Their morning started on a good note as just as planned, they got ready to head back home. Giovanni’s private plane was on standby, ready to take them back to the U.S and knowing it was a school day, he suggested them leaving early enough so they could get back in time for Emily’s afternoon classes. It was an offer she didn’t refuse, considering the fact that her afternoon class was an important one. Excitedly, they checked out of the hotel and had the chauffeur drive them back to the airport where they took the plane. They got in, had their luggages tucked in and in no time, began their three hours long flight back home. “I don’t think I’ve mentioned this but thank you for the trip,” Emily had to say to Giovanni. “It was my first time abroad and it was fun. It was the perfect break I needed from school and all of that chaos.” “It’s nothing, you’re welcome,” he nodded at her. “I’m glad I could make it worthwhile.” “I guess so,” she chuckled. “It was great.” “The wedding is in
“Emily! I missed you!” It had only been the weekend but Tyler was being dramatic as he gushed out on how much he had missed his best friend. She didn’t mind though, immediately hugging him back and allowing herself remember how it felt to be back around him. “You love me,” she pouted as she pulled away from the hug. “But then, it’s understandable.” “Oh please,” he rolled his eyes and laughed. “How was your trip anyways? Was Giovanni an ass? Do I need to head over to his office and make him pay?” “No, silly,” she pulled him back towards her, leading the way to their class. “And even if you wanted to do that, you’re a bit late. He just dropped me off few minutes ago.” “He did?” Tyler immediately looked turned around in a useless attempt to spot him around. “Ah, I see. Anyways, on a more serious note. How was your trip?” “I’ll fill you in on the details later,” she replied him. “But for now, let’s get to class. We’ll be late if we spend another minute chatting.” They quickened th
“A divorce.” “Get a divorce.” “You can get a divorce later.” “You’d just get a divorce later.” Those words echoed in Giovanni’s head as he stood few meters away from Emily, eavesdropping on the conversations he clearly had no interest in. His intention was simply to walk up to Emily and then get her to leave with him so they could head over to the stores and begin shopping when his ears picked up the familiar dreaded words, pushing him to immediately freeze in his feet. Divorce. No matter how hard it tried, it refused to stop ringing in his head, now accompanied with Emily’s laughter. She was laughing. It was a joke to her. A divorce was nothing but another joke to her.She was planning a divorce. Everything she did. Every single thing that happened between them was simply going to end in a divorce. That was her grand plan. It was hard but he quickly managed to pull himself together, immediately turning to walk out of the garden. He didn’t stop until he was in front of his ca
Emily: Where are you? Emily: What happened to being so prim and proper? You’re over an hour late. Emily: Hello? Emily: Are you busy with work? Emily: Mr. Giovanni Rueben? Emily: You don’t have to come if you’re so busy… Emily: Or we could reschedule. We still have tomorrow so if you can’t make it today, how about we hit the stores tomorrow? Emily: I really NEED a response from you though. WHATS GOING ONNNNN?! Emily glanced at her phone and for the millionth time in the span of only an hour, groaned. An hour had passed and by the way things were going, two hours were going to pass and Giovanni would still be nowhere to be found. He had been ignoring her messages alongside calls, leaving her with no choice but to endlessly worry about him and whatever could have happened. He was to be at her school already. According to their plans, they were to be almost done shopping. She was to be marveling at whatever wedding dress she chose for herself and giggling at him in a suit. But
Emily’s initial destination was Giovanni’s office and without hesitation, she began her little trip to his familiar office. It was getting late already so in order to get there as quickly as possible, she skipped the bus and took a cab instead. It was a familiar landmark in the city and a reasonable distance from her place, Emily getting to the office in less than thirty minutes. As quickly as she could, she paid the cab fare and rushed out, immediately welcomed by the familiar huge building that could pass as a skyscraper. She raised her head to give the building a quick look, immediately noticing how different it looked. It was dark, the few lightening coming from the signage and other buildings around. There didn’t seem to be any office open or any lights coming from inside the building, immediately worrying her. Refusing to give up, she shook her head and resumed her steps towards the main entrance. It might have been a bit too late for regular staffs to still be present but
“Emily? Emily? Emily, can you hear me?!” “Huh?” Emily almost jumped, immediately realizing how lost in thoughts she was. “What did you say?” “I was talking to you. And for heavens sake, I’ve been talking to you for minutes now. Have you even been listening to me?” She couldn’t deny, she was barely listening to him. Not just him, she felt distant, barely in grasp of reality. The shock she had experienced the previous night still lingered around her, making it hard for to shove it behind her and move on. She had spent the entire night thinking about what suddenly came over Giovanni and when morning came, her thoughts refused to give her a break, making up dozens of scenarios to justify his actions. Yet, none of them were able to actually justify his behavior or make it make sense to her. “Emily Stark Grace!” “Christ, did you say something?” Tyler’s loud voice resonated in her ear, pulling her back to reality one more time. “What did you say? Sorry, I didn’t get that.” “Of cours
“Emily, you look beautiful.” Emily stared at herself in the mirror, unsure if those words coming from her parents were a compliment or just them trying to make her situation more palatable. “Um, thanks,” she muttered and spared them glances, checking herself out all over again. To be fair, the dress was pretty but did she feel as pretty? Not really. “When does the ceremony start?” “In about fifteen minutes,” her mum replied. “Giovanni’s father should be around already.” “And Giovanni?” “He should be too,” her mum added. “I mean, all of the guests are present so he should be present already too. Or at most, on his way.” “Alright,” Emily nodded and continued to stare at herself in the mirror. It was her wedding day. In less than fifteen minutes, she was going to become a married woman. The wife to Billionaire Giovanni Rueben. The wife to a man that considered her no different from a stranger. “Emily, everything is okay, right?” Her dad spoke up, placing a hand on his daughter’
An entire hour passed by and Giovanni was still nowhere to be found. The entire hall had been thrown into chaos, whispers and murmurs now converted into full blown conversations and arguments. After all, it was going to be the second time Giovanni Rueben was getting married with a lot of drama. The first time, his bride had gone missing and now, he had gone missing himself. Emily was close to loosing her mind, unable to process what was happening. He was just being late, right? August had tried to console her that he was just being late. But even August was also suddenly nowhere to be found after leaving to search for him. As minutes passed, the parents looked just as confused, watching the drama unfold in front of them. Emily’s parents stared in horror, their future uncertain but on the other hand, Giovanni’s father was visibly fuming, boiling with anger. Without the need to be told, Tyler had rushed to Emily’s side, trying his best to offer whatever comfort he could. But it wa