Unbreakable

21

1

The wedding dress was beautiful; Aileen couldn’t help admitting as she watched it. It was a strapless dress with a simple bodice, but the skirt, as if to contrast with the simplicity of the top, consisted of layers of chiffon on top of one another, creating a wave-like pattern. There was a ribbon wrapped around the waist, a blue one; she’d only gotten it after her sister claimed that the dress needed a pop of color. As if a white dress on her dark skin wouldn’t be noticeable in the first place. Though it did all come together better than she could’ve ever expected, especially since she barely spend any time looking for it.

Yet, still… She absolutely hated the dress.

She could feel a crinkle forming on her forehead as her eyes traveled on it, a part of her just wanting to rip it apart or throw it out of the window—just get rid of it. She’d hoped… She’d hoped if she hung it in a place she could see, she’d grow to like it, but…it was yet to happen. Though it wasn’t that surprising that she despised the dress. It wasn’t so much about what it was, but what it symbolized. A wedding. Marriage. Commitment. Happiness. Love.

Everything she ought to feel a day before her wedding…but didn’t.

People should be happy on their wedding days, right? Well, a day before their wedding, but it was…it was still the same logic. Marrying the person you loved, promising to be together with them as long as you lived… That was something everyone looked forward to. And she…she’d gotten especially lucky in that department. Keith, her fiancé and soon to be husband, was an amazing guy. Not only he was good-looking, with his short blonde hair and green eyes, but he was also incredibly nice. She didn’t even know how else to describe him. During the two years she’d known him, he’d proven to be loyal, responsible, disciplined, caring, kind… She could go on, and still there wouldn’t be enough good adjectives to describe him. And… And on top of that, he got along really well with Amelia. He was one of the rare guys she’d met that didn’t freak out about her having a child. Most of them ran away the moment they heard that, but Keith… He’d stuck around, and not only that, he’d taken care of Amelia; he’d offered her a love that surprised even Aileen sometimes. He’d become the father figure Amelia needed and deserved. She should be more than happy to be marrying a guy like that, someone who was so much better than he could ever be.

No. No, she would not think about him, especially not today. She had a wedding to get ready for, and the last thing she wanted was to mope over someone that didn’t deserve even one drop of her tears. In fact, she should be laughing, dancing, happy despite what he’d done to her, show him that she didn’t need him to be happy.

Fortunately, right at that second the doorbell rang, saving her from her own thoughts. She immediately shook off the sadness as she turned around and tiptoed out of her room, as to not wake Amelia up. It was early in the morning, barely 9 a.m., and it was a Saturday; the girl deserved to sleep on a day off from her kindergarten.

She closed the door of her bedroom behind her before she moved to the front door, opening it to reveal a grinning Deana. Relief washed over Aileen’s shoulder at that. She’d asked her to come and pick Amelia up, at least for a couple of hours, so that she could have some time for herself to…think, and sort things out. Now that all the wedding preparations were complete and she didn’t have anything to keep herself busy with, all of her thoughts, hesitations, doubts…sadness…pain…were catching up to her, and she didn’t want Amelia to be there to witness it. The little girl had a way of seeing through her mother whenever she was sad, as if they had some psychic mother-daughter connection, so Aileen was sure she’d know that something was up. And the last thing she wanted, before the wedding, was to upset Amelia because the little girl been so excited when she found out her mother was marrying Keith. Aileen didn’t want to crush her hopes with her own feelings. Amelia deserved better than that.

Good morning! Deana cheered, strolling in when Aileen stepped back. The woman found herself smiling at her sister’s joy. And she knew deep down that it wasn’t because of the wedding—if there was one more person that was as reluctant to go through with it as she was, it was her sister. Yet… Yet Deana also knew that she couldn’t change Aileen’s mind, and she understood why she was doing it, so since that was settled, all she could do was be there for her little sister, try to cheer her up and put a smile on her face. Look what I brought you. Deana whirled around at that to face Aileen, lifting her hands to reveal two cups of coffee and a bag of doughnuts. Aileen could feel her mouth watering even at just the mention of the sugary goodness.

