Couple's Getaway

Doubt

Erik was thumbing through his wedding pictures on Facebook. They had a beach wedding in the Bahamas a year ago. Out in the open, in a romantic oceanfront setting while the wind and waves sang their praises over their union. Erik didn't want a traditional wedding within a church, or another elaborate indoor setting. Tiffany blue, gold, and white. They were the colors. Shaunice wore a beautiful, breezy, all white dress that made her look like a Greek goddess with gold accessories to match. In the picture he is currently looking at, She has her hair styled in a sleek, side bun with a side swept bang and white roses in her hair. Erik wore all white from head to toe himself. White linen pants with a white linen top halfway buttoned and embroidered with gold. They are photographed running towards the camera with broad smiles on their faces and the wedding party blurred in the background.

As he swipes again, there is night time photo of Shaunice, Nicole, Arnelle, and himself with champagne flutes in their hands. Shaunice clung to Erik energetically while Nicole and Arnelle stood next to them. He remembers the beautiful firework show on the beach, the warm breeze, the delicious Bahamian food. Everything was perfect even though it broke his pockets. Shaunice got her dream wedding in paradise. Erik takes a lone finger to smooth done his phone screen over Nicole's frame. Erik outlined the round slope of her breasts, the curvature of her broad hips, her curly tendrils blowing in her face. On his off day-this dreary rainy day, Erik watched movies on the sofa. One movie in particular stood out in his mind. The Time Traveler's Wife. Henry De Tamble suffered from a rare genetic disorder that causes him to drift uncontrollably back and forth through time. On one of his sojourns, he meets the love of his life, Claire, and they marry. Sadly, with his condition, Henry couldn't remain in one time and place, so that he and his beloved are continually out of sync.

That movie got Erik wondering about time travel and how he would use it. First, he would kiss his mother one final time before she passed away. Second, he would have that conversation with Arnelle again about whether or not he should take the next step with Shaunice. Lastly, he would be the one to meet Nicole and ask for her hand in marriage. Every time he has those thoughts, Erik feels instant guilt. He should be happy, right? He's married to a beautiful woman, has the job of his dreams, lives in a luxury penthouse overlooking downtown LA. One thing that most people can agree on is that being in a serious relationship automatically makes you a candidate for falling in love. For the romantics out there, being in love is basically the highest achievement that can be reached in terms of human interaction. That's what Erik witnessed with his parents and that's what he wanted for himself. Those romantics tend to scratch their heads when they see that someone isn't adhering to that notion. It comes as a big surprise when they see that a person is in a relationship with someone they don't love.

You can be in a relationship with someone you don't love. Each person who experiences this has a different reason but what drives a person is their own business. It can't be helped that there are people willing to sacrifice their own happiness for the sake of not inflicting pain on others. Some people stay in relationships with people they don't love because they feel that it's their duty or responsibility to stay, even when they don't feel anything for their partner. It could be a different kind of love. Just because they don't have romantic feelings does not necessarily mean that they don't love their partner, albeit in a different way. Dependency is another factor as to why people stay in unwanted marriages. Let's not forget financial stability. It's easy to get into a routine with someone and once that happens, it's hard to break out of it. Just like people get comfortable at jobs they don't like, the same sentiment can happen in relationships. It's far easier to keep up with the motions than shake things up with a breakup. Erik is feeling a little bit of each of those reasons.

But the good outweighs the negative. You both had memorable times.

Erik was so spaced out with his thoughts that he didn't hear Shaunce come in. Her hands on his shoulders brought him back to reality. Instead of being happy to see her, Erik was feeling suspicious. He shrugged her hands from his bare shoulders and stood up, fully facing her with his rage nearly consuming him to the point of combustion. Shaunice is wearing a woven, Fendi mini dress in black and white and black Bottega Veneta padded sandals. The round, brilliant cut of her multi-diamond engagement ring in 14k white gold reflected the lights as she swept wet strands of hair from her face. Her eyes sparked with concern at his angry expression.