“That’s my money, Josh. And I’m my own person.” I was furious. I’d been so blind.
“Suit yourself.”
I spent the day on edge. There was nothing
<
9:08
between Ethan and me, but now he was
dragged into this mess. I agonized over it all day. Finally, I broke.
“Josh, I’ll give you the money. Just delete the photo,” I whispered, hiding in the breakroom.
“So, you admit it?” he pressed.
“There’s nothing to admit! How can you be so unreasonable?”
“Nothing? How many times did you sleep with him?” He was escalating.
“We broke up, Josh. It’s none of your
business.”
“None of my business? I treated you like gold!
And this is how you repay me? Sleeping with
other men behind my back? Was he better than
me, Amy? Is that why you cheated?”
92
92
<
9:08
I was speechless.
“Josh, show some respect!” I yelled.
The phone was snatched from my hand. Ethan stood there, his face like thunder. He walked to the door, locked it, then turned to me, his eyes
blazing.
I was terrified.
“This is Ethan Miller. You have something to say to Amy, you say it to me.”
He glanced at me, a small smile playing on his lips, then patted my shoulder reassuringly. “Slept with her?” He chuckled into the phone.
“Yeah, we slept together. Details are none of
your business.”
“I’ll be getting her money back. My lawyers are
on their way to see you. Don’t call her again.
You have no right. And if you want to stav out
<
of jail, don’t piss me off.”
He hung up and looked at me.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked.
“It’s my business,” I mumbled.
He calmly scrolled through the messages on my
phone, stopping at the photo. My heart sank.
“Nice angle,” he said, smirking. “Very
suggestive.”
I was about to lose it, and he was amused?
“He’s going to leak it!”
“I want that photo. He actually did me a favor.”
He forwarded it to himself.
“A favor?”
9:08
“Blackmail. He just earned himself a lawsuit, Plus,” he added, “I like the angle.”
I stared at him, dumbfounded. He took my hand, “From now on, you come to me with these things. Don’t deal with this alone.”
“Ethan, we’re at work!” I pulled away.
He paused, then stepped closer, his eyes searching mine. “So… outside of work is okay?”
82
“What’s okay?” I was getting flustered.
He leaned in, pulling me into a gentle embrace. I tried to push him away, but he held me tighter.
Someone knocked on the door. Crap. Someone was coming for water.
“Hello? Is anyone in there?”
<
“It’s locked!”
“What? Go find maintenance!”
I froze, but Ethan seemed unfazed.
“Is this okay?” he whispered in my ear. “If it is, I’ll let you go.”
Hearing him call me “Amy” sent shivers down
my spine.
“Stop calling me that!”
“Calling you what? Amy?” he chuckled. “Scared
I’ll call you Amy?”
“Yes! Stop it.”
“Okay, Amy.”
He wouldn’t stop. I’d never known he could be
<
“Fine. I’ll stop if you agree to be my girlfriend.”
“You can’t blackmail me into a relationship!”
“I don’t want to,” he said, his voice softening,
“but I’m out of patience.”
“You…” Just last night, he was all about
waiting.
“Six years, Amy. Any longer and I’ll be ancient.”
He turned me around and kissed me.
I couldn’t make a sound with people outside, so
I pushed against him, but he deepened the kiss,
my head spinning.
“Ethan…”
“We’ll talk later.” He kissed me again.
I was lost.
<
After what felt like an eternity, he pulled away,
blushing. I busied myself with the coffee
machine while he unlocked the door.
“Five minutes to get those reports to my
office,” he said to the startled colleagues
gathering by the water cooler. They scurried
back to their desks, too panicked to even think
about coffee.
No one questioned me. I breathed a sigh of
relief. I splashed water on my face and went
back to work, my heart still racing. I couldn’t
believe what had just happened.
A message popped up on my phone. Wait for
me after work.
My pulse quickened again. Okay, I replied.
Another message. Want to leave now.
<
Work, I replied.
Can’t. I think I’m sick.
What’s wrong?
All I can think about is you.
I didn’t reply.
After work, he drove me home. The moment we
were in the car, he started kissing me again.
“Ethan…” I gasped, breathless. “Are you part
dog?” My lips were practically bruised.
He grinned. “Six years of waiting will turn
anyone feral.”
He took me to dinner, then back to my
apartment, where he refused to leave.
“My family kicked me out.” he said. feigning
<
“Why?” I was skeptical.
“I broke off my engagement. They’re not happy.”
Oh. I’d almost forgotten about his fiancée.
“Serves you right.” I pushed him towards the
door.
92
“So cold?” He smirked. “We’re in the same
boat, Amy. No boyfriend, no girlfriend. Two
lonely souls. Want to keep each other
company?”
“Not really…” Where was this clinginess
coming from?
“I’ll sleep on the couch. The floor, even.
Anything’s better than the street.” He blocked
the door.
He was laving it on thick I wavered “Fine The
<
He was laying it on thick. I wavered. “Fine. The couch. One night.”
I swear, I intended to keep my distance. But one thing led to another, and… I got carried away. He blushed, mumbled something about being uncomfortable, and turned away. I didn’t push
- it.
I thought we’d made it through the night unscathed. Then he whispered in my ear, “Remember that night, Amy?”
I stiffened. “Y–yes.” What was he doing?
“You made me cry for hours. Now… can I
return the favor?”
“You…” How do you even repay that kind of
debt?
He pulled back the covers, and I understood.
<
Only, his confident prediction of my tears
backfired spectacularly. Five seconds later……
awkward silence.
I chuckled. “How long has it been?”
He looked away, mumbling, “Six years.”
“Don’t tell me, you haven’t…”
“Shut up, yes!” He sounded exasperated. He
flopped back on the bed. “You do it.”
Me: blink blink
“I’m scarred for life. What did I do to deserve
this? Why always you?” He was a mixture of
frustrated and amused.
“Poor baby.” I felt a twinge of… guilt.
“If you know I’m suffering, then have mercy on
MA”
<
“If you know I’m suffering, then have mercy on me.”
He pulled me closer, and I fell on top of him.
Things went… better this time.
Around 3 AM, he finally fell asleep, his hand gripping mine, mumbling, “You’re not leaving in the morning, right?”
I kissed his forehead. “Go to sleep, Ethan.”
“Mmm.”
I watched him breathe, a warm, contented
feeling spreading through me. Holding him felt.
like holding onto a piece of my youth.
My belated, slightly messed up, first love.
