"After a storm, comes a calm."
-Matthew Henry-
***
As the sounds of wave crashing and bird chirping was heard, Karina slowly fluttered her eyes open. She had fallen into such deep slumber she found it difficult to remember what had happened the night before. It was when she turned around and looked at Eden’s face did her memory returned to her.
“I failed to escape.” It was the first thought that came to her mind. She felt like crying because her desire to be free could not be fulfilled even though she made the attempt.
“Am I really destined to suffer?” She wondered. As she tried to gather her energy, she recalled the memory of herself jumping into the ocean. She still remembered precisely how she gasped for breath.
Her chest was hot and cold at the same time, it was as if someone pierced a thousand ice needles into her lungs. She really thought she was going to die last night. She remem
"A single rose can be my garden. A single friend, my world."-Leo Buscaglia-***“My brother, he is on a honeymoon now, isn’t he?” Declan sighed as he closed the phone. He had been trying to call his brother but he did not pick up his phone at all. The man must be busy with his wife right now and it was his right. They were married after all, but Declan couldn’t help but feel uneasy about it.As he was thinking about Karina, his phone suddenly rang and he saw Amber’s name on it. Yes, he almost forgot she was already in New Hampshire. He took the call and murmured a slow Hello when he heard her cheery voice from the other side.“Declan, I’m free for the entire day, do you want to go shopping with me?” She asked. She sounded so excited that even though Declan wasn’t feeling like it, he could not refuse her.“Okay, I’m available from four pm today. We&rs
"The best things in life are free. The second best things are expensive."-Coco Chanel-***“Is this your idea of a romantic dinner?” She asked as she walked out from the room. The staff had prepared a table outside of their room, in the patio. A selection of seafood and meat was cooked to perfection. A vase of red rose and varieties of carnation was placed in the middle to sweeten the atmosphere alongside a line of candles.She was wearing a slip dress with a warm robe cover since it was a bit windy that evening and he was wearing the same type of robe as well. They sat down and she gasped in amazement. It was probably one of the most romantic thing he had ever done for her ever since they got married and something about the way everything was arranged really set the mood.“I promised before that I would hold a romantic dinner for you. Well, here it is. Do you like it?” He asked. She nodded and was
"No matter how small, a favor deserves thanks."-Wes Fesler-***Eden couldn’t believe just how fast time flew by during his honeymoon. Whenever he was working, time seemed to pass by really slowly whenever he was working. Yet with her, every seconds passed by so fast.In the end, Eden was not able to make love to her at all during their entire trip, which made him feel a little bit disappointed, but at least she was no longer mad and upset with him.Once the arrived back home, all Eden and Karina wanted was to sleep, but as soon as they opened up their door, they saw a sight they never expected.“Ah, my nephew has arrived home.” In front of them was a woman in her mid-forties at youngest. She was wearing a zebra printed coat, knee length leather booth and had her black with red streak hair cut short to her neck. She had a bright blue eyes and a mole right underneath her left eye. The woman seemed
"Each days of our lives we make deposits in the memory bank of our children."-Charles R. Swindoll-***Karina was reading a book in her room when she suddenly heard the front bell ringing from the device installed in every room. Not long after, there was an invoice coming from her guard downstairs that there was a visitor.She closed her book and walked downstairs to see who the guests were. When she arrived in the living room, she was stunned to see a familiar short black hair with red streak.“Aunt Libel?” She asked. Lobelia turned her head around with a small smile.“Ah, Karina, I’ve told you to call me Lobelia. You and your husband are the same in this case, never listening to my name request.” She sighed slowly before standing up. As she did, Karina noticed another person in the room, it was a small boy, probably only four or five years old.He had milky white skin, dirty b
"I know now it is children who accept life. Grown people cover it up and pretend it is different with drinks."-Rumer Godden-***“Eden, this is Aunt Libel’s son, Leonardo. However, he usually goes by Leo.” She introduced the boy to Eden who still looked pissed by his existence. The boy refused to let go of Karina’s clothing and continued to hide behind her.“Leo, don’t be afraid. This is my husband, Eden. He’s your distant cousin. Why don’t you come here and greet him?” Karina suggested with a gentle voice. Leo looked terrified of Eden but still decided to take a step forward and greeted him with a simple ‘Hello’.Eden who did not really like an outsider taking all of Karina’s attention planned on scaring the boy but when Karina stared at him with a hopeful gaze, he decided to reply to the boy’s greeting.“Hello, Leo. I see you&rsqu
