Love Like You Never Loved Before

The name Robert had always been alien to me. I didn’t have any memory of him, and barely anyone brought him up when I was a kid. After Isabelle’s departure, nobody talked about him anymore. The only thing I know about my mysterious uncle was that he used to be a business genius.

However, one thing didn’t add up. Isabelle said that Robert’s business failed and was acquired back when the Scotts were at their zenith. If that was true, that would mean that he was no business genius. After all, If he was, he wouldn’t have run the company to the ground, nor would he commit suicide. I reckoned that something more must be going on.

Before we head over to the Lane residence, Christopher called his family behind my back, thinking that I wouldn’t know. I found out since I was on the balcony. I knew he was trying to make the relationship work, and he was worried I might argue with Julia again. He kept convincing Julia it was fine, and I felt sorry for him.

He was a proud, successful man, but he had to deal with all this bullsh*t because of me.

Sometimes, I thought I’ve failed him. He gave me what I wanted most: love and career. But I couldn’t even give him a simple love. Instead, he had to deal with all the troubles my mother and his mother were throwing around just so our relationship wouldn’t be ruined. If he didn’t do that, he wouldn’t be able to fulfill his promise of giving me a grand wedding.

I didn’t really mind though. I could do with or without the wedding since I already had the best things in life. The ceremony could be canceled and I couldn’t care less. Although someone might gossip or laugh at me, it was still not a concern to me. The most important thing was to be happy.

I used to dream of standing at the receptionist, receiving all the congratulations from the guests, but over time, I thought that was a silly dream. Now, all I wanted was Christopher. As long as he was there, I was okay with anything.

Nonetheless, I still couldn’t go against my mother’s wishes.

It was a sleepless night, so I turned around to look at him. He lost his arrogance when he was asleep, and it was replaced with a childlike smile. He was hugging me tightly, as if he was worried I might disappear if he let me go.

I huddled closer and pecked his lips. “I’ll keep walking this path no matter how hard it is, Chris, so don’t worry. Not even death can stop us, so there’s nothing to be afraid of.

Being in a relationship was an understatement for the bond we shared. This wasn’t a rom-com in the eighties, nor was it a summer romance flick. We went through life and death, so we were a part of each other’s lives. Taking us apart would be akin to killing us.

I felt a cool sensation running down my spine when I woke up the next morning. Apparently, Christopher had rubbed some salve on me. I went around the living room to see if he was there, but he was already gone. In the end, I went to get some gifts, though it took me some time to pick the best one. When I came back, Christopher’s car was already in front of my house, so I went up to it. There were a few gift boxes in the backseat, so I knew Christopher went for a spot of shopping earlier as well.

“Why didn’t you take me with you?” I shook my gift. “We could have gone together, but now we’ve spent unnecessary money.”

“You looked like you could use some sleep, so I didn’t wake you up.” Christopher leaned over and gave me a deep good morning kiss.

When we got to the Lane residence, we saw a car coming out of it. As we crossed, I saw who the driver was. She looked cold, and she was holding a cigarette between her fingers. Her dress was bright red, a perfect pair for her palpable fury.

I jumped up, banged my head against the roof, and plopped back down. Agitated, I tried to yank the door a few times only to find that it was locked.

“What is it?” Christopher stepped on the brakes and stopped the car beside a flowerbed.

I quickly opened the door and got out so I could catch up to the car I saw earlier, but it was already long gone. Despondent, I turned around and grabbed Christopher’s arms. “I saw Isabelle. She was in the car.”