Unraveling fear

"Is there something wrong?"

Ethan looked at me quizzically as I stared at him, lost in thoughts.

I flinched, feeling flustered, and replied, "Oh, sorry. I was just thinking about something."

Ethan looked at me with concern and said, "If anything is bothering you, you know you can talk to me about it."

I appreciated his concern but didn't want to bother him with this silly topic, "Thank you, Mr Marc. But it's nothing serious."

Ethan stood up from his chair and began to adjust his coat. With one hand, he pulled the lapels of his coat towards each other, ensuring that they lay flat against his chest. He ran his fingers through his hair to push it back from his forehead, "We have a company dinner today. I'm afraid you'll have to join me."

"Sure," I paused and asked, "Will the team leader be there too?"

I noticed Ethan's body halt mid-stride. He turned to face me, his eyes locking onto mine as he hesitated for a moment. The silence between us was palpable, and I began to feel uneasy.

After what seemed like an eternity, he finally responded, "No." His voice was flat, devoid of any emotion.

I immediately felt guilty for asking such an inappropriate question. Why did I even ask that? I scolded myself silently.

"I'm sorry," I stammered. "I had an important matter to discuss with him, that's why I asked."

Ethan's expression softened slightly, but his voice remained serious. "May I know what that is?" he asked, taking a step closer to me.

"I'm sorry, I can't tell you that much," I replied, feeling the guilt and shame creeping into my voice.

"I see," he said, his disappointment evident in his tone. "Then please discuss it after work." He brushed past me as we walked, his coat gently grazing my arm.

I couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed in myself, as I was used to seeing Ethan get jealous over small things. But this time, he seemed calm and collected, almost as if he had already resigned himself to the situation.

As I clutched the papers to my chest, I turned away, trying to hide my embarrassment. I knew I had overstepped my bounds and I couldn't shake the feeling of regret that lingered within me.

____________

I sat at the dinner table, my eyes flickering to the clock on my wrist every few minutes. Despite the important meeting with the high-ranking businessmen, I couldn't help but feel distracted. All I could think about was meeting with Noah, and I was eager to do so as soon as possible.

As the conversation continued around me, my mind wandered, consumed by thoughts of the conversation I needed to have with Noah. Our schedules had been difficult to align, which only made me more anxious to meet with him.

As the night wore on, I found myself glancing at the clock more and more frequently, feeling a sense of urgency to meet with Noah.

Suddenly my eyes locked with Ethan's, who was staring at me from across the table. He gave me a subtle nod, and that made me embarrassed. Then I noticed his lips that whispered, "Calm down, it'll be over soon."

I felt a weird pang inside my heart, realising he was still watching over me.

Finally, the meeting came to a close, and I quickly excused myself, making my way out of the restaurant. I checked my watch once more, mentally calculating how long it would take to get to the meeting spot.

As I arrived, I saw Noah waiting for me, looking slightly surprised but pleased to see me.

"Hey, Irene," he stood up, caressing his neck with an awkward smile. Somehow it appeared to me he was dressed differently than usual.

"I thought you left," I replied, my tone a bit breathless. "Thanks for the wait. I needed to meet today since from tomorrow I'll be having a tight schedule."

"No problem," Noah said with a smile. "But, what was it that you wanted me to answer?" He smiled awkwardly again. Something didn't sit right with that smile. But I shook off the feeling and asked, "Please explain what you meant that day, about Ethan's fami-I mean your parents."

"W-what?"

Noah's reaction to my question was immediate and intense. His eyes widened, and he seemed to be at a loss for words. His brows furrowed into a deep frown, and he seemed to be deep in thought, trying to process what I had just asked him.

"What's wrong?" I asked with confusion, seeing him act that way.

"Ok...So You texted me-" He pulled out his phone to repeat my texts, "Noah, there's something I want to hear from you, and you can't say no to me," then he looked at me, "...And you sent a blushing emoji after that..."

"Oh! I was in a hurry, so I sent that emoji by mistake."

An awkward silence fell between us as I had a feeling that the conversation was doomed. After a few minutes, Noah sighed and brushed his slicked-back hair into his previous hairstyle. "Sorry for the misunderstanding. I was delusional."

"I-I'm sorry!....?" Without understanding what he meant, we sat down for the main conversation, and I asked to break the silence, "What did you mean when you said I should be wary of your parents?"

"Well, father doesn't know about you yet. More like Ethan didn't reveal his marriage to our family yet. Only I know about this." Then he turned his face towards me, his tone a bit serious,

"I could reveal this to Father and give him a hard time if I wanted to," his words felt like a warning, "but I didn't do so, because of you."

"But, why so serious? What can happen if your parents know about our marriage?" A heap of confusion encircled me.

"Father and mother already fixed a fiancee for him, who's recently in Dubai."

For some reason, hearing these words, my heart sank. It was like a knot in my stomach, twisting and turning with every passing moment. My mind was racing, a million thoughts and doubts swirled around in my head.