Millions of thoughts occupied his mind but one thought outweighed the rest.
His mother.
The sweet face of his mother flooded his mind. He remembered vividly the hardships she endured as an unwed mother, the whispers and the snickers from their neighbors.
Her secretary's salary barely stretched enough to pay for their small one-bedroom apartment and bare necessities.
Each night she arrived home from work more pale than the previous. Her once round face became long and thin. The sparkle in her eyes dimmed with each passing day.
Yet despite everything, she still managed a sweet smile for him. Even now he could still feel the tender touch of her hand on his face.
Then the day came when he waited and waited but she never came home. Instead, her boss came and informed him of his mother's car accident, the accident that took her life away.
Her funeral was small and few came to pay their respects, as she had not many friends. It had been her boss that had stood by his side, wiping his tears and urging him to eat.
His mother had been an orphan; most of her life had been spent in the orphanage. Her only companions until he came along were solitude and loneliness.
Why was fate so cruel?
She had so little happiness in her life already. Why did it have to take her life away too?
He had been lucky. Her boss had adopted him and raised him as his own son. He lived a life of material luxury; soon he will be inheriting his adopted father's entire business empire.
His mother's death had save him from poverty, but what he wouldn't give to have her back even for a moment.
To feel her tender touch on his face once again.
*
Running her hand through the silky satin white material of the strapless wedding gown that hugged her slender curves, a mixture of excitement and happiness filled Gillian's heart as her own enchanting reflection stared back at her from the enormous oval mirror hung on the dressing room wall.
In three months, she would be marrying Daniel.
In three months, she would walk down the church aisle to meet Daniel's grinning face.
A sweet smile appeared on her face but was quickly replaced by a frown as images of her once loving father appeared.
Ever since, she could remember, she always imagined her father beside her as she walked down the long red-carpeted church aisle. Now, her brother would take the position instead.
"You look wonderful, sweetie."
She turned to meet her mother's gentle smile. Standing before the mirror, side by side, she couldn't help noticing how much of her mother's features she had inherited, the beautiful bright-eyes, straight nose, and high cheekbones.
From her father, she had inherited very little physical traits, what they shared was in personality; both were extremely prideful and stubborn.
Maybe too stubborn.
"Do you think Daddy will ever forgive me?" she searched her mother's beautiful face.
"He'll come around," her mother assured, smoothing the side of her french-twist as the long sheer veil ran down her back.
"I hope so," she said sullenly.
"You look stunning!"
Her spirits lifted from the cheery voice of her sister-in-law as the latter appeared by the door.
"Thanks," she blushed, suddenly feeling a bit shy from all the attention, "Oh Charlene, can you go with me to look at the invitations tomorrow? Daniel's flying to Singapore tonight and Mom has something else to attend to."
"Sure, it's my pleasure. Now come on, the groom is getting anxious," her sister-in-law said, urging her to step out of the dressing room.
Indeed, had it not been for her mother and sister-in-law's help, she would have to go about all the wedding preparations alone, for she and her fiance barely had any friends from the short time they returned. All the friends she had previously known in Hong Kong had deserted her the moment her father announced the disownment.
She had never judged anyone based on their monetary worth but apparently it was not the case for others.
Perhaps she had been too naive.
It was a hard lesson but she had prevailed, just like all the other trials in her life. Those people weren't really her friends and she refuse to shed a tear for the lost, if it could even be considered a lost.
Meanwhile, she grew closer to her sister-in-law with each meeting. Charlene was down-to-earth and nonjudgmental; her brother was very lucky. But she couldn't help noticing the longing looks that donned on her sister-in-law face whenever the latter saw loving couples on the street. She prayed inwardly that her brother knew what he was doing.
Her fiance's admiring gaze greeted her as soon as she stepped out of the dressing room. Already dressed in a black tuxedo and white-collared shirt with a matching black bowtie, he looked absolutely dashing. Her heart fluttered with bliss and pride.
He could have any girl but he picked her.
Taking her hand in his, he led her to the photographers that were prepared to take their wedding photos. Glowing with happiness, the loving couple smiled, posing for picture after picture while her mother and sister-in-law observed from the side until the shoot was over.
"Here," her fiance said passing her a glass of water.
She smiled gratefully and held her hand out to accept the glass but the cup slipped just as his hand redrew. What were perhaps only a few seconds seemed like an eternity as she helplessly witnessed, with stabs of uneasiness, as each and every glass fragment and droplet of water sprayed across the dark marble floor.
Something bad was going to happen.
*
After parting with her mother-in-law and sister-in-law at the bridal studio, Charlene walked around the streets aimlessly, kicking pebbles and stones with her two-inch heels, not wanting to return to work.
Restlessly, she headed to the orphanage.
"Hi Timmy," she walked over to the corner where the little boy sat.
He looked up and gave her shy smile before looking back down at this hand.
She followed his eyes and saw in his hands a red marble along with the blue marble from last time. "From gor gor?"
Timmy nodded.
"He came to visit you today?" she asked taking a seat next to him, thoughtless of her asymmetrical chiffon skirt.
"Gor gor visit me. He say if I am good boy he'd come again and give me another marble."
She smiled at the little boy's innocence. "Hey how about I teach you a game that I learned when I was young?"
Timmy nodded enthusiastically.
Playful by nature, she took the two marbles on his hand, placing them on the ground and began explaining the game to her young friend. Forgetting the boredom that plagued her just a while ago.
*
"Don't think too much. It was just an accident," Daniel reassured her as they parked in front of their office building.
She nodded, forcing a smile so that he would not worry about her but the uneasiness remained.
Something bad was going to happen.
"Do you want me to bring back anything from Singapore?" her fiance asked as he opened the car door for her.
"No, I just want you to come back as soon as possible," she replied, gazing into his charming face.
"It'll only be a few days," he said, kissing the top of her head, "I have to head to the airport now."
She nodded affirmatively but deep down she did not want him to leave.
An unexplainable feeling from within told her that all would not be the same by the time he came back.
The thought scared her.
There was nothing more she wanted than to just hide in his arms, feeling the comfort and security they provided.
She watched as his car drove away, the silhouette of the automobile growing smaller and smaller. A feeling of emptiness grew as she felt his presence drifting away from her bit by bit.
It took all her strength to suppress the irrational urge to run after his car. Gloomily, she walked into the building and headed to her office.
The message light on the phone greeted her the moment she sat down. Sighing she leaned backwards, resting her head onto the back of her chair and massage her temples. Despite all the hardships she had to endure the last few years, she had never felt as exhausted as she did now, like the energy had been drained out of her.
The feeling of lost and loneliness was overwhelming.
Minutes passed before she gathered herself together and lit a cigarette. Setting the phone on speaker, she began listening to her voicemails. Most were clients calling about their projects, asking about details that she had covered with them over a thousand times.
Taking another drag, she began fumbling to open the large manila envelope that had been placed on her desk.
The color drained from her face once she took a closer look at the contents.
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