Becoming Mrs. Seguin

A ray of sunlight peeked through the window, accompanied by the cool ocean breeze as I slowly awakened, my eyes fluttering open. God, I couldn't remember the last time I slept this well.

As I stretched my arms, the blanket shifted down my body, exposing my completely bare chest. Wait a minute, why on earth did I not have any clothes on?!

I quickly became frantic and looked over my shoulder to see a very naked Tyler lying next to me, the messy pile of sheets between us indicating what had taken place in his bed last night. My eyes wandered down to his tattooed arm, which remained wrapped around my waist as he slept peacefully.

A look of horror instantly formed on my face, mixed with pure guilt and resentment. Did I seriously sleep with Tyler?! What the hell was wrong with me?!

Immediately, I untangled my body from his and climbed out of the sheets, careful not to wake him up. I put a tshirt on from one of his drawers and headed downstairs to grab my clothes from the laundry room.

This couldn't be happening....

How did I allow things to go that far with Tyler? God, I should've known that going to his house meant that I'd end up falling in bed with him.

But damn it he was just so irresistible. And the sex had been absolutely mind-blowing. For crying out loud, I had even taken his tshirt and put it on like it was the most normal thing to do. In fact, it should've felt wrong since I wasn't even his girlfriend anymore. But surprisingly, it didn't.

I actually missed wearing Tyler's clothes because it reminded me of how close we used to be. And the familiar scent of them was something I'd never seem to forget.

To be honest, I couldn't help but feel pity when I saw the way his eyes pleaded for forgiveness last night when I'd told him how much he had hurt me. And as bad as it sounds, seeing Tyler look all vulnerable like that had just made me want him even more.

I was so caught up in the moment, being with my ex again and bringing up our past, that I had totally forgot about reality- the engagement between Damon and I.

Oh god, what if he found out about how I slept with Tyler?

The minute I finished changing back into my own clothes, I sank onto the ground as tears began to fall down my cheeks. It had only been less than a week and already, everything was spinning out of control.

Why did Tyler ever have to crawl back into my life? I'd managed perfectly fine without him all these years.

But he loves you.

I couldn't ignore the voice ringing inside my head, because deep down, I knew that it was true. Tyler did love me, even after everything he had done. I mean, why else would he have come back?

But who's to say that he wouldn't hurt me again?

I had fallen for Tyler once, but I was not going to make that same mistake a second time.

The sound of heavy footsteps descending the stairs disrupted my thoughts and I dragged my feet out of the laundry room to see Tyler searching the house. A look of relief washed over his face when he saw me.

"God, where have you been? I was worried sick!", he exclaimed.

"Like you'd care," I said with a bitter tone, brushing past him to grab my purse from the kitchen counter.

"Jeez, chill out. What's gotten into you this morning?"

"I have to go," I stated.

"Go where?", he asked in utter confusion.

"New York, remember? Just drive me back to my car. Please."

"Whoa, wait a minute. You're gonna leave just like that? What about everything you said last night?", Tyler demanded.

"Forget what I said. It was all a mistake," I replied sharply.

"A mistake?! Are you fucking kidding me?"

"I don't want you getting in the way of my engagement with Damon. In fact, I hope we never see each other again."

"Oh shut up, you don't even love him," Tyler scoffed, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"You don't know anything!", I snapped.

By now, he had become absolutely furious.

"Do you have any idea how much last night meant to me?! For once in my life, I thought that I had finally gotten you back."

"Tyl-,"

"I am not going to stand here and have you tell me that yesterday meant nothing to you. That it was a total mistake."

I sighed in defeat and plopped down on a chair, resting my forehead in the palm of my hand as I stared at the granite countertop. Tyler leaned against the wall, his eyes boring into my back.

"Last night wasn't supposed to happen, but do you know why it did? I wanted you, Tyler. I wanted us to be close like we were before, just for one time," I spoke, my eyes beginning to water.

"If that's the case, then why are you all upset about it?"

I quickly spun around to face him.

"Don't you get it, Tyler? I cheated on my fiancé! You probably don't think it's a big deal, but to me it is. I'm not like you. I don't sleep around with any guy I want just for the pleasure of it."

I could feel myself start to break down as the guilt began to eat me alive. What did Damon do to deserve this? He was hard at work to support the both of us and here I was, sitting at my ex's house.

