Chapter 19

Nova thought after Aldous left her apartment, everything will go back to normal like it used to be. But she was wrong because when she was alone once again, she found herself sulking. The last time she saw Aldous still burn at the back of her mind. Something she did not foresee. She found it hard to sleep, to eat, to move forward with her life. She wondered how come she was that devastated when she was technically the one who pushed him away out of her life. And how about Aldous? Did he miss her too? Perhaps not. He hated her for sure. Because if not, he should have called her or see her even once. But he did not do anything. He just disappeared completely. Whose ego could accept being rejected, right?

But despite all the negative thoughts and lies, Nova made herself believe she just could not hate him. She had fallen for him too. Perhaps deeper than she thought. And if there was one thing that she regretted, it was lying about her true feelings and denying it to herself. Shame on her. It did not do her any good.

Nova was pulled out of her reverie when her phone suddenly vibrated. She immediately picked it up from the bedside table, and with only an eye open, she peeked on the screen. Alyssa’s name was flashing on the screen.

“Hm, Aly…” she said upon answering the call.

“Where are you now?” her friend asked. There was this noise, people chattering in the background.

“Home.” She covered her mouth and yawned.

“Home?” There was this slight exaggeration in her friend’s voice.

“You heard it right—”

“Nova Leigh, seriously? You forgot about it, don’t you?”

She sat up and looked at the calendar stuck on her bedroom wall just across the bed. There was a red circle on the sixteenth day of the current month.

“It’s the sixteenth today?” she asked Alyssa.

“See, I was right.” Her friend sighed.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Wait for me. I’ll be there.”

“Of course, I will wait for you. Go and fix yourself.” Alyssa ended the call.

Nova sighed as she left the bed. She was always a day behind. It all started when she became a web novel writer on a US-based platform. Her days became nights and vice-versa. So, whenever she has an appointment, either she will adjust, or it will get canceled. But on that day, she could not let her friend down because they had been waiting for that book fair for a year.

***

She was biting the straw of her iced americano as they waited outside the convention center where the book fair took place. Since the world experienced a frightening pandemic era, some things changed, like getting a schedule for book fairs and other events. Nova and her friend still have fifteen minutes left before their said schedule, so they could not get in.

“What is wrong with you?” her friend asked after a couple of minutes of staring at her.

“Hmm?” She looked at her with arched brows.

“You seem preoccupied.”

Nova took the straw out of her mouth and sighed.

“I…really don’t know. I have this feeling that I forgot something, yet I can’t recall what it is. And it makes me feel weird.”

“You will remember it eventually when you think about it less. You know, our brain has an attitude sometimes. It fails to remember when you need it to.” Alyssa patted her back. “You should clear your mind and just focus on enjoying our bonding time together,” her friend said, wagging her brows.

Then, the bell rang, an indication that they were about to get inside the convention center.

“Wait for me here. I’ll just throw this away.” She sauntered to the nearest trash bin and threw her iced americano. She only drank half of it, but drinks were not allowed inside, so she had to throw it away.

Nova turned around and was about to go back on the queue when her eyes suddenly caught a familiar physique that walked past her. She was stunned for a moment when she felt her heart hammered against her chest.

“What is happening to you?” she asked herself and palmed her chest.

Ah, it must be the coffee. The barista must have forgotten her request to reduce the shots. Good thing she only drank half of it. What could possibly happen if she finished it? Maybe she would end up at the hospital.

“Nova!” her friend called.

Alyssa was beckoning her to come back. The door was finally open, and the people in their line were starting to get inside. She ran on her way back and hooked her arms on her friend’s arm.

“What took you so long?” Alyssa asked with a knotted forehead.

The guard handed them a basket each.

“Happy hoarding,” the guard told them with a smile.

“We will!” they said and unison.

Nova and Alyssa decided to split up for they have different tastes in book genres. It would be easier to shop on their own and meet again later.

She headed first to the fantasy section since it was her top-most favorite genre. Nova was nearing her thirties, yet she still has a thing for fantasy novels. It seemed that the kid in her would not let her go. Well, age was just a number, they say.

Her eyes carefully scanned the books on the shelf as she slowly walked on the fantasy aisle. And when she finally saw the title she was looking for, her hand abruptly grabbed it. However, a hand got a hold of it first. She withdrew her hand quickly when she felt its warmth.

