Chapter 5: Whispers of the Past
The silence between Lina and Tony stretched as they left the park that evening, fingers still intertwined. The orange hue of dusk lingered above them, wrapping the world in a soft glow, but the warmth they had shared earlier had cooled into quiet tension. Lina glanced sideways at Tony — his face was calm, maybe too calm — the kind of calm that meant his mind was racing beneath the surface.
She wanted to ask again about the woman they'd seen, but something in his expression stopped her. Instead, she squeezed his hand lightly."You sure you're okay?" she asked softly.
Tony nodded, offering a faint smile. "Yeah… I just didn't expect to see her again. It threw me off."
Her heart ached at the uncertainty in his tone. "That was your ex, right?"
He exhaled. "Yeah. Melissa." The name hung in the air like a distant
echo. "And the man with her — Patrick — was my former boss. I haven't seen either of them since I left that company."
Lina studied his face as they walked. His jaw was tight, and his grip on her hand had unconsciously grown firmer. "Did something bad happen between you all?" she asked carefully.
Tony paused, staring ahead. "Let's just say… it wasn't a clean break. Melissa didn't take things well when I ended it. And Patrick… he sided with her." His voice dipped, low and restrained, as though speaking the words brought back something he wanted to forget.
Lina stopped walking. "Tony, if they caused you trouble before, maybe we should be cautious now. The way she looked at you—"
"—was exactly how she used to," he interrupted, almost bitterly. "Always smiling like she knows more than she should."
For a moment, neither of them spoke. The sounds of the evening filled the quiet — the chirping of distant crickets, the distant hum of cars, the rustling of leaves overhead.
Lina looked up at him, her eyes gentle but searching. "Tony, you know you can trust me, right?"
He turned to her slowly, his gaze softening. "I do, Lina. More than you realize."
Something in the way he said it made her heart tighten. She stepped closer, sliding her hands around his arm. "Then let me share the burden with you. Whatever this is, we'll face it together. You told me that earlier."
He smiled faintly, his eyes glinting with affection. "You're right. I did."
They continued walking toward where Tony had parked his car. By the time they reached it, night had fallen. The headlights of passing vehicles washed over them in fleeting bursts of white and gold. When they got in, the interior of the car felt oddly intimate — a small, safe space where the rest of the world didn't exist.
Lina fastened her seatbelt, glancing sideways. "So… do you think they'll try to contact you?"
"I don't know," Tony admitted. "But I hope not. That chapter of my life is over." He started the car, the engine's soft hum filling the space between them. "And I'm not letting it interfere with us."
Lina smiled faintly. "Good. Because I really like what we have. I don't want anything to ruin it."
As they drove, the conversation shifted. Tony began to relax again, and they laughed softly about little things — work, family, how she always forgot her charger at home. But underneath the laughter, Lina could still sense something — a faint current of tension that hadn't fully faded.
When they arrived at her apartment, Tony parked by the curb and turned toward her. The streetlight above them cast a pale glow across his face, making his eyes look darker, deeper.
"Thanks for today," Lina said quietly, unbuckling her seatbelt but not moving yet.
Tony chuckled. "You're thanking me? I should be the one thanking you for putting up with my strange moods."
"Strange, yes. But also mysterious," she teased, smiling.
He laughed — that deep, warm laugh that always made her chest flutter. "You really want to dig into my past that badly, huh?"
She tilted her head, playfully serious. "Not badly. Just… enough to understand the man I'm falling for."
The words slipped out before she could stop them. Her cheeks flushed instantly. She hadn't meant to say falling for. Not yet, not out loud.
Tony's expression softened. He didn't speak right away, just watched her with a look that made her heartbeat stumble. Then, slowly, he reached over and brushed his thumb along her cheek.
"Lina," he murmured, "you have no idea how much that means to me."
Her lips parted slightly, her breath catching as he leaned in closer. The distance between them vanished. The kiss was gentle at first, then deeper, more deliberate — the kind that felt like both a promise and a confession.
When they finally pulled apart, neither spoke. Words weren't needed. Everything was written in their eyes.
Tony exhaled, resting his forehead against hers. "I don't ever want to lose this," he whispered.
"You won't," she replied softly. "As long as you don't let the past drag you back."
He nodded, the weight of her words sinking in. Then, with one last lingering glance, she stepped out of the car. "Goodnight, Tony."
Goodnight, love," he said, his voice tender.
Lina walked toward her door, her heart fluttering with emotions she couldn't quite name — hope, fear, excitement, and a trace of unease. When she looked back, Tony was still there, watching her with that same thoughtful expression before finally driving off into the night.
She entered her apartment and leaned against the door, exhaling slowly. The silence inside felt too loud after the day's intensity. She walked to the window, pulling aside the curtain just in time to see Tony's car disappear down the street.
Her thoughts raced. Who exactly was Melissa to him? And why had Tony seemed so tense? Something about the way he looked at that woman — it wasn't just surprise. It was recognition mixed with… regret.
Lina bit her lip, trying to shake off the unease. "Maybe I'm overthinking," she whispered to herself. "He's with me now. That's what matters."
But as she turned off the lights and slipped into bed, her mind wouldn't rest. Somewhere in the quiet darkness, a seed of worry took root — not because she doubted his love, but because she could sense that whatever history lay between Tony and Melissa wasn't finished.
And though Tony tried to bury the past, some loves — and some mistakes — have a way of colliding with the present.
Outside, the night deepened. Somewhere far off, Tony's phone buzzed on his car seat. He picked it up, and his heart sank at the message flashing on the screen.
Melissa: "It's been a while. We need to talk."
Tony stared at the screen for a long moment, his jaw tightening. The headlights of another car swept past him, illuminating his conflicted expression.
"Not again," he muttered under his breath, tossing the phone aside. But even as he drove away, the past he tried to escape was already finding its way back.
And this time, it wasn't just his heart on the line — it was Lina's too.