Ronan“What is it, Elijah? Why are you here?” I told Elijah to focus on the work at the office, yet, here he was. “Boss, the meeting with the CEO of Chiq Royale is set for 2 o’clock p.m. You know it was supposed to be a meeting of the two CEOs. So I wanted to find out if I should just send an email to cancel it or…?”Oh, right! I totally forgot about that. I was finally going to meet the mysterious CEO of Grand Ambience today. How could I miss this because I became too weak? Damn that Conrad for keeping me here till the end of the week! I bet he’s just enjoying holding me in this damn hospital.“You could have called me on the phone for this, Elijah. Don’t waste my time. Why are you really here?” He couldn’t fool me with his facade. I could already tell he was hiding something.“Boss…” Elijah still hesitated, but I wasn’t having it. Whatever he had to say, he might as well spill it now. My look said it all, and he didn’t dare to tarry any longer. “Boss, the design team made a compla
Elena“Hubby, aren’t you done yet? I hope you haven’t forgotten about our plans.” This should be my fourth message to Ronan in the last thirty minutes. I’ve been texting him all night, but no reply.Today is our third wedding anniversary, and he was never free to celebrate the first or the second anniversary. My heart swelled with so much joy after persuading hubby non-stop, and he finally agreed. The decoration I made could make anyone a hopeless romantic. I just can’t wait for hubby to get here. The white lace tablecloth, scented candles, and scattered rose petals looked so beautiful, but everything looked out of place since I was the only one at the table. It’s already 10 o'clock , and the cream on the cake was almost melted completely. Even the candles were nearly burned out. “Hubby, where are you?” [Ring!][Ring!!][Ring!!!]Is that Ronan? “Hello, Auntie?"“Elena, dear, happy third anniversary! Time flies so fast, doesn’t it? You’ve been married for three years already, and
Elena I remained in the same sitting position, staring blankly at the divorce agreement. I didn’t even remember how long I’d been in this same spot.“Ronan, when I grow up, will you really marry me?” I was young and naive and allowed the words of the adults to influence me.“Yes. Let’s get married when you grow up.” Ronan replied cheerfully. His face was warm and innocent. He had the brightest of smiles that were only reserved for me. When the sun shone on his white shirt, my young heart wavered, and I knew he was the one for me. I was so little, yet my heart settled on him and never changed after that.Why didn’t I wake up from that childhood fantasy when he started dating Darcy? Why didn’t I wake up when his father had to force him to marry me three years ago?When did everything change?...I walked toward the dressing table, and grabbed the divorce agreement Ronan dropped and began to read.“For Mr. Ronan Simpson to gain his freedom from Ms. Elena Jones, Ms. Jones will be paid an
ElenaWhere am I? A soft bed, white ceiling, the smell of medicine, disinfectants… I’m in a hospital. At least I’m not dead, but I was in my room at dawn. How…“First of all, congratulations, Mrs. Simpson. You’re pregnant.” A young doctor walked into the room, dressed in a white coat, broke the news with a gentleman's smile, looking handsome.“Calm down, ma’am. Just take a deep breath, okay? You’re in the hospital.” “Doctor, you said I’m pregnant? Are you sure you have the right diagnosis? How did I get here?” I can’t believe this. When was the last time Ronan even touched me?“Mrs. Simpson, you passed out in your room last night. Your housekeeper brought you here. He’s waiting outside as we speak.” Oh, so that’s what happened, huh?“I’m sorry, ma’am, but we need to abort the baby. It’s the only way to keep you safe.”...?I just found out about my pregnancy, and now I need to abort the baby to keep me safe. Safe from what? Did I have an ectopic pregnancy? Was that why I didn’t feel
Elena"You should have walked out of our lives peacefully, but no. You wanted to take my husband down with you.” Those words coming from Auntie felt like a slap in the face. Am I so forgettable? Why do I always get rejected by the people I’ve come to trust so much?My father was a military man in the same unit as Uncle Simpson. The two were so close that my father didn’t think twice about saving Uncle Simpson when they went on a very dangerous mission. After that incident, Uncle Simpson felt like he owed his life to him. We were also neighbours, which made our relationship even closer.I grew up considering Aunt Delores my mother. We were incredibly close, even more so than she was with her daughter. I didn’t have a mother while growing up, and for the longest time, it was Dad and I. Mom left when I was only five, and I never heard of her again since then. Now, the person I grew to love as a mother was telling me to get out of her life.Why must Auntie treat me this way just because
Elena“Madam, welcome home.” I just got back to our home, but before I could walk through the front door, the butler rushed toward me and greeted me too enthusiastically for my liking. I didn't know what he was trying to do or say, but I was too exhausted to pay attention to anything else. I felt lightheaded and weak, hence, I only wished to take a warm bath, eat something, and have a shut eye. I need the peace and quiet for my peace of mind right now. “Benson, you're standing in my way. What's happening?” I could hear how faint my voice was. My situation was that bad, and I could pass out at any moment if care wasn't taken. I haven't had a single bite since yesterday's breakfast. “Madam, forgive my impudence, but it's not advisable that you go in right now. In fact, I suggest you sleep outside tonight.”What the heck! Could someone tell me what was happening here? “Benson!” I used all the energy I could muster in calling out to him, and he could tell I was exhausted. More so, I
