57 — “I'll make everything okay.”
If I have one piece of advice, it's that you shouldn't take drastic actions when you've got a broken heart and a bottle of special wine in your system. The chances that you'll regret it in the morning are higher than the hurt in your head and the hangover that will make you feel sick. If you're lucky, the liver overload will go away in the morning, or last for a day or two — but the consequences of your actions… hah, that sure is bitter in the mouth.
I say that because I've had my phone for at least five minutes, looking at the damn company forum, that's been pretty busy since the early hours of the morning. And if photos in front of the club have already caused a lot of trouble, I can't even imagine how these new photos and videos will make things worse.
Taking a deep breath, I run my hand through my hair, letting the brown strands fall past my shoulders and hide my face… *Great*. Not only can everyone see me dancing on a round stage, but my provocative lingerie is displayed for everyone to see. *This is just great.*
I scroll through the screen, looking at the several replies, with my heart pounding so hard against my chest that I wouldn't be surprised if tears out of it.
**[Wait… is that the boss' daughter?]**
**[Who's posting this stuff…? I wouldn't be surprised if it were herself, after all, she seems to like attention.]**
**[She's pretty, but I don't like women who attract that much attention… too bad.]**
Honestly, I expected worse comments… but maybe because it's a private, professional forum, where one needs real credentials to create accounts, people tend to control their fingers and nasty words… But when I scroll down a bit further, I feel my heart stop-
**[I just saw this video on the internet, I never knew it was someone so close.]**
Wait… *on the internet?* He means… outside the forum?
I quiver and the phone loosens in my hand. I'm feeling so sick right now that I could easily throw up… Wait, in fact, I think I'm really going to.
Getting up abruptly, I run to the bathroom and lean against the toilet, throwing out everything in my stomach that honestly isn't much. I close my eyes tightly, grunting, and reaching clunky to flush it….
“Do you want me to get something for your stomach?” I hear Julian's voice and shudder again. I wipe my mouth with a trembling hand and look at him, with tears in my eyes.
And it doesn't take much for him to understand that this isn't the effect of alcohol, but maybe it's a hangover — a moral hangover.
“What happened?” He asks with his expression closing slightly.
I shake my head and close my eyes, too embarrassed to face him at this moment….
“Angelee.” His voice sounds firm and makes me flinch, opening my eyes fearfully. I notice he's moved closer and crouched beside me, touching my back in a gentle caress. “Tell me what happened.”
“Someone…” My voice fails, and I clear my throat, my mouth too bitter. “Someone took pictures of me again… there's even a video, and I…” I bite my lip, feeling my eyes sting.
I can't understand exactly what he's thinking, I just see his expression close more, even though his eyes are still kind. He pulls me into a clumsy hug, wrapping his arms around me….
“What do I do, Julian?” My lips tremble… actually, my whole body trembles. It's like we're suddenly in the middle of winter, and I'm completely naked, exposed. “Tell me what to do, please.”
My pray voice seems to break him, somehow. Julian buries my head in his chest, and he doesn't mind that we're now sitting on the bathroom floor and that I'm snuggled to his body like he can protect me from all of this.
“It's okay, Angel.” His voice is steady, so sure that I really feel like everything is okay, even if it's not okay at all… Even if the ground is opening up and a thousand hands are pulling me into this abyss beneath my feet.
Still, everything Julian says has the weight of a truth — *even if it's the bitterest of the lies.*
“They said it's on the internet… I don't know, I didn't see it directly, but… Oh my gosh… someone filmed me taking my clothes off on that stage… No, wait, *I took* my clothes off on a stage-”
“Angelee.” The serious way he calls my name makes me swallow the desperate words that come out like bullets. “It's okay.”
Julian holds my nape firmly, sliding his fingers through my hair, a slight rough yet surprisingly comforting caress.
“It's not the end of the world.”
It really does feel like the end of the world right now.
“I'll call the IT Technician team, and they'll take down all the pictures and videos that are on the forum. And if it really is on the internet or something, I'll pay it to take all down… one, ten, a thousand hackers if I have to. There won't be a single proof of this night anywhere but in my memory.” He places a kiss on my temple. “And to make me forget it, you'll have to work really hard.”
I give a discreet smile that he's unable to see as I have my face buried in the curve of his neck and shoulder.
“Hey, I promise you that I'll make everything okay. Do you believe me?”
I nod, digging my nails lightly into his bare chest, marking his skin in a fine scratch.
“We'll find out who's doing this… and make them feel really sorry.” Julian's voice is cold… so cold it makes me shiver. “So why don't you go back to bed, while I sort all this out? It's still pretty early, you can sleep a little longer.”
“I don't know if I'll be able to sleep.”
“You won't know until you try.” He says, holding me even more tightly while, with surprising ease, Julian stands up and scoops me into his arms at the same time.
He leads me back to the bed and sets me down on the mattress, leaning over to give me a kiss on the forehead.
I watch in silence while Julian searches for his own phone and quietly gets out of the room, leaving me with my heart beating so fast I can literally hear it. And I think this torturous delay will continue, until Julian's voice sounds loud in the other room:
*“I don't care if it's Sunday, I'm telling you to take down all the pictures and videos about Angelee O'Neil that are on the forum.”* Then he raises his voice even more. *“No, this isn't a request. This is an order from your superior. I'll pay you triple the hour, so why don't you do as I say?”*
I bite my lip.
*“I want all the info about the person who shared, and everyone who passed it on. And don't say about privacy, I don't care about any of that. If you don't vanish with everything and send me the info within an hour, you're fired.”*
Honestly, this is the first time I've seen him so angry. Julian is normally extremely calm, and I dare say that few things really get under his skin; that's why hearing him sound so harsh makes my heart flutter… and I confess, it also awakens funny feelings in me — in my chest and in my lower belly.
Then is all silent again.
My throat feels sour.
I snuggle into bed and sink my head into the pillow, closing my eyes, trying to seek the sleep that seems to have fled from me… and instead, it's the tears that come, wetting my eyelashes.
Everything is my fault.
If only I wasn't so reckless, so impulsive….
Suddenly, the mattress behind me sinks. It's curious because I didn't hear Julian approach. I don't have the courage to turn and face him, especially now that I'm unable to control the tears.
The firm, strong arm goes over my waist, and I can feel his warmth coming closer, his abdomen sticking to my back…. This really comforts me.
“It's okay, babe…” He kisses my hair, resting his forehead against my head, “I'll make everything okay.”
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