A World Away (A New Adult Romance Novel)

by Lila Lacroix

  “God, you’re amazing, you know that?”

  “You’ve told me so many times now I’m starting to maybe believe it!”

  “Good. Because it’s true.”

  As the waiter brought us course after course of amazing, chef prepared food, Philippe and I spoke about other things, before the inevitable topic of me leaving came up.

  “I can’t believe it’s so close. I want to be so happy, I want to really savour and enjoy these last few days with you, but it’s so hard when I know that only eight days from now, we’ll be separated by thousands of miles,” I told him, pouring my heart out. Philippe only smiled.

  “Why are you smiling?”

  “Remember how I told you all this was going to seem like nothing compared to what was coming? Well, I have big news. I’m coming with you to America.”

  “What?” The words hit me like a ton of bricks. I couldn’t believe it. Was this Philippe’s idea of a joke? If so, it wasn’t a funny one.

  His smile grew wider. “I didn’t want to tell you before, I didn’t want to get your hopes up, but I sent off some applications to medical schools in America a few months ago. I was hoping because of my good marks and experience volunteering that I would have a chance, and four days ago I got the letter from the University of California San Francisco. I’ve been approved! I still have to complete the last two years of medical school, then do the internship and residency, and I’ll officially be a neurologist.”

  It was like my brain didn’t comprehend the words Philippe was saying to me. Was he really telling me that he was coming with me? We were going back to America together? We weren’t going to be separated?

  “Are you serious?” I asked. “Oh my God!” I continued as the reality began to set in. This was really happening. Philippe and I weren’t going to be separated after all.

  “Are you ok, Sophie? You look pale,” Philippe asked, concerned.

  “Yeah, yeah, I’m actually... wow. I’m just stunned. Completely stunned. This is such amazing news, I don’t think my body has actually digested that it’s actually happening yet. Tears began to sting my eyes, and I started laughing.

  “I’m sorry, you must think I’m a crazy person, I’m just so overwhelmed. I’m so happy. I’m so, so happy. I can’t believe you’re doing this for me,” I continued. I wanted nothing more than to wrap my arms around Philippe, pull him to me and hold him tight forever. Philippe had actually gone through and been approved for medical school in America. He was going to move halfway around the world. For me. To be with me.

  Philippe had been completely right. This overshadowed the entire rest of this amazing day. Completely overshadowed it. I had spent months thinking about the flight home, about what our relationship would be like once I was back in America. I had cried countless tears over it. And now, now I didn’t have to worry. I was never going to be apart from Philippe again. We were well and truly going to be together forever.

  I couldn’t even speak for a while. I could only laugh. Laugh and smile. I was so happy, so excited, I didn’t even know what to do.

  “I take it you are happy, then?” Philippe asked. As I nodded, more tears fell from my eyes.

  “Oh yes. Oh God, Philippe. I’m so happy. I can’t even express it.”

  “I can see very well how happy you are. It’s adorable, absolutely adorable.”

  I babbled like an idiot for a while, not being able to do anything. I felt like I was on cloud nine, and I was never coming down. The smile stick to my face so hard it began to hurt, my muscles tiring from the effort.

  Eventually I settled down, right around as desert was brought out.

  “So this is really happening. This isn’t a dream. You’re actually going to come with me to America.”

  “Yes. It really is happening.”

  “You were absolutely right. This is the most amazing thing I could have imagined.”

  We decided to walk back to Philippe’s apartment, enjoying the warm evening air, while I told Philippe everything I could about San Francisco. I told him about my apartment, that Clara, Alice and Peter would be thrilled to have him join us, or that we could find our own place. I told him about the people, the sights, the streets (I hope you like hills!) and everything else.

  “I love you, Sophie. I want to live my life with you. This is going to be an incredible adventure.”

  “Yes, Philippe. It absolutely will be. I love you too, and I will spend the rest of my life with you too.”

  Epilogue

  A week later our plane touched down in San Francisco. Clara was ready and waiting for the two of us, complete with a sign made of glitter announcing “WELCOME BACK LOVERS”.

  I rolled my eyes and laughed when I saw it, hugging her warmly. I had forgotten just how much I missed Clara. Noelle and Claire had made me promise to stay in touch, and I definitely planned on doing so, but Clara was still my best friend.

  “Bahn-jooah” she said to Philippe in an extraordinarily bad French accent, and he leaned down and kissed her hand. Clara flushed, her hand rising to her face.

  “Oh my God, Sophie. Philippe is such a gentleman. I’m just warning you now, I might try and steal him from you.”

  “I regret to inform you, mademoiselle, that you will not be able to,” Philippe replied, wrapping a protective arm around my waist that felt so right as his touch sent tingles through me. “Sophie has captured my heart the way no other woman possibly could,” he continued, and Clara pretended to swoon.

  “Sophie, he’s perfect. I’m so jealous of you. I can’t believe you left here to forget about men and came back with the perfect guy, with a sexy French accent to boot.”

  I laughed, but I could tell my eyes weren’t laughing along with me. If only Clara knew what I had gone through with men in France. I still had nightmares from time to time. I still got nervous whenever people touched me without warning. I knew I was never going to be able to forget what Jacques did to me. That memory would be with me forever.

  But I wasn’t going to let it dictate my life. I was with Philippe now, and I was so happy. I was happier than I had ever been in my life. Everything was perfect. As we loaded up all our things into Clara’s old beater of a car and she drove us back to our apartment, I told her all about the trip, leaving out, of course, the parts about Jacques. Maybe I would tell her one day, but for now that secret was between Philippe and I.

  As I fell asleep that night, Philippe’s arm wrapped over me and on my breast, I thought about my semester abroad. It had been so unlike anything else I had ever done. I felt more pain than I could have thought possible, but also discovered new realms of pleasure. And now, now I was with a man that I considered my soul mate, a man I knew I would be with for the rest of my life.

  That brochure had been right. My semester abroad had been the adventure of a lifetime.