"Even though you're growing up you should never stop having fun."-Nina Dobrev-***“I want to go to the park.” The little boy suddenly came with such a request when Karina was accompanying him to play. She turned around and looked at him with a confused expression.It had been a few days since Leo first lived together in her place, but it was the first time he ever asked anything from her without her asking first.“Park? I don’t think there are any park around this house. You have seen it yourself, haven’t you? The mansion is surrounded by forest and it’s difficult to leave. The only option is to wait for Eden to come back home, then we can take the car to the town and find a park there.” She reasoned.Leo seemed a bit upset and disappointed when he heard it. Karina who couldn’t bear to see him so dispirited tried to cheer him up with other method.“You k
"Man is a rational animal who always loses his temper when called upon to act according with the dictates of reason."-Oscar Wilde-***“Dammit! How did things turn out this way?” Aaron asked to himself, panting as he was running away from the people who wanted to end his life. He quickly tried to find a place to hide.On the corner of his eyes, he spotted an empty warehouse and dashed his way there. He quickly got in and shut the door as soon as possible and hid himself behind a stack of boxes. From where he was sitting, he could hear the sound of the men outside chasing him.They did not seem to notice that he had gotten into the warehouse and slowly, the sounds of their footsteps became further away. Once he was sure that they were no longer chasing him. He took a deep breath and cursed underneath his breath.“Where did things go wrong?” He questioned mentally. After that fateful night whe
"Sibling rivalry sometimes leads to the bitterest competition."-Philip Meyer-***“Where am I? What happened?” Karina slowly opened her eyes but when she tried to move her body, she felt a stinging pain in her stomach that caused her to groan out loud.“Karina, lay down. You shouldn’t be moving too much like this. You’ve just had the surgery. You should stay still until your body recovers.” She heard a familiar voice from beside her. When she turned around, she saw Eden’s concerned face beside her.“Eden? Oh god, where is Leo?” She almost panicked but Eden quickly calmed her down.“Don’t worry, Leo is fine. You should worry more about yourself right now, Karina. After all you’re the one getting injured.” He reminded her before helping her to lay back down. Karina sighed in relief knowing that she was okay, but at the same time, she was st
"The universe brought us back together this time, I'm never letting go."-Unknown-***It was known throughout history that when a man loved a woman, he would do anything for her. Eden Black was no different. Three years has passed since the last time Eden saw Karina in person.Thanks to technology, he was able to see her everyday through the monitor but it was not enough. How he had long to see her in person.That morning before the sun even rose, he had sent over a car to pick her up, because he wanted her arrival to be special. If he picked her up himself, he would just ruin the surprise.Karina on the other side was feeling the same. She had not seen Eden in years and her heart was beating rapidly.How strange it was to finally see her husband again after all these time. She had her three years old son Zion sitting beside her on the car.Throughout the three years, he often saw Eden and stayed in h
"Happy trails to you, until we meet again."-Dale Evans-***With a heavy heart, Eden watched Karina entered the car with their baby. He did not even get to kiss her goodbye. Only a hug that would not suffice for three years. Truly, it was a horrible experience. He actually cried as he watched her drove away.It would be painful, to be unable to touch her for that long, but he knew everything would be fine. His love for her was strong and he was sure with time, she could learn to love him again.Besides, Karina was going to a house he had prepared for her, meaning, he could see her through the hidden cameras he had placed all over the house.He would still be able to see her, just not in person. It would at least be enough to cover his longing for her and reminded himself that even though she was away, Karina was still his.On her way there, Karina felt a million emotions. The memory of Eden’s warmth fr
"For the most important decisions in your life, trust your intuition and then work with everything you have to prove it right."-Tim Cook-***It was one of the most nerve-wrecking sit down Eden ever had in his life. As a businessman. He had been through several of those sit downs and none of them had ever intimidated him. However, for a particular reason, the one held that evening made him feel so nervous.Karina, Eden, Declan and two lawyers from each side were going to finally have their closure on the matter. After going back and forth on the terms, they decided to settle for a few things, which was decided definitively by Karina and Karina alone.It was all the terms and conditions she had talked with Declan and prepared in advance if she was going to fix her relationship with Eden. It was the only solution for the two of them to maintain their marriage without having to have a divorce. They settled it the familial wa
