Goodbye

                                    

                                          
A/N
This is kind of a short chapter, sorry. Only one more chapter after this :((
I walk into the arena for what will be the last time, and I feel a sense of sadness overcome me. For the past few months, this place has been a home to me, and now I won't be coming back. Jamie told me to just come straight to the locker room when I spoke to him on the phone earlier. As I make my way down the hall, I see Chris. 
My blood turns cold at the sight of him. I freeze in my tracks when he turns around though. There, right around his eye, is an enormous black and yellow bruise. I let a small chuckle escape my mouth and walk past him with a smirk on my face. Serves him right. I don't even know how he got it, I'm just glad it happened.
When I enter the locker room, the chatter comes to a stop. Much like my first day here, all of the attention is on me. I see Tyler sitting at his locker, and his eyes are glued to mine intensely. I hear a chorus of "Hey Heather!" and Jamie comes up to me.
"I'm glad you came to say goodbye." He says and pulls me into a hug. He holds me for a few seconds, and then Jordie pulls me into his arms. 
"You know you're like a little sister to me. I'm going to miss you." He whispers in my ear and I chuckle a little despite the tears falling from my eyes. It is then that I notice he has a bandage wrapped around his hand, and I come to a sudden realization. He gave Chris that gnarly bruise. Jordie sees that I notice his hand, and gives me a little smirk. 
"I'll miss you too." I say to him with a grin and Lehtonen pulls me into a hug after, then spins me around. I laugh as he sets me back on the ground.
"Good luck in Toronto." He says and I muster a smile for him.
"Thank you." A few of the other guys say goodbye to me, but none of them are the guy that I really want to say goodbye to. I hesitantly walk over to Tyler and stand in front of him. He doesn't say anything as I take off the necklace he gave me, and set it in his lap. 
"I love you, Tyler. So much." I whisper and place a soft kiss on his cheek. He looks up at me slowly, and I can tell he his speechless. I leave the locker room, and Jamie walks me out to my taxi.
"Good luck in Toronto, Heather." He says quietly, and if I'm not mistaken his eyes are getting a little misty. 
"Thank you. Call me anytime, I can guarantee I will always answer." I tell him and he pulls me in for one more hug. Once we pull away, I get in my cab. Before I can close my door, the arena doors are shoved open and I see Tyler running out of them.
"Heather, wait!" He yells and my heart beat speeds up. I apologize to the driver and step out of the cab again. 
"What?" I ask him, and I watch as Jamie gives me a wink and walks back inside.
"Do you mean it?"
"Mean what?" I ask, though I have a good idea of what he is talking about. 
"Do you love me?" He asks.
"Yes. And I always will." I answer confidently. 
"Then why did you do it? Why did you kiss him?" He asks. I can tell he is getting frustrated, and honestly I'm starting to get frustrated too. 
"I didn't kiss him. Why are you being so stubborn to believe I did? I would never do something like that to you. I don't have time for this; I have a flight to catch. Ask Jamie what really happened. He actually listened to me and believed me when I told him." I say and get back into my cab. I watch Tyler's regretful face as I drive away. 
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Tyler's face is the only thing on my mind as I wait for take off. His gray eyes seemed to gain a bit of their color back after I told him I loved him. I'm happy I could do that for him. I just wish things didn't get so screwed up between us.
As the plane takes off down the runway, I reach for my necklace. When I touch my bare neck, I remember I gave it back to Tyler and I regret that decision immediately. I grip the arm rests instead and suddenly we are thousands of miles in the air, headed for Toronto. 
When the flight is finally over, I find my bags and then head across town to check into my hotel. It's pretty luxurious, and actually a lot better than my apartment back in Dallas. Dallas. I haven't even been gone a day and I'm already homesick. I pull out my horoscope to get my mind off of things.
Libra: Don't be discouraged by your new surroundings. You may receive a surprise very soon.
I ponder over my horoscope for a bit, but decide that it's right. I need to embrace this new opportunity, not resent it. Even though my heart is breaking, I will keep my head held high.