Chapter 3: Emrys's P.O.V.

~ About 8 years since Emrys's last POV, he is now 30 ~ ************************************************* "Let me come with you darling," Stella said as I tried to rush to the exit. "No, Stella, and stop calling me darling," I said, annoyed. "We are not together. Get it through your head already." "Oh, you always say that Em," she said as she smoothed out my suit jacket. I rolled my eyes. "I broke up with you years ago, Stella," I stated sternly. "Yeah, but how many times have we slept together since then?" She asked. I pressed my lips into a thin line, knowing she was right. "Face it Em, you and I belong together. We might be on and off, but that's only because you have commitment issues," Stella said. "Still, I'm the only one you always come back to. I'm not giving up on you, Emrys. I can handle your playboy ways. One day, you'll love me back." I sighed as I grabbed Stella's hands and pulled them from my chest. "Stella, I understand your feelings, and I am very sorry that I've led you on for so long. However, it's time for you to give up. I do not want a relationship. Not with you or anyone else. Ever. You know I don't want to be tied down," I said. "And as for me coming back to you... Well, we both know that isn't true, Stella. You seek me out. You wait until I'm drunk. You're just... there." Stella scoffed. "Good luck sleeping with anyone else then. I'll spread rumors about you-" "Emrys, you ready to go?" Ellie asked as she walked up to me. Stella glared at Ellie, but I was not having any of this. "You can make all the threats you want, Stella. There's more to life than se.x, and there are a lot more people out there that would sleep with me than just in this industry." I said lowly. "Plus... we both know how the women are in our industry. You tell them to stay away, and they're going to flock to me. Just to shove it in your smug face. So, by all means, go ahead." I gave Stella one last smirk before turning on my heel. I put my hand on the small of Ellie's back, and ushered her towards the exit. She glanced back at Stella before quickening her pace. Stella is just going mad. I know we've been... sort of on and off for years now. I never gave Stella the impression that I was serious though. Ever. Stella just wanted it so badly that she made it all up in her head. Still, that doesn't mean that I should have led her on. I should just have let go. I should have had more self-control. Stella always manages to find me when I'm drunk though. The moment we were outside, Ellie's dark brown eyes lit up. She bolted from my side and I watched her throw herself into the arms of her boyfriend. Nick. Yes, the boy from the hallway the night of my disastrous 16th birthday party. Little did I know that Nick had a huge crush on Ellie. I should have seen it. It was so obvious. Even Ellie knew. Which is sort of what started their romance. They've been dating for the last four years, and they have come a long way. A couple of weeks ago, Nick even asked Duncan and I for permission to marry Ellie. Duncan said yes right away, but I made Nick squirm a little. Eventually, we both said yes, and Nick asked if he could do it tonight. Tonight is one of Duncan's fancy gallery parties. Tons of eccentric artsy people. Good snack-ish food. Free drinks. And a nice surprise for Ellie. "Shall we go now?" Ellie asked. "Duncan is blowing my phone up." ******************** A few hours later, and most of the people had left. The party had completely died down. There were only a few stragglers left that were either too drunk to move, or didn't want the party to be over. Duncan and I were lounging on the patio watching Nick and Ellie dance to a slow song. "They look so cute," Duncan commented. "Yeah," I said before sipping my drink. "Ellie isn't a little girl anymore." My best friend did really well with this place. Duncan sure has an eye for this world. His gallery is mostly an open floor plan. The walls are dark to accentuate the art hanging on them. Small lights lit up every piece of art he has up. Everything is elegant and sophisticated. Quite a contrast to Duncan's personality if I'm going to be honest. I feel a lot less worried about Duncan now. About both of them, actually. Ellie has a fantastic job. She'll probably never need help from me again. Now she has Nick. Duncan has this place. His dreams have come true, and now he gets to spend the rest of his life doing what he loves. He makes almost as much money as I do these days. I no longer have to worry about them. Which is what I wanted. I wanted to set them up so that money was never an issue again. So that they could have everything they ever wanted. And I'm unbelievably happy for them and all of their accomplishments. Now I just... need to figure out what to do next. ************************** ~ Four years later, Emrys is now 34~ ************************** Four years have gone by and nothing has changed. Not with me anyway. I'm still modeling, and have even had a few minor acting roles. Not sure any of that was for me. I'm not sure if this life is even for me anymore. I'm 34-years-old, and I am still thriving in my industry. At this age, most men don't get a lot of work. In the modeling world, most careers are over by the time you hit 29. The only two