It hadn't surprised Dimitri that Rose hadn't been able to forgive him, or that he hadn't been able to convince her to give him a second chance. No, he'd expected that, but that didn't mean it hurt any less. Having spent the last four years convinced that he wasn't deserving of a real relationship, the first time he found such happiness should have been a positive occasion. Only, when he realised he'd found it, it was too late. The damage had been done.
"I need time..."
Time.
He could give her that.
After having left Rose's apartment earlier in the day, Dimitri firmly believed that there was no hope. However, while he had talked through what had happened with his best friend, Ivan had pointed out that Rose hadn't definitively told him they would never be together, that she'd never be able to get past what had happened between them.
She'd said she needed time.
Time to forgive. Time to heal. Time to think.
No one could compare to Rose, not anymore, and if time was what it took for her to be with him, then he'd wait until the end of the earth if he needed to.
With that little glimmer of optimism, Dimitri, being as tired as he was, decided to try and get an early night. He hoped that having had the opportunity to speak to Rose, his mind might finally allow him some much-needed rest - without the torturous memories and images keeping him awake for hours on end.
He'd just started making his way into the bedroom from the living area, when he heard an unexpected knock at his front door. Dimitri sighed, wondering whether Ivan had forgotten something or just decided to come back and hang out for longer, until he realised that it hadn't been Ivan's usual knock. After years of knowing him, Dimitri could recognise that by now – besides, it wasn't unusual for Ivan to simply just walk in, either. No, the knock hadn't been as heavy as Ivan's.
The lightness of the knock had Dimitri wondering who it could be. For a moment, hope reared inside of him – perhaps Rose had changed her mind? Would she have come to see him? To tell him she'd decided to give him another chance? At that thought, Dimitri's heart lurched hopefully in his chest. Surely not? That would be just too good to be true. He knew that he didn't deserve her forgiveness just yet. She needed time – and just a few hours didn't seem long enough! With a reserved hopefulness, Dimitri made his way to the front door.
The curiosity in his eyes and his friendly smile dropped the moment he saw who was standing on the other side. His face paled, suddenly feeling nauseous with a subtle anger bubbling in his stomach.
Tasha.
What the fuck was she doing here?
His brows drew together in a mix of confusion, frustration and, simply, hatred.
How his ex-fiancé had the audacity to hurt him, to betray him in the way she did, and turn up at his apartment out of the blue like this was beyond him. She even had the nerve to stand there and smile sweetly at him, batting her eyelashes as though this wasn't the most unnatural occurrence.
"Hey, Dimka," she greeted, tossing her dark hair behind one of her shoulders, her smile widening.
Practically paralysed in shock, Dimitri stood there in front of her, unable to say anything.
"Aren't you going to invite me in?" She questioned, tilting her head to the side as she looked up at him.
"No."
At his bluntness, she pouted, sticking her bottom lip out as much as she could, a twinkle of cheekiness in her eyes showing him that she was only hoping to pull on his heart strings.
"Oh come on, I missed you!" she laughed. "Didn't you miss me?"
Was she joking? Of course not.
Dimitri narrowed his eyes at her.
"Not particularly."
She scoffed and rolled her eyes, sending a chill through his spine. He used to love her subtle teasing, now it just made him mad.
"Oh please, I'm the light of your life and you know it," she giggled, before continuing. "Let me in."
She took a step forward, in the hopes that he would step aside and grant her entry – he would always give in to what she wanted back when they were together, and she knew that it would be the same now. However, the firm hand on her shoulder that stopped her in her tracks proved to her that was not the case anymore – she couldn't just push him around to get her way.
The moment the palm of his hand touched her, Tasha's smile disappeared, replaced with a menacing scowl.
"Let me in, Dimitri, or I'll tell everyone you just hit me."
Fuck, here we go...
As much as he wanted to, needed to, stand his ground and send her away, he knew in an instant that if it came down to it, Tasha would be believed over him. Compared to her daintiness, his build and his rugged look made him some-what intimidating, and he didn't think for one second that she wouldn't be seen as a victim. Besides, Tasha was probably manipulative enough to bruise herself and blame it on him!
The moment he relented, Tasha's frown was quickly replaced once more with a sweet grin. With great frustration, Dimitri sighed and stepped aside, allowing her to brush past him and into his apartment.
"Nice place. I prefer our old house but this will do for now," she told him, looking around at Dimitri's residence.
Dimitri's brows furrowed and his lips curled in confusion.
"What will do?" he asked, following her over to the living area.
"This apartment," she stated, gesturing around them. "It'll do until we start looking for houses."
Okay – what?
"Excuse me?"
"You can't expect me to live here, surely?" she questioned with a small laugh, sitting down on the sofa comfortably, clearly making herself at home. "We need a house with more bedrooms for when we start having children. And a garden."
Dimitri's patience finally wore out.
"What the fuck are you on about Tasha?" He exclaimed, the mixture of frustration and utter confusion making him feel the need to pace.
"I'm talking about us buying a house, silly."
"Why would I buy a house with you?"
Tasha shrugged, looking up at him as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. "For us to live in, clearly."
