Chapter 2: A Painful Memory

Sophia groggily opened her eyes, she turned her head around, and seeing that she was in her room made her confused.

"Mmm…what? What happened? How did I get here?" She mumbled as she got up bare feet, feeling the coldness of the floor.

She opened the door and slowly got out, trying not to create too much noise since she didn't know if Caden went home last night or not. 

'But wait… I think I remember seeing him last night. Or did I remember it wrong?'

She thought, but before she could even have the time to think, the door next to her suddenly bursts open.

Revealing a well dressed Caden. He was wearing his usual office clothes that hugged his toned body perfectly.

He ogled Sophia who was standing still in front of him, unmoving.

"You went out last night." He said candidly while looking at her.

"Uh, yeah, kind of. I'm sorry if I wasn't able to let you know." Sophia was clenching her hands while talking. She wanted to ask him if he was really there or not, but she didn't know if it would be a good topic to bring up.

"It's okay. Just don't stir into any trouble that will cause us problems." He said dismissively and was about to head down, luckily Sophia finally got her resolve and found a way to get an answer from him without actually asking him directly.

"Umm, so where did you go last night? I didn't notice or hear you coming in." She asked. She knew it was a dumb question since he rarely replies when being asked about these kinds of questions.

But to her surprise he actually answered her this time. 

"I was at work." He said. "But I doubt you were even sober enough to notice that I've arrived." He looked at her from head to toe, pointing out how messed up she was.

Sophia's face instantly became red out of embarrassment, and coughed lightly to avoid looking at him.

"I'll probably be gone for three days. Just call the maids to come here if you need help with anything." He said as he continued walking, but then he stopped in his tracks, his shoulders heaving up and down, as if he was reluctant to say what was on his mind

"And… Please don't bother waiting for me anymore. Let me remind you again, we're not that kind of couple, Sophia. So just go out and have fun with your friends, you have my permission." He said, giving her one last look before finally leaving.

And like every time he says hurtful things, Sophia just stands still, receiving every pain from his thorny words that punctured every fibre of her being without making a fuss.

"You don't really mean that. Do you?" She muttered in the air while looking at where Caden was standing seconds ago.

Her heart was heavy, refusing to acknowledge what he said. 

"You're just tired from work. That's all." She whispered. She didn't even notice the tears that were cascading in her face. 

She slowly sat down on the cold wooden floor and stared at nothing.

She suddenly remembered something from the past that was similar to what he said just now.

*FLASHBACK*

"Caden? I'm home." Sophia called, and closed the door behind her. 

She just got back from her book launching and was excited to share to Caden her success at the event. 

The house was dark as if there was no one inside. 

She was curious where he was since she remembered clearly that it was his day off. She urged him to go with her at the event but he said that he had other plans for the day so she didn't force him.

'Where is he?' She opened half of the lights in the house and it took her time to adjust to the brightness.

When she was near the stairs she suddenly heard noises coming from upstairs.

'What is that?' She walked slowly, her heart beating fast.

As Sophia cautiously climbed the stairs, her mind raced with a mix of fear and confusion. The sounds grew louder and more distinct, and her intuition told her that something was amiss. With each step, she braced herself for the truth that awaited her at the top.

As she reached the front of one of the rooms, the noise became undeniable. Sophia's hand trembled as she pushed open the door. Her whole body froze from the scene she saw in front of her.

There, on the bed, lay Caden, entangled with another woman. Sophia's heart shattered into a million pieces as she watched them, their actions betraying the vows they had taken together. Tears welled up in her eyes, blurring her vision, and her throat tightened with a mix of anger, pain, and disbelief.

Caden didn't notice her at first but when he finally got away from the woman's body, he saw her, his face immediately contorted into an expression of feigned concern. "Sophia," he began, his voice thick.

The woman on the bed with him was startled to see her and was scared for her life. She darted fast, fetching her clothes in the ground and attempted to leave, but Sophia blocked her path and eyed her dangerously, her fists turning white from anger. 

She was about to slap and lash at her, when someone intervened and caught her hand mid air.

"Leave her be. She didn't do anything wrong." He said, leading the girl out.

Sophia couldn't believe what came out of his mouth, but she could only look at the woman running away past her since Caden was still holding her hand, securing her in place.

"We'll talk after I get dressed. Wait for me in the living room." Caden said without a hint of guilt laced on his voice. His lower body covered with white blanket.

He was so calm, as if he wasn't just caught cheating. He pushed Sophia out of the room without hesitation and slammed the door in her face.

And as per his instructions, Sophia did wait patiently in the living room. Sitting on the couch. Her eyes held no emotions in them. It was as if her mind was wandering. Even when Caden already came down and was already in front of her.

"You look angry." He started.

Sophia heard him and looked him in the eyes and searched for any hint that he was remorseful or just a slight feeling of regret. 

But there was nothing.

"H-how could you do this?" Her voice broke, as her heart became heavy seeing how unaffected he was.

"Did what? If you're talking about the sex then I don't see why you are confused." He gave her a chuckle, and hearing his little laugh stirred Sophia's emotion even more.

"We are already married, Caden! It hasn't been a year since our wedding and you already cheated on me." Sophia's tears flowed freely now, her disbelief growing with each word that left his mouth. 

"Cheat? It can only be cheating if this was a real marriage." He said relentlessly looking at her as if she was crazy for thinking he was cheating.

"I know it's hard to accept, but this is our reality, don't delude yourself Soph," Caden continued, his tone now condescending. "We don't have a real marriage. I thought you understood that by now. So, stop making such a big deal out of this." He explained, each word that came out from his mouth were like arrows, piercing Sophia's heart one by one.

She placed her hand in her ears and was shaking her head while balling herself out. Refusing to believe everything he said.

Seeing her actions, Caden only released a sigh and stood up. He walked to the door, but before he left, he said something one last time that completely shattered Sophia's heart 

"You know. If I had a chance to marry out of love. It wouldn't be you. We'll never be like the other couples out there. This marriage was dead before it even started. So I guess we'll just have to suffer together." He said, eventually leaving her all alone to herself.

*END OF FLASHBACK*

Sophia cried remembering everything that happened that night.

She limply walked back to her room and stared at her window soulessly.

Watching her husband leave her all alone again in their cold house.

''How much longer do I have to wait, Caden? When will you finally accept me? When can we finally be happy?"