You’re amazing, she told Deana as she grabbed the doughnuts from her hand and walked to the couch. She plopped down. I love you. She ignored the fact that she hadn’t even had her breakfast as she opened the package, grabbing one of the chocolate-glazed doughnuts. Her favorite. Have I mentioned how much I love you? She buried her face into it, losing herself at the chocolate explosion in her mouth for a couple of seconds, as Deana sat down next to her. Her smile was still on her face, as Aileen saw through the corner of her eyes, yet this time… This time it didn’t reach her eyes.

Yeah, you’ve said it a couple of times, she mused with a shrug, bumping her shoulder against Aileen’s, before her expression turned into a serious one. Aileen felt her stomach dropping at that, knowing what was coming afterwards, and continued chewing on her doughnut, albeit a bit slowly now. She’d suddenly lost her appetite with Deana’s tone. How are you feeling?

Aileen couldn’t help shooting a glare at her sister. Deana pressed her lips together and nodded. Right. Of course. Not good. Noted.

Thot’s not… Aileen tried to say, her voice sounding unintelligible because of the piece of doughnut in her mouth. She tried again after swallowing it. That’s not true. I’m happy. She looked at her sister, licking her lips to get one last taste of the chocolate glaze, yet even that failed to make Deana laugh. Aileen pressed her lips together and forced away the feeling that was squeezing her heart. "I’m happy, Deana," she repeated, as if emphasizing happy would make it more real.

It didn’t.

Aileen, you do know that repeating something doesn’t make it more believable, right? Deana asked as she scooted closer to her sister, watching her every move as Aileen grabbed another doughnut from the package. She pursed her lips at it without taking a bite, so much so that Deana finally put a hand on her shoulder and leaned forward to look at her eyes. This is about Keith and the wedding, isn’t it?

Aileen scowled at Deana at that, and when she saw her opening her mouth again she shoved the doughnut in it in order to keep her quiet. No, she argued, feeling a crinkle forming between her brows. And no matter how much she tried, she couldn’t get rid of the damn thing. No, she said again, more weakly this time, as Deana sent a non-amused look her way and pulled the doughnut out of her mouth. She chewed and swallowed at an incredible speed, interjecting Aileen before she could say anything else.

You’re crinkling, she pointed out, her eyes flickering to Aileen’s forehead briefly. Aileen scowled again at that, knowing it only deepened her crinkle—damn crinkle, giving her away whenever she tried to lie—at least until she felt her sister’s hand over hers. Her eyes were shining with genuine concern, something that put Aileen into a serious mood almost immediately. Even though she knew exactly what Deana would say. Even though she could recite her words at that point, for she had heard them way too often. You don’t have to marry Keith if you don’t want to, Aileen.

Aileen couldn’t even muster a sigh as she ducked her chin, wondering how the words still felt like a blow to the chest, even after hearing them too many times. And… And she knew why. Because Deana was wrong. It didn’t matter that she didn’t want to marry Keith, or she wasn’t in love with him. It didn’t matter that Keith didn’t make her happy like…like he once did: the kind of happiness that brought butterflies to your chest and made you feel invincible—like you could do everything as long as you tried. It didn’t matter that she didn’t feel that when she was with Keith, because at the end he would be an amazing husband and a father, and Amelia would have the family she deserved. Aileen was not about to let him take that away from her; she would never let Amelia live without a family just because he was nothing but a selfish, uncaring, manipulative jerk.

You and I both know that that’s not true, Deana, Aileen countered, her voice breaking mid-sentence. She pressed her lips together to pull herself together, and when she was sure her voice wouldn’t shake, she continued. It’s not about what I want. From the way pain flickered in Deana’s eyes, she knew that her sister understood she was talking about Amelia, her daughter, her baby girl, who mattered more than anything in the world for Aileen, even her own life and happiness. If being with someone she didn’t love meant that Amelia could have a proper family, then she’d do it in a blink, no question.

