When We Met Again Our Son Was Five Chapter 07
Tristan reached out from behind me and caught my wrist.
His tie was crooked, his hair had been blown into a total mess by the wind, and his eyes were red, making him look like some kid who’d just been picked on.
He looked straight into my eyes, and his throat moved.
“Will you marry me?”
I didn’t answer.
His voice was a little hoarse. “This was my fault. That night you came to me, I didn’t make you stay. You disappeared for five years, and I couldn’t find you.”
He paused, and his fingers tightened slightly around my wrist.
“All of it was my fault.”
I looked at him, and something inside me stirred.
I stared at Tristan. The cocky, careless edge he used to have was gone from his eyes.
All that was left was a cautious kind of hope I had never seen on his face before.
I pulled my wrist out of his hand.
“Tristan, I’m honestly not used to you begging me like this.”
He looked at me without saying anything.
“Usually, whenever we see each other, you wish I’d drop dead, and I feel the exact same way about you.”
It was like a dog that had spent years snapping at your heels, suddenly rolling over and showing its belly. Your first instinct wouldn’t be to rub its stomach. You’d wonder what kind of trap this was.
Tristan was quiet for a moment after hearing that, his face full of helpless frustration.
“That was before.”
He had been hardheaded since he was a kid.
He never admitted defeat in a fight, never cried out when he got hit, and never begged for mercy even after being punished.
His back was always straight, his chin was always lifted, and his eyes always carried that irritating, cocky look that made people want to punch him.
Seeing him so careful now, like he was afraid of saying the wrong thing, suddenly felt kind of funny.
I tilted my head and looked at him. “Tristan, do you know what you look like right now?”
He looked at me warily.
“What do I look like?”
“You look like a dog that got dumped by its owner and finally found its way home. Tail tucked, scared it’ll get thrown out again.”
His expression changed.
I didn’t give him time to react before I continued, “You didn’t use to be like this. You used to look like you wanted to bite me to death. Now, you’re wagging your tail?”
Tristan’s throat moved.
“Vanessa, are you messing with me?”
I blinked at him with the most innocent face I could manage.
He stared at me, pressing his lips into a straight line.
I waited for him to lose his temper.
Based on how well I knew him, he could only last about three seconds before blowing up.
Then, we could go right back to hating the sight of each other.
He’d curse me out, I’d bite him, we’d both go home, and everything would be clean and simple.
I waited for a long time, though, and he still didn’t get angry.
He lowered his head, looked at Lucas in his arms, and said in a muffled voice, “As long as you’re happy.”
I froze.
“What did you say?”
He looked up at me. His eyes were still red, and his smile held a trace of bitterness.
“Yell at me if you want. If messing with me makes you feel better, then do it. I owe it to you anyway.”
I stared at him for several seconds like I was looking at a monster.
After he took me home, he stood downstairs for a long time before leaving.
I closed the curtains, took a shower, lay down in bed, and tossed and turned without falling asleep.
My head was full of everything he had just said.
He was insane, completely insane.
I rolled over and buried my face in the pillow.
The next morning, I was woken up by a knock at the door.
It was Clarissa.
She stood outside with red, swollen eyes.
“Nessa…” Clarissa’s voice shook. “I need you to do me a favor.”
“What is it?”
“Josie… slit her wrists last night.”
