Pay back

"Stop? why should we stop?" Anne said still trying to catch her breath. She tried to kiss Carl again but he tilted his head to the right to avoid her lips. She forcefully tried to do it again and he disengaged from her making her put down her leg.

"What, Why are you avoiding me all of a sudden," Anne said, staring at Carl with yearning eyes. Meanwhile, Carl was trying his best to fight the fire that was igniting inside of him. He was trying hard to get a hold of himself because he was still turned on so he took two steps back from Anne.

"You said you can kiss me without feeling anything for me remember?" Carl said to her.

Anne bit down her bottom lip. The strong desire of having Carl explore her body was starting to subside.

She remembered saying those words to Carl the day he kissed her in her house, begging her to give him a chance. That day, she didn't mean anything she said to Carl. It was all a lie to push Carl away.

"I know I said those things but right now, things are different. I want you and I know you want me too… Can we please forget about the past and start all over," Anne said with pleading eyes.

"Forget about the past? Do you think it's easy for me? Do you have any idea what I went through for those harsh words you said to me?" Carl said and Anne closed her eyes with a deep sigh. She opened her eyes again and saw the hurt in Carl's eyes. She also knew that Carl's sleepless nights were because of her. She felt so guilty to have caused him so much pain.

"You knew how much I loved you yet you treated me like I meant nothing to you. Anne, I'm still hurt and I can't just forget about the past" he said.

Even though Carl has an undying love for Anne, he was still in doubt that Anne wanted him to stay in her life. He was scared that Anne would repeat the exact same thing she did the last time which was kissing him now and rejecting him the next day.

He was only trying to avoid that situation because of the heartbreak he felt.

"Yes, I admit that I hurt you and I'm sorry for that but why do I feel like you're proving stubborn because of that girl I saw you with? You and I are supposed to let everything go but because of that girl, you're pushing me away" Anne said still feeling jealous.

"you don't get it, do you?" Carl said looking at Anne with squinted eyes. He hated the fact that Anne didn't want to understand that he was still hurt and he needed her to prove that she really wanted him. Rather, she kept bringing up Cassandra and it was upsetting him.

"You think that I'm pushing you away because of another woman, fine, It's cool… I think meeting you here was a just waste of time" Carl said bitterly.

"What exactly do you mean by that? What about the kiss we just shared, was it also a waste of time to you?" Anne said furiously and then she recalled that she had said something like this to Carl.

She remembered telling Carl to his face that the kiss they shared after Mr. Ross's birthday party was a mistake and it never should've happened. Anne broke down in tears as she thought of that scenario. She thought that Carl was intentionally doing all of this to hurt her like how she did to him.

"I get it now… So the kiss was just an act to get back to me. Well, good for you because I'm hurt. Are you happy now? You've finally gotten your revenge," Anne said, crying like a baby in front of Carl.

Carl felt his heart, ache as he saw Anne break down in tears. No matter what, he hated to see her cry, and now, she was crying because of him. He walked a step closer to comfort her but she stopped him with a hand gesture.

"Don't come any closer, just stay where you are," Anne said, wiping her tears.

"Anne, listen to me, I'm not trying to hurt you or pay you back for hurting me. That's the last thing I'll ever do. I just don't wanna play this cat-and-mouse game with you any longer. What I wanted with you was a long-term commitment and you weren't ready to give that to me so I… I had to leave you alone and that was when Cassandra came into the picture…"

"…and you think she's the right one for you?" Anne interrupted Carl. "How long have you two known each other that you're willing to give her your heart?"

"it doesn't matter how long, I just know she's never going to hurt me… that's why I'm willing to give her a chance," Carl said in a low tone and looked down.

"You're willing to give her a chance?" Anne looked at Carl with disbelief.

Maybe the kiss they shared a while ago was just a waste of time like he said.

Carl looked back at Anne's eyes and saw that she was really hurt and it made his entire body weak. Carl was saying all of this because he doesn't want to follow his heart anymore but his brain. He wants to choose who wants him instead of the girl he wants.