"The extreme form of passionate love is secret love."-Japanese Proverb-***Eden was in a deep slumber. He did not know how long he had been sleeping for. His body was savoring each second of rest it needed.He barely did anything in the past three days. The other family members had come to visit him, but the person he wanted to see the most was not there and it prevented him from recovering.“What’s the point of living anymore if I couldn’t have her?” He questioned. There was a point in his life where he thought everything was perfect and it was when Karina was by his side. The time he spent together with her was always the happiest time in his life. After experiencing such joy, how could he settle for anything else?“Eden, wake up.” He heard a voice calling his name. The voice was Declan’s. Eden could hear it, but he was not in the mood to open his eyes. Sleeping would be
"I'm sick of love but I'm in the thick of it."-Bob Dylan-***It has been nearly two months since Karina left and even with the best force he had, Eden still couldn’t find her. The desperation was driving him crazy.Slowly, it began to take a toll on his health. Eden Black was a man who was rarely sick. He had the immune of a bull. However, even rain could break down concrete given time and so was he.That day started out just like any normal day. Eden woke up that morning after sleeping like the dead thanks to his sleeping pills and went to make his morning coffee. Afterward, he headed to the shower and got dressed.Each time he stood in the mirror he still remembered the day when she was also standing there with him. The image of her doing his tie for him kept on getting replayed over and over again.“Karina, just where are you?” He wondered. None of the efforts he had made in these past
"People who care about each other enjoy doing things for one another."-Ann Landers-***“Karina? Are you still up? I’m home.” Declan asked as he stepped into the house. There was an answer coming from the kitchen.“Yes, I’m still up, I’m here.” She replied. Declan followed the sound of her voice and saw her there about to make some instant noodle.“I forgot to get some grocery earlier so now there’s nothing to eat and I haven’t had dinner, so I thought I’d make something quick.” She told him but Declan threw the package to the trash and placed the meal he brought on the table instead.“I won’t let you eat that junk, Karina. Here, I got you dinner. You are a pregnant woman, you need to eat properly.” Karina walked over to open up the meal and she drooled when she saw a perfectly tender piece of steak in the box.A smile
"Desperate times breed desperate measures."-William Shakespeare-***Eden was drowning himself in his sorrow. He lost count of how many days he had not slept. The only thing he could do beside work was drinking. Actually, he could barely work at all because of how messed up his mind was.His secretary Andreas had to take an even bigger load of work because Eden was not on his right mind, but he was the CEO so they could not just fire him easily.All of his friends and employee noticed something was different with him, but nobody knew what was actually going on except for Jacob who had been accompanying him this entire time because he was afraid that his friend would do anything stupid or crazy again because of his feelings.That evening, Jacob arrived at Eden’s mansion like he did these past three days since Karina went missing just to check on his best friend.The guard already knew who he was since h
"The greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely place." -Roald Dahl- *** A day after she was hospitalized, Karina got the permission to go back home. Eden texted her so early in the morning saying that he would pick her up at the hospital so they could go home together. However, there was no answer from her. Eden felt like something was wrong. He knew she was upset but apparently her phone was not active either. So that afternoon, right after lunch, Eden drove to the hospital to drive Karina. He headed over to her room but much to his surprise, Karina was not there. She was gone. So was her bag which contained her passport and everything. Eden panic and he quickly went to the front desk and asked about his wife. The staff there told him that she had left around half an hour ago and she was seen leaving the hospital by a taxi. Since it was on the spot, nobody knew where the taxi brought her
"Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live."-Norman Cousins-****Trigger Warning: chapter contains scene of suicide.*Malcolm Langdon was staying at home, worried for his daughter. He had not heard from her at all. Even though he had tried calling her several times, but there she did not pick it up. He also had no idea where she went since she did not tell him anything.He was afraid something terrible had happened to her. Worse, she seemed to be getting herself involved with Eden Black. He was one of the few people you absolutely should not get yourself involved with.Even Malcolm who was older by the man for over two decades still preferred to keep to himself and avoided him as much as possible. Not necessarily because he was afraid of him, he just tried to avoid any kind of trouble.As he was thinking about it, there was suddenly a kno