The Last Time

The Vow

Unbeknown to you, Mark had taken a few days off of work to come up with a plan. Wanting to change the fate of his marriage, he had to find a way to gather the information he needed, knowing that you wouldn't give them to him willingly.

Laughing bitterly to himself, he couldn't believe that he had to conduct research on you — his own wife. Someone he considered his best friend and soulmate. You were someone he had known for a very long time — knowing you even more than you knew yourself — and it only took a couple of busy years with your careers to eradicate all of that knowledge.

With a heavy heart, Mark took the first step, observing your every waking moment to remember your routines. Breakfast routine, dinner routine, bedtime routine and the like. In the span of a few days, he started to understand what you meant about feeling like a stranger in your own home.

When Mark attempted to coexist his morning routine with yours like before, the encounter was awkward to say the least. This was particularly obvious the other morning when you both found yourselves in your ensuite and you couldn't even undress in front of him — your own husband — anymore.

Mark thought about it and for the life of him, he couldn't even remember the last time that you were both intimate with each other. What hurt more was the realisation that this awkwardness began way before you even brought up the divorce.

How could the both of you let this go on for so long?

xxx

The end of the working week had come along and Mark had taken another day off work to finish up his research, even though his work at the office was piling up. At that moment, the impending divorce demanded more of his attention than any potential client for his business. As soon as you walked out the door that morning, Mark headed up to the attic where he knew all the answers would be.

Grabbing two familiar looking boxes, Mark hauled them down to his makeshift office in the house, to look through. With a sigh, he paced the room, trying to pluck up courage to open them. Relenting, he ran over to his liquor cupboard underneath his desk, taking out the bottle of whiskey that he usually consumed when situations like this called for it.

With the burning liquid coursing through his veins, Mark picked up the first box — the red one. Remembering that red was your favourite colour, he guessed that the memories that held the most importance to you would be in there. Lifting the lid, he was proven right when he found a familiar wooden crate in it. Carefully, he picked up the crate and placed it on his desk before deciding to move on to the other.

Reaching for the second box, Mark carried it to the middle of the room and spilled the contents all over the floor once he'd sat down. Just as he expected, the box was filled with photos upon photos of your life together; memories that you both buried deep in the back of your minds. After hours of reminiscing and shedding tears about each photograph, Mark picked out his three favourites before shoving the rest back in the box.

The first picture was a gift from Jaebeom and was easily Mark's favourite out of the three. Jaebeom had sneakily snapped a shot of you and Mark at a college party — one from even before the two of you had started dating. The love that was blooming between you was obvious through the joy that exuded from the picture.

In the photo, Mark looked at you like you had hung the stars in the sky; his smile portraying pure happiness. You were sitting on his lap, arm around his shoulders, with your head leaning back from laughing at something he had said. Mark knew then, that you were the only one that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

Studying the second photo, Mark remembered that it was one that you had taken yourself, during the celebration of your sixth month anniversary. That day, Mark had taken you out for a drive and a picnic by the river. Sitting on the mat, you settled between his legs as you leaned back against his chest. Mark had his arms wrapped around you, occasionally dropping kisses on your cheek and on your temple.

Eventually, you suggested taking a photo to commemorate the occasion. Putting your phone camera on selfie mode, you held the shutter button down for it to take a burst of photos. Taking advantage of the opportunity, you turned to face him and told him that you loved him, for the first time. A look of pure elation with a hint of surprise filled Mark's features and delight was evident on your face, since your plan had worked.

Mark had been so happy that the moment was caught on camera as he had always wanted to remember that particular feeling. It was especially significant now that the feeling had been missing for awhile.

The last photo was from your wedding day, one that Mark had taken this time, during a break from the photography session between the ceremony and the reception. The session was held in a beautiful field of flowers — one of your favourite places to be — and you had wanted to have some time to enjoy your surroundings before finishing up. Mark remembered it as clear as day.

With the biggest smile on your face, you took your heels off and handed your bouquet to your Maid of Honour as you grabbed Mark's hand, dragging him to run across the field with you. Laughter filled the open air as you both lost yourselves to that moment.

"How do I look?" you asked, posing a few metres in front of him.

Mark took his time to observe you, trying to find the right words to answer your question. You were breathtakingly beautiful. The sun was setting behind you, creating a warm and golden hue around your figure. The cool breeze lifted your veil into the air along with some loose strands of your hair that had come out from your updo. With eyes crinkling from the smile you directed at him, Mark knew that you had never looked more beautiful.

Fishing his phone from his pocket, he snapped a shot of you to keep for himself. "You look incredible," he answered as he headed towards where you stood, cupping your face in hands once you were within reach. "I am the luckiest and happiest man to ever walk this Earth. I love you."

"I love you," you echoed his confession before leaning up to meet his lips in a loving kiss.

Back to reality, Mark touched his lips as he tried to remember what it was like to have the feeling of your lips on his. It had been such a long time since you last shared a kiss that he had almost forgotten what it felt like. How could he go without kissing you for so long?

Just as Mark thought that he had wasted enough of the day wallowing in his sorrows, his attention was brought back to the wooden crate that was still on the desk, taunting him. Trembling fingers glided on the oak surface until they reached their destination. Sighing, he lifted the lid.

Like he thought it would be, the wooden crate was filled to the brim with folded papers. Letters. Handwritten ones that he had given to you during the course of your relationship. From ones that he'd written as your secret admirer to ones that he had written once you started dating; continuously expressing his love for you. Mark was a man of very few words, but that apparently didn't apply on paper.

Reading through a couple of the letters, he laughed, cried and cringed at the words he shared with you. Grabbing the letter that was right at the bottom, Mark was shocked to find out that it was his vows that he'd written for your wedding day. His eyes glided through the words — promises that he had made to you — serving as a reminder of the love that he still had in his heart for you.

"My love,

I vow to fiercely love you in all your forms, now and forever. I promise to never forget that this is a once in a lifetime love. And to always know in the deepest part of my soul that no matter what challenges might carry us apart, we will always find our way back to each other."

A once in a lifetime love. Of course, how could he have forgotten?

Mark clutched his vows close to his chest, allowing his words to seep back into his heart. His words found home, strengthening his resolve to make everything right again. To make you love him again. Making a new vow, he promised to show that he deserved you, thus helping you remember your own promise to him.

"...to live within the warmth of your heart and always it call it home."

Mark vowed to help you find your way back home to him.