Chased by a Gentleman

Chapter 14

❝You managed to unleash the hopeless romantic inside of me.❞

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"Huh?" Eloise can feel her grip on the soda can tighten. She made an effort to look elsewhere, but she couldn't help but catch a glimpse of Brahms' expressive eyes. His mouth curved into a faint smile as his eyes swept over her soul.

"A little," Eloise managed to reply. She transferred her attention to the cat that passed by the bushes. She took notice of its color. The cat's fur was black and white. But this random cat couldn't stop her from escaping this awkward situation. She slowly turned her head to Brahms who still kept his gaze pinned against her.

"Would you please stop?"

"Stop what?" Brahms turned his head away from Eloise but stood closer to her. Brahms' expression shaped into a smug look as he saw Eloise panic. 

This new side of him felt so foreign. He was teasing her. But she could not deny that this side of him that he's showing looks so...hot. He hardly looked at her while responding briefly a few minutes ago. But now he confessed and flirted. This man is so hard to read.

"We barely know each other. What made you like me?" A giggle left his mouth as he heard her words. He looked at his shoes, knowing he was on the spot.

"That's what truly confused me. We only met for like what? Three or maybe two months ago. But you managed to unleash the hopeless romantic inside of me." Brahms chose the medical field and he knew from the very beginning that choosing this path will have to be obtained with a few sacrifices included. His friends joined fraternities and partied until sunrise. In contrast, he was stuck at the library. He never even had time to look at people. All he saw was his textbook and notes. He recalled developing neck issues as a result of constantly looking down from excessive reading.

"I'm very picky, by the way. But you just walked into my life and there you go, in love!" Brahms remarked that was followed by a laugh.

"Forgive me, but I have no idea what to say."

"I know. I just wanted to tell you." 

The rain miraculously stopped pouring. It's like the rain knew what was going to happen. The sky did this on purpose. It stopped raining when all of the things he wanted to convey were already said.

"It finally stopped."

"One last thing before you leave." Eloise simply nodded her head to give him a go signal to elaborate.

"You're single, aren't you?" Her mouth dropped open when she heard his confirmation. 

"That's for you to know." It was her turn to wear the smug look. She was indeed single. But wouldn't she sound desperate if she bluntly answered?

"You didn't say no," Brahms said as he matched her height.

"But I didn't say yes," Eloise confidently replied as she refused to act embarrassed this time.

"Unless you show me your boyfriend, I will continue to pursue you."

____

"How is life in Paris?" Bridget's mom, Judy, asked as she twirled her pasta with a fork.

"As usual. My French is almost perfect." Trixy carefully placed her wine glass beside her plate. Her eyes slowly landed on Bridget who was busy moving her wine glass around.

"How about you, Bridget? Are you enjoying fashion design?" Trixy asked as she fixed her posture.

"Speaking of, my professor was impressed with one of my designs and she offered to submit it as a candidate for the outfits to be used for a Korean girl group's music video."

"A girl group? Even if it gets chosen, no one will know that it was your design," Her father stated as he kept his eyes on his plate.

"Your father's right. We warned you about this before you even started college. It's difficult to survive in this industry."

She knew it. Why did she even bother bringing that up? She will never get a compliment tonight.

"But I'm sure it will get chosen," Trixy "reassured" as she tilted her head.

"I need to use the restroom." Bridget stood up from her chair and headed for the bathroom. 

She hid in the very last stall and fished her phone inside her purse. She looked for Eloise's contact and immediately called her.

"Please pick up," She whispered to herself as she continuously tapped her leg with her hand.

"The number you have dialed is not available please try again later."

"Fuck!" She said quietly to herself. If she only had the option to get out of this "family" dinner. But unfortunately, she had no choice but to sit there and pretend like she doesn't want to burst into tears. But perhaps there is a way.

She exited the comfort room and took a deep breath before strutting to their table. 

"I'm really sorry! But I have to go," Bridget announced as she grabbed her bag from her seat.

"What's going on? You can't just leave in the middle of dinner," Her mother complained as the whole family watched her hastily retrieve her bag.

"There's an emergency at school and I have to be there," Bridget explained.

"Still! What's so important that you can just leave?" Her father whisper-shouted.

"Apparently, my professor notified me that I have some missing works to submit and I have to submit them before midnight."

"I can't believe this." Bridget went closer to her parents to give them a kiss on the cheek before leaving the restaurant, not bothering to send her farewell to Trixy.

Since her father drove them to the restaurant, she is forced to commute her way back to the dorms. She attempted to hail a taxi but not a single one stopped for her. She also resorted to finding a cab through her phone but she also couldn't find an available one near her area.

"Maybe I should take the bus," She muttered to herself. 

Bridget looked for the nearest bus station and waited for the arrival of the next bus. She glanced at her wristwatch and realized that she still have time to make it to the dorms before it closes.

The bus she was waiting for arrived in no time. She hopped on the bus and chose to sit on a window seat just so she can rest her head against the window. 

She pondered to herself. What is her family doing right now? Did they continue eating without her? Did they scold her behind her back? But they probably did all of the above. They probably mentioned how irresponsible Bridget was for forgetting to pass those works. When in reality, she doesn't have any work that passed the deadline or anything. She just wanted to get away and leave that suffocating dinner.

The bus stopped and a few passengers joined her inside the bus. She didn't bother glimpsing at those people but when a tall figure entered the bus, her head couldn't help but turn.  Maybe after that dinner thst she never wanted to join—a gift awaits her to cheer her up.

a/n

Sorry for not uploading for a few days. I was losing motivation to continue this book. But don't worry! I will not allow this book to discontinue. But please do vote on the chapters if you can! Seeing people vote and add this book to their reading lists really encourages me. Thanks for reading this chapter! See you in my next update.