Chapter 103 Heartbroken
Chapter 103 Heartbroken
Talia POV
"I feel like a fool. I feel like the most stupid person on this planet. I was starting to move forward but I just had to drag myself back to hell," I lament, taking another swig of my alcohol.
"Take it easy on that. I'm in no position to drag your tired ass to bed," Bailey warns, eyeing the wine bottle I'm clutching. "I'm pregnant, remember? And you're a lot heavier than you look when you're drunk." She adds.
"I'm not drunk," I protest, even though the room is starting to spin slightly. "I'm just... processing."
Processing how stupid I am ofcourse.
"You're spiraling," Bailey corrects, gently prying the bottle from my hands and setting it on the coffee table. "Now tell me exactly what happened.” Bailey urges me.
I groan and flop back against the couch cushions.
"Austin was perfect," I say.
“ He is literally perfect. Handsome, sweet, attentive and respectful. He's a hockey player with big dreams.
He took me to a nice restaurant, asked about my life, and actually listened to my answers."
"Okay," Bailey says carefully. "So what's the problem?"
"The problem is he's not Marcus," I admit miserably.
"The entire time we were together, all I could think about was how Marcus.” I confess.
Bailey reaches over and squeezes my hand.
"That's not your fault," she says gently. "You can't force yourself to feel something for someone just because they check all the right boxes." She tries to console me but it doesn't make me feel any better.
"I know," I say.
“ I wanted to feel something, Bailey. I wanted to prove to myself that I could move on. That Marcus wasn't the only man who could make me feel... anything."
"What happened after dinner?" Bailey prompts.
I take a deep breath.
"We went for a walk at my usual park.”
Bailey's eyes widen.
"The same place you took Marcus?” She asks and I nod, already feeling ashamed of myself.
“ I don't know why I even went there.
Maybe a part of me wanted to test myself.
It ended up terribly because every bench, every path…all I could see was Marcus and me sitting there months ago. It was like he was haunting me." I confess.
Bailey's hand finds mine and I fight not to recoil, feeling disgusted with myself.
"Austin told me he had a really good time. That he knew I was going through something but he really liked me and wanted to see me again," I say.
“ I was about to give him the 'you're a great guy but I'm not ready' speech when he asked if he could kiss me." I continue, taking a deep breath because I know I will be reliving that moment all over again when I answer Bailey.
"Did you let him?" Bailey asks carefully.
"I was going to," I admit. "Not because I wanted to, but because I thought maybe if I just tried, maybe I'd feel something. But then…"
I stop, still not quite believing what happened next.
"Then what?" Bailey prompts.
"Then Marcus showed up out of nowhere and punched him in the face," I say flatly.
Bailey's jaw drops.
"He what?!"
"He literally yanked Austin away from me and punched him," I repeat.
“I have never felt so guilty when I saw his lips bleeding.
He didn't deserve any of that.
He got assaulted because Marcus apparently decided he has some claim on me."
"Oh my God," Bailey breathes. "Is Austin okay?"
"He's fine, I think. I apologized profusely and sent him away so I could deal with Marcus," I say. "Which is when I lost my mind and started screaming at him."
“ You should have punched him back! What an asshole!” Bailey snaps.
She then turns to look at me.
“ Tell me you gave him a piece of your mind.”
"I did my best.” I confess.
“I told him he had no right to show up and assault random men just because he was jealous. That we weren't together and he didn't get to act like some possessive boyfriend."
"What did he say?" Bailey asks.
I close my eyes, remembering the moment.
"He said he loves me," I whisper.
The room goes completely silent.
When I open my eyes, Bailey is staring at me with an expression I can't quite read.
"He said what?" she asks quietly.
"He said he's in love with me," I repeat, and my voice cracks. "That he has been for months. That seeing Austin about to kiss me made him lose his mind because he couldn't stand the thought of someone else touching me."
“ Talia…” Bailey calls and I can tell as much as she is angry at Marcus, she is more concerned about me because my tears are now running down my cheeks nonstop.
I thought walking away from Marcus hurt but confessions what he told me later on stung.
"I told him he was full of shit, that I didn't believe his ass." I say and find myself chuckling.
"I mean, he had six months to tell me he loved me and he didn't.
He let me walk away without fighting for me so why should his words mean anything without actions?"
"Talia, I don't know what to say.” Bailey says, squeezing my hand again.
Yeah,I would not know what to say either because what kind of a fucked up situation is this?
"Ten he kept talking," I continue since apparently, I am not done talking.
“He told me he was scared. That his last serious relationship ended with his ex cheating on him at their engagement party. That he'd spent two years keeping people at arm's length to avoid getting hurt like that again."
When I say that part, a tiny part of my heart aches for him.
Not trying to justify his actions but going such kind of ordeal is bound to change someone.
Bailey's expression softens slightly.
"That's... that's really awful," she admits.
"I know," I say.
“ You know Bailey, a part of me wanted to just forgive him right there. To say 'okay, I understand, let's try again.'” I say , chuckling at how absurd that even sounds.
“But Bailey, I've been making excuses for him for six months. I've been understanding and patient and willing to accept whatever scraps of affection he was willing to give me. And where did that get me?" I ask no one in particular.
"Heartbroken," Bailey says quietly.