Then at least try to be happy, Deana said almost as an answer to her words, putting a hand on Aileen’s knee. Amelia can see through you whenever you’re sad. If she knew that you weren’t excited for the wedding…

I know, Aileen whispered, cutting Deana’s words and pressing her fingers to her temples. She closed her eyes briefly. Trust me, I know. I’ll… She took a deep breath and forced her lips to curl into a smile, no matter how sour or fake it felt. I’ll try. Deana searched her face for a couple of seconds at that before a smile pulled her lips too, yet from the way it didn’t reach her eyes, Aileen understood that the smile she’d faked wasn’t so convincing. She hoped Amelia wouldn’t be able to see that.

Anyway, she said, partly to change the subject, partly because she wanted to be alone as soon as possible, let me get that little monster up before it’s too late. Deana only nodded as an answer before Aileen tiptoed back into her and Amelia’s room, walking around her bed to Amelia’s slightly smaller one. An almost smile pulled her lips at the sight of the little girl, spread under her pink blanket with her feet peeking out from underneath, her dark brown curls spread on her face. She looked so innocent, so peaceful sleeping that for a moment, Aileen didn’t have the heart to wake her up, but instead just wanted to stand there and watch her little baby for a couple of seconds more, who continuously reminded her that despite the fact that her relationship with him crashed and burned in the most horrible way, something good had come out of it. Amelia Lucille Raid.

Aileen managed to snap out of her stupor in a couple of seconds and leaned over the bed, gently pushing Amelia’s hair away from her face and putting a kiss on her temple. Hey sweetie, she whispered, kneeling down to get eye-level with her. Amelia didn’t even move at first, still asleep, reminding Aileen of how hard it was to wake him up, too. She quickly pushed away that thought and focused on Amelia, cupping her cheek. Come on, it’s wakey-wakey time, she continued, a bit louder this time. That made Amelia stir in her sleep as her eyelids flickered briefly, filling Aileen’s chest with hope that maybe this time it would be easy to wake her up…at least until she buried her face in her pillow and groaned. Even though it sounded unintelligible, Aileen knew exactly what she was saying. Five more minutes. And she knew from experience that allowing those five minutes did not end well.

But Aunt Deana is here, Aileen objected, wrapping a strand of Amelia’s hair around her fingers, and she’ll take you out for breakfast. With that Amelia stilled, moving her head away from her pillow, her face scrunched up as she listened intently despite her closed eyes. Aileen couldn’t help smiling. She promised me that if you wake up right now, you might even get pancakes. With that Amelia’s eyes snapped open almost immediately. Despite the fact that she’d just woken up, they didn’t look sleepy at all, they were shining in a perfect combination of gray and blue, just like his always did.

Pancakes? she asked in a small voice, searching Aileen’s face as if to see if she was telling the truth. The corners of Aileen’s lips tipped up.

Uh-huh.

With mapye syrup? Aileen couldn’t help laughing at the fact that Amelia still struggled to pronounce her Ls, despite turning five a couple of months ago. Granted, it was still young for her to talk perfectly, but still Aileen found her mistakes utterly adorable.

Uh-huh. But only if you get yourself out of the bed right now, she said to her daughter as she straightened up, knowing Amelia would be all up for it since Aileen didn’t always let her eat pancakes. The girl had a tendency to go…overboard with them, and one time, a year ago, she’d eaten them so fast that Aileen got worried she might get sick. Ever since then…sugar was limited to Amelia. Especially if she ended up liking it as much as he did…

Amelia jumped out of the bed so quickly, taking Aileen out of her thoughts, that she didn’t even have time to be surprised. The little girl swung her legs down her bed.

Pancakes! she clapped, a grin on her lips, trying to rush at the bedroom door from under Aileen’s arm, her pajama pants brushing the floor. Aileen grabbed her from the waist and lifted her up in her arms as a laugh burst out of her chest. She extended her hands to the door. Mommy, pancakes!

