Dressed in nothing more than a loose grey shirt with a pair of dark jeans, she welcomed the chill brought about from the brisk wind that swept across the area, staring out into the open greenery that exceeded for miles as she stood by the gates of her sister-in-law's botanical nursery in the country.
A month came and went, mechanically, she continued to go about her days; the world had become dull and tasteless. Each day was no different from the last; she would head to the office, at times with her husband if he was around or alone. Having become his personal assistant, she buried herself in work.
Other than the nights the two attended obligatory social functions and dinners at the homes of their respective families, they each went their own ways. Most nights, he would only return hours after she had fallen asleep.
His whereabouts were a mystery, he never told and she never asked.
Conversation between the two was rare and only spoken out of necessity.
During the day, at the office, she had seen his behavior ranged from cool and controlled to cold and ruthless. With his family, he was indifferent or sarcastic, the only exception being with his sister and nanny. In their presence, his eyes twinkled with warmth and his lips curved with playfulness.
To her, he was neither cold nor warm, he rarely spoke more than a few words but when he did he was never rude. While his tone was emotionless, at moments his bright eyes shined as though they were speaking entirely on their own.
In the short time that they have been married, they neither kiss nor touched except in public.
Always an invisible wall separated the two.
They merely shared a bed, never more.
At times, she couldn't help but wonder why.
Was he not attracted to her?
Hadn't possessing her always been his reason for marrying her?
Or perhaps, ruining her happiness had been enough for him?
Taking a deep breath, she let out a slow sigh.
She had become accustomed to such solitude, almost preferring it.
Sometimes during the nights, when the apartment became extremely quiet, memories of her past life with Daniel would come flooding back, all their jubilant times together.
Neither seen nor heard from again after her wedding, he had simply vanquished. Her only hope was that he had moved on.
Perhaps they were only passer-bys in each other's lives.
Like two boats passing one another during the midst of the night.
If fate would be so kind.
*
"Honey, it's beautiful here," his wife's cheerful voice brought a smile to his face as the waiter seated the two at a secluded table by the corner.
"I'm glad you like it here," he watched as her face glowed and eyes sparkled from the candle the flickered on the table.
He loved her more than words could express.
She was the reason for his happiness.
Vividly, he could still recall the day he absent-mindedly wandered around downtown New York, in hopes of running into his sister.
Little did he know in just minutes his life would be forever changed.
Step by step, he found himself standing before a large body of water, not too far away was a seaport where a small shopping center stood, before it a large ship docked. His eyes traveled the large structure from the top until a girl on the side caught his attention.
He watched as she shook in her light-green waist-length down jacket and blue jeans from the freezing cold, her eyes were empty as tears slid down her once pink cheeks.
As if hypnotized, unconsciously, his legs brought him before the petite girl. Standing face to face, he watched as she looked up, through her tear streaked lashes at him. Within seconds, she buried her head onto his chest and began sobbing uncontrollably as he took off his own black wool coat and draped it over her shaking body.
They were mere strangers but he had sensed her sorrow, her pain.
He never questioned her on the reason she was there that day but somehow he knew she had been waiting for someone.
Someone that didn't deserve her love.
A month ago, he had gone to pick her up from work after the news conference. Unknown to her, he had seen the bouquet of lilies and the card in her trash bin. Deliberately, he mentioned the location written on the card during their ride home and watched carefully for her reaction.
The hope and anxiety written all over her face, twisted his heart.
She hadn't gone to the meeting that day but he knew it was only a matter of time.
Perhaps, she had not been his from the start.
His happiness had been borrowed.
*
Even from a distance, Karena could tell her sister-in-law's thoughts were miles away. Another minute passed before she approached the other with two steaming hot cups of tea.
"Th..Thinking?"
The other nodded while she shifted her eyes to the beautiful nature in front of them.
Only here did she truly feel freed and relaxed.
Since young, her parents had set high expectations on the shoulders of her and her younger brother. Expectations so high that she felt herself being suffocated by the weight, it was also during this time that she unknowingly began to stutter. Each time, she faced either of her parents, her palms sweated, her heart pounded, and her tongue tied.
In fact, she was terrified of them.
Edison had been more fortunately, his rebellious personality gave him the courage to fight against their parents' control, whereas she was too timid, too obedient.
As children of the Andy and Rosamund Chen, they both paid a huge price.
Her younger brother's once witty personality grew more emotionless and impassive with each passing day.
She saw, yet she had been helpless, unable to prevent it, unable to protect him.
The reality was, she couldn't even protect herself.
"The nursery is very nice," the gentle voice of sister-in-law broke the comfortable silence.
The compliment brought a smile onto her heart-shaped face, "Th..Thank you. Ed brought me..me this nur..nursery a few years a..ago. He knew I..I didn't like par..parading around with my..my mother all day, so..so he brought me th..this nur..nursery to he..help pass my time."
A weak smile formed on the lips of her sister-in-law.
"How..how are you to..two getting along?"
"As well as two strangers could, I guess."
"Ed, is..isn't an ea..easy person to un..understand. He ke..keeps all his fe..feelings buried within be..because he..he doesn't want ot..others to see he..his weak side."
No comments:
Post a Comment