Burn the truth (ENG)

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"The man who took the wedding ceremony was not specialized."

"That means?" Faid insisted.

The lawyer's lips took a disgruntled shape. "That means the marriage will be declared invalid."

My world collapsed.

My internal organs pinched and pressed against my rib cage, eager to escape.

My heart worked to ram a hole in my chest and my eyes strained to hold back a tidal wave of emotion. Everything hurt.

I can't do this.

I can't do this.

I can't do th-

"Give us a minute," I heard Faid say, before escorting me outside.

My lips quivered as I struggled to hold it all together.

"Zara." Hands held my cheeks and I looked up into Faid's dark green eyes.

"F-faid," I stuttered with tears in my eyes. "I- I thought I was over that b-but-" A sob left my mouth. "Why does it hurt so much," I squeaked.

He put his arms around me and stroked my hair until I calmed down.

"Better?" asked Faid after a while and I nodded.

He took his arms away from me and I pulled back. His dark green eyes looked at me with concern.

With my fingers, I wiped my tears and coughed. My eyes rolled back to the door. "Are we going back in?"

Faid pierced his eyes into mine, but finally nodded.

We walked back into the office and the lawyer looked up.

He closed a tab on his laptop when we sat across from him. His fingers intertwined as he looked at me.

I swallowed a chunk.

"Do you want me to sue him for fraud?" he asked after a moment of silence.

I fiddled with my fingers as I shook my head. I did not.

Faid looked at me confused. "Why not?"

I didn't want to be constantly reminded of the fraud. I had enough of it. I had had enough of Imran.

I was tired of constantly crying. I wanted to pick up my life again. I wanted to live again.

"I want something different," I indicated. My hands slid to my bulging stomach. I looked up into the lawyer's eyes. "I don't want Imran to have any right to this child."

He tapped his finger against the black desk before nodding. "I will get to work immediately. You already have a head start because the child is a minor and therefore belongs to the mother until the 18th. If the mother is fully capable of taking care of the child."

A frown formed between his eyebrows. "Can you fully take care of the child?"

I nodded my head with confidence.

He nodded. "Then there is a good chance that we will win the case."

A relieved one left my mouth as I leaned back. "Great."

~

I sat on a plush couch in the hotel lobby. With a magazine in my hands, I leafed through boredom.

"Hey," I heard suddenly and looked up into Vico's golden eyes. A smile appeared on my lips.

I put the magazine back on the glass table and stood up.

He glanced at my outfit and nodded appreciatively. I was wearing a dark blue skirt with a length above the knees, combined with a white blouse. After a long time I had put on some make-up again and my curls were set.

I slung my handbag over my shoulder. "Show the way."

The corner of his mouth lifted for a moment as he guided us toward his office. When I couldn't keep up with his speed, I pulled on his arm.

He froze under my touch as he looked back.

I pointed to my stomach. "I'm carrying a baby here. Walk calmly, I can't bear it."

His eyes sparkled when he laughed at me. I pressed my lips together in discontent and walked past him.

Vico quickly caught up with me and this time walked calmly. "I'm sorry. I forgot for a moment that you were pregnant."

I rolled my eyes. "My stomach is literally sticking out."

"Zara, do you think I'll pay attention to that?" Vico indicated with an eye roll.

"I hear a man say that for the first time," I muttered in surprise.

"Well, you are someone's wife after all. It would be wrong to have a crush on someone who is already taken."

"Wife?" I laughed without humor.

Vico frowned in confusion. Realization dawned on him. "It's confirmed?" he asked as he opened the door to his office for us.

I looked away from him and walked inside. "Yes, we were never married."

My eyes rolled over his office. It looked simple.

A brown desk stood in the center of the office with two chairs facing it. On the desk was a laptop with several folders and a pen tray.

In the corner was a double sofa and in another corner was a cupboard with a coffee maker on top.

I took a seat opposite his desk. Vico sat down on the other side of the desk. "So you've never been Zara Tahir."

Tahir.

No.

It was Zara Raheem then. It's Zara Tahir now.

I shook my head, ignoring the pain in my chest. Instead, I crossed my legs and leaned forward. "I want to ask you something."

"Oh?" Vico raised an eyebrow.

"I want to work here."

He seemed surprised. "What happened to your previous work?"

"Fired for long absence," I simply muttered.

"Why don't you want to work at Faid?"

I fiddled with my finger as I stared at the pen tray. "Because Imran works there."

"Faid still works with him?" asked Vico surprised.

I nodded. "Imran is a partner of the hotel. We don't have enough money to take over his share."

When things weren't going so well at Faid's hotel, Imran came to our rescue. I didn't know him then. He invested in our hotel and automatically became a partner.

"You're going to give birth, Zara," Vico indicated.

No shit.

I rolled my eyes. "That's like after 5 months?"

Vico crossed his arms. "I can't offer you a job at the moment because you would have to get maternity leave. That's law I have to enforce in my hotel, if it is the case."

I leaned back disappointed.

"I could hire you after the pregnancy if you're still open to it," Vico muttered at my glance.

"Really?" I asked with hope in my voice as I looked at him.

Vico nodded with a smile. "Really." He studied my face for a moment before his eyes looked at me warmly. "I'm glad you're back on track."

A smile formed on my lips. "Me too."