Play pretend.

Chapter 16.

Win's POV:

It was a calm saturday, I was laying in bed in the guestroom of Prem's apartment, it had been 4 days since I left Bright, he didn't call or text as I had asked, it had been an hour since I had woken up, but I was still in bed just staring at the wall and thinking when a loud ring from my phone disturbed my precious self pitying thoughts.

'Fluke(neighbour)' flashed on my phone and I picked the call up putting it near my ear, "Hey Win" Fluke's cheerful voice boomed through my phone "Hi Fluke, Waddup" I asked. "Umm I wanted to call like yesterday but Ohm wouldn't let me saying I was being nosy, but I had enough today so I just wanted to ask if everything is cool between you and Bright?" He questioned.

I missed hearing his name even if it was from someone else's mouth, god I missed him so much, I was so used to him, his morning kisses, his stupid questions about the human body just so he could listen to me talk on and on, only for me to find him just staring at my lips not having listened to a single word I said, every small thing about him, the way I could stare at him in the morning, the sunlight on his face, touching all his scars, knowing the stories of how he got every single one of them, racing towards the bathroom even though we had two more in the condo, his smell on the sheets, his focus on his laptop when he had a deadline, his eyebrows creasing when he tried to find what was wrong with the new dish he tried to make, just him.

"Hey Win, you there?" Fluke asked, "Yeah yeah I'm here, what makes you ask that Fluke?" I asked him a question back "I just haven't heard any noises from your condo except for random music in midnight hours and I haven't seen you either, I just saw Bright yesterday, and he looked like not okay? Ya know?" Fluke explained.

A pankicky feeling rose in my chest, "What do you mean not okay?" I asked desperately, "Woah calm down, he just looked really worn out, you know when you pull two all nighters in a row and look like a zombie?" He elaborated "I should go, Ohm's calling me, if you're not at home, you should probably check up on him, I would to be honest but he looks scary" Fluke finished.

I thanked him and ended the call, Fluke had a habit of oversharing but he was always honest and he did give me the right advice. I finally got out of bed and took a shower, Prem was talking about grocery shopping while we ate lunch when my phone vibrated, 'Uncle Chivaree, incoming call'

I excused myself and went to answer, "Good afternoon son, how are you?" Uncle spoke in a stern voice with a caring undertone "Good afternoon uncle, I'm doing okay, is everything alright? You rarely call" I asked concerned.

A deep chuckle came from the other side of the phone, it was exactly like Bright's and it made me miss him all over again "Everything is okay, I just wanted to invite you and Bright for dinner tonight, it's been months since you two tied the knot and I haven't even had you over yet" He spoke.

"Uncle, why the formalities? It's okay, we'll come anytime we want to, that is Bright's first home anyways" I said, his name like thorns on my tongue, how did the name I love the most start sounding so foreign in a matter of days? I wondered, I also tried to make uncle change his mind, I did not want to go.

"I don't know Win, he has never acted like this is a home to him, it's just a place where he used to eat and sleep, and no Nini has been bugging me to invite you guys so whatever happens I'd like both of you here by eight tonight" He replied.

"Your wish is our command uncle, have you told him already?" I questioned, "I have but he told me to tell you differently saying it'd be rude to not invite you directly, that boy and his stupid reasons, I have a meeting to attend so I'll leave first, reach here safely" Uncle spoke and dropped the call.

I tried to ignore every panic attack and just pick a proper outfit, cause all my clothes were at the condo, I went with Prem for some shopping, knowing uncle, these get togethers were somehow always formal, so I picked a white button down with black pants from Zara, time flied fast and it was almost 8, I put on some light makeup with a red tint on my lips, got my keys and started to drive to the infamous mansion.

When I reached, Nini invited me in, both the father and son were absent, it wasn't their fault as I had arrived early, she took me to Bright's old bedroom, it was just like I had imagined, guitar cases in one corner, way too many posters on the walls, dark walls and a big bed, the balcony had a sofa with a telescope in front of it and it made me think how many nights had Bright stayed there, cause that sofa looked more used then the bed, I could only take this much in as Nini pulled my hand and made me sit on the floor as she started showing me his childhood photo albums, we both were laughing at the cute guy I got to call my hubby when the door opened.

"Nini, I looked for you everywhere" his deep voice spoke, he must've not noticed my presence as I was sitting beside his tall bed, "Oh I'm sorry I couldn't greet you at the door Brighty, come on, your cute husband is already here" Nini spoke in a comforting voice.

My head was down but I could hear him approaching, I could see his shoes coming into view and I could definitely smell that cologne, the one he knew was my favourite, he came and sat down beside me, leaning back on the bed, as he picked up an album.

"Brighty dear, is sir already here?" Nini asked before Bright could answer, the strong headlights of a car lit up the dim room, "Oh I better go make him comfortable, Win look through every single one of the albums even if it takes you days, there are some of him butt-naked, make sure to see those too" She giggled and closed the door when Bright whined "Niniiiiiiiiiiiiiii".

I silently tried to flip through the preserved memories when a photo caught my attention, I let out a gasp and it caught Bright's attention, it was me, Bright, Mew, Gulf, Tay, and New, smiling wide in front of our new treehouse, we looked so naive and happy, hands on each other's shoulders, I hadn't talked to those idiots in years, the last time we saw each other was at the funeral, and then it all fell apart.

Bright started to say my name when Nini yelled from downstairs, "We should go, and I think we should pretend that we're happily married cause I don't wanna let uncle down" I proclaimed and left the room, Bright following behind quietly.

We greeted uncle and started digging in, it was smooth cause I did most of the talking while Bright had his head down, eating silently, "So Bright how is law going? Win I can guarantee you he's failing atleast 3 subjects" uncle said with a laugh, I didn't find it funny cause Bright was intelligent when it came to his studies, he just always looked uninterested leading people to believe he didn't care.

"It's going great, actually dad, I'm not failing anything" He spoke, "Oh so who are you cheating from?" Uncle fired back "No one, can we just talk about something else?" Bright said uncomfortably, he could sense my anger as he put his hand on my thigh under the table to try and calm me down.

"Oh Win I can bet you, he'll be defending those losers who had little traffic incidents when he graduates, that is if he does" he commented but before he could laugh stupidly, I lost my patience "Uncle respectfully speaking I think Bright is very smart and he'll make a great lawyer, I can actually bet you with all my life that you'll be asking him to take over the cases of your company one day, so it'll be nice for once if you actually praise him and his various accomplishments instead of constantly degrading him" I snapped, trying not to yell cause Uncle was still my father-in-law even if he was being a total dick to my husband right now.

Before I could feel any regret, Uncle's speechless expression made all the guilty feelings go away when they hadn't even arrived yet.

Bright looked straight in my eyes, with a shocked face, and I looked back right at him for the first since I arrived, noticing my favourite pair of eyes looking so tired, he had eyebags, I remembered how he told me how he couldn't sleep without me since the day at the hospital, and the guilt consumed me completely, I had left him all alone, I was selfish, I had told him not to call, but at least I could.

He still looked at me like I hung the stars in his sky though and that's what hurt the most.

Author's note:

I need to find someone who defends me like  Win defends Bright.

Hope y'all enjoyed this chap, please keep voting and look forward for more as always💙

@naeemakoosar this one's for you girlie.