“How dare you do what you did to me, Anna? No, to both of us.” He was angrily staring at her and she wondered what kind of man he was to have such nerves to say this to her. She scoffed and rested her head on the chair.
“Oh oh, that was my bad I suggest. What do you think I should do. Wait, that’s not the proper way to ask you this,” she propped closer to him and smiled mischievously, “The best question to ask you should've been, if what happened to me happened to Willa, what do you think you’d have done, Jack? What advice would you give her?” His eyes turned red and she could see that she shouldn’t have attempted making an example with his beloved sister. But the expression on his face was the exact thing she wanted to see on his face. “What? Don’t you think that just how angry you'd feel if this happens to her, there’s someone out there that feels the same for me? Maya might not be blood related with me, but I can assure you that she feels worse than you’d ever feel if this happens to Willa, Jack.”
“How dare you make an example with my sister, Anna? What do you think of her? A cheap object you could target at any time? How dare you throw something this filthy on her all in the name of making an example? What the hell is wrong with your brain?” She lifted her hands up with a mock gesture as though she was being pointed at with a gun.
“Hey, calm the nerves already. What have I done wrong? It’s just something done to me and I asked you what you’d feel if the same was done to your sister, how could that be offensive?” Then a sad smile spread widely on her lips, “Do you imagine what it must’ve made me feel? I went through it, Jack, it happened on me, how terrible must that have been? But look at you,” she disgracefully pointed her fingers at him and sadly shook her head, “I only made an example to how you would feel if it were your sister and you're already fuming. Do you think you’ve been fair to yourself?”
He looked up at her, and the expression he saw on her face was the saddest he had ever seen on Anna. This was pure and raw emotional pain for her. “What do you mean?” He didn’t know when his voice calmed down and when the tears she had been fighting with rolled down to her cheeks, he had to take his eyes away from hers.
“What do you I mean?” She chuckled and used her index to clear her tears away but more gushed down to her cheeks. “I know that we’re not in love with each other,” she chuckled and wiped off her tears, “Hell, we could never be in love with each other and this marriage is only done purposely so we both can save each other from what we’re currently facing, it’s even a five-year marriage but Jack...” She let her words trailed off, finding it so hard to stop her tears which she truly found irritating. She didn’t know what he would think of her tears. “Waking up every morning to this ring on my finger reminds me that I'm indeed your wife, the wedding picture pinned in our living was a daily remembrance that we both said ‘Yes, I do.’ In the hospital and it didn’t matter whether we don’t love each other or not, whether we’re going to part ways or not. What matters is that the sacred link of marriage binds us together.”
She wasn’t even trying to clear her tears away anymore, because she knew that her emotions always won over her, the earlier she realized this, the better it would be for her. “But how could you do what you did? I know that you don’t love me and would never do, hell I don’t even know your reason for marrying me instead of her. But the least I expect from you is your respect, Jack.” She wiped her tears with both palms but more gushed down. She didn’t know how the conversation took this turn now, she thought she had come to the police station to push him back to his position with hurtful words that will sting for some time but somehow, she ended up being emotional.
“You love her, that I know and have accepted since before I know that I was going to marry you. She’s the one you want to spend the rest of your life with, I also accept and have made peace with that. I'm only your wife now because your Mom wants me and the moment those five years we've agreed on are over, it will be over between us. But how can you bring her into my matrimonial home, make love to her in the same bed we slept together even though nothing has happened between us. Let her wear my gown, and calmly watch her beat me? I know you love her and might not give a freak about me, but really Jack? I just want your freaking respect.” She had her face buried in her palms as she cried as bitterly as she had never cried in front of Jack. She knew deep down she wanted more than the respect she kept on emphasizing for him. She wanted much more than that.
“Who told you that?” His voice was soft and when she looked into his eyes, he had a look she had never seen in them.
“What do you mean? Who told me what?”
“That after five years we’re going to part out ways? That I don’t want to, have you in my home for all the remaining years of my life. And really Anna? I don’t give a freak about you, that was purely your assumption.” He was speaking calmly and when she looked into his eyes, she knew these words came directly out of his heart and not just the lips that had uttered them.
“Jack...” She began with a whisper-like voice and calmly, he cut her off.
