could.

Though her mother had been through a few bouts of deeper depression during the previous year, overall, she’d transformed from the woman she had previously been, refusing to leave the house. Going out of the house more frequently as she got used to being around people, she had flourished, and ended up getting a job, something which Isis was very proud of her for. The job had meant extra income, too, so Seb had been able to focus on getting a better job than the one he already had, moving up the ranks at one of the fast food outlets to take on more responsibility. Her mother had most recently bought a small car, and had been practising her driving once more, which saved Isis a great deal of walking.

Isis herself had got a job too, working in the fancy dress shop with the wizened old man who told her tales of how he and his wife had met, and made her laugh with his sayings. He’d asked her once about Kael, but, seeing the stricken expression on her face at the mention of his name, he’d nodded, and immediately changed the subject.

Isis hadn’t seen Kael for a long time, only once since they’d ended things, when they picked up their exam results after the summer. They’d made eye contact across the room, and her heart had felt suddenly choked as if she was about to pass out. She had had to swallow the feelings that had risen in her chest, made harder by the pained look in his eyes as he smiled grimly at her before turning and vanishing out of the door. All hopes she’d had that he would move on and find someone else suddenly seemed futile. It didn’t look like she’d ever see him again, except for in her dreams, where the memories of those brief months they’d had together haunted her, replaying themselves, sometimes adapting themselves so that they could stay together forever.

But that hadn’t worked out, had it? She needed to stop thinking about him, really. It had been over a year now, and she really should have got over it. Had she, in reality? No. Not at all.

With a sigh, Isis got up. Best not to think about Kael. That always lead to feeling miserable, and when she was in this incredible place, she didn’t want to be miserable at all.

Picking up some of the sheets of paper which the college had requested that she read, she locked the door of her room, and went off, in search of somewhere to sit and enjoy the sunshine.