Chapter 80: Chapter 80

(Dmitri’s Thoughts)

She heard me, I know.

She saw me, I am sure of it.

But she disappeared in front of me.

She didn’t look at me, she didn’t even bother to see a glimpse of me, to check if I was real. I was like a ghost, a bad omen she wished she never met.

Then, she volted and ran away.

She disappeared in front of me, and what the hell am I doing?

“Will I let her escape again? Will I let her go again?” I clench my fist, and then I hear the old woman cheers me up. She speaks in French.

“Go after her, go ahead, and never let her go. Maybe, you are the reason why she was never completely happy with her boyfriend, she just didn’t know it yet. Or else, she’s denying it,” her words light my fire up.

I thank her and run out of the store. I begin to look for her, and luckily, I still see her figure running away.

I run after her. I chase her desperately. My decision is final, “I’ll never let you go, Avery. I thought it is best to leave you and Jeff alone, but…”

I gather all my strength to quickly catch up. I don’t mind the people who are walking before me. I pass by everyone just to make the distance shorter between us.

“I can’t give you away. I need you in my life. I can’t be selfless, especially not with you at stake. I will take you back, no matter what.”

I am just a few steps away from her, when her speed slows down, and suddenly into a full stop.

I match her pace and quietly observe her from behind. She, laughs, she cries, and she murmurs by herself, until, little by little, I hear her say something aloud.

I must admit the words she uttered are like deadly venom in my veins, “I didn’t do anything wrong, why the hell are you running from him? From a ghost in your past for fuck’s sake, Ava. You are not a coward!”

“A ghost in her past? Am I just a past now to her? While I still think of her every single damn day?” my thought says.

“-But isn’t it, your fault, you made her feel that way?” argues the other.

“You didn’t do anything wrong? But you left me, didn’t you? You chose to go away,” rebuts one.

“-Because you are not man enough to own her, and she did it to save your face,” argues the other.

“Not a coward? Well, yes, you aren’t. You never were. I was, I was the big coward. I wasn’t there for you when you needed me the most. I should have hold on to you tighter. I should have searched for you much longer,” finally, my own thoughts are now on the same page.

Because of it, I take the courage to do what I’ve been dreaming to do for the past two years without you in my life, to feel and touch you, to hug and kiss you, to love you.

Instead, I just utter these words, “You are not a coward, so don’t you dare run away from me ever again.”

I stand behind her and automatically, my arms wrap around her. This time, I didn’t stop myself, I am not cautious.

I just want to be my, be myself, be the selfish man I’ve always been, and embrace her with all my might.

Being close to her like this fills my empty soul. I want to tell her I love her, but I shouldn’t make it hard on her.

Being next to her like this is enough for me, for now. As I hug her tight, I can hear her heart beating faster.

But she, she doesn’t struggle, different from what I expected of her. She just stands there, frozen, without doing anything. And it makes me, confused.

“Is she angry? Or not? Does she want me back? Or not?”

After some minutes, I loosen my arms, and the moment I did, she turns around.

The next thing I know, a loud slap touches my right cheek.

But I don’t actually give a damn about it, I didn’t even mind about giving my left cheek if it means seeing her face again up-close like this.

People are looking at us, but as I said, I don’t mind about the others, I just missed staring at her like this.

Her eyes are narrowed, her eyebrows almost connected from too much burrow and her lips are slightly twitch, probably displease of seeing me again.

She opens it apart, a bit, and damn, she still has the same effect on me.

“Can I kiss her now? I want to devour her?” my thought is killing me.

But she parts it a bit because she’s about to say something, “You!”

With a strong disdain in her tone, I listen to her and stare at her. “Don’t you dare show your face to me ever again! Don’t you follow me around, and don’t do that ever again!”

Well, her voice is loud, but it lacks conviction. Why is it that what she means with these is the exact opposite?

I am not able to respond quickly, and I see her walking out from me ever again. I have no choice but to do everything to make her stay, so I chose to be a condescending egoistic jerk, just to get her attention.

“You’re not a coward, aren’t you? So why are you running away from me again?” and my words penetrate her.

“Being a coward is different from being real. I just don’t like being around you, Dmitri. So if you don’t mind, I’ll be on my way,” she scowls at me, and at last, I see her sassy attitude again.

“I’ll see you around, Avery,” I grin while saying these words.

But her only response is, “Please, don’t,” and then she walks away and never looks back in my direction.

I’ll give her space for now, but to let go? Never again!

I own you, Avery. You were mine since that night. You might not know it yet, but I guess your body remembers and recognizes it. Soon, you’ll realize we are way connected to each other, deeper than you ever think of.