Unmasked: A New Beginning (Gabenath)

Chapter 4

Nathalie has been living the same cycle for the past weeks. Gabriel's been drinking a lot, and she doesn't know what to do to get him to stop. She feels like a failure. It's obvious that the conversation they had after their night together was useless because Gabriel is worse than ever.

Nathalie truly wishes she could help him, but it's hard when he doesn't seem to want any help.

Gabriel drinks at least three to four times a week, and when he's in his drunken state all he does is cry, and say that he is the worst father and worst person in the world. When he's sober he asks her to forgive him, and promises her that it won't happen again.

Lies, his promises are just lies. Gabriel promises her, he will stop drinking, but he just does it again, and again, and again.

Nathalie is exhausted, she sometimes wants to run away, run away as far as possible, but she can't do that, she can't abandon him. He needs her, and despite everything that has occurred she loves him so much,
She loves him so much that it makes her heart ache.

———

Nathalie sees him approaching her, so she just pretends to be reading the book that she has in front of her. Nathalie is sitting on a bench located in the garden. This has been her place for the past weeks. She hates waking up to a hungover Gabriel, and going out to the garden is usually the best way to avoid seeing him in that state.

"Good morning." He says.

"Good morning." She softly utters.

She stares at him for a while before saying,

"I guess all those promises you made to me, telling me you were going to stop drinking were lies right?" You always say you're going to stop drinking, but you simply just keep going back.

He doesn't say anything, he only turns the other direction to avoid her fiery gaze.

"I'm so scared Gabriel, you truly have no idea....
No idea how afraid I actually am. I'm afraid of what our lives are becoming, because this honestly is a terrible situation. The way you've been drinking is very bad. You're going to destroy yourself, please understand what I'm telling you, all you're doing is harming yourself and you're hurting me.... you're hurting me a lot."
She begins to sob, and desperately brings her hands to her mouth.

"Oh, my dear Nathalie, please don't cry. I'm so sorry, I hate seeing you cry, I'm sorry please, please forgive me.
I promise you that I want to stop, I really do, but for some reason I just go backwards, and do it again and again.
Forgive me,
Forgive me please, I beg you."

Gabriel comes close to her and wraps his arms around her in a very tight embrace. He places a kiss on the top of her head, and softly strokes her back.

Nathalie finally meets his gray eyes,
"Please Gabriel, you need to stop this, please think of your son. Do it for Adrien, you know Adrien needs you, and if you want him to be okay you must take care of yourself first."

He doesn't say anything and just goes back to embracing her.

———

Gabriel has been struggling with his emotions and his feelings, he hates seeing Nathalie suffer on a daily basis because of the situation they're in.
He really wishes to stop this cycle, but he can't seem to find an end to it. When he drinks he seems to be able to forget about his problems for a little while, until he wakes up sober with Nathalie crying because he has drank again.

———

As Gabriel thinks about these things, he suddenly hears Nathalie heaving in the bathroom. He quickly races to the bathroom to find Nathalie slouched over the latrine.