Chapter Six: Catching Feelings by Rosaline Saul
Isabel sat in a comfy chair on her hotel balcony, gazing out at the waves as dawn began to break over the horizon. The first hints of sunlight stretched across the sky. As the sun rose higher, its light spilled onto the water, catching on the cresting waves and scattering like fragments of shattered glass across the sea’s surface. The breeze was cool and gentle, carrying the fresh, salt-tinged air of early morning. With each rolling wave, the sunlight danced in brilliant patterns, casting flecks of gold that faded and reappeared in a rhythmic, hypnotic pulse, as if the ocean itself was breathing.
In that stillness, the quiet beauty wrapped around her as her fingers traced the edge of her coffee cup. She had not been able to shake the image of the man from the beach, the way he had looked at her with eyes that seemed to know her pain, her past, even the questions she had not dared to ask herself. His presence had lingered long after they parted, a shadow of something she was not ready to ponder.
She should be grateful to feel anything at all, after Jason. After months of gaslighting and manipulation, she had walked away bruised but whole—she had convinced herself of that, at least, but even now, the remnants of his words played like a twisted melody in her mind, faint but persistent. He had drawn her in with his charm and promises, only to unravel her from the inside. Jason had been the master of hiding in plain sight, masking cruelty with honeyed words and warm smiles. That deception, that betrayal, had hollowed her out, left her wary of every smile, every touch. Then the stranger appeared, with those same eyes, that same compelling gaze.
Her stomach twisted as she remembered Jason’s face, the way he had laughed off her suspicions when she had caught him texting other women. She had been the overly emotional one, the needy girlfriend, the one with insecurities. He had made her doubt herself, planting seeds of fear and guilt until she felt trapped in her own mind. Even now, she could feel those tendrils of doubt worming their way into her thoughts, warning her that men like Jason could appear anywhere, in any form—even in a stranger who seemed to understand her pain. The echoes of Jason’s manipulation were hard to ignore.
The warm wind played through her hair as she sat back, staring at the sky.
That night when she decided to come to Ibiza to escape her heartbreak had been long, the silence between her and Jason stretched thin and was ready to snap. She had finally confronted him, her voice trembling but firm, about the way he was talking to the waitress at the restaurant where they had gone for a romantic meal to celebrate their one-year anniversary.
Jason just laughed, a hollow, cold sound that sent a chill down her spine. "You’re overreacting, Izzy," he said, his tone casual, dismissive. "Honestly, you always do this. Always reading into things that aren’t there."
Her throat tightened. "I saw the way you looked at her, Jason. I’m not imagining anything."
He rolled his eyes, leaning against the wall with a smirk that bordered on disdain. "Right. Because you’re the expert on body language now? Maybe you should focus on your own issues instead of inventing scenarios."
His words twisted inside her, stinging like nettles. She looked at him, searching for some trace of the man she thought she loved, but found only cold indifference. "I just want the truth," she whispered, feeling her voice break despite herself.
He sighed, shaking his head in mock pity. "You know, Isabel, maybe that’s the problem. You’re just too insecure. No matter what I say, you’ll never trust me." His voice softened, almost a whisper. "Maybe… maybe you should work on yourself before you try to pin your insecurities on me."
The finality of it hit her like a blow. In that moment, she realized he would never admit to anything, that he would keep twisting her feelings until she questioned her own reality. She felt her heart shatter, and with one last look at him, she knew it was over. Without another word, she turned, packed her things, and left, her mind set on escaping to somewhere far away, somewhere away from Jason.
She closed her eyes, pulling her knees to her chest. The past haunted her, its shadows refusing to let her go. She remembered the first time she had caught Jason in a lie, the way he had turned the blame back on her. That night, her trust had cracked, but she had convinced herself to stay, to try again. It was only after leaving that she had realized how thoroughly he had distorted her sense of self. And yet, even with all that pain, there was still a part of her that yearned for connection, for someone who would see her fully, unbroken.
The face of the stranger she had encountered on the beach the night before flashed in her mind, his eyes intense and curious, full of something she couldn’t quite read. She had felt herself softening under his gaze, pulled in by a connection she did not understand but was it real, or was she simply filling a void left by Jason’s betrayal?
That thought made her chest tighten. The last thing she wanted was to give her heart to someone who would leave her in pieces again. Eventually she would have to trust again, to allow someone into her life, and that was a risk she was not sure she was ever going to be ready to take. Vulnerability had betrayed her once before. Could she survive it happening again?
She took a deep breath, focusing on the horizon where the sky kissed the sea, steadying herself in its vastness. Love and pain had become synonymous in her mind, an endless cycle of hope and hurt. For now, she could only wrestle with the hurt in her heart, letting the waves carry away the weight of her fears, even if only for a little while.
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