Broken Together

Chapter 5: Date

CHAPTER 5

AMELIA

I feel so light, and my head is still spinning. I looked at Vincent, who’s now wiping his wet lips with a handkerchief. He caught my eye, and I quickly looked away. I hear him chuckle. I glance at him and he’s picking up my jeans and underwear from the floor.

 “I can pick it up,” I said without looking at him.

 “If you can stand up after coming that hard.” I glanced to see him with his sexy crooked smile. He’s right though, I’m not sure if I can stand properly with my legs feeling sloppy. He handed me my pants and my underwear and as soon as I took it from his hand, we heard the bell rang from the door and we both looked up.

 “C-can you…” I stood up, and I hurriedly put on my underwear and my pants. What the hell am I thinking? I’m still at work. I can’t help it. I can’t seem to resist him. I looked up to see Vincent gone. What the hell? I zipped my jeans.

I tiptoed from where I stand to find where he is and I saw him approaching the two people who came in. I walked towards them from where I was, which is five aisles of bookshelves from where they are. Vincent’s back to me and I can see his hands shoved into his jeans. The man in front of him with brown hair and a light blue sweater said something to him, then he scowled, probably because Vincent’s whole demeanour doesn’t look helpful.

“Hi, how can I help you?” I asked, smiling as soon as I reached them. I glanced at Vincent, who’s leaning back at the counter looking elsewhere.

“I was asking him,” He gestured with his hand towards Vincent, “history books?” The guy said. I glanced again at Vincent and he shrugged at me. I rolled my eyes at him.

Looking back at the guy, “I can take you where those are.” I said being extra polite to compensate for Vincent’s attitude. History Books, huh? He does look like someone who likes to read about history.

Finally, the guy smiled, and he looked at the woman next to him with stunning red hair. “Let’s go, honey.” He said to her but the red hair’s eyes are fixed on Vincent. She’s batting her eyelashes and biting her lip. Oh, come on. He has the same effect on other girls too. Geez.

The guy glanced back and forth between his girlfriend and Vincent. I turned to look at Vincent who is now staring at me, smirking, not giving the red hair any attention. I can’t help but smile.

The brown-haired guy cleared his throat, “We’ll… um… we’ll just come back.” He grabbed his girlfriend’s wrist and tugged on it to leave.

“Okay,” I said, still smiling. I know it’s rude, but I can’t help it. “Have a great day?” I said to them before leaving. I watched them walk outside the bookstore with the guy throwing his hands in the air in front of his girlfriend. 

“What time will your shift be over?” Vincent asked.

I turned to face him and walked towards the counter. I looked at my watch before I answered, “One more hour.”

“Okay,” He stood upright and pulled out his hands from his pocket. “You’re coming with me as soon as your shift is over.”

“Not going to happen. I have to go to the restaurant after this.” I said, checking my phone from behind the counter to see a text from Aunt Claire. I slide the screen to open:

Your Uncle’s here. Can you go here at 8 o’clock?

I forgot about that. I sighed, staring at the text Aunt Claire sent me when suddenly Vincent snatched it from my hand.

“Well, call in sick.” He said as I attempt to grab it back from him. I went around the counter to get it but he held it up high and of course, I can’t reach it because he’s freaking tall. My annoyance doesn’t stun him even a little. I tiptoed and grabbed his arm to pull it down so I can somehow reach my phone in his hand but Vincent’s strong. He leaned his face closer to mine, and it made me back down.

“Can you please give me my phone back?” I said pursing my lips together and opened my hand in front of me.

He shakes his head, still smirking. “I’m not going to give it to you unless you come with me.”

 I closed my eyes in an attempt to hold back my annoyance. “What part of ‘Not going to happen’ do you not understand? Look, just because something happened back there- “

“I made you come.” He added immediately, without any shame.

I scowled at him, “that doesn’t mean we’re going to start seeing each other or something, okay? I need my job and my phone so please, let me be.” I said, crossing my arms and standing upright, holding my ground. I may have not able to resist him earlier because deep inside, a small part of me wants to distract myself from everything in my life and he’s a powerful distraction but this time, I have to stand my ground in terms of my job.

He didn’t say anything for a few minutes, he’s just staring at me.

I don’t care if he understands where I’m coming from, but I’m 90% sure that he doesn’t because he’s rich and probably doesn’t need to work hard to earn money. I know that I’m being judgmental and but I’m just starting to get annoyed.

He placed my phone in my hands, his brows furrowed and lips pursed. He ran his hand in his hair then said, “Fine,” he looked at his watch “I’ll pick you up at 10 o’clock at the restaurant and then you’re coming with me.”

“Hold- “before I’m able to protest, his lips pressed against mine. I pushed him on his chest and I did manage to pull away, but he continued to gaze at me.

In a low sexy voice, he said, “No more objection or else I’m going to kiss you again.” His eyes are so intense that I want to look away, but I can’t.

