002

“I only married her to be close to you, since you ain’t ready for marriage. I have no feelings for her.” These were Daniel’s words.

Gemma’s eyes flew open at this words, she rose from the floor, her eyes never leaving Daniel’s

Has their two years of marriage been a joke to him, the times he professed his unconditional love for her, when he proposed to her, the steamy nights they spent together, have they all been a joke to him?

“Daniel, what are you saying?” She stuttered

“It's exactly as you heard it. I've never loved you and I would never see myself loving you. Elena holds my heart. You're just a pawn I used to get close to her. I want to spend every single night and day with her. Since she didn't want to get married, I married you to stay right next to her. Now that she is ready to marry me, we should get a divorce,” he shrugged.

“We’ve been together for two whole years and now you just want me to believe this?” Gemma asked.

“Believe it or not, that's on you. Why do you think I insisted on living in your family house when I have a house of my own?” Daniel stared soullessly at her with Elena clinging on to him.

“What is the ruckus all about?” Sylvia, who had been alerted by the voices, walked in, with her husband, Max, right next to her.

“Mother…” Gemma cried.

“I found Elena in bed with Daniel,” A crying Gemma reported.

“Is that why you want to turn the whole house upside down with your cries?” An uninterested Sylvia asked nonchalantly. As long as Elena isn't the one in tears, she didn't care.

“Elena….has been having an affair with Daniel,” Gemma reported yet again, not sure Sylvia had heard her earlier words.

“So what? Aren't you sisters? Share him if you must or you can just leave him for your sister,” she waved her off.

“Mother!” Gemma raised her voice at Sylvia for the first time in her life. Tears rushed down her face, she couldn't believe her own mother could say these words to her.

“Who told you can raise your voice at me?* Sylvia’s palm landed on her cheeks.

Gemma stared at her in shock. Never did she expect to be slapped for finding Elena and Daniel together.

“Take Elena inside,” Sylvia instructed Daniel, who walked right back into his matrimonial room, and banged the door shut without sparing Gemma another glance.

“I heard you rejected the jewelry designs today. Use tonight and come up with another design, one that you think will match the theme,” Sylvia instructed, turning around and heading back to her room.

Gemma could only gaze at her. Yes, her family has always been indifferent when it comes to her but everything that happened tonight was something she never thought would happen in a thousand years.

Broken, dejected and betrayed, she let her tears run down her cheek freely. The entire place suddenly began to suffocate her. It was hard to believe that she had been breathing the same air as these people, it was even harder to believe that these were her family.

Gemma dragged herself to the door.

“Make sure you finish the designs like your mother told you to and whatever you're doing, make sure to be in the company as early as 7am tomorrow,” Max, added his own salt to her injury and walked away.

“You too, father?” Gemma cried, the nonchalance and betrayal threatening to tear her apart.

Outside the house, she got into her car and drove off with no destination in mind, all she wanted was to get away from these people. Her heart was bleeding and tears were running down her cheeks, blinding her vision.

BANG!

A loud noise resonated as she drove straight into an incoming van. Her tears had blinded her vision.

Gemma’s entire life flashed her eyes, then she realized, maybe the signs of tonight’s incidents had always been there, but she never noticed. Her family, always taking Elena’s side, her brother hitting her all the time and pampering Elena, Daniel always asking about Elena’s whereabouts.

A lone tear rolled down her cheeks and the world went blank.

*******

Gemma could feel her consciousness come back to her. She tried to open her eyes, but for some reason, her brows felt too heavy to lift. She could only sit still and listen to her surroundings to know exactly where she was. The smell of drugs and disinfectant made her realize the fact that she was in a hospital, that was when the day’s drama came crashing yet again into her mind at the same time, she heard someone's movement right next to her, she wondered who it was but then they spoke, it was James.

“Look at this, the universe is helping me,” James smiled, standing right next to her bed.

“I won't let you take my birth right, Gemma,” he said, leaving Gemma wondering what he meant by that.

But before she could react, she felt air being knocked out of her lungs.

“Sweet dreams, Gemma,” James pulled off her oxygen mask.

Gemma desperately thrashed, placing her hands on anything but the mask that was in James’ hands. When she couldn't find the mask, she knew it was a futile battle. Life was slowly draining her. Even till her last minute, Gemma could not understand why her brother did what he just did. She reflected on her entire life and could only cry at how she wasted her teens, and even now, her 20s on her family who obviously didn't care about her. She regretted meeting her husband. She wished she had spent these years doing what she loved instead of living for others.

“To whichever God out there,” Gemma cried.

“I have always given love, but never received. My end shouldn't be like this. If I must die, at least let me experience what living on my terms feels like, I've been living for others my entire life.”

“Give me a second chance to hurt every single person who hurt and exploited me,” she cried, then took her final breath.