Chapter 2
04 ཊཱི, 57%•
The call ended abruptly. Hugo stared at the phone, not moving. He was thinking, ‘Why did Evalina agree to the divorce all of a sudden? And just before the call ended, I definitely heard something strange on the other end. What could that be?‘
Next to him, Olive noticed he was absent–minded and asked, displeased. “Hugo? What’s up with you? You’re not even paying attention.”
Hugo finally snapped back to reality and replied, “Gotta go back home for some papers now. She agreed to the divorce.”
Olive felt a surge of happiness, but seeing Hugo’s emotionless face, she couldn’t help but feel that he didn’t seem as happy as she thought he would be.
*****
Hugo swung the door open and strode into the dark villa on Seaside Road, dust motes swirling in the sfanting sunlight.
It was like stepping into a memory–Evalina used to be there every time he got back, all smiles, cooking meals in the kitchen for his iffy stomach. She nursed him for two years, and his stomach got a whole lot better.
But now, the empty place was just a shell of what it was, only the memories of Evalina’s gentle touch and the scent of food lingering like a ghost.
He padded into their bedroom, but it was like walking into a stranger’s room. The neatly folded pajamas were gone and the familiar scent of lavender erased. Just a month, and it felt like a lifetime.
Evalina was there, her eyes narrowing as she took him in. He was still wearing the black shirt she’d picked out, the diamond brooch a twinkle on his chest–a gift from her that now felt like a betrayal.
The thought of him with Olive, in her clothes, made her stomach churn.
“What brings you back?” she spat, her gaze as sharp as a knife.
She looked like she’d been drained of life, her once vibrant self now a shadow. Was it the divorce talk that had done this to her?-Hugo felt an odd sense of peace settle in his chest.
“You’re looking a little peaky,” he commented, nonchalantly.
Evalina snorted, “Oh, and you’re Mr. Sympathy now?”
“Just make sure you don’t kick the bucket before we finalize this divorce. I ain’t got no interest in being the guy who couldn’t hold onto his wife,” he said, shrugging.
His words were a slap, cold and harsh. This was Hugo, always distant, even when they were tangled up in the sheets. Once the fire died down, he was gone, a stranger in her bed.
She’d fooled herself into thinking his touches meant something that there was a spark of affection there. He’d married her, knowing full well the worlds they came from were miles apart, though they’d kept it all under wraps–at least there should be some love.
But seeing Olive in person that day, with eyes so much like hers, it all clicked.
Maybe it was for the best they were calling it quits. Tomorrow, she’d scrub away the last vestiges of their marriage, and they could fade into the background of each other’s lives, never to meet again.
1/1
DramaBox–Streamam, 4. AD
15:06 Wed, Jan 29
2/2
