"What the hell is going on?" you murmur when you start hearing weird noises outside of your office.
You stand up and stay by the door once you open it. There are unusually many people in the hallway and they're all talking and whispering to each other. You're quick to notice that a majority of them is eyeing you up and down intensely when they see your figure.
"What's the fuzz about?" you ask a random coworker that passes by but they just shrug.
You sigh and decide to go over to the place where many people are gathered. You can hear a voice getting louder as you approach it and you're not happy with it. It's an extremely familiar voice and it only takes you seconds to recognise it.
"Where is she? I need to find her, I need to find Alice" it's Tony's voice.
You freeze and start thinking of what your best option is here. You could start running away, hoping that you'll escape, you can stay and face Tony and everyone else staring at you, or you can casually walk away like nothing is happening.
But before you can make the decision yourself, a group of people take a few steps backwards and open the way between you and Tony. His eyes meet with yours immediately and your heart stops. The silence is very loud. Your palms are sweating and your neck feels dry.
"Alice" he speaks and takes some steps towards you.
You can tell that something's off with him just with a few quick looks. His beard is not as treated as it usually is, his eyes are tired and with circles around them, and his outfit is definitely not one that he got out of his closet recently.
"What are you doing here?" you find the courage to speak.
"I had to see you, I missed you so much" he keeps on walking towards you but he's not walking on a completely straight line.
It doesn't take a genius to know that he's drunk, or maybe even worse. Once again you're in the worst position and have to deal with the consequences of his actions. You close your eyes, take a deep breath and exhale before you open them again.
"Come with me" you say sternly.
"Happily" he smiles and follows you closely.
Earlier your heart wasn't beating but now it's beating faster than it ever has before. You're so angry that you could easily attack him with your own bear hands. You only turn your head to look at him when you're in your office with the door closed.
"What do you think you're doing showing up at my work drunk and causing a scene?" you ask angrily.
"I'm not drunk" he shakes his head and walks towards you.
"Please tell me that you're not high" you close your eyes desperately.
"I'm not. I-I don't think so at least" he stutters.
"D*mn you, Tony" you sigh.
"Your office is great, I love what you've done with the space" he comments.
His comment catches you by surprise and you unexpectedly chuckle as a reaction. He seems confused at first but then seems like he enjoys the sight of your smile.
"Don't you think it's funny how we dated for so long but this is the only time you've visited my office?" you ask.
"You know things were complicated, don't blame that on me" he says in defence.
"Nothing was complicated, you just had to make it that way" you correct him.
"I promise to drive you here every morning and make sure you get in your office safely" he says.
"Okay, this is getting ridiculous" you laugh.
You've distanced yourself from him by moving to your side of the desk and leaving him on the other side. But he slowly starts taking steps towards your side and you don't know where to go.
"I missed your laugh" he slightly smiles.
"I missed it, too. I haven't been having much of it lately" your words quickly wipe the happiness off his face.
"Give me a second chance, please. I'm begging you" he says while looking straight into your eyes.
"Tony" you sigh.
"I love you" he says quickly.
"Don't. I don't want to hear that" you shake your head.
He approaches you and takes your hands in his. You've missed his touch, that's certain. But along with the comfort that his touch is giving you, you also feel your heart beating fast.
"Marry me" he says out of the blue and kneels.
"Get up, what are you even talking about? How drunk are you?" you don't even know what to ask him first.
"I don't feel drunk at all. I know what I want and that's you. Believe me, I know I screwed up big time. I realise how foolish I was, all I ask is for you to give me a second chance. I promise I'm done with everything. No more forgetting about our plans or being late, no lack of communication, no more than 2 days without seeing each other. I'll be the best version of myself that I can be for you. You deserve the best and I can give it to you, I swear I'm only focused on you. You and me" he holds your hands tighter as he says everything.
His words bring a whole lot of feelings on the surface. You missed him talking to you like this, like he actually loves you. His hopeful eyes and sweet voice. His touch and the amazing feeling that rushes through your veins whenever you're with him.
"I'm serious, Alice. I don't want to be without you. I want us to be together for the rest of our lives. Marry me" he continues.
"I'm not marrying you, Tony" you say, almost with a chuckle.
A few weeks ago he wouldn't even mention the word marriage or think of the possibility and now he's kneeling on the floor and asking you to be his wife. He's really changed.
"Tell me you don't love me and I'll never bother you again" his eyes turn sadder as he says so.
"I-I can't" you gulp and take a step backwards.
He stands up on his feet again and looks at you, his chest moving along with his breathing. You find yourself unable to speak and it's because you don't know what to say. You can't tell him that you don't love him because it's not true.
"We're not over, right? We can't be" his voice is low and hesitant.
Tears have once again appeared in your eyes. Tony wants to comfort you so he takes small steps towards you. And he'd come all the way over to you if it wasn't for the door opening and stopping him.
"I was hoping that this would be a bad joke" Ethan says immediately after opening the door of your office.
"Ethan, it's okay" you say.
"Get the f*ck out of my company" he says aggressively to Tony.
"I'm here for Alice, I'm not bothering anyone" Tony replies calmly.
"You're bothering me" Ethan starts walking towards you two.
"Calm down. Don't cause a scene again" you warn both of them.
"If I'm bothering you then it sounds like you should leave the office and leave us alone" Tony suggests.
"Get out of here unless you want me to punch you again like last time" Ethan says with confidence.
"You punched me when I wasn't looking, I wouldn't say it's something to be proud of" Tony replies.
"The outcome is the same. I loved how it felt and I love still seeing it on your face" Ethan smirks proudly.
It's true that Tony's lip hasn't healed perfectly yet. The cut was very deep on his lip and it's still in the healing process.
"Maybe we should repeat last time then" Tony takes a step closer to Ethan and they both look like they're actually going to fight again.
"No! You're not doing this again" you say.
"Get lost" Ethan orders Tony once again.
"You are not telling me what to do" he replies.
"Stop it, now" you say louder, feeling all the tension between them.
"Tony, please go. I don't want another scene, especially not here" you hold him by his arm as you speak.
"You really want me to leave? We never finished our conversation" he speaks.
"It's not the time or place for that. This is my workplace, I should be working" you gulp.
You can see it in his expression that he has a lot to say and doesn't want to leave at all. He's clearly fighting with himself about whether he should stay or listen to you and leave. He looks at Ethan for a second and then at you for much longer. You're all waiting for his decision.
"Fine, I'll go. Only because it's what you want, not him" he says.
"Thank you" you answer.
"We'll talk" he says and you nod.
After some more eye contact he walks over to the door, where Ethan is. They stand next to each other and breathe in and out heavily, both of them. Tony eventually takes one more step and leaves your office.
"Security, please escort this man outside" Ethan says quickly.
"Son of a b*tch" Tony replies quietly and that's when you're afraid that this is all going to turn to worse.
"Tony!" you simply say and he looks at you.
He exhales deeply and tries to calm himself down. Your voice really brings him back to his senses.
"Don't touch me, I can leave by myself" Tony says to the security guys.
They keep some distance from him but still walk next to him as he slowly leaves the floor. You're left behind with Ethan, who's still at your door.
"Was this really necessary?" you ask.
"He's unpredictable" he shrugs.
"So are you" you cross your arms.
"Get back to work, Alice. It's a difficult week" he doesn't like your comment so he turns more serious.
You turn your back at him and take a seat behind your office. You show him that you got back to work and tell him that he should leave. Which he does, and closes the door behind him, only to leave you with your thoughts and feelings overwhelming you.