The Turning Point

CHAPTER FIFTY- THE UNEXPECTED

Heloyse

Will was lying down, looking at the ceiling, while I was still on top of him, hugging him.
"I'm sorry, about the kiss. I..."
"Seriously?" he asked ironically.
I got up, and Will grabbed my wrist, making me sit on him again.
"Tell me, why did you let him kiss you?"
"Would it help, Will? Would you believe me? Because I don't want you looking at me with suspicion, like I'm a slut. Isn't that what you called me?"
"I didn't say that... I said... Damn it! I went crazy. Tormented. You don't know how much it bothers me to think you could be with someone else."
"I wouldn't know how to be with someone else, Will. You made me forget that."
He took a deep breath and hugged me.
"I let Johnson kiss me, and after he kissed me, he knew it didn't make me feel anything. He knew I would never kiss him the way I kiss you, and that nothing would make me love him, because I love you. And I'm sorry if I hurt you too," I said, unable to hold back the tears.
"No, Lisy," he said, still hugging me. "You've always been honest with him. And I... I hurt you. I said something so ugly, and it's not the first time. I didn't mean to..."
"I know. Forgive me!"
"How can you ask me for forgiveness?"
"I almost ruined everything with that kiss. I hurt you, and I almost lost you."
Will remained hugging me for several minutes. There was fear between us, fear of breaking that bubble.
"Oh, Lisy... How did I come to love you? I don't know how to deal with something this big."
And we remained hugged, until our muscles started to ache. Hours later, I preferred to go home. The atmosphere was still tense between us.
Will gave me a shirt, and I put it on over my torn blouse. Then, he took me home.
I gave him a brief kiss on the lips before going in.
Him saying he loved me, those words wouldn't leave my head. I spent hours remembering them.
Surely, he was also thinking about everything that happened, and certainly, it scared him.
I was in a whirlwind of feelings. I was extremely happy to know he loved me, but then, I became sad thinking that maybe he said that in a moment of lust.
Was it true? Would he regret it?
In the next two days, we didn't see or speak to each other in person, only by phone. He had to go to the corn grain factory to analyze the accounting. He invited me to go, but I preferred to stay.
I went to town to see how the renovation was going.
I needed to resolve the license issue, and there was still a kitchen to fix. Everything was going well in that regard. However, I missed him strongly.
It was only two days, but it seemed like an eternity.
Cielo went to Victoria's salon to see how she was doing, and Patsy stopped by to say "hi." It was still strange, but with time, I would get used to it.
She was in a relationship with Mr. Marz, a forty-year-old widower. And despite the malicious comments, I didn't believe she was with him for the money, since she was also rich, maybe even more than him.
She was always smiling with him. And let's face it, Mr. Marz wasn't a man to be thrown away.
I wondered if people also thought I was an opportunist, dating Will. But who cared? People would always find a reason to talk about others.
The next day, when I finished seeing how the repairs were going, I grabbed my bag and turned to lock the door of my future café. It was past three o'clock, and at that time, Will would be checking the machinery near the oil wells.
I made plans to stop by there and stay until the time he returned to the main house.
Then, I would eat something, since I had spent the whole morning feeling unwell and vomiting breakfast.
At the moment I was leaving, the key jammed and wouldn't turn. I tried to turn it again, and nothing.
"Damn key!"
"I think when you have problems, it's a sign that I'm going to show up."
I rolled my eyes when I heard Johnson's voice. Actually, the problem was him.
"What do you want?"
"Are you still mad at me?"
"I'm not mad. I just think we have nothing to talk about."
And the damn key was still jammed.
"I'll help you."
"No! I don't want to. Thank you."
"I just want to help, believe me."
I screamed when I saw Johnson being thrown to the ground, after Will pushed him.
"Stay away from her, Johnson."
He got up and approached Will, pointing his finger at him.
"Do you think she's going to stay with you for the rest of her life? Nobody's crazy enough for that. Sooner or later, she's going to get tired of the lack of attention you give her. I've never seen you two out here. Don't you like to take a girl out, O'Connor? Or do you only take out vulgar women like Mary?"
Hearing her name bothered me.
"Go away, Johnson. Please!"
He didn't listen to me.
Will had a false calm that could explode at any moment.
"Wait! That's not your name, is it, Lewis? The son of the drunk Wilson Lewis? Yes, because that was the name of the boy from Green Park who appeared in the regional newspapers. I lived nearby, and my uncle was the sheriff at the time. I always knew it was you."
"Congratulations, Johnson, for doing your homework. Now get out of here before I break the shit out of your teeth."
"I heard my uncle say that you were the grandson of a quarrelsome old man who often beat his own son. And that son was your father, wasn't he? He also beat you. Look at this, Lisy... We have a problem here. Do you know this story? A drunk old man who mistreated his son, who became another drunk and repeated the story. Be careful! Soon, you might show up with a broken tooth or a black eye..."
Johnson didn't finish the sentence.
Will threw punches and more punches at his face, so fast and furious that Johnson didn't even have time to protect himself or fight back.
People started coming out of the establishments, while others ran to break up the fight.
Cielo came running towards us.
In a moment of carelessness, Will lowered his guard for a second-enough time for Johnson to take advantage of the opening and land a direct punch on his face. Will staggered as he stepped on debris from the old counter, scattered on the sidewalk.
He barely had time to react before Johnson grabbed a piece of wood and, with his eyes flashing with rage, Johnson raised the wood above his head and brought it down with all his might, aiming at Will's face.
Instinctively, Will raised his arms, crossing them in front of him to protect himself. The blow resounded, violently hitting his forearms, making the pain show on his face, but he didn't back down.
I screamed, bringing my hands to my mouth, hoping someone would separate them.
Will hit him back harder than before.
He was facing away from me. He had prepared to punch Johnson again, and when I approached from behind to stop him, his elbow hit my face as hard as a rock.
The pain was excruciating, and I saw my vision blur.
I felt the metallic taste of my blood running from my nose into my mouth.
I heard Will's voice calling me. I lost my balance and went into the street. Everything was so fast that I only saw the moment a car was coming towards me.