I'm here. No matter what happens.

I'm here. No matter what happens.
Diana

When we got into the car, my hands were still shaking. It wasn't me being fussy, it wasn't drama... it was genuine shock.

I sat in the seat as if my body had shut down.

Ethan walked around and got behind the wheel, but before starting the car, he turned to me.

"Diana... look at me."

I looked, but my eyes were unfocused. My brain was still trying to process what had happened. One moment I was laughing in the restroom because the soap was so fancy. And the next... my ex had forcibly grabbed me, as if I were his property.

"You're pale," Ethan said, resting his hand on my thigh. "Do you want to go to the hospital? Do you want to call the police right now?"

I gasped—not the forbidden word, just air.

"No... I... I just want to go home. Please."

He didn't argue.

He started the car immediately.

The whole way there, I stared out the window. The world seemed strange. The streetlights passing by, people walking calmly... and there I was, with a knot in my chest.

"I should have finished him off," Ethan said suddenly, still furious. "He laid a hand on you. He grabbed you. He scared you. He—"

"Ethan," I interrupted, still looking out the window. "I just... I don't want to talk about him right now."

Silence.

The kind that says it all.

When we got home, the security guard opened the gate, and I felt that wave of relief. As if the walls of our home were a shield.

I walked in slowly, taking off my shoes in the hallway. My hand was still trembling as I removed my heels. Ethan took off his suit jacket and tossed it onto the sofa, but in a way that showed he was still pissed off.

"Diana," he called out, walking toward me.

"Hm?"

He gently ran his hand over my face. A calmness that stood in stark contrast to his stern expression.

"Come here."

He pulled me against his chest, and I melted into the embrace. It was exactly what I needed.

His scent.

His warmth.

The feeling that I was safe with him.

I stayed there quietly, taking deep breaths.

"He has no place in your life anymore," Ethan said, kissing the top of my head. "And he never will. I promise."

"I know," I murmured, though my voice was faint.

The truth?

I was scared.

Truly scared.

Not that he might show up again.

But scared of the feeling I’d had when he held me.

That old, familiar feeling—one I thought would never return.

Vulnerability.

Being pulled in like that had instantly transported me back to the past.

I was back in the time when I blamed myself for everything.

Back to when I thought I was worthless.

Back to when I believed his lies.

And that... that made me feel sick.

"Diana," Ethan said softly, "look at me."

I slowly lifted my face.

"You know you don't owe him anything, right?" he asked seriously. "You don't owe him an explanation, a conversation, or any part of your past."

I took a deep breath.

"I know. It’s just... seeing him there... it reminded me of so many bad things."

"He doesn't get to touch your life anymore. Literally," Ethan replied, using that firm voice only he had. "And if he tries, I’ll make him disappear. Simple as that."

I gave a small, almost imperceptible, yet genuine smile.

"Were you jealous?" I asked, trying to lighten the mood.

He rolled his eyes and answered without hesitation:

"I was angry. Jealousy doesn't even cover it."

I gazed at him for a few seconds. That look of his… that stance… the protective way he acted… it all stirred something strange inside me.

Love mixed with fear.

Not fear of Ethan.

Fear of life itself.

“Do you want to take a shower?” he suggested. “Sometimes it helps to calm you down.”

“Yes.”

He took my hand and led me to the en-suite bathroom. He turned the shower on first, letting the water run hot—just the way I liked it. I sat on the edge of the tub while waiting for the water to heat up.

It still hadn't fully sunk in. I was there, in a safe place, with the man who loved me… yet that heavy weight remained in my chest.

“Can I come in?” Ethan asked, almost in a whisper.

“Yes,” I replied.

He stepped in with me, pulling me close slowly and carefully, as if I were made of glass. I rested my forehead against his chest and felt my body finally relax.

“He won’t come near you again,” Ethan repeated. “I promise.”

“Thank you…” I whispered.

The hot water ran down my back, seeming to wash away some of the fear. I felt tired—emotionally drained—but little by little, I was finding my center again.

Ethan ran his hand through my hair, calm and gentle.

“When you screamed…” he said, “my heart almost stopped. I thought someone had actually hurt you.”

“I was scared,” I confessed. “I thought I was going to faint. Or I don’t know… I just wanted you to get there fast.”

“I made it,” he said firmly. “Whenever you call me… I’ll be there.”

That.

That really got to me.

I took a deep breath, letting it all out. The tension, the shock, the anger, the past.

Everything.

When we stepped out of the shower, I felt a little more alive. Still fragile, but lighter. Ethan put my sleepwear on top of the ...bed and sat down next to me when I finished changing.

“Do you want something to eat?” he asked.

“No. I just want to lie down.”

He turned off the light and lay down with me, pulling me close by the waist.

My body fit against his, just as it always did.

And it was there—lying with my head on his chest, listening to his calm breathing—that I finally felt the world slow down.

“Diana…” he said after a while, his voice so soft it gave me goosebumps.

“Yeah…”

“I’m here. No matter what happens.”

I closed my eyes.

“I know.”

And for the first time that night… I was able to take a deep breath without my chest aching.

Tomorrow, I’d be better.

I knew that.

But in that moment, all I needed was him.

And he was there.

Right beside me.

Just the way he’d always been.