After Charles had left Elizabeth had wondered where Jack was. She waited another half hour before heading out to look for him. She smiled upon seeing him chop wood. As he got closer, she sensed that something was a little off.

"I've been looking everywhere for you," she said affectionately. It was unlike him to forget they had plans.

"The church was low on firewood," he answered not looking at her.

"I thought we were going for a ride after school?"

"We were, but you had company." He said still not locking gaze with her. Elizabeth's heart dropped,

"How did?" she stammered looking at him. Finally he briefly met her gaze,

"I came to pick you up, Charles was there on bended knee," he replied taking a good whack at the wood before him. Elizabeth dropped her eyes for a moment before looking up,

"How much did you hear?"

"Enough to know that I shouldn't be listening. So I left" He answered grabbing another piece of wood from the pile.

"I told him no Jack," she stated in disbelief that he had easily walked away without even waiting for her answer. For immediately thinking the worst.

"He wouldn't be there if he didn't think he had a chance,"

"I never gave him any reason to believe that," she replied evenly.

"Why is it every time I think the past is the past something like this happens?" he questioned,

"I don't know, because life is messy and people are messy." Elizabeth reasoned,

"Maybe somethings aren't meant to be." Jack said softly looking up at her. Elizabeth felt as though he had physically stuck her, shock evident in her face. Taking a breath, she swallowed,

"You don't mean that." Jack saw the unshed tears behind her hurt eyes.

"I don't know what I mean right now," he replied unable to look at her.

"Jack, we can't go back. Not when we've come this far. It's over with Charles, once and for all." Her voice shook as she spoke.

"I don't know if I believe that." He said honestly with a definitive uncertainty written all over his face. With one last act of bravery Elizabeth took a step towards him as she said,

"Well let me convince you." She stood before him begging him to see through her, to see past his pride and see her and how she loved him. She placed a hand behind his head and brought her lips to his. As he stood there unresponsive Elizabeth looked at him hurt, her eyes conveying what shattered inside her. She stepped back and looked away not allowing him to see just how much he had hurt her in that moment and turned to walk away. Jack watched as she did wanting to go after her, but his feet had refused to move.

Elizabeth had walked all the way to Abigail's in a daze, unable to fathom what had just happened. They had been so happy just that morning, and now they were where they were. She had began to process the afternoon that had unfolded and she was acknowledged that she was angry. Angry that Charles thought for one moment that she would even consider marrying him after knowing that she loved Jack. Angry that Jack was there at the church and watched as Charles go down in one knee and walk away not even willing to fight for her. Or have faith in her or them to jump to the conclusion that she would even say yes. Angry that he couldn't look at her as though she had done something wrong. Angry that he didn't believe her when she told him she said no to Charles and there was no future with Charles. After everything they have been through. Hurt that he stood there like a statue as she kissed him as though he felt nothing for her at all. Angry that he made it look so easy to just wash his hands of her, that at the first sign of trouble he jumped ship without even discussing it with her.

"Elizabeth, you're back early. How was the ride?" Abigail asked as she walked through the door. Elizabeth looked up at Abigail, still in a daze

"We didn't go."

"Elizabeth, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. Abigail, would you mind if I went up straight to bed? I'm not feeling very well."

"Of course not. Can I get bring anything?" Elizabeth shook her head,

"No thank you." Elizabeth dragged herself up the stairs to her room. She had taken a bath and put herself to bed refusing to process anymore. She found the more she processed the angrier she got and the angrier she got the more tired she felt.

Jack couldn't shake the look on Elizabeth's face as she pulled her face away from his. He had hurt her and it haunted him. He made his way to the café hoping to speak with her, as he entered and scanned the café she was nowhere in sight. Normally she would be helping with the dinner rush, or helping Abigail in the kitchen or doing lesson plans in the back room. Abigail caught his wandering eyes knowing what he was looking for,

"She's gone to bed." She answered his unasked questioned. He looked at her surprised, guilt written all over her face.