"God, I feel like a total whore," I muttered out loud, turning the other way so that Tyler couldn't see me crying.

"Don't say that. You and I both know that we're obviously still attracted to each other. You didn't do anything wrong. Your fiancé just has to deal with the fact that we belong together."

Tyler walked over and sat down next to me, leaning in to wipe the tears away from my face with his thumb. I immediately responded to his touch as a wave of electricity burst through my body.

"Christine, listen to me. I love you. More than Damon ever will. And if it weren't for my stupidity, we probably would've been married by now. But I'm begging you, just give me another chance."

"I need to get out of here," I said abruptly, quickly getting up, knowing all too well what would happen if I stayed any longer. My emotions would get the better of me and I'd end up betraying my fiancé for Tyler.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing? Can't you see I'm trying to talk to you?", he asked in total disbelief.

"Tyler, I'm serious. I have to go. Now."

"How am I supposed to let you go knowing that you love me, too? I've lost you once but I sure as hell don't want to lose you again."

He stared straight into my eyes, his expression a mixture of hurt and anger. Oh, how I wanted to tell Tyler that I loved him...

But I couldn't. Besides, I had done enough already to hurt my fiancé. And after what happened with Tyler three years ago, there was no way I'd allow history to repeat itself.

"I used to love you...but not anymore."

Tyler was completely torn, all traces of hope vanished from his face. He opened his mouth to reply, but I walked right past him and headed out the front door before he could even utter a single word.

God, I felt so terrible...

Shortly after, Tyler came out once he put a tshirt and pair of athletic shorts on. We got inside his car, the both of us avoiding any eye contact with each other.

Never in my life have I ever seen him look this pained before, and it sucked knowing that I was responsible. My words had struck him like a dagger, but it was for our own good.

I didn't want Tyler to be chasing after me any longer because I was engaged now. Inside, I was hurting just as much as he was. But sooner or later, we'd forget about all of this and move on.

Neither of us spoke the entire car ride and the sad part was, I'd probably never even see Tyler again after today....

When he turned onto Washington Street, I spotted a police officer standing at the corner, writing what appeared to be a ticket as I mentally slapped myself.

Shit!

I had totally forgotten that I'd left my car parked here all night. No doubt the ticket was for me. Could this day get any worse?

Tyler stopped his car and I quickly climbed out to confront the officer. He looked up when he saw me and smiled.

"How may I help you, Miss?", he asked in a friendly tone.

"Um, that ticket is for the silver Lacrosse, right?"

"Yup. Some idiot left it parked here overnight. They were probably drunk, I'm guessing."

I winced slightly at his harsh words.

"The "idiot" is me. I'm really sorry, Officer. It's a long story, but I promise that it won't happen again."

"You sure?", he asked, giving me a skeptical look.

"Yes. You can even look me up if you want. I've never gotten a ticket before, except for this one."

"Alright, I believe you. You're lucky your car didn't get towed. Here you go," he said, handing me the ticket.

Two hundred dollars?! Did he seriously expect me to have to pay all that money? For god's sake, I had to worry about paying off my college loans!

Immediately, I grew outraged as I stomped back to Tyler's car. Why didn't he remind me to pick up my car last night? But in all honesty, I was the one to blame. I should've been more responsible.

"I have to pay a fucking two hundred bucks for this damn ticket! God, why did I even get in the car with you yesterday?", I exclaimed angrily.

Tyler let out a weary sigh and reached for his wallet, pulling out two one-hundred dollar bills.

"Here, take it," he ordered, shoving the money in my hand.

"Tyler, no. I can't."

"Just take it. It's my fault anyway for telling you to leave your car here in the first place."

"But-,"

"I gotta go now. Promise me you'll make it to New York safely."

I nodded my head and was about to thank him when he sped off, leaving me standing on the curb staring after his car.

***

As I waited for the light to turn green at the intersection, my phone began to ring. I stared at the screen and a look of guilt flashed over my face as I pressed the answer button.

"Hey, Damon," I greeted, attempting to sound as cheerful as possible.

"Hey honey, where are you?", he asked.

"I just left like half an hour ago. I'll be there in time for lunch, hopefully," I replied.

"Good, because I just discovered this one amazing restaurant down the block. They've got the best soups and sandwiches."

