Chapter 56

Taria took a taxi, yet she gave the driver Edrian's address instead of hers. She went up the stairs swaying, and she kept knocking and knocking until she woke him up.

Once he opened the door, she fell on his chest, burying her face and tears there, while he realized fast that she was drunk. He pulled her inside and sat her down, then he went to the kitchen and brought her some water.

"Why is she this drunk?" he thought, and his chest tightened as it was his first time seeing her like that.

He kept staring at her. Her eyes were red as she was crying, and her clothes were messy as she fell down many times, however, once he got out of his deep thoughts, he realized that her eyes were different than usual, curved from the sides, and staring at him just like a fox.

Taria rubbed her eyes softly, then she stood up and walked closer to Edrian who was still holding a glass of water. She pulled him closer, moving her hand over his body. He could feel her warm breath on his chin, and her warm hands seductively touching his body, yet he got closer to her, and whispered "sorry", then he splashed the water at her.

Edrian covered Taria with a blanket as her clothes became see-through after they got wet, and he tied the blanket with a rope so she became more like a cocoon.

"So you are the type that do strange things when they are drunk", Edrian said, standing in front of her with his arms crossed.

Taria started crying. She cried and cried while saying things he couldn't understand, then she fell asleep.

On the next morning, Taria couldn't get out of bed as she was still tied with ropes, however, she preferred not getting up in the first place as she could clearly remember what happened last night. She wished that she could melt away instead of facing Edrian again, so she closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep for a while longer.

"I know you are awake, get up we need to talk", Edrian said

Taria couldn't postpone facing him any longer, so she got up slowly, looking down to avoid making eye contact with him, then she said "I'm terribly sorry for what happened last night. I do weird things when I'm drunk"

"If you are really sorry, you have to answer all my questions honestly", Edrian said

"...ok, I will, but can you untie me first please", Taria said

"No. First question, why did you drink that much last night?", Edrian said, looking straight into her eyes and trying hard to hold his laughter in as she seemed cute while being wrapped with the blanket like a burrito

"I had a fight with Ray, and I said things I shouldn't have said", Taria said

When Edrian saw how her eyes seemed broken and hurt, he untied her, then he sat beside her and she told him what happened, hiding the fact that Ray already have so many trainings to do

"Well, if I was Ray, I would have done the same", Edrian said

"Hic, I know I'm wrong, sniff. What should I do now?", Taria said

Edrian looked at her tears that started falling down, and he felt they were falling into a lake inside his heart. One drop after another, one tear after another, and that lake overflowed with so many things he wanted to keep hidden

".... When my brother died in a car accident seven years ago, my mother hugged him calling my name. She was crying while the name Edrian was getting out of her shaky mouth. I died that day, and my brother, Leonardo, kept living. That's why I can feel how painful it was for your little son to always be seen as his father. Ray might seem mature and strong, yet he always seeks your love and affection", Edrian said with a deep voice that stopped her tears.

She looked at his eyes that got a soft red shade, as a blue crystal that drowned in a red sea. His fists were pressing on the blanket, and his body was trembling, yet he maintained a steady breathing rhythm and a normal heartbeats rate.

Taria knew that she opened a deep wound in his heart, a wound that took him forever to be healed, so she hugged him, giving his tears a chance to break free.

"Sorry, for reminding you of that", she said softly, yet he couldn't say a word.

Taria made a brave decision that day. She decided to free herself from the past, even if that meant stepping on her heart with her own feet. She decided to live a happy life, a life with only good memories, with no place for darkness.

After a while of crying with Edrian, she called Ve and asked him to bring Ray to the seaside.

When he finally came, she thanked Ve and asked him to excuse them for a while, then she held her son's hands and hugged him tightly

"Ray, my sunshine, sorry for every word I said that time. I never meant to hurt you, yet I ended up breaking your heart while trying to keep you safe", she said, then she looked at his black eyes, and smiled warmly while getting up.

Taria took her necklace off. She stared at it for a while, remembering every time she held it, being a happy or sad memories, then she looked back at her son, and patted his head gently

"From now on, there will be no sadness in our story. Mom, dad, the old man, Mia, and your father, there will be none of them. Only you and me, my cute intelligent little child", she said, then she threw the necklace away, with so many memories blocked inside it.

Taria took a deep breath, leaving the sea's wind to wipe away her pain. She knew that those memories won't vanish even if she threw the necklace, yet she felt delighted for being brave enough to take the first step. She looked at her son again, seeing his hair moving softly, and shining brightly under the sunlight, then she printed a kiss on his forehead, and held his small hand.

"Let's have some fun together", she said with a smile.