"Are you going to tell me or am I going to have to wrestle it out of her tomorrow morning?" Abigail asked as she ushered him to sit with her in the kitchen allowing Clara to take over for a bit.

"I'm pretty sure, I've messed up. I saw something and I got angry, and I pushed her away."

"What do you plan on doing about it?"

"Convince her that I'm still in this." Abigail gave his arm a gentle squeeze before rising to her feet.

"I hope so."

Elizabeth woke early the next morning and found Abigail baking for the day sun was not yet up, and the morning dew lay thick in the air.

"Elizabeth, you're up early. Would you like some breakfast?" Elizabeth shook her head and made herself a cup of tea.

"No thank you, I'm not very hungry."

"Did you want to talk about it?" she asked.

"Not really," Elizabeth looked up at Abigail and let out a deep sigh

"Charles proposed," Abigail gasped making Elizabeth chuckle.

"Yeah and that's not even the gasp worthy moment. It seems Jack had walked in on it."

"What do you mean seems?"

"Well I didn't know he was even there until I went looking for him as he never showed up at the school for our ride. I found him taking his frustration out on unsuspecting logs. He basically doesn't believe me when I tell him that there is nothing between me and Charles. He thinks I've given Charles a reason to hope. That he's no longer sure of us, or that he believes in us." Elizabeth explained without emotion, purposely separating herself from the content she was relaying.

"Give him time,"

"He can have all the time in the world Abigail." Elizabeth replied resolute. She stood to her feet and washed out her tea cup.

"He came last night looking for you. I think he was ready to talk." Elizabeth sighed.

"He's the one who wanted space. He has it. I'm going to head to school." Abigail nodded knowing Elizabeth needed space.

Jack headed to the café as usual hoping to walk Elizabeth to school but as he entered, Abigail had told him she had already left for the day. He thanked Abigail before running out the door to look for Elizabeth, his gut told him the more time he allowed Elizabeth to avoid him the harder it would be to regain the ground they had made. As he got to the school he found Rosemary at the blackboard,

"Rosie, where's Elizabeth?" he asked his forehead furrowed with worry.

"She asked me to take her class today. She said she wasn't feeling well."

There were advantages in knowing Jack's schedule. It meant for Elizabeth she knew when he would be doing rounds therefore succeeding in avoiding him at all cost. When Elizabeth had walked into the café that evening, she had slipped in undetected. She had taken a bath and went straight to bed as she did the night before.

"Abigail, have you seen Elizabeth?"

"Not since this morning. I was going to wait for her to have dinner but realised her coat was already hanging. So I went upstairs but she's already gone to bed. Have you still not spoken with her today?"

"Not for the lack of trying Abigail." He said running his hand through his hair in frustration.

"I don't suppose you're going to let me go up there and demand to speak to me would you?" Abigail smiled at him,

"If I thought it would help you both, I would. She is under the impression you're done. You wanted space, so I guess this is her giving you space." Jack flinched, he was confused yes. Hurt, absolutely but they weren't done. Not by a long shot. The look on her face as he remained still beneath her kiss was on replay in his mind.

"We're not done, and if she thinks we are then she's sorely mistaken."

"Did you honestly think she would have said yes to him? Did you really think she'd given him any indication that she would ever return his feelings. That girl has been in love with you as long as you have been in love with her and you've both been too stubborn to admit until now, but the moment she chose to stay in Hope Valley, chose to stay in part for you, she was all in. Do you have any idea the magnitude of what she walked away from to choose to be where she is today? She made her choice because it was the right one for her. She is not the same spoilt rich girl you judged her to be in the beginning, and to be honest Jack she never was. You need to reconcile that." Jack knew that Abigail was right. He kept getting stuck because he kept losing the Elizabeth he loved in the idea of who he thought Elizabeth to be at the beginning.