"I see. How's work?"

"Oh you know, the usual. I can't wait to see you," Damon said.

"Me too...,"

"Listen, I have to go now, ok? There's a meeting starting soon. I love you."

I hung up, not having the will to say "I love you" back to my fiancé. Hopefully, he wouldn't suspect anything.

As I drove on the freeway, I mentally debated whether to tell Damon about my affair with Tyler or keep it a secret. I'd hate to be a cheater and a liar, but what good would it be if I did? It wasn't like I planned on ever seeing Tyler again. Besides, the last thing I needed was for my engagement to fall apart.

Only two hours had gone by and already, I was missing Boston. But the one person my heart ached for the most was Tyler.

I couldn't help but wonder where he was right now, probably leaving for Cape Cod with his friends. My thoughts drifted to earlier this morning and I suddenly remembered what Tyler had said about us being married if it weren't for him. My mother had thought the same thing back then, too.

A sad smile grew on my face as I pictured the both of us walking his dogs on the beach a few years from now, with a child or two tagging along behind us. If we were to have a son that looked anything like him, he'd sure be a lady-killer.

But no, Tyler was probably going to get married to some other woman and have kids of his own. I don't know why, but the thought of that made me feel jealous and hurt at the same time.

It seemed like only yesterday when Tyler brought me to his house for the first time. We were both quite young then, and he had joked about us moving in together once I finished college. Or he could've been serious. I had no idea.

But the point was, as long as I lived, Tyler would always be a part of me.

...So, why was I with Damon then?

I had kept telling Tyler that we couldn't be together due to the fact that I was already engaged. But fear was the real reason. I was scared of having him break my heart like he did three years ago.

Sometimes, in relationships, people make mistakes. The important part is being able to learn from them. Whether or not this was the case for Tyler, I didn't know. But at that moment, I couldn't care less.

Instead, it all came down to a single question. Did I want to spend the rest of my life with Damon when Tyler was the one I truly loved?

It was never too late to go back...right?

My mind remained lost in thought as I pulled into Starbucks' parking lot. The summer heat was making me crave a cold, caramel frappucino right now. I got out of my car and walked inside to order, sitting down at a table afterwards.

This particular Starbucks happened to have a TV, so I decided to watch to see if anything interesting was on. Hopefully, it'd help to take my mind off of Tyler.

As I sipped on my drink, I stared at the screen, watching the local news. Eventually, I grew bored and was about to leave when the headline, "Breaking News", caught my attention.

"27-year old Boston Bruins' star forward, Tyler Seguin, has recently been taken to the emergency room at Massachusetts General Hospital.

"Police say he suffered a traumatic car accident on his way to a friend's house. The person responsible was a reckless drunk driver, who is also currently being hospitalized," the female reporter announced.

My face instantly turned pale as I registered everything she'd just said. For a moment, it felt as if the world had stopped spinning and time froze.

No, this couldn't possibly have happened to Tyler...

"We now bring you to the scene of this fatal incident, which occurred on I-95 approximately fifteen minutes ago."

A horrified gasp escaped my lips as I saw what was left of Tyler's BMW. The passenger side was heavily dented, but the damage on the driver's side was what sent goosebumps down my spine.

Large pieces of glass from the broken windshield lay scattered on the ground, along with torn metal scraps. The front of the car was completely mangled, leaving the engine motor hanging out of the hood and broken wires sticking out all over the place. Words couldn't even begin to describe the rest of it.

I began to grow dizzy and faint looking at the accident scene on the TV and immediately stood up. It felt like I was going to pass out any minute, so I decided the best thing for me to do was get out of here.

My eyes clouded with tears as I imagined the physical pain Tyler must be enduring right now. Just the thought of his body covered in blood was enough to make me want to run a semi-truck over the son of a bitch that had crashed into him.

How could this have happened so suddenly? Less than three hours ago, we were driving in his BMW, and now, he was lying in the hospital, nearly dying.

I got inside my car and sped towards the nearest traffic light, driving as fast as the speed limit allowed. Before I could even make sense of what I was doing, I made a sharp u-turn and headed north back to Boston.

Right now, the only thing that mattered to me was seeing Tyler, even if it was just for a moment. There were so many things I needed to tell him. I just prayed that it wouldn't be too late.