You will get them, I promise, Aileen promised as she put Amelia down on her bed. Her daughter was looking at her with pursed lips and wide eyes, her curly hair falling over her shoulders in a knotted mess, her pajama top slipped down her shoulder. She looked exactly like one of those naughty children in the movies that always made Aileen laugh—though at those times she hadn’t realized how hard it would be to have a daughter like that, and especially to raise her alone. But first we need to get you dressed, she continued, shaking away her thoughts and bumping Amelia’s nose with her index finger. You don’t want to go out in your PJs, right? The girl pursed her lips as her shoulders slumped.

No, she mumbled quietly. Aileen chuckled at that.

Good. Then wait here, she said as she turned around, walking to her closet to grab something for Amelia to wear. She deliberately ignored the wedding dress hanging on the door and instead went directly to Amelia’s clothes. She took the first thing that came to her hand, which was a pink plaid dress that she remembered Keith bought a couple of months ago for Amelia’s birthday. And she only knew that because she would never get something plaid, knowing the significance of it. This might be the only plaid thing in her house. But… Well, it was from Keith, and Amelia loved everything that Keith gave her, so she refused to get rid of it. Besides, it went really well with Amelia’s light brown skin tone, just like…

Seriously, Aileen needed to stop comparing every single one of Amelia’s actions to him. Of course there was a part of her that inadvertently did that, still, even after six years, yet it had become more and more frequent in the last couple of days, so much so that at this point it became utterly annoying. It was as if some part of her was trying to prevent her from going through with the marriage, reminding her that there was certain someone that she still couldn’t forget.

And all she could say to that part of her brain was that that asshole wasn’t in her life anymore, not for the last six years, and it was about time she forget him. All he’d done was break her heart anyway.

She immediately pushed away any thoughts of him as she got out of the closet, lifting the pink dress in the air. Amelia’s eyes almost lit up at that as she started grinning. Well, Aileen wasn’t lying when she said Amelia liked the dress. If it was up to her, she’d wear it every day.

It took about five minutes to get Amelia into that dress, brush her hair to get rid of the knots, and tie it in two cute pigtails. By the end she looked like a little princess, sitting on the edge of the bed, humming a song Aileen didn’t even recognize as she slipped her brown flat shoes on her feet. She then smiled up at her daughter, squeezing her thighs briefly. All ready to go! she announced, and with that…Amelia let out a small scream as she pushed Aileen away and skipped to the door, opening it on her second attempt with her little hands, and rushed into the living room. All Aileen could do was follow her with a laugh on her lips. She found her on the couch with Deana, straddling her as she let out a small chuckle.

Hey, little princess, she said as she pulled one of Amelia’s pigtails. Amelia didn’t even seem to mind it as she giggled, putting her hands on her aunt’s shoulders and looking at her intently.

Will we get pancakes? she asked out of the blue, before she even said good morning or anything else. Aileen had to press her lips together to keep herself from laughing as she stood in front of the couch, watching Amelia and Deana, wondering how she’d gotten so lucky to have…this in her life. A family. Something she could call home, especially after what happened, especially after thinking she’d never belong somewhere again. But now, looking at Amelia and Deana… She realized she had a home, she had somewhere she belonged. Maybe… Maybe this wasn’t exactly what she planned for her future—she especially wasn’t planning on having a child when she was barely 23—but that didn’t mean this wasn’t good. It might not be perfect, but it was…good. She was at least content with it.

What, not even a good morning for your aunt? Deana asked, taking Aileen out of her thoughts. Amelia pursed her lips at that, completely ignoring Deana’s question.

Pancakes? she said again, and this time neither woman could help their laughs. Yet still, Aileen could see the confusion in Deana’s eyes as she lifted her brows at her. She sighed exasperatedly.

It was the only way to get this little monster out of the bed, she explained as she plopped down on the couch, right next to Deana. So I hope it isn’t too much to ask you to take her to her favorite pancake place? Deana just chuckled exasperatedly at that, looking at Amelia’s hopeful expression, giving it a couple of seconds before she answered.

