In Love With My Sister's Husband

No matter what, we mustn’t cause a scene.

No matter what, I need to stay cool and show the younger generation a better example of how to end things.

Because of my mother’s constant words, I have to stay out of trouble. I mustn’t provide for others to talk about me for years to come. Certainly, I wasn’t about to throw my coffee on him.

I raised my hand, slowly moving it towards my cup. It was calling out to me, to throw it at him, to make him taste the acidity of his words. The coffee was bitter. No one liked bitterness. Rain poured like flood and my past tears. This man was the worst of my ex-boyfriends.

Everything started with a message from him. It was a text no one wanted from someone undesirable. Everything happened so fast and we were sitting, one in front of the other, in Blabla café.

“Hey,” he said, standing as he closed his umbrella after leaving me hanging for an hour. If he stood me up, I would have got my revenge. I never left unfinished businesses intact.

He ran a hand through his brown hair. My eyes lingered on his familiar silhouette and his stupid suit. Presentable but old-fashioned.

“Thank you for coming! I didn’t think you would after what happened. It wasn’t cool between us.”

He slipped in the seat in front of me. His breath reeked of alcohol and upon closer look, it looked like he cried. I softened at his disheveled state. Although he tried his best to look presentable, there were traces of his messy lifestyle.

I twisted my hair over one shoulder and crossed my arms over my chest.

“I am over it, Sam. It’s not like the world ended. Moreover, I am used to cheaters like you. My luck is the worse,” I leaned back. “What do you want to talk about?”

There were things one could never forget, especially cheating. My current boyfriend was better. He was attentive, kind, successful… I was already imagining our children and naming them. He just had to propose and everything would be perfect.

Sam was different, in everything. A tug of sadness slipped into my heart as I recalled how I found him with another woman in my bed. The loss of what we envisioned together slapped me hard. And now, he dared to call me, saying he wanted to talk about something important. Ah! He called it life-threatening.

“A lot of things,” he nodded.

“Then be quick. I don’t have my whole life to waste on you. A year is already enough. I am over this whole mess.”

“I am sorry over what happened between us. I’m not over you. I’m not over it. I’ve been thinking for three months now, since you left. I am not over us.”

I shook my head, shocked. This was the first time one of my past boyfriends returned. Did the sun rise from the west or what?

“Sam, what’s wrong with you?” I chuckled, turning my eyes to distract myself. There were a few people in the café, a lot of them men watching something on the TV. “If you remember right, I found you, in my bed, tucked with another woman. It makes no sense. You were over us the moment you slipped another woman in my bed. It just means whatever was between, it was over.”

“I was drunk, Alisha. I swear. I don’t know how it happened. When you came, I was shocked as much as you. It was an accident.”

“Oh,” I slapped my mouth, faking a surprise, raising both eyebrows. “Did she slip and got your junk inside her?” I laughed. “It’s like you’re telling me you’re pregnant and it was an accident. Do you see the ridiculous situation?”

He opened his mouth and closed it. His thick thumb caressed the corner of his mouth. He glared daggers at his cup that arrived for a while. Everyone moved on. I did. He did. Moving on was a little bit too much for me since I didn’t date anyone for two months straight. He was the first one I stayed with for a year and I kinda expected a lot from our relationship.

“I am sorry. I tried to get over you.” This was a typical lie. I have seen him with many chicks before this moment. Way to get over my head. I would never let someone like him throw me under the bus. “I couldn’t. Please, I want you back in my life.”

He slid from his chair and got on his knees, bringing a small box from his pocket. My eyes almost popped up from their places. The ring was so beautiful that it blinded me. For someone who tried so hard to get a marriage proposal and settle down, this should have been my goal come true. But it didn’t…

“Please, marry me, Alisha.”

“And what if I don’t want to marry you anymore?” I cringed. My heart should be happy but I couldn’t help it. This wasn’t what I wanted. Moreover, I had a better boyfriend now.

He placed the box on my lap and wrapped his arms around my waist. “Please, marry me. I will do anything so you can be with me. I can’t live without you. It took me a long time to realize you were the one for me.”

This guy turned dumb, definitely. What was the point of telling me all this after what happened? If he expected me to just play along with him, then he was wrong. I wasn’t going to let myself be the talk of everyone.

I darted a look around. Everyone looked at us, gossiping. There were smiles and whispers. I was the villain in all this if I declined in front of everyone.

“Let me think about it,” I smiled nervously, hesitating. What if he did something dramatic? “I need some time and stop it. Stop attracting attention. I don’t want to be the talk of everyone.”

I fought the urge to throw my coffee over him. My hands struggled to free myself but he didn’t want to let go. Was this his tactic to get me? He knew I hated being the center of talk, attracting all eyes on me. Invisibility, this was what I liked my whole life. Moving around and no one would notice me.

“Please, I have to marry you. Just give me a chance. I will prove to you that everything will be better. I’ve been so miserable and lonely without you.”

“You didn’t look miserable to me. You had two chicks on each side the last time I saw you.”

“Please, just say yes. You complete me, Alisha. We make sense together.”

Everyone’s eyes expected me to take the ring with excitement. I needed to think carefully of my next action. Throwing the coffee over his head or accept the ring and deal with him later. Considering how I hated scandals, I was ready to put up with him, for now.

I took the ring and put it around my middle-finger. Samuel beamed then returned to his seat. Not a word came out of my mouth. Promising myself not to throw the coffee at him, I asked the waitress to make me a coffee to take with me.

Sam continued talking about our past and how everything would be better. His words reminded me of the first time we met. It was on a rainy day like this one; he was sitting on a slope, his hands on his cheeks, wondering about his life. It wasn’t the best meeting but a start of something ridiculous.

As soon as got out of the coffee, I grabbed his hand and led him to a dark corner, where I poured my coffee over his head, smiling.

“I will think about your proposal later,” I removed the ring and put in his hand. “Don’t ever think of repeating the humiliation you made me go through earlier or you’ll regret it badly.”

I stomped away, red with anger. Obviously, I knew why he proposed to me. It was the consequence of what I did.

In the end, I showed a bad example for the future generation. All my restraints unlocked when he showed his happy face. How dare he?

From the corner of my eye, I noticed a man in black, his eyes on me. It was weird. He nodded when his eyes caught me staring openly. I hoped he wasn’t part of my father’s gang.

Was this guy watching me?

“No!” Alexandra squeaked as I told her everything that happened. “I can’t believe it. He returned to propose to you just like that.”

My best friend was as shocked as me. No matter how much I replayed what happened, my shock didn’t fade. Moreover, that guy in black worried me. Who was he? And why was he there? I just hoped he wasn’t there for but someone else. If my past caught up with me, it would be bad.

I moved to the counter, welcoming the other clients. Alexandra showed great restraints this time. She was dying to know more about what happened. We were besties. We tell each other everything. As expected of best friends. Still, I couldn’t help but worry. My heart squeezed.

Alexandra and I spent the rest of the day working, as usual. My routine life was back. The only that lacked was my boyfriend. He was on a trip. A Working trip. He said he needed to discuss some kind of contract with a company. Or something like it. I didn’t catch much of his words, since he wa