The Billionaire's Forced Alliance

Chapter Six

The day was here. Ben discarded the files of the upcoming projects on his desk as Thomas walked in. "Sorry to disturb, but you need to sign this, sir."

Ben sighed, "Oh, yeah," he took the documents, read them and signed, giving it back to him.

Thomas cleared his throat. "Uh, is anything wrong, sir?"

Ben didn't know what to say to him. Thomas was a good guy, he had combed black hair, a small timid frame, and round glasses. He peered curiously at his boss and adjusted his glasses as a nervous gesture. Ben huffed. "No, nothing's wrong, Thomas. Thank you. Go home, now. It's Sunday, anyways, but still I called you for these," He looked at the file and hummed.

Thomas grinned. "No, sir, it's completely alright. The file was important. Ah, I'm taking your leave, now."

As he watched his assistant leave the cabin, Ben splattered on his chair, dropping his head back in complete surrender. Today was the day, yes, the wedding day. It didn't seem like it, though. It was a plain, ordinary Sunday; the sky was blue, clear and endless, beaming atop his head like an enema of crystalline purity, He got up, advancing towards the big window, soaking in the view of New York City, the Big Apple. It was a city that never slept, to be honest.

The buildings dazzled in the sunlight, the streets full with people and vehicles, the sound of them completely shunned to him through the sound proof glass of the window. He could only see beaming faces, shining plethora of multi-storey buildings and the chaos, but he couldn't hear any of it. It took him long but he realised that's how his life was; he could see only from afar, but no sound reached his soul.

Nobody moved him, nothing moved him. No sound, no rhythm, no noise. He never wanted to be tied down in something as chaotic as marriage, but he couldn't help his fate. He was disinterested, to be exact. Yesterday night, he had video called Alex and before he could say anything to him, his friend had started bragging about how Isabella Group was gonna be super successful.

He wanted to tell Alex that he was getting married, but then he stopped himself. It wasn't a real marriage, and if Alex knew he had sacrificed his peace for the Group, he would get mad at him. He didn't want that. He couldn't believe four days had past. Every sane sense in him told him to run on his heels, but his determination had grown to another wavelength and now only death could stop him.

The details of the wedding were already messaged to him by Sanjeev. He opened the text, his eyes scanning the venue and the timing. Only an hour. He was already in a black tuxedo, so there was no point in worrying. Shutting down his laptop, he trod downstairs, closing his office. There was no one here but him. The silence was his favourite, and he took a deep breath, absorbing the tranquility in his cells, bidding it adieu.

His peace was gonna go away. It wasn't peace though, it was a still void that made him comfortable, that gave him moments of joy. It was a void that existed, that neither contained peace, nor chaos. His life was stagnant in between, not peaceful, not chaotic. He liked it like that. Too much noise outside haunted him, transported him back to the memories that he longed to forget.

He leaped inside his car, driving towards the venue, St. Patrick's Cathedral, located in midtown Manhattan. The drive wasn't that long, and within half an hour, he parked his car outside the church premises. He entered inside, noticing a few people wandering about the vast, green field that was spread before the sanctimonious structure.

Entering through the wooden door, he noticed Sanjeev and his wife, Shalini standing just beside the minister, talking to him. Ben was actually quite surprised to see the decorations and their attires. Sanjeev was decked up in a light blue Kurta, and with that, a pair of white, cotton pyjamas. He didn't know exactly how to perceive the kind of clothing, but it seemed like traditional Indian wear.