Sonata of The Shattered | Book I

No Doubts

30 May 2022

She received an email from a woman named Melissa, but she had no recollection that the woman was the one that her friends talked about during their reunion weeks ago. To be exact, she couldn't remember the name of Clayton's wife as they were half-drunk at that time. It's not clear what she would like to discuss but she's guessing it's art and design, or perhaps things related to education as she's in those fields.

As soon as she arrived at the fine dining restaurant, the woman was approached by a waitress there. "Have you made a reservation, Miss?" asked the waitress politely. Fransesca nodded. "I believe my colleague did. Her name is Melissa Liu. Is she here already?" Fransesca replied.

The waitress nodded and led her to a private room on the second floor, where she met the lady for the first time. The lady who's using Clayton's surname legally in a position as his wife, without Fransesca realizing for sure. There were so many things that she should memorize and remember, names were one; but she always failed on that one.

"Miss Fransesca Adelaidine."

Fransesca curtsied at her and smiled. "Mrs Melissa Liu, thank you for inviting me over a meal today. I would be more than happy to discuss the matters you wanted to talk about." she said. Melissa gestured to the woman older than her to take her seat before her.

Slowly, Melissa sat herself down as the pain started to strike her in the stomach again. Always uninvited, inevitable as well. Yet, she never wanted to show her suffering in front of everyone. Not even the slightest facial expression change or a gesture on her body. She kept it by herself, trying to stay strong.

Shafa, Melissa's secretary, soon entered the room as she needed to hand the woman an urgent paperwork that needed to be signed by the woman. But, she made a mistake. She made a mistake that turned the meeting between the two upside down.

"Mrs Kingsley, I'm sorry to interrupt but there's an urgent paper that needs to be signed right now. Everyone is waiting."

Right, that name. That surname that Shafa mentioned to address the lady in front of her quickly made Fransesca confused, before she started to realize that she's currently talking with Clayton's wife. The woman that the man he loves so dearly married. Melissa signed the paper without having a second thought but Fransesca quickly stood up from the chair.

"Mrs Kingsley, I don't think we have anything to discuss. I'll leave."

Fransesca stood up and quickly walked herself towards the door until Melissa soon realized that the woman older than her knew who she was. The woman knew her status and perhaps, mistook it just like how everyone has been. At least, in the public.

"I have something to talk to you about. I swear I'm not going to do anything bad to you, I just want to talk with you about the past and what I wanted to say." Melissa quickly stood up and tried her best to stop Fransesca from leaving. Her steps were paused, as she heard the short explanation from Melissa. "I can't think of any." Fransesca replied.

"I insist. I insist you stay here, Miss Fransesca. I may be his wife, but it was an arranged marriage. We never love each other. We never even consummate our relationship. I love someone else and Clayton is still in love with you. Madly." Melissa shot her sentences, causing Fransesca's heart to stop beating. Her eyes were red as she tried to hold back all the sudden emotions that came up.

"It's in the past, Mrs Kingsley. I have no wish to disturb your marriage with him, with or without knowing the situation between you beforehand. I'm not going to be a third wheeler in a marriage no matter what and I'm living my best life here without him." Fransesca responded, but she didn't turn her head or body facing the woman. She doesn't want the younger one to know how hard she tried to not cry at this point.

The past that she tried to bury so hard, being brought up to the surface once again. Once again... and her heart felt the aching pain.

"Would you please help me? I'm dying, Miss Fransesca. I'm dying here. It's not my heart, my soul and my body are dying. I'm in the fourth stage of stomach cancer. I know my time is not that long and I want to help you, I want to help him... to reunite just how it is supposed to be. I want you to take care and love him after my death. I can't give him the love he always wanted, because I, myself, was in love with another man even prior to our marriage. We came to this agreement; that we'll stay as a husband and wife just for our family." Melissa begged. "I beg you. I beg you with all that I have and all that I can do. I know you're also in love with him all these time. I know it, because you have never been in another relationship after he left."

Fransesca turned her body around and faced the woman as she wiped her tears away from her cheeks. "You know nothing about me. Keep Clayton for yourself and make him the happiest while you can. I don't have any responsibilities to do so. I'm no one, now and whatever will happen. I'm someone in the past you don't need to bring up."

"You're someone, Miss Fransesca. The one he loves. The one he dreamt of every single day. The one he ached and longed for."

"Mrs Kingsley, I suggest you stop. I'm leaving."

"You're someone in his life. You're his daughter's mother too."

Her heart dropped as she heard the final sentence that Melissa said to her. You're his daughter's mother too. That's what she said. The one thing she kept in secret for so long, so hard, she knew about it. She knew about Christine's presence and how she's related to the man.

"She's not his daughter. She's my daughter from my ex. I'm the one who rejected the man in the past so no, I'm not in love with him. Not once or even now."

Lie. She lied to the woman about Christine's father. Fransesca Adelaidine has never been in any relationship in her life. Even when she's with Clayton, they weren't in a relationship. He loves her and she rejects him. She gains sexual pleasure from him and that's all.

That's all... until she realized that she loves him when he's gone. When he left her alone.

"So, Mrs Kingsley, leave me alone. Will you?" she smiled at her slightly before she rushed herself out from the private room, leaving the restaurant as fast as she could while she cried. While she cried badly from all the things that came to her. Her heart, once again, was overwhelmed with things she never wanted to cope with.

The truth.

to be continued.