[Amanda]
In 27 years of my life, I had only once imagined my name in the newspapers but as Dominic’s wife, his lady love. When he had started out, we imagined ourselves in the shoes of big stars. He is passionate about what he does and that is what got him his big break. I remember being so elated that I had chugged down a whole bottle of red and getting a nasty hangover the next day.
I was happy, so happy because the love of my life had achieved something that he had worked for. “It’s because you have been by my side, constantly”, he had said, kissing me passionately. We had spent a day or two tangled in the sheets before his work started, before it dragged down and destroyed our love, burnt it till there was nothing but charring memories.
My imagination did come true but in a warped manner. This was the last thing I wanted in my life after our divorce. For so long, I
[Amanda]If he was taken aback at first, now he was openly gaping at me. I felt smug about it although I didn’t let it show on my face. I took a careful bite from my toast, leaving Dominic to process my answer. Of all the things he was expecting, he
[Amanda]I heart thudded when those words tumbled out of his mouth. From friend to wife to ex-wife and now...a mistress. One month ago the thought of becoming involved with someone, my ex to be exact was something which I would have never thought of but here we are.
[Amanda]I was brought back from my little trip down the memory lane when I heard the scraping of the chair. I looked up to find Dominic looking a little more serious resuming his seat. He buried his face in his palms letting out a quiet groan. I opened to ask before I realised that I ha
[Amanda]I feel like a caged animal. Alex had left to do some work after some time, and I was left on my own devices. I can’t remember the last time I had this much time in my hand in the last five years. I was either doing a job or running around looking for a job, worrying abou
[Amanda]2011…
[Amanda]A sudden knock on the door jolted me out of my reverie. I opened the door and greeted by the very brunette whom I did not see after we exited the cafe.“So it’s true then?” her voice was ice cold. She shot daggers at me while I tried to remember her
[Amanda]We sat there for a few minutes, in absolute silence. I let him absorb whatever I had implied in my earlier statement. He looked distant, thoughtful, and I let him be. The coffee had turned cold, tasting bitter and bland. I placed the unfinished beverage back on the coffee table. The clinking of the porcelain cup on the glass top made him look at me.
[Amanda]I was ready before 6, pacing in my room and black backless chiffon dress. The dress was picked out by one of Dominic’s personal stylists who arrived around the afternoon with a hoard of dresses and shoes and after having a sumptuous lunch; I had been herded to the dressing room and stayed there for 2 hours. From styling my hair into a fashionable French braid to doing my make-up - all in all, when I finally looked at myself in the mirror I saw another woman standing in my place.
[Amanda]I snorted as I scrolled through another bizarre article about Dominic and me. “What’s so funny?” I glanced up at my fiance as he padded into the living room with two mugs of hot cacao. I flipped the phone so that it faced him. He squinted as he approached before placing the mugs down on the coffee table. “Another article about how I snagged Hollywood’s eligible bachelor.” The idea amused me since he never considered himself a bachelor.He pecked me and said, “Well, they don’t know that it’s the other way round.” His voice sounded conspiratorial, and that made me giggle. I struggled a little, with my 5-month-old growing belly to sit up as Dominic handed me the mug. I moaned as the rich taste seeped into my taste buds. When I looked at him he was staring back with a raised eyebrow, “I don’t want to compete with hot cacao, ya know.” Thi
[Dominic]I stilled at this unprecedented query. I stalled for a moment or two, contemplating whether to tell her the truth or not and then decided to go for the former because if we decided to carry on with this relationship which I am hopeful then I wouldn’t want it to be built upon another set of misunderstandings.“You were...looking for me?” she asked, perplexed. But she didn’t pull away from my hold, just far enough so that her face was inches away from mine. I nodded mutely, then added, “When I found out the truth, I knew I was too late. Yet I decided to look for you and when I heard that you had moved countries I was...angry.” I gazed at her and my heart squeezed when I saw the crestfallen look on her face. “I was angry with Alessa, on myself and on you so after drowning in rum and beer, I drowned myself with work and strived to succeed in my acting career. With time, I
[Amanda]Even though I was quiet and seemingly calm, I was honestly trembling inside. Today’s confrontation was nerve-wracking, to say the least. Alessa was a formidable woman, and if I didn’t have the experience of dealing with customers and people like her, then I might not have the courage to ask her so directly. While I didn’t do much talking, I was stunned to see Dominic standing up for and going as far as severing the relationship with her.I could tell he was reeling from today’s sudden confrontation. The fact that she had tried to sabotage him and his acting made me furious. I wanted to feel bad about the way this relationship ended between them, but I had a feeling that Dominic wanted this as well. He no longer wanted to stay under her shadows. He wasn’t anymore, but maybe this served as the last thread.I shuffled into the condo, Dominic trailed behind
