Breaking The Bond

When Past Meets Present

Janice's Pov

**Five years ago**

I sat with my fiancé at an exquisite restaurant, giggling happily as we chatted. I felt incredibly happy today. My application to intern at my dream company has been accepted, and I am set to start my internship in a few days. Trent Joe, my ever-loving boyfriend, had suggested we celebrate my acceptance at a famous restaurant known for serving the best cuisine.

“I still can't believe that I, Janice, will now be working at PamarooL & Co Ltd!”

“I’m so happy for you, darling. It's what you've always wanted and what you deserve,” he said.

“I remember telling my friends back in college that I, too, would one day work at my dream art company! They loved my work, you know? They were so impressed that they didn’t even want to interview me. They just sent the acceptance email instead! Can you believe it?” My eyes widened as I asked.

Trent nodded in agreement, placing his glass to his lips and sipping his wine.

“I’m happy about the recent happenings. We deserve it, especially after how hard we had it back in college.”

Trent had just started managing his parents' company, and in just a few months, the impact of his work was noticeable; he had increased total profits by almost forty percent.

“Well, I wouldn’t have survived if you hadn’t always been by my side, protecting me, my loving protector,” I said, bringing my face closer to his and pressing my lips against his.

Trent kissed me back, then broke off the kiss. I returned to my seat and took a bite of my meal. Trent was staring down at his plate with a strange expression.

“Is anything the matter?” I asked.

Trent looked up at me and assured me there was nothing to worry about before continuing to eat. But then he stopped and said, “The meal reminds me of my ex.”

I was chewing a delicious bite of food when I heard him mention an ex.

“Ex?” I asked, surprised. “You have an ex?”

That felt like a stupid question, though. Trent was now a grown man and one of the most desirable men in the city. Of course, he’d have an ex or exes. Would he have been celibate all those years if I didn’t know him?

“Yes, my ex, Sasha,” he replied.

“Oh, she has a beautiful name.”

“You think so?”

“Yeah,” I replied, taking a sip of my wine. I felt extremely jealous at that moment. Why were we talking about his ex on our date?

I didn’t ask any further questions and focused on my food. My cutlery made loud noises as it clashed with my plate while I ate. I was using too much force, which was why it was so loud. It wasn’t deliberate, but I was annoyed. Trent seemed to sense my irritation, as he also didn’t say anything. An awkward silence fell between us until I decided to break it.

“Was she beautiful?” I asked.

“Huh?”

“Your ex. Was she beautiful?” I asked again.

Trent stared at me. I knew he was searching my eyes for my emotions. If I showed him how upset I was, I knew he would lie. So I forced a smile before asking again. “Was she beautiful?”

“Why do you want to know?” he asked.

“Nothing important. Just curious.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.”

“Sure you won’t be mad? I know how you girls behave."

“And by ‘these girls,’ do you mean your exes?”

“Janice.”

I laughed, even though deep down I wasn’t happy. So Trent had more than one ex? Okay, Janice, you’re being unrealistic and childish. Of course, he has more than one ex!

“I’m kidding. Just tell me if she was beautiful or not.”

Trent sighed heavily. “She was beautiful.”

“Oh.”

“Hmmm-mmm.”

“How beautiful was she?”

“Very beautiful. Long brown hair, green eyes, long legs, a long neck. She looked like a model.”

I clenched my fists under the table. I did not like that he was talking about his ex while he was on a freaking date with me! But I asked, so it wasn’t entirely his fault.

“Is she more beautiful than I am?” I asked.

“Don’t ask me that, Janice. I know you want to trap me and then blame me for it,” Trent said, laughing.

“Of course not! Why would I do such a thing? Wouldn’t that be gaslighting? So what did you say reminded you of your ex again?”

“Well, it was the meal. She used to cook it a lot when we were still together. It was what she was best at cooking.”

Trent smiled as he spoke, and at that moment, I felt like punching him in the face. Could he not see that I didn't like him talking about her?

“Well, I had an ex too. And he was an excellent cook,” I said, trying to make Trent jealous.

His expression changed, and I felt satisfied. “Really? Tell me about him.”

“His name was Sebastiano. He was Italian. Very handsome and easy on the eyes, too. He was an Italian chef, and he made the best meals ever. The funny thing was that his meals beat my heart. You know how much I love food, right?”

Trent nodded.

“We were so in love,” I pressed on, trying to make Trent jealous. “I was naive and stupid. I thought we would get married and have five kids and five dogs—a rather silly dream if you ask me.”

“So what happened? Why didn’t you get married and have five kids and five dogs?” Trent asked.

“Well, let’s just say things never go as planned. He cheated, as all men do.”

Trent placed his hand atop mine. “I’m sorry,” he said sincerely.

“Don’t be. It was his loss. I don’t understand why. No matter how much you think you are happy in a relationship, men always go ahead and cheat. Why do you guys like doing that?”

Trent drew closer and placed his hand on my cheek. “I will never cheat on you,” he said, looking straight into my eyes.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, my love.”

We leaned over from across the table and kissed.

Funnily enough, the kiss couldn’t reassure me. As soon as I got home, I went on the internet and scrolled through Sasha's i********: account. She was, indeed, beautiful—far more beautiful than I had ever been. I guess that's why Trent hadn’t wanted to answer my question earlier. He didn't want to lie.

I scrolled through her page, checking every detail. I wanted to know more about her. I wanted to know what she did, who she was, why Trent had not forgotten her, and why he still thought about her.

As I scrolled through her pictures, I noticed there wasn’t a single photo where she posed with anyone as her boyfriend or love interest. She posted only pictures with friends and family. That was until I scrolled down a bit more and saw pictures of her and Trent from two years ago. There were numerous photos, and my blood boiled at the sight of them together. They looked so happy and content with each other. Sasha seemed to have been in love with him at the time. She documented almost everything they did together.

Sasha had not deleted the pictures of her and Trent that she had taken years ago. There was still evidence of what they had once had, what they had once shared.

Was she still in love with him? It had been two years already. Usually, after a breakup, people erase all memories of their exes, not wanting to remember the past. I did it. My friends had done it. I had heard about others doing it. So why hadn’t she deleted those pictures from her account? Was she still into him? Was she hoping they would one day be back together? Did she want my man? What if she had messaged him several times, begging him to take her back?

Sasha had no right to still hold on to a relationship that was already over two years ago.

I slapped my forehead in frustration. I was overreacting. Trent had always told me to take things slowly, but I never listened. I was just scared of losing Trent. That’s my man, and no one is taking him from me—even if it was this pretty girl from his past who cooked shrimp just the way he liked it.

“Baby?” I looked back and saw Trent standing at the door, smiling.

“Yes, love?”

“I want to tell you something,” he said, coming forward, sitting on the bed, and kissing me.

Since moving in with Trent, my mouth had become his obsession. He spent every moment kissing it, and I loved it.

“What do you want to tell me?”

“My parents want to meet you,” said Trent between kisses.

I stopped. I couldn't believe that, since we started dating, I had never considered meeting his parents, even though he was close to mine.

“Oh, that's great. I'm so excited about seeing them.”

“Yeah. My parents live on the far side of town. We'll go there this Saturday.”