My Punch Drunk Love

Chapter 25. Almost

Chapter 25. Almost

Joey’s POV

“Whatever it is Jowella, whatever that had happened to you before, you know you can tell me. I want to help you and I promise to you, you can trust me.” He told me, meaning every single word that left his mouth.

I could feel myself being drowned once again. Just like an old rusty machine that was poured with fuel to start re-operating, all the feelings that I have long hidden inside had suddenly resurfaced. My heart was beating loudly inside my chest, almost deafening my ears. And I knew the exact reason why.

He was here. Here in front of me. He was gazing directly at my eyes.  “B-brent I...” Before I could stop myself, the name that kept running through my mind flew out of my mouth.

 I clearly saw how Ethan’s eyes widened in surprise then after a second it narrowed into a mixture confusion and slight anger. “Wha- what d-did you say?”

My mouth dropped and I didn’t know what to say. Deep inside me I was already screaming a list of profanities at myself for being so stupid. Damn it! 

Guilt was crawling up on every inch of my skin and I tore my eyes away from Ethan to get hold of myself but the moment I looked back on the road, a red pick-up truck was passing on the intersection in front of us. My eyes widened and I screamed, feeling the dreadful panic hit against me.

 “ETHAN STEP ON THE GOD DAMN BRAKES!!!”

The car was immediately put to a stop just a meter away from the intersection. Ethan has stepped on the brakes so hard making us slump back on the seat with huge impact. If we were not wearing any seat belts, we might have gone flying out of the windshield and worse, if he hadn’t step on the brakes faster than he did, God knows what would have happened next.

For the second time that afternoon, my heart was beating furiously inside my chest. But this time, it was because I almost had a heart attack.

I didn’t know how long I was staring at the road with my mouth hanging open until I felt something hot trickling down my cheeks.

Yes, I was crying.

I was in utter shock that I didn’t even notice that tears had already poured out from my eyes. Suddenly, a pair of muscular arms enveloped me.

“I’m sorry Jowella. I didn’t mean to frighten you like that. I’m such a jerk for not looking at the road. I won’t let it happen again, I promise.” Ethan whispered softly in my ears as he rubbed his hand against my back. “I’m so sorry.”

I sobbed hard against his chest. I have never felt so scared all my life until today. I was so scared, not only because of the possibility that we might get hurt if we crashed, but because of the fact that this scene has happened to me before. It was the incident that had haunted me, and I’ve done my best to forget it and make it just a part of my history.

But today, I almost let this history repeat itself to me...

Almost.

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What Ethan said as a small party was indeed the understatement of the year.

Cate’s nineteenth birthday party was held in ‘La Croisseue’, a five star restaurant that was famous worldwide for its delightful French cuisine. It’s a place where everyone wears formal evening dresses and suits while holding champagne glasses and bragging about their selves. Just hearing its name, I knew very well that it was going to be like attending one of the formal parties my dad held for his V.I.P partners.

Tonight I wore my red Valentino evening dress which is bare back but has cap sleeves, making it look sexy but formal as well. Its bodice was filled with tinsel and jewels and its lower part, which is made of silk, draped perfectly on my body, flaunting my perfect curves. I had my blonde hair twisted and pinned in a bun, with few curled wisps falling on one side. It’s been awhile since I last attended a formal gathering and I wanted to make sure I look presentable.