“Nova…”

Her heart skipped a beat when she heard that familiar voice. She turned to its owner and saw Aldous looking at him. There was something in his eyes that she did not know how to define. Perhaps it was hatred that he managed to hide.

Retreat said the voice at the back of her head. But damn, her feet would not move. Her whole body seemed to freeze upon seeing Aldous again. And there goes her stupid heart that would not stop beating too fast, making her feel like she was a love-struck teenager who just saw the love of her life for the very first time.

Really, Nova? Is this how you react after Aldous left you?

She shook her head and tried to pull herself together.

“F-fancy m-meeting y-you h-here.” Nova shut her eyes tightly. Stuttering in front of him only made the situation worst. She was sure he was silently laughing at her.

“Yeah. I kinda did not expect that we will see each other here.” Aldous smiled. It looked genuine, and she could not help but wonder how he could do that.

Why was he acting as if nothing happened between them?

He put the book in her basket.

“It’s okay if you have it,” she told him. Thank God she did not stutter anymore. “You got it first.”

“No, you take it. I just grabbed the book to catch your attention.” The smile did not leave his handsome face.

Oh, boy…Aldous was making things hard for her. Or maybe…just maybe, it was his way to get even. All right, she will let him do whatever he wants.

“Ah…”

Nova was about to leave when Aldous spoke again.

“Won’t you ask me how I was doing for the past year?” There was sadness in his voice that made her heart ache.

Her hands clenched against the handle of the basket. “I…”

He sighed. “Perhaps you don’t have any interest.”

“Aldous, look…I—”

“You are a bad wife, Nova, a very bad wife.”

Aldous’s remark shocked the hell out of her.

“What are you talking about?” Why did he sound like she cheated on him? “I compensated you handsomely, Aldous. I bet you slept on a bed of—”

“It’s not what I’m talking about.” He grabbed the basket away from her and dropped it to his side. “I never heard from you after I left the apartment. Don’t you have any feelings for me, Nova? Is it just purely business? Am I really the only one who fell?” Aldous grasped her arms and shook her. “Because what I feel is totally different. What I see in your eyes right now is quite the opposite of what you told me last time.”

Nova felt her tears were about to fall, so she looked away.

“Just…tell me you hate me for not reciprocating—”

“Goddamn it!” She felt his grip tightened. “I guess swallowing pride isn’t your thing.”

Aldous was right. Her stupid pride got in the way again, and it sucks!

“I—” Her words seemed to disappear when he suddenly cupped her cheeks.

“I won’t let this day end that we are still like this, Nova.”

“W-what do you mean?” Her brows furrowed.

His hands went down to hers. “Let’s talk.”

“Sure.” She was willing to sort things out between them. Nova was beyond glad that, just like her, Aldous wanted the same thing. He tugged her in the direction of the exit. “Wait. W-we are leaving?”

He stopped and turned to her but did not let go of her hand.

“Yes. We need to talk somewhere private.”

“P-private?” Nova swallowed hard. The way the words rolled on his tongue sent shivers to her spine.

Damn her imagination.

“Why? You don’t want to come with—”

“I want to. But…” She looked back, trying to find her friend she was about to leave behind.

“What is it, Nova?”

She turned to him again. “I’m with someone—”

“Who? Is it Jayden?” His jaw clenched.

“Jayden? No!” What made him think it was that scoundrel? “I’m with a friend.”

“Your boyfriend?” There was a hint of jealousy in his voice.

“A female one.” She rolled her eyes ceilingward.

“Hey, Nova!”

They both turned in the direction of the voice. Alyssa, who was carrying a basket full of books, was looking at their hands, to be exact.

“She’s that friend,” she told Aldous.

Her friend’s mouth formed an exaggerated letter O and squealed.

“Oh, my God. It’s him, your estranged husband?”

Aldous looked at him.

“Well…yeah.” She smiled awkwardly.

***

“Seriously?” Nova could not help but be hysterical when Aldous brought her to a hotel suite to talk. Being confined in a room with him after a year was not a bad thing. However, what frightened her was that whatever he wishes, she will give in. Damn, if he only knew how much she missed him.

Aldous raised his hands and moved backward. “I won’t do bad things to you. I brought you here because I’m staying here in the meantime. I just want to talk.”

“Ah.” She let go of the lampshade that she grabbed and held tightly when they got in.

Perhaps she was assuming things.

“Right…we need to talk.”

