Beautiful Betrayal

Fears

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"I've been letting go of heavy things."

~Butterflies Rising

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V I C T O R I A
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Driving toward my parents' house, I craved the comforting presence of my mom. A heavy sigh escaped me as I glanced at the gloomy sky, reflecting the heaviness in my heart.

The events of the previous night were clear in my mind; I knew exactly what had happened when Dominic and that girl suddenly disappeared from the crowd. I am not naive or foolish.

That's why I left his penthouse, because I didn't want to witness his 'after-orgásmed' face.

I sighed heavily as my thoughts drifted to my parents' house. All I wanted was to embrace my mom and let out all my pent-up emotions, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I couldn't bear the thought of worrying them even more.

"Oh, God! I'm such a mess," I muttered to myself, feeling overwhelmed by my inner turmoil. The idea of facing my parents and breaking down in front of them was too much to bear.

With a heavy heart, I retraced my steps and climbed back into my car. Driving aimlessly for an hour, I found myself parked in front of a cozy restaurant. But despite being hungry, I couldn't summon the appetite to eat. Lost in thought, my gaze wandered until it settled on a small store—a bookstore.

In that moment, the prospect of losing myself in the pages of a good book seemed more appealing than anything else. so I made my way towards the store.

After parking my car, I spent the entire afternoon engrossed in the shelves of the bookstore, lost in the world of words. As I approached the counter to pay for my stack of ten new books, my eyes caught sight of a poster on the wall:

"AQUA SCHOOL - Never put an age limit on your dreams. Just dive in! SWIMMING LESSONS - REGISTRATION OPEN."

I hesitated for a moment. "I have to face my fear someday, today or tomorrow, so why not now?" I reasoned with myself.

Without another thought, I made the decision and signed up for the program, paying the registration fee I shove my phone in my pocket.

As I drove home and parked my car in front of the house, my phone suddenly rang. Glancing at the screen, I noticed it was an unknown number.

As I stepped out of the car and began gathering my belongings, I instinctively held the phone between my ear and shoulder as it rang. "Hello?" I answered absentmindedly.

It was a call from the swimming school, confirming my registration. Lost in conversation, I turned around only to find Dominic standing beside my car door, holding two large shopping bags in his hands. His expression was one of slight concern, his brow furrowed in a frown, as he observed me with a puzzled look.

"Ma'am, are you there?" the voice on the other end prompted. I suddenly realized that I had forgotten about the call, and hastily snapped out of my trance when the voice on the other end repeated their question, a little louder this time.

"Yeah... Yes, I'm here," I replied hastily, trying to focus on the conversation while still aware of Dominic's presence.

"Okay... I will be there at one in the afternoon... Yeah.... Okay.... Thank you so much," I confirmed the appointment before ending the call.

Turning to face Dominic, I expected an explanation for his sudden appearance. "what are you doing here?" I asked, but instead of an answer, he narrowed his eyes, his expression clouded with a frown.