Lahat ng Kabanata ng He Hurt Me, Now He Wants Me Back: Kabanata 31 - Kabanata 40

Imogene Scott Just as Damien’s lips are about to brush against mine, the sound of Keith’s voice cuts through the air, sharp and clear.“Imogene, are you in there?” Keith yells from the other side of the door.I jerk back as if I’ve been burned, and the spell is broken. Elinor warned me, being around Damien would be no good for me. He’s manipulative, knows the right time to say and do things. Knows the right time I might crack under pressure.Shit!“I’m here! The door’s jammed!” I shout, my voice trembling.There’s a brief moment of silence, followed by a series of bangs as Keith forces the door open. The metal groans and then swings wide, flooding the cramped space with light and fresh air. I scramble to my feet, shrugging off Damien’s jacket as I do.“Thank you,” I say to Keith, my voice shaky. I don’t dare look back at Damien as I step past him, out into the open space of the site.Damien follows, his expression unreadable. “What took you so long to find us?” he asks Keith, his

Imogene Scott The morning sun filters through the window in my room, painting the walls in soft, golden light. I blink slowly, letting the warmth seep into my bones. I sit up and take a moment to register how I feel. My head no longer feels like it’s stuffed with wet cotton balls and molasses. As much as I hate to admit it, the chicken noodle soup Damien brought me last night must’ve done the trick. The thought of him in my apartment last night lol ast night, makes my stomach twist, but I push it aside. I stand up carefully. The room doesn’t whirl around me. Feeling optimistic, I stretch my arms above my head, feeling the tension in my muscles ease slightly. But then, the memories of last night flood back in.Damien was really here, in my apartment. He held Lily, comforted her like it was the most natural thing in the world, and even served me food. My heart constricts painfully, a mix of anger, confusion, and something else I can’t quite name.What was I thinking? He’s my ex-husb

Imogene Scott Damien doesn’t show up for meeting for the next few days and I conclude he’s hurt by my words. It’s a good thing. He needs to fucking understand there’s no place for him in mine and Lily’s life.I don’t let his absence bother me so I make sure to keep my schedule tight. I also hop on occasional video calls with Lily and Breonna every now and then. Then later, I meet Mrs Rita Phineas for a late brunch.“Dessert?” Mrs Phineas ask, raising an eyebrow at me.We just finished having brunch at Junior’s, a well-known tourist trap restaurant that actually has some of the best cheese cakes in the city. “Of course.” I study the dessert menu for an eternity. “I can’t decide between the raspberry swirl, Oreo, or red velvet.”“Get them all,” Mrs Phineas says. I love the way she acts when she’s around me. It’s like she’s my best friend and we’re the same age. “A sampler. We don’t have to finish them.”I slap my menu down on the table. “Speak for yourself. Inever leave desse

Imogene Scott The next two days, I stay home working on the campaign ad for Kennaway Fine Art Guide. I already told Keith I would be taking time off from the Tech Con project. I don’t go to the gallery either so I don’t have Breonna coming in to take care of Lily.It’s good that way since I’m trying not to see or think about anything that might remind me of Damien. He’s gone after suddenly coming into my life to cause a little distortion, he left. Good for me.I stretch on the couch as I finally close my laptop. Spending two days straight on working on the ad has been exhausting. But it has kept the bad thoughts away too. My phone buzzes somewhere in the living room and my eyes darts around to find it.Lily is holding it as she sits in a corner of the living room, violently tapping on the screen. I rise to my feet and take it from her. She lets out a loud cry so I immediately replace the phone with a squeaky toy. She starts smiling again.I finally slump on a couch and bring my

Imogene Scott I wake up to the soft chime of my phone’s alarm, the early morning light filtering through the sheer curtains of my bedroom. For a moment, I lie still, trying to gather my thoughts together.It’s another day. Another day to try my best to keep the bad thoughts away. Another day for me to remind myself that everything happens for a reason. It’s been two days. Two days since he’s left.I roll on the bed for a few seconds before I finally get on my feet. I reach for my phone on the nightstand, my fingers brushing against the cool glass screen. As I sit up, I swipe through the notifications, mentally preparing myself for the usual flood of emails and messages. But one subject line catches my eye, making my heart skip a beat. “Thank you for your submission.”My pulse quickens as I open the email. It has to be about the ad campaign project I submitted. I never had any high hopes for it to begin with because Diane Johnson is the best of the best and there’s no way they would