Epiphany

Chapter 5

"You broke my phone?!" Everly exclaimed for the second time in disbelief, her wide eyes transforming from shock to anger. Ryan, taken aback by her reaction, furrowed his eyebrows and finally tore his gaze away from Everly's face to look at the phone which was tightly clutched in her hands. She stared at it in horror, and Ryan caught a glimpse of the cracked screen near the water notch.

"Good heavens! Look at that crack," Ryan gasped. "I would have thought you fractured a bone." Everly's jaw dropped at the man's remark.

The audacity!

She wouldn't have given it much thought if it were any other phone, but this one was special. It was a gift from her brother, the first gift she had ever received from him. All she could think about was Alfred's excited face when he presented it to her.

"You...how dare you!" she pointed her index finger at him.

"I am bold, what can I say?" Ryan replied nonchalantly.

"You are unbelievable!" Everly furrowed her eyebrows even more. "Are you blind? Can't you see ahead while you are walking?"

"Am I unbelievable or am I blind?" Ryan mused, touching his chin with his index finger as if pondering an equation.

"Both!" Everly stood there, completely shocked. She had never encountered such an irksome individual before.

"Look, sweetheart, we collided by accident. It was an unfortunate mishap, and accidents do happen, you know. We are both to blame or none at all." Ryan said calmly, but even the calmness in his voice seemed to test Everly's patience.

"Listen to me. I was standing here and didn't even know you were approaching. How do you think I contributed to this stunt you pulled? And don't 'sweetheart' me," she stated firmly as glared at him.

No matter how she spoke, it seemed harmless, considering she barely reached his shoulders. So, she crossed her arms, held her head high, and tried to appear intimidating.

Glancing down at his watch, Ryan panicked internally. He really needed to hurry now, he thought.

"You see, I'm running late, and-" he was interrupted by a loud scoff.

"You should have thought of that before rushing through the streets."

Everly always despised people who disrespected others' time and were completely self-centered. Looking at the man in front of her, up to the nine in his rich-looking formal attire, it became clear to her that he was some spoiled, rich brat with no concern for the people around him. It easily roused her ire.

She had been witnessing this conceited behavior since she was young, all thanks to her family, excluding Alfred, of course. Alfred-...The phone! Just as she was about to give him another piece of her mind, she saw him glance at his watch once again and open his mouth.

"Do you need compensation?" he asked, further fueling Everly's anger.

"You're such a narcissist!"

"Excuse me?"

"It's funny how you can say everything but not a simple sorry. Do you even feel guilty?"

Realizing there was no way out, Ryan understood that the feisty hazel-eyed woman who barely reached his shoulder wouldn't back down easily. So, he took a deep breath before saying something he wasn't accustomed to.

"I'm sorry," he said curtly, his dark onyx eyes pointedly staring into hers. "There, are you happy now?"

"No, you don't mean it."

"What the-" Ryan calmed himself down, closing his eyes and taking a few deep breaths before nodding and opening his eyes.

He reached for his wallet in his back pocket and took out five-hundred-dollar bills. Reaching out for her hand, which undoubtedly felt small and soft in his large hands, he closed her fingers around the bills.