There were three days left until Noelle's flight.
Jessica sent her a photo of Shawn grilling something by the seaside. "He brought me to Moldova for a holiday as a reward for carrying his child! He told me to lie here and let him handle the cooking since I'm pregnant."
Noelle didn't reply. She merely invited a few close friends out to have a final gathering. After all, it was likely they would never see each other again. She had a lot of fun during the gathering.
…
There were two days left until her flight.
Jessica sent her another photo of Shawn reading a book titled "What to Expect When You're Expecting".
Jessica: "Looks like our new daddy is really concerned about his child. The baby's barely the size of a bean in my belly, but his father is already talking to him every day."
Noelle still didn't reply. She went to the bank to convert all the money she had to Nelorian dollars. Then, she canceled all her bank cards.
…
There was one day left until Noelle's flight.
This time, Jessica sent her a video. It showed a romantic fireworks show over the sea. Jessica was so touched that she cried, and Shawn comforted her tenderly. "Why are you crying? There will only be more surprises like this in the future."
Jessica: "He reserved the whole island for me and bought out all the fireworks they had in Moldova to celebrate my birthday."
So, it was Jessica's birthday. Noelle supposed this was a double celebration—the news of the pregnancy and Jessica's birthday came at around the same time.
She merely smiled faintly after watching the video. Then, she called a local charity organization. "Hi, I'd like to donate some clothes for people in the mountainous regions."
Not long after, a representative from the organization arrived in a car. Noelle had packed everything while Shawn was away. There were five huge bags of clothes and shoes. She donated all of them, leaving nothing behind.
As for personal items like her identification, degree certificate, and daily necessities, Noelle brought them to a crematorium and paid them to burn them for her.
When she returned to the home she'd lived in for five years, she couldn't help finding the place unfamiliar. She'd cleaned the place so thoroughly that there were no longer any traces of her ever being there. All she brought with her was a satchel containing her passport.
The only other item she brought with her was her phone. She used it to call an Uber so she could head to the airport.
The driver pulled over outside the terminal. Noelle was about to pay him when Shawn called her. "I'm back from my business trip; I'm going to head home to pick you up now. Let's have dinner together."
He was indeed back, but he had Jessica with him. Noelle sat in the Uber and watched as they came out from the terminal together. He was pushing a cart with their suitcases on them—one pink and one blue. It was obvious they were a matching pair.
Jessica had her arm in his as she leaned against his shoulder.
"Was your trip tiring?" Noelle asked.
"No, it was fine. Oh, right. I remember you mentioning that today's the day I can unwrap the gift you got me."
"Yeah, it is."
"I'm looking forward to it. I can't believe you kept me waiting for a whole week! Every day, I tried to guess what it could be. It must be something meaningful since it's an anniversary gift," he said.
"It means the world. You'll understand when you see it."
"Alright. Wait for me, okay? It'll take me about two hours to get home."
Two hours was enough for her. By then, the plane probably would've left this airspace.
"Okay," she replied.
"See you later, then. I love you, Elle."
After hanging up, Noelle saw Jessica pout in dissatisfaction. Meanwhile, Shawn leaned down to kiss her, seemingly appeasing her.
The driver said, "You haven't paid for the ride, miss."
Noelle retracted her gaze and transferred all the money she had in her account to him. He was startled seeing the amount. "You've made a mistake, miss. It's 130 dollars, not 13 thousand dollars! I'll transfer the balance back to you."
"No, it's fine." She opened the door to get out. "I won't be using the money in the future. Thanks for taking me here."
"You're welcome. I was just doing my job. Besides, I had to bring you here since you paid me."
"It's different. You've brought me to the start of my journey to being reborn."
After getting out of the car, Noelle turned off her phone, removed the SIM card, and threw it into a trashcan. Then, she gave the phone to a child.
He was happy. "Thanks, miss!"
She ruffled his hair with a smile. "You're welcome."
His mother felt embarrassed. "We can't accept something so expensive."
"Are you guys going abroad?" Noelle asked.
"Yes, we are. We're heading to Arilla to look for his father," the woman replied.
Noelle smiled. "Take it, then. It might be of use to you there."
"Alright, then. Thank you."
She waved them goodbye. "Have a safe trip."
She entered the airport to hear an announcement. "Ms. Aria Byrd, please proceed to gate H23 once you hear this announcement. Your flight is about to depart…"
Noelle turned one last time to look outside the airport. Then, she headed to the boarding gate while holding her passport, feeling resolute.