ElenaThe charity gala was still being discussed online. I felt like a discarded shoe when I saw all the blessings and well wishes the two received. What broke me more was a comment that Darcy and Ronan should just get married already. “Dear, I’m so sorry; my boss just assigned me an impromptu client, so I can’t accompany you today. I’ll make it up to you, Elena. I’m truly sorry.” We haven’t seen each other in the past three years, and I was looking forward to having a good time with Nancy. “It’s okay, Nancy. Take care of yourself. I’ll be fine here.” Being a busy lawyer was much better than being a desperate housewife trapped in marriage.I was soon at a maternity and baby products store. The TV displayed pictures of babies and the various baby items available. It was so cute that I couldn’t help but walk in.“Welcome, madam.” A cheerful sales attendant approached me with a contagious smile plastered across her face. I smiled unconsciously, getting pulled into her jolly mood. Sp
ElenaThe clouds began to gather, and the streets of Lockwood were soon becoming empty. Everyone was hurrying toward their destinations, but a certain individual walked among the sea of people like a headless chicken. Her steps were sloppy, her eyes looked puffy, and her whole appearance screamed one word-pitiful! The lonely figure was none other than myself, Elena Jones. I didn’t know what direction my life would take from now?The more unloved I felt, the more confused I was about bringing a child into this cruel world, or should I just leave with the baby? Suddenly, I was jolted to my senses and moved out of the way reflexively. A few young men on motorcycles began to cackle provocatively while surrounding me. One of the riders nearly ran over me. Landing butt-down on the ground, my senses kicked in.I was in trouble!There were three men in total, and each one was scarier than the next. One of them had scorpion tattoos spanning from the right side of his face down to his nec
Ronan“What is it, Elijah? Why are you here?” I told Elijah to focus on the work at the office, yet, here he was. “Boss, the meeting with the CEO of Chiq Royale is set for 2 o’clock p.m. You know it was supposed to be a meeting of the two CEOs. So I wanted to find out if I should just send an email to cancel it or…?”Oh, right! I totally forgot about that. I was finally going to meet the mysterious CEO of Grand Ambience today. How could I miss this because I became too weak? Damn that Conrad for keeping me here till the end of the week! I bet he’s just enjoying holding me in this damn hospital.“You could have called me on the phone for this, Elijah. Don’t waste my time. Why are you really here?” He couldn’t fool me with his facade. I could already tell he was hiding something.“Boss…” Elijah still hesitated, but I wasn’t having it. Whatever he had to say, he might as well spill it now. My look said it all, and he didn’t dare to tarry any longer. “Boss, the design team made a compla
Ronan“Elena!” “Calm down, Ronan. You called out to her for the past few hours, but we’re doing our best to find Elena wherever she is. All I need you to do is calm down for me, okay? We’ll find Elena for you.”Valerie had always been willful and mischievous, but no one ever told me she was a sweet talker. How could she promise me something like that? I may have lied to myself for a long time, but how was I to find Elena? How were we to find her? Keeping hope alive about her existence was the best I could do. How then could I tell Valerie to find Elena? If anybody were to find Elena, it should be me. After all, I was the one who pushed her away without listening to what she had to say. She lied to me so many times, but right now, all I wanted was to see her safe and sound. I would do anything for that.“Ronan, are you even listening to me?” How could I have zoned out on my kiddo? This battle had nothing to do with Valerie, and I wouldn’t allow her to spend her holiday searching for
Ronan“Uncle Edmond, I am so sorry for everything I have done to wrong you all these years. Please don’t hold it against me, I beg of you. I have treated your precious daughter like she meant nothing to me. Elena was everywhere with me, and she meant the world to me, but I could only discover how much I loved her after seeing the damning diagnosis. I should have been there for her, but I wasn’t.” I remained kneeling at Uncle Edmond’s bed, wondering if there was a way to make him wake up right now, I would have done that already. Maybe that would attract Elena’s attention wherever she was.Reaching for Uncle Edmond’s hand, I squeezed it a little tighter and wished with everything in me that he could respond to my touch. Alas, it was only my wishful thinking.“Uncle Edmond, you did a favor for my family that we could never pay back. You gave your life to protect my father, but all I gave your daughter as gratitude was scorn and insults. I never treated Elena better than a gold digger w
