She would have to tell her sister later anyway.
Why not get it done and over with now?
If it were hours ago, she would have thought of a cautious way to break the news or withhold it so as not to make her sister worry.
At the moment, she hardly had the strength to breathe properly.
Something seemed to be lodging itself in her throat.
She just wanted to be left alone.
So, she said, "I was at a lawyer's firm. I am divorcing Thomas."
The silence that followed was palpable on the other end.
It was the soft gasp and continuous breathing that indicated that Toria was still on the other end.
Then, "I never did like the idiot. His head is too big for his body."
Reyona couldn't hold back the laughter that rumbled out of her chest.
With it came what had been lodged in her throat.
Hot tears gushed out of her eyes as she laughed loudly and long in the serene silence of the exclusive park.
"I am sorry, Reyona." Toria's empathetic voice stopped Reyona's laughter but not the tears.
The tears streamed down her face in silence as Toria continued, "I know how much your home means to you, sis. I cannot begin to imagine your pain right now. Where are you, Rey? Please tell me where you are."
Toria.
Reyona would never understand how her sister could read her so well, no matter the distance between them.
"I need some time to myself, Toria," she said honestly.
Toria sighed "Okay, Rey. I don't like it, but okay. Please don't turn off your phone. I am staying with my friends. Just let me know where you will be, please. And when you are ready, please let me be there for you, sis. Even if all I have to do is castrate the bastard for you,"
A watery smile teased Reyona's lips as she nodded as if Toria could see her. "Thank you, sis. I will be in touch. I… I am not going home tonight. And please don't go there too."
Toria sighed "I suppose you know I will be tempted to go face-off with that stronzo. Okay then. Just so you know, you only have today to process this on your own. If you don't call me tomorrow morning, I will turn this city over to find you."
That teased more smile out of Reyona and she said simply, "I know."
Toria sighed again "I hate this. I want to be mature and back off but I hate this, just so you know."
"I know"
"I love you, Rey."
"I love you too," Reyona said.
The smile was still on her face after she disconnected the call.
The tears had diminished too.
Although she couldn't qualify herself with the word "fine" at the moment, the call with her sister did something to her.
It gave her something she had unconsciously needed at that time.
A sense of belonging.
Reyona wiped her face.
The makeup over the bruise had been smudged, and she reached for the makeup case in her bag to reapply it.
But then she stopped.
Instead, she reached for a facial wipe and cleaned it all.
She took out her phone and looked long and hard at herself.
Her slightly puffy eyes, her bruised face, and her vacant eyes.
She turned on the phone camera and took a couple of shots.
"You will never forget this. You will never make a mistake like this again."
She said it firmly to herself.
Then she stepped out of the car.
It would be a waste of nature to come to such a beautiful park as this without taking a walk, after all.
Walking was not the only thing on Reyona's mind.
She had other things in mind.
She had never been one to sit around without taking action, after all.
The wheels were already in motion.
She had to be ready for the aftermath.
She could see a bunch of people playing golf from afar, so she deliberately took the opposite direction.
The lush vegetation and serene environment had such a calming effect on her.
She bent down to unbuckle her shoes.
She left them right there and sighed at the feeling of the soft, downy grass on her feet and ankles.
There was a creek running through the park.
Reyona followed the sound until she could see the clear, small body of water gently flowing in the path it created.
"Life goes on," Reyona thought.
She sat close to the edge of the creek, rolled up her pants legs, and then dipped her legs into the water.
The first jolt of the cool water was magic for her feeling-devoid body.
"Life moves on. No matter what, the wheels keep moving," she muttered to herself out loud.
"That is what you will do, Reyona," she said in an affirmation.
She had no idea how she was going to do that.
She had no idea how she was going to be just Reyona again.
She had no idea how she was going to live for herself.
She had no idea how, but she was damn sure she would find out.
"I wish you were here right now, Grams," she muttered sadly as she kept her gaze on the body of water flowing without concern.
Then she pulled out her phone.
The coolness from her feet travelled through every part of her body.
She suddenly feels drowsy.
The normal Reyona wouldn't have done what she did next.
The rational Reyona would have weighed the pros and cons of such actions.
But this carefree Reyona simply lay down on the grass with her cotton-white top.
She pictured the soft, cool, earthy-smelling grass as if it were the laps of Grams.
Like she would do when she was upset back when she was small, Reyona curled up and let go of her worries.
With her feet still in the creek and her nostrils breathing in the pungent smell of earth, she gently slipped into the land of oblivion.
Her plans could wait.