exceptions these days: Me and Stella. Stella and I just must age well. Though, I'm sure that Stella has spent millions on her face, making sure that she looked as young as possible for as long as possible. For me, it was different. I could tell because... well, because it's my face and body. I've also never had work done. I'm pretty sure I just don't age. Obviously, at some point I did. I mean, I was ten-years-old when I was found wandering that forest. I've grown since then, but... It's like I just stopped after reaching adulthood. I still get ID'd when I go places. Sometimes I get offered minor roles for high school students. Or offers to model for new school clothes. I'm perfect. Like a Greek God or something. Just another thing to add to my list of freaky traits. Most people would be happy about this, but for me... It just raises more questions. Am I really not aging? What happens when I'm 80 and still look 22? What do I do then? Will the government kidnap me? Expierment on me? Damn, I sound like Duncan now. Speaking of Duncan, the last four years have been good to him. Duncan started seeing a girl. A lovely young lady who's actually friends with Ellie. Her name is Ivy and she's a reporter. Ivy and Duncan have been dating for about a year now. I've never seen him serious about a girl before. It's kind of adorable. Ellie and Nick got married two years ago. Duncan and I walked Ellie down the aisle to give her away in place of her father. Their wedding wasn't huge, since Duncan and I were the only family Ellie had. It was still the best night of her life though. And Ellie is now pregnant with their first child. She's due in only three months, and they're having a boy. Duncan and I have been going a little... crazy over the excitement of a baby. Ellie keeps saying that we're going to spoil her baby rotten. With the way that things are going between Duncan and Ivy these days... I can just see them getting hitched next and popping our a few gremlins of their own. I think it's only a matter of time now. Bitterness started to fill my heart, but I tried to shrug it off. I am happy for my friends. This is all I ever wanted for Ellie and Duncan. A normal life full of happiness. I wanted them to reach every single goal, but now that they have... I'm not sure what's next. My plan was always simple. Model because it makes me a ton of money. Do what I have to do to stay in the game. Send Duncan and Ellie to college. Make sure they are set for life. But I never thought about what I would do after that. I never thought about what would come after they were set for life. After they started their own families, and had their own careers. Did I... really think that I would be taking care of them for the rest of their lives? Not to mention the fact that seeing them both in happy relationships made me a bit jealous. I wanted happiness like that. I wanted to look at someone with that amount of affection and trust. Hell, I would have even taken meeting a girl that made my heart skip a beat. None of that was happening for me though. I even started to tame my playboy ways. I still do what I want with who I want, but I'm much quieter about it these days. Still, I tried to go on actual dates. Actually, take things seriously here and there. It never worked for more than a couple of weeks. I was just... disinterested and the women I was with knew it. I hadn't had those terrible dreams in so long. That blonde girl finally stopping haunting me every night. The feelings of guilt and shame that I tried too hard to push down finally started to subside. Enough that I thought I could really maybe be happy in the way that my friends are. I should have known better. I sipped my whiskey when my phone started to vibrate on the bartop. I looked at it, hoping it wasn't another random number that I knew would be Stella. Instead, I was relieved to see that it was Duncan. "Yo," I answered lamely. "Hey man, where you at? Stella just called us looking for you." He said. I sighed as I pinched the bridge of my nose. "I dumped her." I stated. "She didn't handle it well, and I walked out." "Uh... okay, I am all for dumping Stella, the woman is a leech. However, did you have to do it on New Year's Eve?" He replied. "It just... happened," I muttered. "Well, I told her you weren't here. You know she's going to show up." Duncan said. "You want me to text you when I get rid of her?" "Yeah," I said with a sigh. "Where are you now?" Duncan asked. I looked around. "I dunno, mate." I replied. "Some... dive bar a few miles from my apartment. A place I'd never be caught dead in. Been here for a few hours already." "Alright, well, I'll let you know when Stella leaves. It's almost midnight now, but the party will be raging for a while, so make sure you come, alright?" Duncan said. "Yeah, yeah," I muttered before hanging up. God, what was I thinking trying something serious with Stella? She was already crazy enough as it was. I shouldn't have been so stupid. Maybe it's time for me to move on from this life completely. I already don't care for the modeling life. I don't want to act or be famous at all really. Maybe I can... travel for a while. Maybe I can search for other people like me- "Sorry, excuse me," someone said from right next to me. "Are you Emrys?"