Fine, okay, yes. We’ll get you pancakes. And the smile that appeared on Amelia’s face at that, was worth the decision. She clapped her hands excitedly as she shifted in Deana’s arms to look at her mother.

Yay! Pancakes! She hugged Deana again, resting her cheek on her shoulder. Aileen smiled at that briefly before she leaned forward.

Amelia? she said to get the little girl’s attention. Amelia’s steel gray eyes snapped open, focused at Aileen through her lashes. What did we say when someone did something for us, do you remember? Amelia was usually good at this sort of stuff, unless she got way too excited about something, which she occasionally did. It took her a couple of moments to remember, and then she lifted her head.

Thank you, she told Deana in a confident but thin voice, making Aileen’s chest flutter with pride. Sometimes, it amazed her how smart her daughter was. She was definitely mature for a 5-year-old, as if she also had to grow up fast with Aileen, who had to accommodate to working and taking care of a child, alone, right after college. It had been…a challenge, yes, but the outcome had been worth it.

You’re welcome, Deana told Amelia at that, grinning at her, before she lightly slapped the girl’s back. Now we should get our butts out of here before the restaurant is out of pancakes, right? She grabbed Amelia by the waist and put her on the floor lightly at that. Aileen couldn’t help glaring at her.

Deana, language! she warned her sister. All Deana did, as Aileen followed them to the door, was chuckle at that and glance at her over her shoulder.

She’s bound to learn it sooner or later, Aileen, she said with a shrug as she grabbed the door’s handle. All Aileen could do was roll her eyes at that and ignore her sister as she knelt down, grabbing Amelia’s arm softly so that she can turn to her. She smiled and tapped on her cheek.

Give your mother a kiss, she said, her smile widening when she saw Amelia beaming at her. The girl reached forward and wrapped her arms around her mother before planting the kiss she wanted on her cheek. Amelia was smiling widely too as she pulled back.

Love you, mommy, she said, and then, in a matter of seconds, all that forgotten, she turned to Deana, grabbing her hand to pull her outside. But we have to go! We can’t be late for pancakes! Deana only chuckled at her niece, shaking her head, but when she turned to her little sister, a serious look crossed her eyes. She leaned forward to press a kiss on Aileen’s cheek.

I know Amelia’s happiness is important, Aileen felt her whisper in her ear, too low for Amelia to ear. Deana rubbed her arm at that as she continued. But your happiness is important too. Don’t forget that. And with that she pulled back with a wave, closing the door after herself and Amelia, leaving Aileen in the middle of her living room, stunned.

Aileen couldn’t do anything for a couple of moments, thinking about her sister’s words. Because…if Deana was right…that meant she couldn’t go through with the marriage. She wasn’t happy with Keith, not really. Yes, she might be smiling, laughing, and she might have moments of happiness, but it never lasted. It wasn’t… It wasn’t true, fulfilling happiness that you felt every day of your life.

But that didn’t matter. That was what she reminded herself as she shook her head and went to make herself coffee. The fact that she wasn’t happy or in love with Keith didn’t matter, not when Amelia’s happiness was in question.

She grabbed her coffee and went to sit on the armchair by the window, watching the sun rise in the sky. Her mind drifted off at her relationship with Keith and how they’d gotten to the point they did, because… She knew she wasn’t in love with him when she started dating him. Yet she hoped that, over time, slowly, she’d fall for him. He was an amazing guy after all; not falling for him would be the ridiculous thing. Yet still, after three years, she felt nothing more to him than she did when they first met. Certainly not like how she once felt about…

Him.

