Wife….
The words hit Emma like a slap, her heart stopping as the spotlight shifted. The crowd gasped collectively, and all eyes turned to a striking woman in a golden-yellow gown. Her beauty was undeniable, her dress shimmering like Belle's from Beauty and the Beast. She smiled gracefully as she joined William on stage, slipping her arm through his.
Emma's mind reeled as the murmurs turned into whispers, her stomach churning with shock and disbelief. Wife?
The realization hit like a ton of bricks. The man she had been living with, working with, loving… had a wife. And now, the entire company knew.
Emma flinched at the sharp clinking of glass. It was Eve. Sitting among the guests, she wore a smug smile, her eyes locked onto Emma as she tapped her glass harder, louder, mocking her. She knew, his family knew right from the start and no one even warned her...
The sound echoed through the ballroom, and soon, others joined in, laughter and anticipation rippling through the crowd. The message was clear, a clear command for William and Ada -his wife- to kiss. Emma wasn't going to wait for it to happen..
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Emma stumbled down the marble steps of the grand venue, her heels clicking loudly against the stone as she fled the ballroom.
Unlike Cinderella, Emma hasn't left her glass shoes, what she left is her glass heart, broken into million of pieces.
The cold night air ouside did a little to cool the fire of humiliation and heartbreak burning inside her. She clutched at the skirt of her dress, lifting it as she ran, her vision blurred by tears that refused to stop.
Her breath came in uneven gasps, the tightness in her chest almost suffocating. She couldn't believe it—she had been nothing but a pawn in William's game.
Every touch,
Every whisper,
Every promises…
It had all been a lie…
The realization cut deeper than she thought possible. Emma tried to reason with herself, to find some solace in how this had all begun. After all, she had agreed to him with a simple goal in mind—a baby. For her this should have been just like business transaction, devoid of emotion. She hadn't intended to fall in love.
But she had.
Living with William, sharing meals, waking up beside him, laughing at his jokes, and working together had blurred the lines of her goal. Slowly, he had become more than just her baby's potential father. He had become her world.
And now she felt like a fool.
The image of Ada, glowing in her golden dress, standing beside William with that serene smile, was seared into Emma's mind. His wife. Wife. The word rang in her ears like a cruel echo.
Emma turned a corner and found herself in a quiet garden behind the venue.
She stumbled to a bench and collapsed onto it, her head in her hands. The weight of it all crushed her.
She had given herself to him completely!
her body,
her heart,
her trust...
All her first...
She thought they were building something real, something lasting. She had even dared to dream of a family with him, of a future where they could laugh and love freely. But in the end he only showed her that all man are the same, just like her father who died with his mistress.
But in this story Emma was the mistress, the other woman, the side chick.
The thought made her stomach churn. She wasn't the type to get involved with a married man, but William hadn't told her the truth. He had hidden it, deceiving her at every turn. And she had fallen for it.
Emma's fingers gripped the fabric of her dress tightly as if holding herself together was the only thing stopping her from falling apart completely.
"This isn't like the fairy tales," she whispered bitterly to herself, her voice trembling. "There's no prince charming. No glass slipper. I just got scammed, betting my all for a baby that didn't materialized!"
A single tear slid down her cheek as she looked up at the night sky, the stars offering no comfort. She couldn't stay here. Not at the venue, not at the penthouse, not anywhere near William. She had to leave.
But where would she go?
Emma wiped her eyes and forced herself to stand. The garden blurred around her as she began walking, her heels sinking into the grass with each step. She didn't care. All she knew was that she had to keep moving.
As Emma walked the empty streets, her phone buzzed incessantly with calls from William, but she couldn't bring herself to answer. The betrayal was too fresh, the wound too deep. Suddenly, a car horn beeped behind her. Turning, she saw Marissa and Eli waving her over from Eli's car.
Tears streamed down her face as she hurried toward them. Eli quickly opened the door, and Emma collapsed into the back seat, her sobs uncontrollable.
"That bastard," Eli muttered, gripping the steering wheel tightly. "How could he do this to you?"
Marissa turned in her seat to face Emma, her eyes filled with concern. "Emma, we're here for you. You don't have to go through this alone."
Through her tears, Emma confessed, "I have nowhere to go. I've been living with William, and I can't bear the thought of returning there after what happened."
Her phone continued to ring, William's name flashing on the screen.
"Don't answer it" Eli snap. "Just because, they are rich they think they can play with people's heart!"
Marissa placed a comforting hand on Emma's shoulder. "You can stay with me for now," she offered gently.
Emma shook her head, wiping her eyes. "Thank you, but could you drop me at the train station instead?"
Eli nodded, starting the car. " Train station, You, girl are in no form to travel."
"I am going to my sister's house in the country side...I need a...break." Emma says with her tears keeps falling down her cheeks.
Marissa nudge at Eli to agree "Okay, Ems whatever you need, do you have cash on you?"
As they drove through the quiet streets, Emma stared out the window, her mind a whirlwind of emotions. The city lights blurred past, mirroring the chaos within her. She had thought she found love, a future, but it had all been an illusion.
Marissa and Eli exchanged worried glances but remained silent, understanding that their friend needed time to process the night's events. Though they wanted to be by her side to help her, what Emma needed is a space, away from this chaos.