Dimitri grimaced, running a hand through his hair. He almost couldn't comprehend, couldn't believe, what was happening. This had to be a joke, right? Or surely he'd fallen asleep and this was some kind of psychological nightmare that he couldn't wake up from?
"You are making no sense, Tasha," he groaned. "You turn up here out of the blue and start spouting shit about us buying a house and living together. Did you forget that we broke up?"
"Of course not."
Dimitri continued pacing, his anxious energy not allowing him to stand still, with a million thoughts rushing through his head. Tasha looked at him walking back and forth, until the constant movement began to irritate her.
"Aren't you going to sit down?"
"Not until you explain what's going on," he retorted. "The sooner you explain, the sooner you can leave me alone."
Tasha frowned.
"Why would I leave you alone, Dimka?" She asked, batting her lashes at him. "I love you."
Dimitri almost choked on his own breath, a haughty yet slightly amused laugh escaping him. He stopped pacing and turned to look at her, clear disdain on his face.
"You're fucking delusional."
Tasha's smile dropped once more and she narrowed her eyes at him.
"Don't speak to me like that," she warned. "That's not how you treat your future wife now, is it?"
"Future w-" Dimitri spluttered, his eyes widening. "Seriously, is this a joke?"
"No Dimka," Tasha chuckled, her smile returning. "I want to start things with us again."
When Dimitri simply stood there in shock, unable to say anything for his disbelief, Tasha stood from the sofa and sauntered over to him, stopping in front of him and tracing a finger along his muscular arm.
"You know, you and me? Getting married? Starting a family?" she continued. "I know you want children and time's running out for you. For the both of us. It's not like you have lines of women queuing up for you."
Standing on her toes, she leant up towards him, her face inches from his.
"I can give you what you want," she purred.
"Did you forget that you fucked up that chance when you invited two other men into our bed?" Dimitri scoffed, stepping away from her and walking to the other side of the room, hoping to create as much distance from her as possible. He couldn't stand to be that close to her. "And God only knows how many more, when I wasn't there to catch you in the act?"
"I told you, it was a mistake, Dimitri," she groaned. "Maybe if you were a better fiancé I wouldn't have needed to go elsewhere and be appreciated by someone else."
A sinister laugh escaped his lips.
"The fuck Tasha?" he exclaimed, before making his way over to the front door. "I think you need to leave now."
"Don't you want kids, Dimka?" She questioned, still rooted to where she stood in the middle of the living area. "A big happy family?"
"Not with you, no thank you."
"And why not? Don't you love me?"
"No, Tash," he groaned, rubbing a palm over his face in annoyance. "I loved you. Past tense. I loved you and you broke me. You fucked it all up, fucked me up."
"If you loved me once you can love me again."
Dimitri suddenly snapped.
"Will you just get the fuck out and leave me alone?" He exclaimed. He couldn't be dealing with this anymore. All he wanted was for her to leave – her being here was the absolute last thing he wanted. He'd thought she was out of his life for good, yet here she was spouting all this crap in the middle of his apartment as though she'd expected to simply walk straight back into his life as though nothing had happened.
"Is this about Rose?" She questioned, rolling her eyes.
Dimitri stiffened, his back straightening and the colour draining from his face.
"How do you know about Rose?" he asked quietly, unaware that his best friend had told Tasha all about Rose just moments before she arrived on his doorstep.
She shrugged.
"I have my ways."
"Tasha –"
"If she's the one holding you back, there are ways to remedy that," she stated, crossing her arms. "She's not as good for you as I am, I'm sure. You and I belong together, Dimitri."
"Your empty threats mean nothing to me."
"Empty threats?" She scoffed. "I can track this 'Rose' down in a matter of minutes if I wanted to."
"Leave her out of this."
"Ah, so it is about her," she chuckled. "Trust me Dimitri, no one is better for you than I am. You know that."
Tasha walked over to him and stood in front of him once more, her sickly sweet smile returning.
"I'm what's best for you."
Ignoring her, Dimitri reached for the door and opened it up, stepping aside in the hopes that she'd get the hint. "You need to leave now," he told her.
When she opened her mouth to protest, Dimitri didn't give her the chance.
"Leave, or I'll call the cops to escort you out."
"You invited me in, Dimka, remember?" she probed, turning her head to the side in mock confusion. "You willingly opened the door and stepped aside."
Fucking manipulative bitch.
"I will not ask you again," he stated, refusing to give into her ways. She was the queen of manipulation and gaslighting, and he was ashamed to admit that years ago she would have walked all over him. Now though, he saw through her completely.
"Fine. I'm going," she huffed. "I'll see you soon though, Dimka. You'll come to your senses and see that I'm better for you than her."
As she began to leave, she quickly turned to look back at him.
"The sooner you realise, the sooner we can get things started. Back on track for us," she added, before blowing him a kiss, turning, and walking down the hallway out of sight, leaving Dimitri standing dumbfounded in his entryway.
It's official - Tasha is crazy.
Things are starting to get complicated!
Don't forget to leave a review and let me know your thoughts. As always, thankyou for your patience and your previous comments!