Chapter 6 Home

Ethan's POV

"You know you don't have to be a jerk to her for what happened seven years ago, right?" Lexi asked me as I hugged her goodbye. Skylar was talking privately with my parents while Lexi pulled me to a side for a quick chat.

"Is that all you've got to say?" I asked her.

"If you married someone else, I would've asked you to better be careful with your wife. But now, I insist on asking you to handle her with care and to not be a jerk."

"I'm old enough to know when to be a jerk." I replied.

"Exactly, but still you act like the most stupid person I ever knew in my life." Lexi teased me.

"Lexi..." I warned her.

"See," Lexi said, looking me in the eye. Her voice became serious and gone was the playful tone she was using. "I know why you did what you did. I also know that you were forced to marry Skylar and that you can do nothing about it now. Even if you plan for a divorce, you still have plenty of time to spend alongside each other and fulfil your part. And if you're just going to be the stubborn man that you were when you let her go seven years ago, things won't be great for either of you."

"You can't just expect me to forget what happened seven years ago and move on and get back to being head over heels for her." I said.

"I'm not asking you to forget any of it. Because it is important in your relationship. You have been through separations so many times and I don't want this to be one among them. You need to understand one thing here, you made this decision for both of you although you didn't have any other choice. But it will always be harder on her because she was not supposed to be paying for what her friend did. And you can't hurt her anymore."

"Being away from the girl I've always loved was not easy for me." I said, "She accused me of something that I didn't have control of and chose to let me go. She wasn't ready to hear me out when I tried to explain and instead chose to break up with me. You can only imagine how tough it was for me to move on."

"Ethan, I know what she meant to you." Lexi said. "I know how much you loved her back then and how much she mattered to you. And just because you hate her now, doesn't mean it should remain that way. If you, driven by this temporary hatred, do something to her that you will later learn to regret, then there is no way you'll ever be able to forgive yourself. Remember that you loved her once, it can't just vanish in a matter of a few years. If you truly love someone, even for once, no matter how wrong you might have been to love them, you will always have a little part of your heart that still yearns for them."

"I don't intend any harm to her now, because I know I won't be capable of that." I said, "I know I can never truly hurt her intentionally because there is still a part of me that remains unmoved by the hatred I have towards her. You have nothing to worry about."

Lexi smiled. "I'm glad you said that."

"Take care of mom and dad while I'm gone. And assure them that their son will not let them down." I promised her.

"I will." Lexi smiled. "Good bye. "

*****

I decided to drive by myself. I didn't appreciate the idea of having a driver witness my first day of marriage. I assured mom and dad that I would go home safely. But they were devoid of the truth. I was supposed to spend the night at Kyle's Hotel, where the girls planned our night. I could never go there knowing what they already had in store for us. And I highly doubted if Skylar would be interested to go there either.

Instead, I decided to drive her somewhere she would be longing to go. I was taking her to meet her family.

Things have grown worse for me and Nick since the day Skylar broke up with me. We never found a way to sort everything out. Because the problem was from his side.

"We are going to meet your brother and father," I informed her, making her flinch in surprise.

"What?" she shrieked. "We're going to meet them now?"

"Yes." I answered. "Nick and your dad are in New York. I suggest it's best for you to let them know about what happened before they learn it from somewhere else."

"Ethan, he's going to kill you if he finds you with me." She said.

"I took my chances before deciding to marry you." I said, "I'm not worried about him now. Meeting him was far overdue anyway."

She sighed. "He won't let me explain."

"I think it's best for you to wrap up things as soon as possible because I highly doubt you'll find them together to talk after tonight."

She looked at me quizzically.

"We're not going to stay in New York any longer." I said. "As soon as we meet your brother, we are going to fly back home."

She remained silent and leaned back. Maybe she was wondering about the same thing that I was thinking about.

Home.

It is a new beginning . We're going to be a married couple and stay in the same house. We're going to be together, once again.