It’d just been way too easy to fall in love with him. Granted, they were in high school when they met, freshman year, and in those years falling in love was all everyone wanted. All she wanted…and in that mentality, it was really so easy to fall for anyone that showed a bit of interest in you. But with him… It’d been different. Something that Aileen couldn’t pinpoint, not immediately at least. They hadn’t fallen in love quickly; in fact, it’d taken them a year and a half to officially start dating, three times the time it took her to get together with Keith. But that wasn’t because he was hard to love. It was because being with him came so easy to her that it’d taken both of them quite a bit of time to realize that they felt more for each than mere friendship. But ever since they got together… They’d become inseparable. They hadn’t broken up, not even once. They fought, of course, often; their personalities were quite different from each other, yet at the end of the day they always stood by each other, cared about each other, loved each other. People always said that high school relationships rarely lasted in long-term, but they…they’d lasted. For more than six years they’d lasted, at least until…

She immediately shook away those thoughts, not wanting to think about him more that day, and instead focused on her coffee. Keith. Amelia. Anything else. Because… Because no matter how her relationship with him might’ve been, no matter how long it might’ve lasted in the past, at the end it had ended, which meant she should look forward and move on. With someone like Keith, who loved Amelia so much, whom Amelia loved so much, and who was ready to take the role of Amelia’s father so willingly that it sometimes amazed even Aileen. Of course Amelia knew Keith wasn’t his father, that much Aileen had to tell her when she asked about it, and she knew her daughter was still wondering who her father was, but recently… Recently, ever since she’d gotten closer with Keith, her questions about her father became less and less frequent, especially after Aileen told her that he abandoned them, he didn’t care about them, and they deserved much better than someone like him.

She was so lost in her thoughts that it took her some time to realize her coffee was finished. She stood up, ready to dump the cup in the trash can, at least until she heard a knock on her door. Her brows knitted as she looked at the time. She hadn’t been expecting anyone to come, especially not at this early in the day, and there was no way Amelia and Deana had returned so early. Amelia had a tendency to eat slowly, and since she ate a lot it took quite a bit of time for her to be finished with a meal.

But then who could’ve come?

Thinking Deana might’ve forgotten something, or Keith might’ve wanted to surprise her, she went to the door, completely forgetting to look through the peephole with her exhaustion before she threw it open. And she came to a complete stop when she saw who was behind it. She couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t even think as her mind took in the man standing in front of her with his hands tucked in his pockets, wearing a black jacket, grey tank top and jeans. She was pretty sure her heart was about to beat right out of her chest as a breathless hi left the man’s mouth.

Cole.

2

Hi.

Aileen didn’t even think she was breathing as she stared at the man in front of her, her mind desperately trying to make sense of what was happening. Trying to decide whether…whether the person in front of her was real or just a figment of her imagination. Trying to process that it was…it was him. It was Cole. Cole, the person that she’d once loved with all of her heart, the person she wasn’t able to forget for years, the father of her child, the person she still very much loved—she cut that train of thought off before it got too far. Because none of that…none of that mattered. Not when he was also the person that broke her heart so much she still hadn’t healed even six years later, the person that claimed to love her and then left her without a word or a goodbye, the person that caused her so much pain that a part of her thought she’d carry it for all her life. It was him. It was him.

It was only when, after she realized that he was truly here and she really wasn’t hallucinating, that she realized how horrible he actually looked. Yes, it was Cole, but it wasn’t the Cole that she’d remembered from her memories, her photos, her videos. It seemed like, as far as Aileen could see from under his tank top, that he’d built up some muscle, but even that wasn’t enough to hide the fact that he’d lost a substantial amount of weight. His cheeks were collapsed, highlighting the lines of his face more than she remembered, and his gray-blue eyes that used to shine brightly had been reduced to a dull shade of grey. His skin was almost sickly pale, his chocolate brown hair was much longer and messier, as if he couldn’t even care about how he looked anymore. The only thing he had with him was a black backpack, which was dangling off his shoulder, as if he’d forgotten about it. His gaze was trained on her, wide and shocked, like he couldn’t believe that he was seeing her either, just as she couldn’t believe it a couple of seconds ago.

That was when it truly hit her in the head. Cole was here. He was here. Six years after he left her—six years of not hearing from him—he was back, right before her wedding day, right when she needed to forget him the most.

…he shouldn’t be here.

