Let's end this

Gertrude’s lips twitch after she heard what Dane said.

“Can you hear yourself? I respected the distance you requested but you cannot do this. The public know that we are married.”

“Everyone is aware that we are married just because of our business. There is no love so don't act as if I have been betraying you.”

“But still, you cannot do this,” she insisted as she tried to hold back her tears.

“I cannot believe that you are reacting like a jealous wife! Get lost!” Dane said and then stood up as if he couldn’t stand her presence anymore.

She was dumbfounded. Dane left as if he didn’t do anything wrong. He was giving the public a bad image of the two of them as a married couple.

It didn’t take long and Gertrude received a call from her father.

“What’s happening?” There was anger in his voice.

“What do you mean?” She asked as if she didn’t know what his father was talking about.

“Gertrude!” His voice became loud as if warning her. “What is your husband doing? I can see his face all over the news with a woman! But he never bothered to go out with you or take you to business events.”

“I am so sorry, dad. I think everything is just a misunderstanding. You know the paparazzi, they will write everything they could to make trending news. I will talk to Dane. We are fine, dad,” she said as she tried to sound okay.

Though deep inside her, her heart was already in so much pain. She never thought that would be the price of marrying the man in her dreams.

She was not a princess inside a Fairytale.

“Make sure to talk to him because I do not want this gossip going around,” her father said and hung up on her.

Gertrude felt like her world crashed in front of her.

As much as she wanted to tell the truth to her father, she was afraid that her marriage would end. She wanted to give her best to make Dane fall for her.

Gertrude went inside the guest room where Dane was sleeping. She was wearing night lingerie. She put on red lipstick.

She might look desperate but she was willing to do everything that she could to make the man fall for him.

She put a seductive scent of perfume and hoped that everything that she had done would catch her husband’s attention.

She sat down at the edge of his bed and patiently waited for her.

But time passed, from ten in the evening until the hand of the clock reached the number two, Dane didn’t arrive.

Her anticipation became disappointment. She couldn’t deny the pain that was inside of her, feeling rejected and unimportant. What would she suppose to expect if they were just living in the same roof because of the arranged marriage that their family had organized for the two of them?

Their marriage was more of a duty, an order and not a choice that they made because they loved each other.

Gertrude slowly walked out from the guest room and went into her bedroom feeling frustrated of what was going on between her and Dane.

The next morning, she woke up by the sun ray that escaped from the glass window inside her bedroom.

She quickly went to the washroom to prepare herself. She would cook breakfast as she thought about Dane. She didn’t want him to go to the office without eating.

Despite his coldness, she was still trying her best to do the wife duties that she had.

After cooking breakfast, Gertrude went to the garden. It was her favorite place in their house.

It was just a small garden but she personally planted all the flowers in it. It was the place where she found peace and joy despite the situation of her marriage with Dane.

Getrude was busy trimming the leaves of her plants when suddenly someone entered the garden door.

She turned her head and she saw her husband standing in front of her with an indifferent expression. It was more strange than his usual face when in front of her.

There was a sudden nervousness that filled her heart as he looked at her.

“You’re early,” she greeted him as she forced a smile.

Instead of greeting her back, Dane threw a brown envelope on top of the wooden table near her.

Her eyes furrowed as she looked at the envelope, wondering what was inside of it. She never got involved with the company so could it be that he wanted her to help him?

From the envelope, her gaze averted to Dane who didn’t say a word.

Instead of asking a question, she took the envelope from the table and opened it.

Her whole body shook when she saw what was inside.

In bold letters, at the middle of the paper, those words were written. The words that she had feared the most.

Divorce Agreement.

She failed to hide her emotions as her hand trembled while holding the documents in front of Dane.

There was an indescribable pain inside her heart while her eyes were still fixated on the paper.

She was hoping that was really not happening and that she was just inside a dream. A nightmare.

She wished she could wake up soon and everything would be back to normal. She would still do her best as Dane’s wife as long as their marriage remained intact.

“Sign it,” Dane finally broke the silence between the two of them. He put the pen on top of the table.

But Gertrude couldn’t move. She felt like all her energy was suddenly gone.

“What are you waiting for?” Dane impatiently spoke again.

From there, Gertrude lifted her eyes to the man in front of her. The only man that she had love since her heart learned to love.

She wanted to ask why. She knew that they were just married out of the orders of their family but everyday, she was trying her best for him to love her the way that she felt towards her.

Why? But that word couldn’t come out of her mouth.

“Dane, isn’t that finished yet?” Agatha’s voice was heard coming inside the house.

Gertrude, who was rooted from where she was standing, suddenly felt anger inside her chest.

She couldn’t believe that Dane really had the audacity to bring his mistress inside their house. She could bear everything but he simply didn’t care for her. 

She hadn’t recovered yet when a familiar place peek in the window inside the house.

“Leave!” She finally shouted. Gertrude didn’t know where she took all the courage to do that. Her eyes were red because of anger. She held her tears to fall from eyes. She didn’t want Dane to see that she was sad because of the paper that he wanted to sign.

But before she could even put her signature, an idea suddenly came inside her mind.

She tore the divorce papers in front of him. She didn’t care what his reaction would be.

She saw how his jaws became tense as if he didn’t expect that she was going to do that.

“I am not going to sign these papers. I will not give you what you want. I will not let you be happy with your mistress!” She shouted for the first time.

She felt like her heart was going to explode because of what the man had done to her. She didn’t care anymore what he would be thinking but he would never be happy with his mistress.  “And you? Aren’t you the desperate one?” She said referring to Agatha who was already standing beside Dane. “Why are you trying to be in a relationship with someone else’s husband? You are not ugly!”

“Gertrude, watch your mouth! You don’t have the right to talk that way to her! What are you trying to do? Do you really think that this marriage is going to work? You must be dreaming!” He said angrily. “Does no one love you? That’s why you are forcing yourself to me? You know that from the very start, you could have rejected your family’s proposal! So, who’s desperate, you or Agatha?”