Valerie“Mom, I’m in front of the elevator. Tell me which floor I can find him.” I arrived at the Glenn Family Hospital, wondering how long it was since I last came here. It’s really been a while. I couldn’t get it off my mind that my laptop was in someone’s car, and I didn’t have any way of reaching him either. All I had to do was see my brother first. After everything, I would find my bag.Why hasn’t mom responded to me? “Hello, mom,” “Hello,” Mom finally responded, but I didn’t like how she responded. She sounded as though something bad had happened, and even though she scared me a lot, I took a few breaths to calm my raging heart. I couldn’t allow myself to over react.“Mom, what is it? Why do you sound like that, and why does the background seem so chaotic?” I didn’t realize how, but my voice began to tremble as I listened to the commotion in the background. “Mom, please talk to me. Which floor are you on? Just…”I wanted to be there and see things for myself. My brother wasn’t
Ronan“Elena… Elena… Elena… Please, Elena. Don’t leave, Elena. I’m sorry. I’m sorry, I couldn’t protect you. Please… Don’t go…” Huh! I woke up with a start, unable to find my bearings. However, I could feel the soft bed beneath me.There were beeping sounds in the room, coupled with a shooting pain at the back of my palm. I couldn’t tell how exactly I got here, but after a while of adjusting my eyes, I finally found my answer. “The heck! How did I get here?” I am in a hospital. Who brought me here? The last I remember, I was in my house with Elena’s test result in my hand.“Yes, Elena.” I had her test result with me. Where was it? Could everything that happened be nothing but a dream? No. I could remember everything vividly. There was no mistaking it. I really saw that result and passed out after Z confirmed the diagnosis. Elena truly developed stage three brain tumor, and they gave her only ten months to live.“Elena,” I couldn’t get this nagging feeling off my chest. I had to f
Valerie “Sir, I just arrived in Lockwood. Yes sir.” I had to report to my superior that I landed safely. If I had my way, I wouldn’t call him at all, but I would have had a lot to explain. I knew my boss didn’t feel happy about granting me this leave, but he had nothing else to do about it. I’ve earned this. I have worked for so many years without asking for a single day off. I didn’t even have the chance to meet my family for a long time. Now that something this massive happened, I couldn’t just remain there without coming back. From the way my boss forced himself to sign my request, to how he tried to cut my stay here shorter, even requesting I alert him to my arrival in Lockwood, I knew he wouldn’t have granted me this long leave if he had the chance. Alas, I even promised to avail myself whenever they needed my services, even though I was on leave. “Thank you for approving my long leave, boss. I will be going now.” It took all the strong will I developed over the years to
DarcyI was kept in this room ever since I was thoroughly wasted and left here. I wasn’t allowed to leave this place; hence, I could only endure the prison I got myself into. Despite all the hardships I had to endure, I was well fed. It felt like I was being fattened for slaughter. Looking around, the whole place seemed too quiet for my liking. It was as if everyone locked me in here and left to God knows where. “Should I try to escape? Maybe no one would even know I left, right?” I finally tried to get out of bed, feeling my lower body ache terribly. It was as if I was jammed by a trailer, causing my legs to feel so heavy.I fumbled with the window for a while, but it was locked. I couldn’t spot anywhere I could open it.“Fuck! I can’t even move without feeling pain. How am I supposed to escape if the place is like this?” I know I looked battered, and no one would see me like this without calling me a slut. The bastard left tons of hickeys on my body, and I could tell he enjoyed ever
Elena Silence! Loud silence!That was the only thing that filled the sitting room as if we both wanted to hide from something. However, it was the tales from my past that shocked Nancy and I into silence. Even I couldn’t tell how I survived everything that life threw at me. I was only glad that I survived, and here I was-telling my story as if it was a tale from a movie. I bet it would have been a blockbuster movie if my story ever got to be adapted into a film.All along, Nancy couldn’t stop her tears from falling. She kept opening and closing her mouth without anything coming out. I watched her expression change from shock to anger, terror to frustration, then to awe, and finally, admiration. “You mean you went through all these but never said a thing to me? Elena, are we still friends in your eyes?” Nancy’s tears kept flowing as she continued her rants in frustration. I had no response for her words, since I had no particular reason for not telling her about everything I went
Elena I really enjoyed my time at the restaurant, and I knew I would definitely be back here later. “Since we already agreed that you’d spend the night at my place, why don’t we just head home at once? We have a lot of catching up to do.” I just couldn’t say no to Nancy anymore. For her to insist that I spent the night at her place, I was certain she had something she wanted to share without involving Malvin. We had a lot to catch up on, indeed. I bet none of us would get a wink of sleep tonight. “Okay, let’s go.” Just like that, Malvin was shooed like a fly, and he had no other choice than to take all our bags and head to our house in a cab. “You finally got your dream couch, huh? It’s big enough to accommodate two people, just like you envisioned.” That was my first remark when I entered her living room. Nancy only smiled at me as if she was basking in my admiration of her couch, when in actual sense, I knew she was glad to have marked yet another item off her wish list. Na