As Elizabeth walked out of Abigail's door early the next morning she found Jack asleep on the swing on the front porch. Quietly she turned to walk in the other direction hoping not to wake him.

"So it this how it's going to be? You're just going to keep avoiding me?" he asked sitting up. He had woken to her coming out of the door and wanted to see what she would do. Elizabeth stopped but didn't turn around. Jack stood to his feet,

"Elizabeth please." He watched as she took a deep breath before turning around to face him. The Elizabeth that stood before him was guarded, her countenance screamed that she no longer trusted him and he felt his heart tighten at the thought. With her arms folded she wordlessly challenged him to say what he had to say.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for how I behaved the other day. I'm sorry that I hurt you. I'm sorry I made you feel as though we were done. I was hurt, and I was angry, and I didn't allow you the opportunity to explain. Elizabeth, I'm sorry." Elizabeth nodded,

"Thank you. Apology accepted." She replied not making a move towards him, her words felt empty in his ears.

"Elizabeth, please talk to me."

"I tried that. I always do. It doesn't matter in the end does it? You still doubt me, and after the other day, you're always going to doubt me so what's the point?"

"Elizabeth,"

"When you came to Hamilton that first time, you left because being in my world made you uncomfortable, so instead of trying to understand that part of my life, you left me to come back to Hope Valley without a backward glance or even a proper goodbye. The second time we were at Hamilton you accused me of wanting you to be someone you're not, so again you left me alone in that forsaken train station. Refused to ride in my train car because you couldn't bring yourself to sit with me, or to look at me. You accused me of not knowing what I want or knowing who I was. I told you in that mine that I loved you, despite the magnitude of how scared I was, I went all in. I told you I loved you, because that was what was true. What I realised Jack is I'm done apologising for who I am. You're the one who keeps walking away out of fear that I am not being true to myself, but it's you whose pigeon holed me into your idea of me. You accused me of not accepting who you truly are, but Jack you're the one who never accepted me. You're the one who's never been able to shake the fact that I was the princess you had to watch because her rich father insisted upon it."

"That's not true,"

"Jack, you walked away from the church without a shadow of doubt that I would say yes to Charles even though you knew that there was nothing romantic between us. That I have never entertained his advances. Again you walked away without a backward glance. You had the audacity to say to me that I must have given him a reason to believe he had a chance. You looked me in the eye and told me maybe some things weren't meant to be. You stood there as I kissed you as though you didn't know me. But maybe that was the most truthful moment we've ever had. Maybe it is because you don't know and me and you never really did."

"Elizabeth,"

"When Rosemary came to town and you never told me that you had been engaged it hurt. Having to watch as she actively pursued you hurt. Charles and I grew up together. He was one of my best friends. My intentions were clear and I had made it known to him, to my family that it was you I wanted. I took a step back with due respect to you, and it was the right thing to do. I would do it again. But it was you who walked arm in arm with Rosemary, it was you who went shooting with her, it was you who allowed her to direct your steps. You may have eventually gotten your point across, but I certainly had to live through all that. You told me that I had to allow you to build my faith up in you once more, and I did. It's you who never had the same faith in me."

"That's not true." He repeated as his voice shook with emotion,

"Maybe not for you, but the other day when you could barely look at me as though I had done you wrong, I realised that we can keep having the same conversation until I'm blue in the face, it doesn't change the fact that you don't trust me or in me. Because if you did, I don't see how you could have just walked away from that church. Did it even occur to you to fight for me. If I said yes, would you have really just let me say yes and let me go? Well I guess you did." She said with a chuckle.

"Let's pretend I lived up to your expectation of me. Because if you've believed it all this time, why wouldn't you later? Jack, I may love you but I don't want to do this anymore. I don't want to have to convince you that I'm all in. It's too hard, and it shouldn't have to be so hard all the time. So taking your lead, I'm done because I no longer know what I believe too." Elizabeth turned and headed towards the school leaving him to his thoughts.