If only Kylie has yelled louder and run faster!

"Ethan..." Kylie breathed out desperately. She reached for him, but Ethan's back was still towards Kylie.

​​

"Ethan…, I'm sorry…" Kylie cried out, not knowing what else to say other than to apologize.

"Fuck, Kylie!" Ethan turned around and walked quickly towards Kylie, gathering her in a hug. "Why are you apologizing? None of this is your fault! None of it! Do you understand?" Ethan grabbed her shoulders and tried to convey this to Kylie.

"But…but you're angry! You're angry at me!" Kylie cried out.

"Fuck, no! I'm not…never could be angry at you! I'm just angry at that fucker…at myself…but never at you! We'll get through this. We'll get through it together."

***

A couple of months had passed since the incident that Kylie was trying to forget. Though Ethan supported her, she was doing much better. Initially, Kylie had gone into a deep depression, due to the assault or her attempt at suicide, she did not know. However, her husband was always by her side, supporting her, spending time with her, and just being 'there' for Kylie.

Kylie felt Ethan blamed himself for the incident due to not picking up her calls even though Kylie repeatedly told him it was not his fault. She felt this event, though sad and hurtful as it was for Kylie, brought them much closer as a couple. They were more open towards each other, sharing their feelings honestly rather than keeping it all in.

Aiden had repeatedly called her, leaving her messages of apology. He told her he had been drugged as he had no memory of ever doing this to her. Kylie had thought about the incident over and over again, trying to analyze it from every angle. That was just something she liked to do, never letting something go; it had been her habit since she was a child.

Kylie ignored Aiden's calls and texts, even though she would listen to and read them. He did not give up either, texting her every day. Today was such a day. Kylie was in bed, Ethan right beside her, reading "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" when her phone beeped notifying her of a text. It was from Aiden, of course, but the contents of the text made Kylie put her book down and stare at the phone in shock.

The text simply read, "I'm sorry for everything Kylie, and I know you will not listen to anything I have to say. But I think you need to know this. I had suspected this for a long time but wanted to make sure first. Did my Uncle tell you he has a fiancé? He's engaged."

Kylie stared at the message if it was written in a foreign language. After staring at it for a few minutes, she turned off her phone and picked up her book again.

The words seemed like they were dancing on the page, so Kylie put her book down and slid under the bed, preparing to sleep.

"Already going to sleep?" Ethan looked over and asked.

"Mm…hmm," Kylie mumbled and turned over, facing away from Ethan. She did not want him to figure out something was wrong from her expression.

However, no matter how hard Kylie tried, she could not forget that text. Just something about Aiden telling her that made her feel as if it were true. Aiden had a lot of faults, but he was not a liar. Kylie had known him for years, and she knew that he did not lie. And why would he tell her this after knowing what he had done to her? No, Kylie knew that there was some substance to what Aiden was telling her even though she did not want to believe it.

After Ethan had turned off the lights and laid down, Kylie could not go to sleep. Her heart was pounding, and her mind was swimming with thoughts.

"Ethan?"

"Mmm?"

"Are you up?"

"Yes."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Yeah?" Ethan turned around and faced Kylie. "What is it?"

"Were you…are you engaged? To someone else?"

Ethan's expression stilled as she stared at Kylie with no feeling in his eyes. "Why do you ask?"

Kylie sighed and closed her eyes, "I just want the truth, Ethan. Are you engaged?"

He did not reply for a long time.

"No."

Kylie felt like a wave of calm settled in her heart as she sighed in relief. Just like Aiden, she knew that Ethan would not lie to her.

"Why did you ask me this?" Ethan asked seriously.

"Someone mentioned it to me. That you were engaged…"

"I made up a story of a fiancée to stop my family arranging a marriage for me a couple of years ago. I'm afraid that story stuck to me even though I had forgotten about it."

Kylie rolled her eyes, "So, you were never going to tell me this?"

Ethan smirked, "I did not know that this mattered to you this much…"

"Oh, my husband possibly having another fiancé while being married to me would not matter to me?" Kylie replied playfully.

"Your husband, hmm?" Ethan growled and crawled closer, climbing on top of Kylie. He leaned down and kissed Kylie's lips softly. "And what would my wife do if she found out I had someone else?"

"Fuck you!" Kylie yelled angrily. "You know what I would do?" Kylie breathed out breathlessly. Talking was made difficult by Ethan's lips, sucking her skin just under Kylie's ear.

"I would castrate you!"

Ethan burst out laughing and rested his head on Kylie's chest. "You would castrate me?! Really? You're willing to have foregone sex your whole life then?"

Kylie rolled her eyes at his reasoning. Men sometimes really did think with only their 'lower' heads. "Well, I didn't say that! There are other ways to have sex…"

"Like what?"

"Like…toys…and other…people…" Kylie struggled to keep her cool as she watched Ethan's expressions switch from playful to angry.

"Fuck you! No one is going to be having sex with my wife other than me! Not even a piece of plastic!"