[Dominic]Aunt stared at Amanda sternly as we sat on the opposite side of her work desk at her office. Her eyes then strayed towards me and she gritted, “Why did you bring her? And when did you meet her again?” My fists clenched. She spoke as if Amanda was a non-existent being in the room. However, my ex-wife beat me to it.“He came to the cafe where I was working. It was my second day at work and he kissed me in public. Haven’t you watched the alleged pictures?” I stared at her in astonishment. Had this been the Amanda 5 years back, she would not even dare to look at aunt, let alone talk to her so boldly. A swift glance at my aunt told me that she shared my surprise.However, aunt managed to compose herself quickly enough. She glared at her, “Yes. I apparently did, but I did not expect him to take you back.” Her voice clearly held the disdain that he
[Dominic]I closed my eyes and buried my face in my palms. A groan left my lips unbidden. Last night, when I saw Mandy, lying still and limp, I had decided that keeping up the charade would only lead to more misunderstanding and the eventually will swirl and morph into something ugly. I didn’t want that. I only wanted to prove my innocence to the woman I loved. The only woman I will ever love.In the past, I had planned the way I would break the news to her. The proofs I would have ready for her to see. But when does life happen according to the way you plan? Never. Even back when my marriage was falling apart, something I had never imagined in my wildest dream, I had no way of stopping it.Before finding her again, I had always tried to mentally prepare myself that even if she stops loving me, even if she moves on or refuses to believe me then I would let her go. But after getting her
[Amanda]“What?” I asked dumbly. My throat suddenly felt tight. Five years, five fucking years. Yes, I knew his aunt was a mighty pain on the backside. Yes, I knew she hated my guts. Yes, I knew she was the one person who wanted Dominic to date any other girl but me. But I cannot imagine that this woman would go to such undignified and low lengths to remove someone from a person’s life.I could see that Dominic was regarding me with a grim expression. His eyes were cautious and filled with anticipation. He nodded. “I....came to know about her...hand in our divorce a lot later. After we...separated...maybe a year and a half later.” To think that my family was the only fucked up family in town would be an understatement. His aunt was sick. “How?” the monosyllabic queries were all that I could utter. Still processing the piece of information. He lowered his gaze. “Trust me,
[Amanda]My eyes peeled open and the moment they did, I found my blurry vision staring at a white ceiling, the sudden onslaught of lights, hurt my eyes which made me screw them shut immediately. I tried to open my eyes again, a little slowly this time. I could feel a dull ache in my head. Ah, I was drinking last night until I passed out, maybe.“Mandy,” I heard someone calling me from somewhere and belatedly I realised that it was Dominic. I turned my head with some effort. He was sitting by the bedside, looking back at me anxiously.“What-?” I croaked. God, I had a hangover, a nasty one at that. Massaging my temples, I looked at him quizzically. He looked sheepish. I noticed that he was wearing a suit which could be due to two reasons — one, he came back early in the morning after a fun night with his lover or he was here the whole time and returned sometime back in the night. I ruled out the second probabili
[Amanda]2015…I don’t know for how long I stood there, staring at the photo — my husband passionately kissing another woman and by the looks of it, this wasn’t due to any scene or photoshoot. My hand trembled and all of a sudden I felt like I was being choked. Black spots appeared at the peripheral vision. The photos slipped out of my hands and scattered on the floor again as I tried to breathe. My vision turned blurry. I crumbled on the floor, my knees felt like jelly. I gasped for breath. I was well acquainted with this feeling.I was having a panic attack and I had no one to calm me down. My cheeks were wet with tears and my heart pounded in my chest. What did I expect? That he would stay with me forever? I would have laughed had I not been the one going through this heartbreak. The otherwise silent apartment echoed with my sobs.I sh
[Amanda]2015…“You have got to be joking,” I groaned into the pillow.“Babe, please try to understand. I have to go to this photoshoot,” Dominic coaxed, his voice dripping with guilt and regret. I sighed, all my earlier enthusiasm drained out after the phone call. We were supposed to leave for our much-awaited weekend outing today. For the past few months, Dominic had been very busy -- going for auditions, doing photoshoots and shooting for a movie. He was hopeful that this might just serve as his big break. I supported him completely, but lately, rumours have started to circulate that the handsome debut actor Dominic Giovanni is reportedly seeing the female lead of the movie.Even though I entered this relationship and married him knowing that this will come as added baggage with his steadily increasing fame, that did not stop me from worrying.