Chapter 02

HAZEL 

No! I shook my head as tears blurred my vision, refusing to believe I just walked in on my boyfriend fucking his assistant! I couldn’t have conjured this up from my imagination because never in a hundred years would I have believed that my boyfriend was cheating on me! 

We were happy…or so I thought. Several thoughts ran through my mind as they both jolted apart and started to hurriedly get dressed. Why would he choose tonight of all night to hurt me like this? 

It was too much to bear so I turned around and fled the scene. The elevator was taking too long to arrive and I sensed him coming after me so I took the stairs instead. It didn’t matter anyway because when I got to the lobby, he was already waiting for me there. 

“Hazel, please listen to me.” He pleaded, reaching for my hand. 

“Don’t you dare touch me!” I yelled, hitting him across the face. “Do you have any idea how much you’ve humiliated me tonight?” 

“I know baby, and I’m so sorry, I never meant to hurt you. It was a moment of weakness, you know I’d never hurt you on purpose right?” His voice cracked, tears rolling down his face. 

I was too blinded by my own pain to even consider the fact that he might be sorry. “Why? I thought we were happy, you said you loved me! Is it something I did? Did I make you so unhappy that you had to cheat on me on our anniversary!” 

“Hazel please!” He fell to his knees in front of me, his hands clutching my legs despite me trying desperately to free myself. 

I felt sick to my stomach, dizzy with pain and the longer I stood there, the more painful the acknowledgement of what he did seemed to hurt more. “Let go of me Kane, right now I don’t want you touching me with the same body you just shared with another woman!” 

Using all my strength, I was able to push him off me. I ran out, stopping at the security check point long enough to ask him for a favour. “Please, stop him from coming after me.” Not waiting for his response, I ran into the night. 

I tripped over myself, falling to the ground. I didn’t bother getting up, I just sat down there crying my heart out. How did I go from being excited to wishing this day never happened? More importantly, I couldn’t understand why he would cheat on me. 

My phone vibrated in my pause, at first I ignored it but when it looked like the person calling wasn't giving up anytime soon, I angrily pulled it out of my pause. As the screen lights up with Aria’s name, the pain seems to triple and more tears make their way down my face. 

“Why haven’t you sent me pictures? I’m in your apartment right now and I can barely contain my excitement so a picture would be nice.” 

Instead of replaying, I just burst into another round of tears. 

“Hazel?” Her voice turned serious immediately. “What happened? Are you okay? Please talk to me.” 

“He…Kane…He cheated on me Aria, I walked in on him sleeping with his assistant. It hurts so much Aria, please make it stop.” I pleaded, letting the phone drop from my hand. 

The sound of my pond hitting the ground possibly breaking didn’t phase me, instead I stood up and went in the opposite direction. A Neo sign came to view after a couple of minutes walk and I strolled inside the bar. I wanted to get drunk until I felt numb and possibly never fake up ever again. 

“Ten shots please.” I ordered, slumping down on one of the high stools. 

“Ten? What are you trying to do? Drink yourself to death?” The bar attender joked, only if he knew how serious I was. 

A minute or so later, the shots appeared in front of me and I started to drink. I was on my sixth bottle when the bar attendant came to ask me for payment, I reached for my purse, realizing with horror that I must have dropped it along with my phone. 

“Is there a problem?” The guy is now glaring at me, all traces of a joke have disappeared from his voice. 

I chuckled, trying to adjust my focus. “Would you believe it if I told you I dropped it somewhere?” 

He leaned forward, pinning me with a hard stare. “You think this is a joke ma’am? You think because you’re a woman you can come in here and scam me? I don’t know the type of men you have in your life that lets you get away with anything but you are about to meet a new one—” I interrupted his speech. 

“The only man in my life just cheated on me with his assistant on our anniversary. I feel stupid y’know, I actually thought he was going to propose. Anyway, I will pay you. I swear it, I just need to go out and grab my purse where I left it real quick.” 

I stood up, staggering forward. I tried to break my own fall but my body doesn’t seem to obey my command. I closed my eyes, expecting to land on the floor any second but instead I opened my eyes to a stranger holding me still. 

The bar attendant came around, still glaring at me. “I apologize Mr.Moonshade, I’ll take it from here.” He reached to pull me out of the stranger’s hold but I held on. 

I laughed then burst into tears. “I’m not that drunk you know? I’m not trying to run away, please tell him.” 

“Hmmm.” That sound from the stranger seemed to vibrate straight to my core. “Leave it on my tab, I’ll take it from here.” 

“Do that again.” I whispered, feeling something stir up inside me. I wanted this stranger with a fierce passion that didn’t make sense to me at that moment. 

He smirked, as if knowing what I meant. Lowering his mouth to my ear, he whispered. “I think we will be doing more than that.”