Memories Of Paris

𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐢𝐦

After the hug, there was a new kind of tension in the air not only between him and Iris but also with Gabriel. That was why they didn't stay much longer at the party and soon said goodbye.

Because they didn't have their own car with them and their hotel was pretty far away from Lincoln's home, they took a taxi back. Although his girlfriend hadn't said anything, he could tell there was something on her mind that made him give her some alone time.

Even though hugging other people wasn't cheating and he hadn't done anything wrong, she was clearly bothered about it. For so long, he had tried not to show he felt about Gabriel but maybe he hadn't done it as well as he had thought.

"Can I ask you something?" Iris was brushing her long red hair in the small bathroom. She was looking at him through the mirror while he was
drying his hair after the shower.

"Sure." He had a pretty good idea of what she was about to say. This time he was going to be honest and tell her everything.

"Have you ever had anything with Gabriel? You told me at home that he's your old friend but you looked... closer than that," she asked, looking like she didn't want to hear the answer.

Sighing, Alex decided to stop hiding one of the most important relationships in his life even if it had ended early. "We dated a few months last year."

Was that enough? What other important, personal details should he say about the first person he had ever loved and their relationship? Although he cared about Iris, she wasn't Gabriel and because of that, he didn't want to share those months with her. They were too important.

While she looked a bit hurt that Alex had hidden this from her, she even managed to look understanding and even pitied him. How did she get that much from what he said that she had immediately understood that Gabriel had hurt him? That there might be a reason why he hadn't told her about him?

"He was important to you, wasn't he? Did you love him?" She had stopped brushing her hair but was still looking at him from the mirror. Alex, on the other hand, wanted to escape to the other room and lock the door behind him. But he couldn't do that, not anymore.

Instead of answering, he looked around the bathroom and tried to think of what to say. He didn't want to admit it out loud because it would make it more real. All this time he had tried to avoid Gabriel and Paris and everything that happened there just so it wouldn't be so damn painful. But it hadn't worked.

"Yeah, I did."

Iris sighed and stood up to hug him, giving him comfort while whispering how sorry she was. "Do you want to tell me what happened?"

No, he didn't want to share all of what he did with Gabriel but maybe he should. It could help him to move on from him, really move on and help his girlfriend know him better. There was no way he would tell Gabriel's secrets without his permission but he could tell at least some of what happened between them and why they broke up.

Instead of answering her questions in the bathroom, Alex took her hand and went together to the bedroom where he went to sit on the edge of the bed. Only when she sat down next to him did he start telling her the story.

"Well, I guess it all started when I had my vacation last July and I went to visit Link because he had just moved there. I met Gabe on my first day there because Link was at work and I got lost so he had to help me. We didn't immediately get together because we started as friends even though I really liked him.

"When we got together, Gabe's ex-husband got in the picture and he... well, it's complicated but he wanted Gabe back. I can't explain all the details but they have a long and pretty complicated history.