Zoe by Miu

"Have you calmed down?"

I nodded and breathed a mouthful of air since that hearty laughed depleted my reserved oxygen.

"Ehehehehe, sorry 'bout that. I forgot when was the last time I laughed so hard. Ah . . . it's refreshing." I wiped away my tears and smiled at him.

Lawrence returned my smile and walked towards me. My smile froze when he softly wiped away the flour on my face while laughing a bit.

"Heh, you have the guts to laugh at me when you look like this." He grinned and gently caressed my face, so gentle that I thought it was feathers that were touching me.

I pouted and also wiped away the flour from his hair and face.

"It's your fault, to begin with. I can't believe how stubborn and annoying you are. You were never like this in the past." I pouted some more while he snorted.

"What're you talking about? I'm always like this. It's you who left and didn't even bother to get to know me."

He said it as a joke, yet his tone was accusing.

I stopped and stared at him. Though his expression was playful, his eyes were a bit sad.

Sad?

Why is he sad?

He was the one who left me at that hotel the first time we met. He was the one who said sorry and didn't as much as stop me from leaving.

I bit my lips when anger rose inside me.

Lawrence must have felt it too as he grabbed my hands and squeezed it.

"Sorry . . . Don't take to heart what I said . . . I'm not here to ruin your life . . . I'm . . . I . . ."

He trailed off as his voice turned raspy while his eyes tried to capture mine. I lowered my head, afraid he would see the glistening tears.

This man can easily make me laugh and make me cry.

My heart was twisting as my hands went cold when he didn't continue what he was about to say. And I knew he was staring at me with a complicated look on his face while his hands squeezed mine.

Part of me wanted to hear what he was going to say, but part of me also didn't want to.

Eventually, it was Lawrence who broke the silence as he released my hands.

"Sorry, forget what I said . . . I'm happy that you're happy, Zoe . . . Truly."

He then turned, his back facing me. "I gotta' go. Sorry about the mess."

Was all he said before he took long strides towards the door and out of my unit.

. . .

. . .

W-wha . . . what happened?

We were just laughing a while ago, and now it turned into this?

What is he trying to say?

Lawrence . . .

Stop it!

Get your act together!

This is for the better.

Stop cheating behind Elliot's back.

I gasped.

Now I was alone and could think again, I recalled the events that happened. No matter how I saw it, I was flirting with him. No matter how much I deny it, the attraction was still there and didn't diminish one bit.

I still love him.

My tears fell.

Why only now Lawrence?

You're too late.

You're too late.

I can't betray Elliot.