The ring on my phone nearly made me jump. 

“Hello?” I answered almost immediately.

“Mac wants to know if you’re coming tonight.” Aunt Claire said on the other line. I can hear other people in the background.

I sighed, relieved at Aunt Claire’s timing. I glanced at Vincent, who’s still looking at me, arms crossed and brows furrowed.

I get back at Aunt Claire, ignoring Vincent. “I’ll come,” I said, and immediately regret what I just said. What am I thinking? I don’t want to see Uncle Mac. Not now, not ever. I want to slap myself. Time spent with Vincent is making my brain turn upside down.

“Great!” Aunt Claire exclaimed on the other line, “Oh, and by the way, can you go to my office and open the box on my table. It needs to be checked, okay? See you later.” She ended the call full of excitement in her voice.

“Who’s that?” Vincent asked, following me upstairs to my Aunt’s office.

“Go home, Vincent,” I said plainly as I opened the office door. I switched on the light and found a blue box on top of Aunt Claire’s table.

I glanced at Vincent as he invited himself inside, looking around.

I walked towards the table and studied the exterior of the box. It’s just a plain-looking box, no label or anything. I opened it and the first thing I saw is a letter on top of the fabric. I picked up the letter that says, “For my dearest Mel.”

Vincent was leaning against the wall, arms crossed behind me when I opened the letter and I knew right away from the handwriting who it’s from.

My dearest Amelia,

How is my beautiful daughter? I hope you’re eating well and getting enough sleep. Claire said you declined her offer to stay at her house. I wish for you to stay with her so that she can look after you.

Your birthday is coming up, so I asked Claire to buy you a gift for me. I told her what colour you like and what dress suits you.

Mel, I’m sorry. I know you may not be able to forgive me or your father, but please know that we love you and we miss you. I wish you could visit soon.

Love,

Mom

I stared at the last word in her letter and I admit I miss her. I miss them. But at the same time, I’m mad at them. I guess it’s true what they say that you can still miss someone even if you’re mad at them. I placed her letter beside the box and reached for the fabric inside it. It’s a cocktail dress, and it’s dark blue. My favourite colour. I held it in front of me and stared at it, imagining my mom describing to Aunt Claire what she thinks I would like and she’s not wrong. I love the dress, but I don’t think they’ll ever be a chance to wear it. Vincent stood beside me, looking at the dress as well.

“That would look good on you.” He said right in my ear. I folded the dress immediately and put it back inside the box. I turned to face Vincent and for a second, a split second, I saw a different smile on his face and his eyes are looking at me what feels like warmth. Or I may be wrong. Then suddenly, he blinked a few times and his expression change to being serious.

“I should go.” He turned around to leave the room. I followed him, holding the box in my hand. I watched him going down the stairs in a hurry and stopped on the last step to turn and look at me, “I’ll pick you up at 10 o’clock.”

Before I can answer, he continued towards the door and left. I sighed at his I-will-always-have-it-my-way attitude. Not thinking about what other people feel. I shook my head and decided to not worry about Vincent for now because I have something else I need to worry about.

 It’s 8 o’clock and I’m still contemplating whether I should go or not. I hate Uncle Mac, but I love Aunt Claire. I sighed in defeat. I guess this will happen sooner or later, whether I like it or not, Uncle Mac is part of Aunt Claire’s life and I’ll inevitably see him. I just had my shift at the restaurant and I asked Ted if I can leave at 8 o’clock and of course, he said yes. So here I am, standing outside of the restaurant waiting for my Uber to arrive, and it’s the first time that I’ll be spending on Uber because everything around me is close to each other. I boarded the Uber car with a heavy heart, but I decided to just go and get it over with.

 The car parked in front of Aunt Claire’s Victorian-style house. I approached their house. My hands are shaking. I’m not sure if it’s because of the weather or if it’s because I am scared. My trembling hands reached for the doorbell and the door opened on the second ring.

 “Mel!,” Aunt Claire exclaimed when she saw me and took me in her arms to hug me. Before releasing me, she whispered, “How did I do?”

 I smiled at her and answered, “You look beautiful.” Assuring her.

 She released me with a big smile on her face. She’s so happy. She missed Uncle Mac for a whole month, and I remembered her complaining to me about why his company had to do business trips.

 She took my hand, squeezed it before leading me into their dining area.

There he is, sitting at the table. He saw me and he immediately smiled. It’s disgusting how he acts in front of Aunt Claire. I hate him.

 “Hi, Mel. Nice to see you. How are you?” He asked, looking as innocent as possible.

 “Fine,” I answered, not wanting to look at him anymore. Being around him makes me sick. I fixed my eyes on the table arrangement and the food. I would rather look at literally anything BUT him.

 “You can seat here, sweetie.” Aunt Claire said, guiding me to sit opposite Uncle Mac. I want to protest and sit as farther away as possible but I can’t do that without making Aunt Claire suspicious so I sat directly facing him.