“I know that I don’t love you, Anna, you don’t love me as well. But that doesn’t mean we won’t fall in love sometime in the future, does it?” He had fixed his eyes on her and weakly, she shook her head at him. Maybe she was even in love with him already, she had never realized it. “Since when fate kept bringing us together, I knew that it meant something, but I had never imagined that we would someday be cocooned in the beautiful web of marriage. Of course, it wasn't all rosy, but it wasn’t full of tears as well, we can make it work if we put much effort on it.”
“Jack...” She couldn’t believe what he was saying to her, could this be one of his plans or the sincerity she was seeing in his eyes was forged?
He lounged forward and took a hold of her two hands, “And for Clara, you’re right, I do love her.” She felt a pang in her chest, and all those beautiful feelings she felt were gone from her. “But that doesn’t mean what I did, what she did was right. But she came to our home while we both are asleep, she had the keys, she met me on bed and you don’t expect me to ignore the touches from the woman I love, Anna, do you? I'm not telling you all this because I want to excuse myself or make you forgive or even take me out of this goddamn place, no. I still don’t know the stand of our relationship with Clara, but I know that I’m not ready to lose you for anything in this world.”
The tears were back, the emotions and the goosebumps, she felt everything. And she didn’t want to believe that it was Jack that was uttering all these things to her. She had her puppy eyes fixed on his and he smiled softly at her, “Let it out already,” she looked around to see what he was referring to before she turned back at him.
“What are you talking about? What am I going to let out?” She sounded clueless, even though her stomach was now filled with the flutter of butterflies that felt so beautiful and mushy.
“The blush, it’s evident that you want to blush. Or would be embracing for Anna Brayden to blush for a man that has hurt her to the extent I hurt you?” His voice changed to a sad one at the end of his sentence and she shook her head with a sad smile.
“No, I'm just afraid that this is one of your plans, Jack. Your words might feel real, make me feel all these goosebumps I'm feeling right now but that doesn’t mean I have to be as stupid I used to be before...”
“You don’t trust me, I know. But can you at least give me this one last chance? If I break your trust, then you’re free to even divorce me if you want, because I want us to start working on our relationship now, Anna.”
“Just one last chance, are you sure?” She asked with a smile as they stood up together. He took a few steps toward her with a smile as he nodded his head.
“Yes, just one last chance. And I promise you it will be worthwhile.”
“Okay, Jack, you’re forgiven. The woman you love too will regain her freedom today.” He engulfed her into a hug, and she smiled before she hugged him back as calmly as she had never hugged someone in her entire life. She felt an emotion she had never felt for someone in her life, it was both a beautiful feeling and ugly.
“She’s the woman I love today, but I'm certain I’d fall in love with you too someday, Anna.” Her heart was beating loudly, she didn’t know what else she would feel if Jack uttered the words I love you to her because that might even cause her heart palpitations to the point that she would have to be taken to a hospital. I'd fall in love with you too someday. How sweet these words sounded to her ears.
❦
She had already renovated some things in the house because she wanted to feel too comfortable that she can even forget about what was missing in the house, which was him. Jack stared at the furniture before he turned to look at her with a small smile. She fidgeted with her fingers nervously and shrugged her shoulders as though it was nothing, “I had to change a few things to feel more at home. I hope you don’t mind?”
He shook his head, “So long as you’re comfortable, that’s all that matters.”
She guided him to his room, and he excused himself to take a bathe while after she had quickly freshened up, Anna walked to the kitchen. She turned on the music and began swaying her hips while she sent Maya a text.
‘I think we’ve reconciled, Maya. What do you think? He asked for one last chance, do you think I should try again? And it feels like I'll be in love with him in a very short time if things keep on going the way they do now.’
She was dancing lightly as she brought out all the things she would need to make dinner for them. She had never cooked for him until today and she had to make it the best she had never made in her entire life. Then a reply came, and she smiled before she quickly took her phone to check it out.
‘You should, Baby. But this should really be the last chance, okay? And I also think about something, but promise me that you won’t laugh when I mention it myself...’
‘I'm already grinning, the whole Maya being reluctant about saying something? Of course, I won’t laugh girl, you have my words.’
‘Why don’t you make love to him today, Anna? He might be deprived of that, maybe that’s why he gets back to her, don’t you think?’
‘Okayyy, I’m squealing excitedly girl! That is it, I'm become fully his wife today, I'll make sure it happens. Gosh, I'm so excited for this because man...I hate him, but he’s so hot!’