Rachael walked home with a distant gaze, lost in thoughts. Her feet moved unconsciously while her mind wandered through a maze of reflections and worries, oblivious to the eerie sounds in the neighborhood. She couldn’t help but reflect on the years she had spent working for the one man that hurt her feelings and also worried about what the future held for her.
As she got to the doorstep of her apartment, a male silhouette suddenly appeared from nowhere, startling her, her gaze flashing with a sense of apprehension before she could register the familiar face of the man.
She gasped in surprise, her face reddening with embarrassment as the events of last night flashed into her memories. It took a lot of effort to call out his name.
“William” she mumbled, her eyes on the ground, her shoes tracing an imaginary line on the floor as she tried her best to keep calm and not run away. “Why are you here?… You didn’t inform me of your coming”
A soft chuckle escaped from the man’s lips as he stared at her with an amused expression on his face, he understood the reason for her behavior. “I just came to see if you’re okay. I mean a hangover can be very persistent sometimes”
His words which carried a hint of care and softness, caused Rachael to raise her head, her gaze meeting his and suddenly landing on his pink lips. “I am…..” A fleeting image of her kissing those lips, flashed through her thoughts, stopping her sentence midway. Her mind raced with possibilities of what happened being just an illusion, but she couldn’t shake off the feeling of it being real.
“Rachael, is everything alright?” William asked, his gaze filled with worries. He tried to place his hands on her shoulders but she avoided it effortlessly. “Rachael, why are acting like this all of a sudden?”
“I think we should stop seeing each other so often,” Rachael said, her voice quivering with uncertainty. “I mean we’re not that close so we should maintain our present relationship”
“Is that what you want?” William questioned, his voice mixed with confusion and hurt, his gaze staring intently at her like he wanted to read her soul. “If it’s about the kiss of last night, I can assure you that I won’t speak of it… It never happened”
Rachael was hesitant, finding it hard to discard their intimate moment as a dream. She knew she had initiated it but he was the one taking the blame. “It’s not like that. It’s just that a lot of things are not perfect in my life. I want to work on those things before considering any relationship and I…”
“I can wait for you, I don’t mind” Williams interrupted her, his brows furrowed and his heart hurt from hearing her words. He wasn’t letting her go again, not after the first incident. “You have all the time in the world but I’ll wait for you. I’ll wait till you have gotten your life back on track.. and if you still need more time after that, I’ll gladly give you. Just don’t push me away again, please..”
Rachael sighed in frustration, racking her brains for words to refute him but couldn’t find any. Her heart was still healing even though she acted like everything was fine with her. Though she trusted him, she didn’t want to make the same mistake again. “William… I can’t do this, you have to leave now”
“Is it because of Damien?” William probed further, his heart racing in fear as he anticipated her answer. The man’s name had slipped from her lips in her drunken state, and the pain in her voice was unmistakable. “Is it because of him?…. I promise you that nothing like that will happen to us, please…”
Rachel’s eyes widened in shock at the mention of her greatest enemy’s name, pondering on how he had gotten hold of that information. Regardless of that, she still needed to clarify things with him. “Making promises isn’t going to help us, Williams, and Damien has nothing to do with this”
“You’re lying,” Williams said, his tone was full of accusation, his gaze staring at hers, he could see the wavering glint in her eyes. “You said he was the one you trusted and the one who broke your heart. Even if you were drunk, it doesn’t mean you lied”
“So, that’s it” Racheal screamed in her head, recalling how she had stuttered those words from her mouth. She couldn’t help but regret getting drunk that night. She had opened up to him in the worst possible way. “Well, it shouldn’t be any of your concern. you have to learn to not meddle in my affairs”
“I’m sorry” William muttered, feeling regretful for saying those words to her. He should never act like he knew her pain when he wasn’t there when she was going through it. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. But, I will always be here for you whenever you need me”
“William” Rachael mumbled incoherently, watching him walk away in the cold night, her eyes was filled with tears she couldn’t hold anymore. She wanted to call him back but the words got stuck in her throat. She could only watch till his shadow had disappeared completely. “I’m sorry” she muttered, holding her throbbing chest like she wanted to squeeze her heart, to tear it into shreds.
As she made to walk into her house, a frosty, chilly yet familiar voice called out to her, causing her to halt in her tracks. Her heart raced uncontrollably at the thought of the person being the one she had imagined. She slowly turned to the direction of the voice.
“Mr. Russo” she uttered his name the moment she recognized him, her whole body shivering in confusion. “What is he doing here?… Why does he look so angry?” she asked inwardly before gathering the courage to stare at him directly in the eye. “To what do I owe this visit, Mr. Russo?… As far as I can remember, we already settled things at work or is there something I haven’t done or something you urgently want me to do for you?”
“Who was that man?”Damien’s angry voice asked, his teeth clenched in fury as his gaze pierced straight at Racheal who was stunned by his question.