Bitter sweet affair

Chapter 45 - Pretense

Five Years Ago.
"Just in. It has been brought to our notice, that the power couple has split up. Their marriage was the talk of the town, one of the best. You're probably wondering who, it's none other than, the CEO- my bad. Former CEO of Davies' cooperations. Andre Davies, and Reyna Neil of Neil's family. Rumor has it that they got divorced because, Andre was a cheating spouse, others say Reyna was a gold digger and that she absconded with the majority of his wealth and made him silently divorce her, using the fact that he was head over heels for her... But, how can she be a gold digger when she's from one of the wealthiest families?..( chuckles)
That's why it's just rumored. The unanswered question is- why did they get divorced? They looked perfect for each other, like matching pairs of limited edition sneakers. ( Laughs) but it's true. Anyways, that's all for now, we'll be back after the break" the news anchor said.

"I can't believe she went through with this" Mrs. Neil charged at the remote and threw it at the tv creating a huge dent.

Rich people attitude. They could easily replace it in a splitting second.

"The news is fake right? I wonder if Reyna's alright" Mr. Neil said grabbing his phone to place a call across to Reyna. But, unfortunately, the number wasn't reachable.

Mrs. Neil was fuming already, he turned to her and asked.
"You know something I don't right?"
"Well, Reyna came here months ago, claiming Andre was physically assaulting her and that she wanted to think about the marriage, if she wanted it at all. But, I'm sure he wasn't hurting her and that she desperately wanted to get out of the marriage... And she succeeded" She said without remorse.

Mr. Neil couldn't believe his ears, he didn't know how to react, his daughter was dying silently in a marriage and he wasn't aware, he'd promised himself that he wouldn't make the same mistakes with Reyna, he had hurt one daughter with his poor decision and he wouldn't do that to the other but now.. he stood still, unable to move. Then he felt a sharp pain in his chest and he collapsed. He was rushed to a hospital, and Annie was called in.

It turns out he had a heart attack.
"Annie, I don't know what I'll do If anything happens to-
"Save it, mom, you don't have to pretend to care. You haven't spoken to me in years, don't start now. I can't help but think that all the bad things happening is your fault. You're.. just so manipulative... You managed to have dad wrapped around your fingers, making him do your bidding, on the pretense of love. Have you ever known what love is? You ruined my chance at love mom. I broke up with the one guy I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, just to please you. And got married to the man of your choice, who molested me "

She paused, trying to keep her emotions in check. Mrs. Neil looked shocked.
"Gosh, don't act oblivious. You knew, you knew I was dating someone and that it was serious. But for your selfish intentions --"
She paused to wipe her tears. Mrs. Neil approached her and tried to hold her but she pulled back.

"Don't touch me. Enough about me. If anything happens to my dad, I'll drag you to Court and sue you till you lose all that damn money of yours. Mark my words" she threatened.

She turned to leave and caught Archie standing by the corner. She couldn't have been happier to see him. She'd called him over.

"Hey--
She threw her arms around him, holding him close to her body. She'd missed his warmth, how her body eased up whenever he hugged her.
"I'm sorry, but can we stay like this for a while?" She said.
He hadn't reciprocated the hug yet, but when she said that, he put his arms around her, gently stroking her hair.

"It's alright to cry. I'm here for you, you're not alone" he comforted her.

Her dad was conscious and she was allowed to see him.
"Dad" she threw her arms around him crying.
"Annie.."
"It's me, dad," she said pulling away and holding his hands.
"What happened to Reyna? Please tell me"
She told him everything and he had tears In his eyes.
"Where's she now?"
"Norway. But I haven't been able to get in touch with her since she left. Which is two months ago, I'm sure she's fine" she assured him.

"I lied Archie," she said with tears in her eyes as they sat in the hospital's lobby.
"About?"
"I lied to my dad that Reyna's fine. But I haven't heard from her since she left and I'm worried. She's alone in a foreign land with an unborn baby. What if -
"Shh... I'm sure she's trying to adjust. She'll call you soon, don't worry too much Annie" he said holding her hands.

"I'll drop you off at home"
"Thanks, but I want to be by his side"
"I understand but not like this. You'll make him worried with your constant tears"
"I can't help it."
"That's why you need to go home, pull yourself together, rest, and come back to take care of him," he said and she was convinced. She needed to pull herself together.

On getting home.. she broke down again on the couch, and all her bottled-up emotions came flooding. Archie pulled her into his strong arms.
"It's gonna be okay. I won't leave your side until it is"
She held on tight to him.
"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry Archie"
She said. She'd wanted to apologize for the longest time.
"Why are you apologizing?" He asked puzzled.
"I'm sorry Archie, and I miss you" she cried more.

"I'm right here"
She shook her head " No, I miss us. I can't stop thinking about you and us. I hope you'll give us another shot"
He pulled away.
"This isn't the right time to talk about the past, your dad's unwell and last I remembered you left me for someone you loved"

She shook her head again " I lied. I've only ever loved one person and that's you"
"Why do I find that hard to believe?"
"Archie, I... My mom.. made me do it. She forced me into an arranged marriage with a middle-aged man and I was... Molested" she cried harder.
He wasn't as shocked as expected. He'd overheard her conversation with her mom but he didn't fully believe it.

"I still love you. I was so glad when we started talking again. I was sad when I broke us up"
"Annie, I'm gonna need time to process." He said about leaving.

She hugged him from behind.
"Please don't go. Please come back to me, I'm sorry."
"You didn't trust me enough Annie. You didn't... if you had told me rather than breaking up over text we wouldn't be having this conversation" he was holding back. He wanted her back too...

He just did not want to rush things, he wanted to see how sincere she was.
"Archie, you're probably better off without me," she said defeated.
"You don't need someone like me...
You clearly deserve better." She said letting go of him.

She sat back as she watched him approach the door. He turned back and walked back to where she was,
"I still love you too. Do you?" He said with a smile.

was he pretending to reject her?

"I do," she said with a smile.
"Let's seal that"
"How?-
She was cut off by a quick peck on the lips.
She blushed."I missed you"
"I missed you more"
"Don't ever look down on yourself again. I never should have given up on us" he said and
She just replied by hugging him.