Cliché Love

#6 Love isn't perfect

She felt her heart beat fast looking forward to the day she had planned for them. She knew he wasn't interested in celebrating their life together as much as she did but she couldn't let it go. They were together for four years. A lot of time, some would say. But she knew very little of him and him; of her but that didn't seem to stop her.

She unlocked the door of his  apartment with the key he had provided her not a year ago.
She heard noises, noises she would like to assume weren't coming from the bedroom. Not wanting to take to assumptions she walked slowly towards the familiar door she had been pushed against one too many times.

Soft whimpers and a voice of a girl could be distinguished in the still of the night.

She feared what was to come but anger coursed through her veins.
She pushed the door open see her fiancé and his secretary hugging in plain sight.

Her eyes watered but she tried to hold her own.

"David?" She croaked out. They separated ever so slightly hearing her voice. She saw his eyes widen confirming the occurrence of a scandalous affair.

"What is this?" She asked, her voice firm this time. She wanted him to deny it, tell her he wouldn't ever even think if doing anything like this but he stood there with his held hanging low.

"I-It isn't how it looks. It isn't his fa-ault, Miss Timber." The blonde hair girl stepped forward looking at her with watery eyes.

"Then how is it?" Her voice was void of emotions, she knew how to protect herself against such situations.

"I just had a very bad day." Her meek excuse did little to make the her satisfied but her trust in him helped her keep her glaze on him.

"As you see, Miss-" She looked at her expectedly for a name.

"Julia."

"As you see, Miss Julia. I'm not having a gala evening either. So, I'll give you another chance to explain yourself." Her strong voice made the petite girl standing in front of her shrink back.

"Astoria. Please. She has been fired." Her fiancé spoke trying to find ease her anger.

"So she's finding other ways to get her job back? Or another one as a mistress perhaps?" My harsh words pierced the thick atmosphere.

"Green isn't your colour, Astoria. You need to clam down, have a little faith." His relatively relaxed voice fueled her anger but she held her words, gulping the hatred.

"Julia and I have no relationship which could threaten ours, we are just friends. Please do understand." She run her hands through her hair pulling at them to make sense of the obvious situation.

"Can I have a moment with you. Alone." She stated rather than asked and looked pointedly at Julia who bent her head and proceeded to see herself out.

"Tell me truthfully, David. What was it that you were doing?" She searched his eyes, getting prepared to see the lie in them.

"Nothing. We had to cut off some employees today so she was on the list, her family- consisting of her ill husband and her one daughter- are in a very critical situation in their life. She has been a great assistant and I was just showing my condolences." His short brief explanation stood in between them and with every ticking minute the guilt on not trusting him dawned upon her. She looked closer into his eyes and there it was, a little flash of unfaithfulness.

"Oh. I'm sorry for jumping into conclusions. I'm not used to seeing my other hug other people moaning but it's my mistake, perhaps." Her words held the perfect amount of sarcasm and the perfect amount of guilt trip.

He was in no position to judge her rather, how could he? He was at fault here.

"Don't be this way, Astoria. I'm not lying." Lie. He was clearly lying, his eyes said so, his tone said so, his body language said so.

"I'll be whatever way I want to be, David. And I'd be far away from you. For days at a stretch I thought I was too clingy but the bitter truth is that, you were not committed. You could at least have the courtesy to admit your mistakes." She ranted on, anger tears making an appearance down her cheeks.

"What are you talking about? Stop assuming things! I love you, you know that. Please think this over, Astoria. I have no sexual connection with Julia. She loves her husband and I love my soon to be wife." Her mind became confused at the mixed signals it was getting from every direction.

"The truth, David. Please." Her voice held a tone indicating how much his wrong answer could cost him.

"Look, I'm sorry. Not everything i confessed is true." With those words he looked away and the pain that those few words caused her to seat herself on their bed.

"Julia isn't married, no. But I couldn't think of any other way to make you believe me. She has a daughter, that I didn't lie about. And I love you, I truly do. Please try and understand, there is nothing between Julia and I. I love you and only you." Truth rang in his words, the sincerity in them filled her eyes with tears of joy.

"Thank you." She whispered, still looking at her fingers tangled together.

"For what?" He inquired bending to look at her.

"For telling me the truth, for staying with me, for everything."

"Don't thank me for something that benefits me more than you." His light joke made her chuckle.

She realised love isn't perfect but there is a certain perfection in imperfection, she came to believe.

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