Chapter 69

Chapter 69: Short-lived Summerlove “NO !!!”

I let out a sharp scream and make a lunge forward, stepping in between him and Liam. Eason stops abruptly in his track, his grip on the bottle tightening, his chest rising and falling rapidly. “What the fuck are you doing!” 1 yell to him, making sure Liam is safe behind my back “Drop your bottle now! Or I’m calling the police.”

His eyes become redder, as if the next second his eyes will cry blood.

ITUD “That’s the first thing you say after so long?” he asks with a trembling voice, which is filled with sadness and rage. “Do you have any idea what kind of life I’ve lived ever since you left?!” I was sad at first. But now hearing him say these, anger starts to build up in my heart again. I grit my teeth taking a firm step forward and snatch the bouile from him. He quivers for a bit but doesn’t resist. I smash the bottle to the ground making a huge noise. “What kind of life you’ve lived? Do you have ANY IDEA what kind of life I have lived?!”1 growl, unable to control my temper anymore. “I cried myself into sleep! I escaped Boston like a criminal just to run away from you! My life was like hell after finding out what you have been up to!

So shut the fuck up and stop making me the fault one!!”

Eason’s body quivers and his back slightly bends down. His lips press into a firuline, and after a while, he says in a low voice, “Let me talk to you Natalia.” I avoid his gaze, “I’m done talking to you.” “Please,” he moves closer with a pleading look in his eyes. “We can’t end this way. Let me explain, please.”

Liam holds my shoulder and stretches out an arm to stop him, “Hey I don’t think she wants to talk.”

Eason snaps his liead around toward Liam and grits out, “This is our FUCKING business, W110 the hell are you?!”

Liam’s grip on my shoulder tightens, “I’m her brother.”

“Bullshit, she is the only child! You…” he tails off and then suddenly realizes something.”… You are her father’s girlfriend’s son.” Liam lets out a cold sneer and pulls me behind him.

I really don’t think provoking Eason is a good idea right now, but Liam already takes a step forward and says:

“You are right. So I’m also her stepbrother, the same as you. She is safe and happy here and has moved on from her past in Boston. You better get the hell out of here now and leave her alone–”

Before he can finish the last word, Eason suddenly throws a punch at his face, knocking him hard to the ground. The crowd gasps and disperse. Then the two starts attacking each other fiercely on the floor.

“Stop!!” I scream, trying to pull thern apart but fail. “That’s fucking enough!!”

The security man in the bar quickly approaches us. But before he arrives, a few men in black suits suddenly appear from the crowd and separate the two forcefully. I recognize them as Eason’s bodyguards.

They stand there both panting roughly and still glare each other. I have no doubt that is those bodyguards release them, they will lunge at each other again, like a pair of beasts.

The security of the bar finally arrives at the scene and snaps, “What the hell is going on here!”

One of the bodyguard turns to Eason, “Mr. Ramirez, should I clear the room?” Before Eason answers, Liam lets out a cold sneer, “Oh so that’s what you do? Have your sather’s hatchet men follow you around and pay your way off? Is this how you treated Nat?” Eason’s face turns pale, his body slightly shaking, maybe because their right has further injured his broken arm.

But my sympathy for hiin has run out. “Liam,” I say slowly. “I should talk to him.”

“…Are you sure about this?”

“Yes,” I nod. “He won’t leave unless we have a talk.” I know Eason too well.

Liam sighs and wipes the corner of his ripped mouth, “Fine. But I won’t let you do this alone.”

Eason shakes off his bodyguards and growls, “What’s your fucking business in this!” I shout him a furious glare and snap, “I need someone to be there, because I have to be sure you won’t take me by force and ship me back to Boston! I have very little trust and patience in you so don’t test my bottom line!”

A dark and gloomy look appears on his face. After a sliort silence, Eason turns around and leads to the door.

I gesture Liam to follow.

Moments later, we finally stand on the street alone, with his bodyguard guarding him in the distance and Liam behind my back, like a dealing scene in the gangster movie, which is so damn hilarious in some ways.

I cross my arms and look at Eason in the eyes, “So what do you want?” A painful look flashes across his eyes before he begins lowly. “You didn’t give me a chance to explain.”

“Now is your chance. Say it.” Despite my total disappointment in him, I am indeed curious. Why on earth did he do these things to me?

I am fine with him dumping me, but does he have to play me like a sucking toy?! And that video he made…God, my stomach swirls with disgust just thinking about it!

He pauses for a long time as if it’s hard for him to say it.