“It’s more than a year. I was waiting for you to call or see me so we can talk about the annulment.”

The annulment. She felt like she was struck by lightning at that moment. That was it, the thing she forgot about that she tried so hard to remember!

“I…I’m sorry about that. Now that you mentioned it, I will talk to my lawyer so we can start processing the annulment.” Nova looked away. She never thought it would hurt so much to talk about it. “I hope I didn’t cause too much burden to you and your fiancée.”

“Wait. What fiancée are you talking about?” Aldous scoffed. “You think I’m with someone?”

“You’ve been out there for a year. I don’t know how many times you got laid—”

She could not finish her sentence when Aldous suddenly pulled her and shushed her with his lips. And she did not even try to resist it; she let herself indulged in it.

“You know what…talk is cheap,” Aldous said when his lips went down to her neck.

“I agree,” she replied breathily.

Nova squealed when he picked her and brought her to the bed.

“I thought you won’t do bad things to me,” she teased.

Aldous laughed heartily and planted a soft kiss on her forehead.

“What’s about to happen isn’t bad at all if you want it.” He looked at her straight in the eyes. “So now tell me…Do you want this or not?”

“We are about to annul our marriage. So, might as well get the best out of it.”

Nova pulled his nape and kissed him lavishly. He was right that talk was cheap. She preferred what they were doing at that moment. It was way more…expressive.

Her hands went down to the hem of his shirt and pulled it off. Then, she slid her hands up and down his torso as if checking on something. She never touched him like that before, but she had felt it whenever she hugs him, so she will notice the changes. His muscles were firmer now than the last time.

“Satisfied?” he asked as he caught her hands to pin them above her head.

“Not yet. I’m a woman who craves for more.” Nova bit her lip seductively.

“Lovely.” He grinned.

Aldous started undressing her, and soon she was naked in front of him in broad daylight. But there was nothing to be ashamed of because his eyes told her so. The admiration in them made her feel like she was the most beautiful woman in the world.

When he kissed her lips again, his hands started to wander. And right at that moment, Nova realized what was so special about him. His kisses, every touch, they made her fall in love with him more, which she never felt with Jayden. It was not just a physical reaction. There was this connection to her emotions.

Nova inhaled sharply when she felt his hand slid between her thighs. Of course, she knew what will happen next.

“E-easy, okay? I’m a virgin…”

Aldous pressed his forehead against her. “So am I.”

***

It was quite a dangerous game they were playing. For him, it felt like they were on a post-honeymoon, but for Nova, it was more like a farewell. He was hoping that he could change her mind about the annulment. Aldous’s feelings for her had not changed. He still wanted her so bad that if she asks him to jump off the cliff to prove it, he might really do it. But right now, his focus was on pleasuring her, making her feel his love.

He pressed his forehead against hers as he continued moving on top of her. Now his phase was fast and deep. Aldous could feel it; he was almost there.

“God…” Nova drawled with eyes closed. “Aldous…”

The way she called out his name in the middle of their lovemaking made his feelings more intense; it was like adding more fuel to the flame of his desire.

“Open your eyes, Nova,” he pleaded. “Look at me.”

She did what she was told. And when he met her gaze, he finally found the love in her eyes that she denied for a long time. It made his heart happy.

With one long thrust, Aldous reached the peak with Nova. He hugged her tightly and felt her body shivered beneath his. Nova was so warm and soft, he held her with care because he was afraid that she would break…

They stayed in each other’s arm for minutes until her body recovered.

Aldous lay down beside her and pulled the duvet to cover their bodies. He thought it would be nice to doze off by each other’s side. However, Nova seemed to have a different plan. She went on top of him and started moving.

“W-whoa…” He held her to the sides.

“You know what they say…married couples should sort things out before going to bed.”

“Well…we did a different approach, didn’t we?” Aldous tucked the loose strands of Nova’s hair behind her ear, but they kept falling back on her face.

“Aldous, I haven’t told you that I love you.”

“You did.”

“What? When?” Her brows furrowed.

“When you willingly submit yourself to me, I knew you love me.” He smiled lopsidedly and caressed her sides. “This is love…in motion.”

Nova grinned from ear to ear and moved faster.

“I love you, mister. I’m sorry it took me a year to admit it.”

“I don’t mind waiting for eons, though. It’s worth the wait.” He pulled her head down and kissed her lips deeply. “So, does this mean that the annulment is canceled?”

“Yes.”