 “Claire, your clambake is the best. I missed this.” Uncle Mac said placing his hand on top of Aunt Claire’s hand and she blushes immediately. Uncle Mac continued to blab about his business trip and I couldn’t care less. I shifted my focus on my food while Aunt Claire nodded, gasps and giggle, at every word Uncle says.

 “You know, honey, wine would suit your clambake.” He suggested.

 “Oh okay, I’ll get one from the kitchen.” Aunt Claire said cheerfully as she stood up and disappeared to the kitchen.

 As soon as Aunt Claire left, I can feel Uncle Mac’s eyes on me and I hate it.

 “You’re looking so much prettier, Mel. Matured.” He said and I ignore his remark. I just continued to look at my plate. “Why aren’t you looking at me, Mel? Are you scared?” He said mockingly. In my attempt to prove him wrong, I looked at him working hard to not give him any type of emotion that he wants from me.

 He laughed and picked up a clam from his plate and he held it in front of him, near his mouth. “You know, Mel... If you weren’t such a snobbish b***h, you can be just like this clam. Open and wet, perfect for my mouth.” Then he sticks out his tongue and licked the inside.

 My adrenaline kicked in and I grabbed the glass in front of me and threw the water to him. He disgusts me. He’s a monster. I hate him. I hate him.

 “f**k!” He stood up, soaking. Aunt Claire came rushing in from the kitchen, holding a wine bottle in her hand.

 “W-what happened?” She asked as she grabbed a napkin from the table and immediately wiped Uncle’s clothes to dry him.

 “I was just telling Mel to stay with us so that she won’t need to work two jobs to pay for her apartment, but I don’t know why she got mad and threw water at me.” He said feigning innocence. I can feel my anger boiling inside me and it’s making me tear up.

 Aunt Claire looked at me for a few minutes and if she asks me if what he’s saying is true, I don’t care what the consequence might be, but I’ll tell her the truth. I’ll tell her everything.

 My eyes are starting to well up in tears when all of a sudden, Aunt Claire turned around and continued to wipe the water dripping from Uncle’s face and she said, “That’s not nice, Mel. Your Uncle is just trying to help.” Without looking back at me. My heart sank and when I saw a mocking smile from my Uncle while Aunt Claire is not looking, I had to go. I stood up from my chair, grabbed my bag and ran as fast as I can out of their house.

My feet hurt and just then that I realized how far I’ve walked from their house. I decided to stop at a park nearby because honestly, I don’t want to go back to my apartment just yet because it will only remind me how pathetic my life is.

 As I sat on one of the benches and the next thing I know, the tears started falling from my eyes. I don’t have the energy to hold it in anymore. Plus, there’s no one here so I can cry it all out.

 “What are you doing here?”

 I know that voice. I turned around to see Vincent, out of breath, startling me.

 “What you doing here?” I asked, turning my back at him so I can wipe the tears on my face.

 “I asked a question first.” He pointed out. He walked around the bench and stood in front of me. and for some reason I don’t know, he looks pissed.

 “None of your business. How did you find me?” I asked nonchalantly as I grab my things.

 “I have my ways.” He simply said.

 I stood up and glanced at him. “You sure do.” I turned around from him and started walking.

 He grabs my wrist, making me turn around to face him.

 He leaned in, bending slightly, his eyes level with mine. “What happened?” He asked softly like he’s talking to a child.

 I pulled my hand from him. “Why do you want to know? And why do you care, Vincent?” I backed away from him. “Why do you keep showing up? What do you want from me?!” I demanded before I can even stop myself. I can feel my eyes starting to well up again.

 He ran his hand on his hair and he’s scowling. “Why are you mad at me?” He said, raising his voice.

 “Because you’re acting like a stalker!” I yelled back. Putting my hands on my hips.

 “I don’t f*****g care.” He argued.

 I rolled my eyes at him, “I care! You’re confusing me!” I yelled at him, throwing my hands in the air.

 “Well, do you want me to leave?” He asked.

 Do I want him to leave? Well, arguing with him is much better than crying, but still. His attitude can be irritating.

 “Well?” He implored. I turned slowly to face him, biting my lip. I don’t know what to say because I can’t decide if I want him here or not.

 Slowly a smug smile crept on his handsome face. “Thought so.” He walked towards me.

 I pursed my lips because I’m mad at him but mostly mad at myself. He stopped in front of me, looking straight into my eyes, “Let’s just agree that you cannot get rid of me and I cannot stay away from you so...” He cupped my cheek, “let’s go on a date.”

 It felt like everything around me started spinning and all my anger and pain vanished with a single touch.

 I stared at his handsome face. Studying his features and the next thing I know, while staring at his deep blue eyes, his lips pressed against mine and it makes me feel like everything’s okay. I’m going to be okay.