“Before I say this…you have to know that I’ve regretted everything a long time ago. I drop the plan eventually because I’m really in love with you. 11- if you hadn’t found out about it, we would be so happy together right now-” “Enough with the bullshit!” I snap. “Just tell me why you played me!!” “Becalise you did the same to me!!” lie burst out. I can’t believe my ears. What the fuck did he say? I played him? Did he lose his mind? I suddenly bend down with my shoulders rocking with laughter, because it’s so unbelievably ridiculous and crazy.

“Oh my god Eason. If you want to be a jerk, at least be an honest one. Don’t blame everything on me! I dare to say this: when I loved you, I loved you with my full heart. I had no sliame nor regret! How can you accuse me of doing the saine lo you!”

“But you did! Three years ago!” his frantic roar echoes in the empty street. “I fell in love with you three years ago and it’s the first time I ever loved someone like that! I brought you flower and a letter, asking you to meet me at a restaurant called the Secret Garden. I wanted to ask you to be my girlfriend and stay in Boston.”

“Impossible! I never received anything from you!” I cry out, “Now who’s the liar?” he lets out a sarcastic and bitter laugh. Then he takes out his phone and quickly scrolls down the screen, then turns liis phone screen to me. “See for yoursell. I still have the test message you sent me three years ago.”

I take his phone with a shaking hand.

(Natalia: Got your flower and letter. See you @ Secret Garden, 7:00pm.]

My mind is a blank. I double check the date and the sender. It’s true. This message was sent out from my phone three years ago.

Yet I swear to God. I have absolutely no memory of this.

But then I suddenly remember what Jenna had told me, ‘The missing flower and letter from my room.

“And then,” Eason continues with a trembling voice. “At 7:00 pm in the restaurant, a waiter caine in with a huge plastic bag. He opened the bar and poured everything on my head…it’s my flower cut to a million pieces. He then took out a letter and started reading it in front of me and everyone else in the restaurant.

I could still remember some of it…you said I was a spoiled, troubled fuckboy who doesn’t deserve lo be with a good girl like you. You hated me. And I should just rot in hell and be as far away from you as I could.”

“NO!!” I scream and take a step back. “You are wrong. I didn’t know any of these flowers, letter, and restaurant and I certainly didn’t do those things…someone did, but not me.”

Eason stares at me looking dazed, and then gradually, his confusion is replaced by panic and shock “No…no you are lying,” he shakes his head and murmurs. “Am I Eason? You know me. If I hate you, I will look you straight in the eyes and tell you. I would never stage a drama like that! And after we met again, you have a thousand chances to confront me and clear this misunderstanding but NO! You chose to revenge me beliind my back, for something I didn’t even do in the first place!!” His face becomes even grayer, almost like a dying person. His body shakes violently as if the next second he will collapse to the ground.

This is fucked up. Everything is so fucked up!

And I’ve heard enough of his bullshit.

I struggle to push back my tears and turn around to leave. But quick footstep approaches nie from behind and Eason grabs me by the elbow and stops me.

His bright green eyes are brimming with hope, as if all of a sudden, he has found out the way to keep me. “Don’t you want to find out who did this to us?” he asks eagerly, almost begging. Because this is none of our fault! It’s just a liuge misunderstanding. After we clear this, we can still be __13 I shake liis land off harshly and stare at liim in disbelief.

“My god Eason, you-you really have no sympathy in your heart.”

At this point, I’m already tired of being angry with him. I just find him and this whole thing very ridiculous and amusing.

“This is not a inisunderstanding. Deep down in your heart, you knew long before that I didn’t do those things. But you still chose to play me like a puppet, simply because you enjoy the pleasure of ruining someone’s life. This is who you are. Even if we find out who did it, it still won’t change the nature of you.

Whoever wrote that letter is right about one thing you are a troubled soul who doesn’t deserve happiness.”

I shoot him one last glare that’s enough to freeze him on the spot. “I’m done loving you Eason,” I say to him lastly. “Just go and give me my normal life back.” I manage to take a trembling step further and Liam catches me in time. He holds my hand and quickly escorts ine away from the scene and into his car.

Before the car drive away, I look through the window and find Eason dropped to his knees and buried his face into his hands.

“Are you alright?” Liam asks beside me.

I force myself to look away and bite down my lip till a copper taste fills my moutli, “Yeah…just go. Quick”

“What if he comes back to you again later?”

“He won’t. His father won’t let him. Plus, he is too proud and too much of a fuckboy to look back.”

I lean back to the chair and close iny eyes feeling exhausted. “He’ll forget me before he even realizes,” I say slowly. I don’t believe he has any deep and lasting feelings for me. Everything he did back there was simply part of his huge ego. He just wasn’t used to being rejected.

But regardless, this is probably my strongest moment. Walking away from him and putting an end to my short-lived summer love.