Chapter Ten: Catching Feelings by Rosaline Saul
The morning sun bathed the cobblestone street in a golden
glow, warming Isabel’s face as she sipped her coffee. The tiny café she had
found felt like a sanctuary. She picked at a croissant, her mind wandering to
the night before and the unexpected comfort she had found in Christopher’s
company. She smiled at the memory of their walk along the beach, the sound of
the waves mingling with the quiet timbre of his voice. For the first time in
what felt like forever, she had felt something close to belonging.
“Isabel?”
The voice hit her like a slap, sharp and unwelcome. She froze, the smile fading as her grip on the coffee cup tightened. Slowly, she looked up.
Jason stood there, casual as ever in a crisp white shirt and
faded jeans, his charm polished to perfection. His hair was tousled just so,
his smile disarmingly familiar. For a moment, she wondered if she was
hallucinating. “What are you doing here?” she asked, her voice icy but
trembling.
Jason chuckled, sliding into the seat across from her
without waiting for an invitation. “Ibiza’s not just your escape, Izzy. I
needed a break, too. Imagine my surprise when I saw you here.”
Her stomach churned at the use of his nickname for her—a
name that once felt like affection now dripped with manipulation. “How did you
find me?”
“I didn’t.” He held up his hands as if to prove his
innocence. “Pure coincidence but maybe fate’s trying to tell us something.”
“Fate?” she repeated, her tone laced with disbelief. “Jason,
you’ve got to be kidding me.”
“I’m not,” he said smoothly, leaning forward, his hazel eyes
locking onto hers. “Look, Izzy, I know things got messy between us, but I’ve
had time to think. I’ve changed.”
She laughed bitterly, shaking her head. “Changed? Jason, you
lied to me. You cheated. Flirted with girls in front of me as if I was
invisible, insignificant. You made me doubt myself for months. Now you want me
to believe you’ve magically turned into a better person?”
He sighed, the picture of exasperated patience. “I get it.
You’re still angry. You have every right to be. But come on, Izzy, don’t you
think it’s time to let go of all that? People make mistakes. It doesn’t mean
they don’t love you.”
“Love?” Her voice rose, drawing a glance from a nearby
table. She lowered it, her words sharper now. “You don’t get to use that word.
Not after everything you did.”
Jason leaned back, his expression softening into something
almost pitiable. “I know I hurt you, but you weren’t perfect either, Izzy. You
always overreacted. I felt like I couldn’t do anything right without you
blowing up at me.”
Her breath caught, anger flaring in her chest. “I
overreacted? As always you minimise my feelings.”
He shook his head, his voice calm, measured—the voice he had
used so often to make her doubt herself. “It’s not like that and you know how
you are. Always too sensitive. I might flirt with other girls, it’s just who I
am, but you’ve always been the one for me.”
The words sent a shiver down her spine, the same old trap
threatening to ensnare her again. She clenched her fists under the table,
grounding herself in the texture of the wooden surface. “You don’t get to do
this,” she said, her voice steady despite the raging storm inside her. “You
don’t get to act like I’m supposed to forgive you because you’ve decided that’s
what you want.”
Jason leaned closer, his tone dropping to something almost
conspiratorial. “I know you’re scared. I know you’ve been hurt but deep down,
you know we’re meant to be. We’ve been through too much to just walk away from
it.”
She stared at him, her chest tightening. The worst part was
not his words—it was the part of her that still wanted to believe them. An image
flashed in her mind. Christopher. His quiet presence, his genuine smile, the
way he looked at her. “I’m not doing this again, Jason,” she said finally, her
voice firm. “I’m not falling for it. Not this time.”
Jason’s expression shifted, the mask of calm cracking to
reveal frustration. “So that’s it? You’re just going to throw us away? For what?”
Isabel stood, her chair scraping against the cobblestones. “For
me. I’m done letting you control my life.” She turned and walked away, her
heart pounding in her chest.
Jason’s voice called after her.
She did not stop.
She would not stop.
Not this time.
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