"Well, thanks for making everything clear to me. You can go ahead and meet your new girlfriend who will never hurt you, I don't care! I really don't!" Anne yelled with anger.

"…and.. and maybe kissing me here was a mistake to you but meeting you in the subway that day was also a fucking mistake. I HATE YOU!" She cried out.

Carl swallowed hard with a heavy heart. He knew she was probably saying those things out of anger and pain but it still got to him because he loved her with every fiber of his body. He loved her but he doesn't want to be with her because he wasn't sure about Anne's feelings towards him.

Anne tried to leave but Carl held her arm, stopping her. "Anastasia," he called her name in a soft voice.

"let go of me," she yelled, breaking free from him and she left Carl alone in the storage room.

She thought she could handle it maturely if Carl told her that he didn't want her but she couldn't. She loved Carl too much to be rejected by him. She was upset that Carl chose to be with Cassandra instead of her, especially after kissing her like she was just a plaything. It hurt her pride so much.

…

Anne paid the waitress for the ice cream she ordered. She was about to leave the restaurant when she saw Cassandra sitting alone, waiting patiently for Carl to finally show up.

Cassandra also saw Anne and she recognized her to be the lady she met at the hospital the other day. Seeing Anne right now made her wonder why she was staring at her with so much hate in her eyes just like the day she met her in the hospital.

Anne's eyes weren't just filled with hate, she looked miserable. Her nose and cheeks were a bit red because she has been crying. A lot was going through her head which was scratching Cassandra's face to give her an ugly scar so Carl would never look at her again. But despite all the hate and jealousy Anne walked out of the restaurant without saying a word to Cassandra.

Shortly after Anne left the restaurant, Cassandra saw Carl approaching her and she flashed him a smile.

"What happened? I've been waiting for you," she said to Carl and then she noticed how gloomy and unkempt Carl looked.

Carl's hair which was gelled back was now messy and the collar of his shirt was quite rumpled. His toned chest was now vividly seen from the first three buttons that were loosed and anyone would've guessed that he got into a fight but he was having a steamy make-out session. Carl's hair was disheveled because Anne who kept caressing his hair

Cassandra wanted to ask what happened when Carl spoke up

"I'm sorry I kept you waiting but I have to leave right now," he said meanwhile, Cassandra gave Carl a confused look.

Carl brought out his wallet and took out some cash and kept it on the table. "That's for our meal," he said and left without looking back. It was the worst date Carl has ever experienced in his life.

Carl left the restaurant with his face filled with sadness.

Meanwhile, Cassandra was still sitting at the restaurant, regretting why she agreed to go out on a date with Carl in the first place. She thought she'd have a great time with Carl but it turned out to be the worst time she has ever spent with him.

Maybe if she had waited patiently for Carl without going to look for him in the storage room, she would have been less pathetic.

Cassandra was curious to know where Carl was since he was taking too long to show up so she asked one of the waiters about Carl's whereabouts. One of the waiters who had seen Carl pointed to the storage room and Cassandra went there to see for herself what Carl was up to.

Cassandra opened the door of the storage room and to her greatest surprise, she saw what almost made her heart jump out from her chest. Her whole body froze as she saw Carl and Anne kissing heatedly against the wall. They were so into it that they didn't hear the door open.

Cassandra was heartbroken. She couldn't have imagined that Carl left her to make out with another woman.

Cassandra closed the door and rushed back to her seat and dried up her tears like nothing happened. When Carl showed up looking messy, she knew it was because he has been busy pleasing someone else but she pretended to be clueless. The only thing that was unclear to her was when she saw Anne glaring at her like she did something bad to her when it was her that was the victim.

Cassandra felt like a fool and she regretted professing her love for Carl back in his car. She never expected Carl to be such a deceitful guy. Even though it was just a casual date, he wasn't supposed to make out with another woman while he was on a date with her.