Instinct took over at that as she grabbed the door, attempting to shut it close. He shouldn’t be here. He couldn’t be here. Especially not after so many years had passed, especially not after leaving her and breaking her heart, especially not after showing her how little he actually cared about her. She needed him gone. Now. She needed him gone.

Yet before the door could slam shut, Cole stopped it with his foot and put his hand over it to stop her from closing it. She could feel tears brimming in her eyes at that as she struggled against him, desperately needing to close the door and forget him, forget this ever happened, and look forward. She hated how weak she felt, not only because she wasn’t strong enough to shut the door, but also because how he still affected her even after years of not seeing him. How he so easily brought tears to her eyes, how her body reacted to him with a pounding heart and sweaty palms in a way that it never reacted to Keith. She couldn’t have that. Especially not now. She—

Aileen, don’t, Cole begged as he pushed on the door a bit more strongly. The first words he’d uttered to her, if she didn’t count the hi. It made her shudder all over as she bit the inside of her cheek harshly, trying to ignore how his voice sounded so shaky, thin, and cracked as she pushed on the door using all her weight, trying to not let how broken he looked affect her. That wasn’t even the last thing she needed. Please.

"No," she hissed between her teeth before he could say anything else, hating the way she sounded tear strained, as she pushed again, harder this time, but…but Cole was way too strong for her, so much stronger that she couldn’t even move the door a bit. And she also doubted he wasn’t using his full strength, since he didn’t look like he was struggling at all. Her arms, though, felt already tired; granted, that might be due to her sleeplessness as well.

Yet it didn’t matter as she had to give up, letting him push open the door fully as anger started churning in his stomach. Anger and…something else she opted not to even think about, because holding onto that anger was far easier than letting herself think about her lingering feelings about Cole, and how much she was still hurting. It was far easier to be angry at him than to admit that he’d broken her heart, especially since she did not want to cry in front of him. Or at least cry because she was hurting. Now crying because of her anger, which happened to her more often than she wanted to admit… She could live with that. As long as she could blame her churning stomach, pounding heart, and the tears that were welling up in her eyes to anger, she’d be fine. So all she did when the door opened and she found herself face to face with Cole was clench her teeth and cross her arms, offering him her harshest glare, forcing herself to breathe despite air getting hitched in her throat.

She also tried to ignore the way Cole grimaced at that and avoided her eyes briefly.

What are you doing here? The question left Aileen’s mouth when the awkward silence between them made the situation all the more uncomfortable. She could see Cole wince visibly, whether because of her posture or her harsh tone, she didn’t know—not that it mattered. It didn’t matter if his heart was shattering into pieces because of her coldness, it didn’t matter if the bite behind her words hurt him, it didn’t matter if the thought of her hating him killed him. He’d hurt her once in the worst way possible. Why should she care if she hurt him?

I wanted… he started after a couple of seconds of silence, his voice shaking so badly that he had to say the words slowly to keep them from sounding unintelligible. He tucked his hands into his pockets as he cleared his throat, the tension in his shoulders visible. I wanted to s-see you. He pressed his lips together, as if trying to find something to say. At least that was what Aileen assumed from what she knew about him, though he could be doing something completely different, since it turned out that she didn’t know him. At all. She hadn’t known it was possible to be so wrong about someone, and yet…

I heard about…about the wedding. His words took her out of her thoughts. She couldn’t help arching her brows at that, trying to decide whether he was being serious or not. He surely couldn’t have come back all the way to National City, back to her, six years after he left and broke her heart irreparably, six years of never calling her, texting her, even sending a damn email, six years of never hearing a word from him, to congratulate her for getting married? Because if that was the case… She’d never been a violent person, always opting to either walk away or talk things out, but she might actually kill him.

Yet his expression didn’t even change at her incredulous expression. A short laugh left her lips before she could help it. He wasn’t kidding her. He was being serious. She laughed again as she shook her head.

So you’re telling me, she started, patting herself on the back inwardly that her voice sounded normal, if not a bit clipped, "that you came here, six years after you left me, six years since I’ve heard from you, to congratulate my marriage?" Cole flinched visibly