A Love Bargain

006: The wedding 3

Kachi

Love, to me, was nothing but a sham. A sham used to keep adults captive of each other, until either one of them gets tired and starts cheating and lying to the other.

When that time comes, they will learn just like I did.

I never blamed anyone in love though, because I was once like them. Stupidly in love, that was what I called it.

The corner of my lips pointed up in a smirk as I stared at the couple who were so in love with each other, they were playing a couple's game to entertain their guests, which I was one of anyway. I used to think one day, I would do the same, marry the love of my life and live together forever but not until my ex shattered the whole dream I built, the same day I planned to propose to her.

She threw five years of our lives together away just like that. Well, I wouldn't say she threw it away since I was the only one taking the relationship seriously, to begin with. Thank God I didn't kill her that day because I would have gone to jail, and destroyed my life.

I spent the first few weeks crying, yes I cried but no way I would do that ever again. I felt stupid, foolish, like I am so smart so why did I not know what was going on?

I spent the next few weeks asking Vera what I did wrong, why she destroyed what we had, if I wasn't good enough for her and if there was something I wasn't doing right but she never gave me answers.

I gave our relationship my all and treated her like she was my other half. That was why I couldn't get myself to love someone again, it felt like I already invested all my energy into an unfruitful one.

After going through the different stages of heartbreak and then healing, I believed. I decided to stay away from love and women became only a tool to satisfy my sexual desires. Thanks to my family and James who were there for me all through the time, because I went through hell, met the devil and came back to life.

Speaking of James, the man was seated beside me, at one of the round tables in the wedding venue. Peter was not just a colleague who worked for me at the hospital, he became a friend of I and James.

The bubbly atmosphere of the wedding and the happy faces of the guests, who came to celebrate with the couple, triggered the wound that I thought had already healed. Even though I had moved on, some things still made me think about the type of wedding and marriage I would have had with Vera, and right at that moment, I had a sudden urge to go out for a smoke.

Don't look at me like that.

I know that as a doctor, I was supposed to know the dangers of smoking, but doctors are human too and not like it was a common habit of mine. I only did it a few times when I had to calm my nerves.

I shifted my gaze to James who was laughing, at the entertainment just like every other guest. He had on all-white traditional clothing just like me. I wondered when we started matching outfits because we didn't discuss what we would be wearing. We even had a pair of Louis Vuitton shoes on. Well, I could remember we bought the shoes when we went on a trip to the US but must we have them on at the same time? Thank God that at ceremonies like this, people dressed alike. So other people had on similar styles and colours of our outfits, if not one might think we were a couple, matching outfits.

I leaned closer to James and whispered to him, "I want to go out for a smoke."

He tilted his face to me, with raised brows, "Smoke at this time of the day? Under this scorching sun? Why don't you just sit here man, enjoy the party?"

I tsked, rolled my eyes at him and then rose to my feet, attracting some people's attention to myself.

Who cares about the scorching sun?