Broken wife

Diana Ross was prepared to remain on the floor and cry away her sorrows forever. Unfortunately, she could not do that. This was because of the fear  she had for her husband.

She did not want Matteo to catch her crying. He would scold her. He would also bully her and probably threaten to go on a trip for months; therefore abandoning her alone in the house. She did not think she could handle any of that; in the state that she was in.

Suddenly, her phone rang.

This startled her as she was not expecting any calls at the odd hour. She never really expected calls. Her mother had refused to speak with her. Matteo would not let her talk freely with anyone either. He was that possessive of her.

There was only one person though, who had the guts to call her whenever she wanted. That person feared no one.

The phone was by the bedside table. Diana placed her hand on the table and felt around for it until she found it. She checked the caller ID and widened her eyes. She was right. It really was who she thought.

Guilt washed over her immediately and she cleaned away all the remnants of her tears with her hands. Diana got to her feet swiftly and searched the dresser area for her night dress. She found the dress and put it back on quickly.

Thoughts ran through her mind. Diana knew that answering that phone in the state that she was in was going to give her mood away instantly. But she could not ignore the call either.

She exhaled sharply and waited for the phone to ring again. It did and she gathered all the courage she needed to answer it before putting it to her ears.

Maria Jones was the one on the other end of the line. She was the only friend that Diana had in this world. She was the only one Diana trusted aside her mother. Maybe she even trusted Maria more than her mother.

They had been friends since middle school and they were inseparable since then. Maria was more than a friend to her. She had become a sister and Diana looked up to her.

“Took you long enough!” Maria began with a fight. There was the sound of water running in the background. Diana guessed that she was probably in the bathroom as they spoke.

Diana laughed at her friend's attitude. It was typical of her. Diana was the calm one and Maria was the bully. She was the one who picked fights and Diana always found peaceful ways to resolve them.

"I'm sorry. I was asleep; I should be scolding you for waking me up," Diana lied and she prayed that Maria would not pick up on it.

There was a pause on the other end of the line. "What happened, Diana?" She asked.

Diana squeezed her eyes shut. She should have known that Maria would have easily picked up on it. They had been friends for way too long for Maria to not be able to find out. She could fool the world but she could not fool Maria.

"What are you talking about? I'm completely fine. Believe me," Diana said as she attempted to lie.

She wondered why she even bothered to lie in the first place. Diana knew that she could not lie to her friend but she still did it anyway.

There was a  pause before it was followed with an exhaling sound from the other end of the line. "Why do you try lying? I know something is wrong. I can hear it from the sound of your voice. What happened?" She demanded again.

Diana wanted to hide it from her. She did not want to tell her all about it because knowing Maria, she would storm down here and try to attack him. Diana was the reason Maria had not yet stormed down here to attack Matteo.

So she tried again. Diana only wanted peace to reign even if it meant it had to happen at the expense of her happiness.

"I'm fine," Diana muttered.

"It was Matteo again, wasn't it? He forced you again, didn't he? Diana why do you insist on staying with this man?" Maria accused her husband.

Diana shot her eyes towards the bathroom on impulse to see if Matteo was already coming out. When she saw that it was safe, she raced out of the room and went to stand by the railing that gave the onlooker a view of the lounge below.

"Maria, you can't say such things. He's still my husband," Diana found herself defending him. He was hurting her but she did not want to hear bad things said about him.

"Diana this man does not respect you. He treats you like trash yet you've insisted to stay with him for three good years! Aren't you tired of all this?" Maria let her true feelings out. Diana knew that she was only trying to protect her. Maria only wanted what was best for her.

"Are you going to try lie to me that you are not tired of this marriage? Don't you want to break free? There are better men out there who would take good care of you. They will treat you with respect. Your beloved husband doesn't realize the value of his wife! Which is why he has to lose you or I will make him regret been alive!" Maria exclaimed.

Diana widened her eyes at her friend's threats. Nobody knew Maria like she did and she knew that Maria was capable of hurting Matteo if she let her.

"What are you talking about, Maria?" Diana asked her for clarity. She was scared of whatever Maria was thinking of doing.

"I'm trying to say that it is high time you got a divorce!" Maria stated.

Diana gasped. This was an option that she had never once considered because she never thought she could do it. Despite the fact that he hurt and disrespected her, she still loved him. Everyday, she stayed hoping that Matteo would someday change but it was almost as if he was only getting worse as the minutes passed. He was turning more into a monster.

"I cannot do that, Maria. How can you ask me to divorce him?" Diana questioned her.

"Of course, you will be stubborn and try to defend him. One day, he will kill you, Diana! Better late than sorry. I cannot lose you. I care about you. You're the only person I have in this world. You're my sister," Maria pleaded.

Maria had her reasons but Diana still thought that this advice was too extreme. She needed to be more patient with Matteo and someday, he would get better.

Yet even as Diana thought it, she did not seem to see it happening. She through her eyes down at the lounge and caught sight of his shirt. So this was where he had abandoned it.

"But divorce is a big decision. It's not just something I can decide on hastily because this will affect my entire life and I sti— still love him," Diana cried.

Diana was ashamed of still loving her husband even after everything. She knew that Maria would scold her but she had to let her friend know that she still had feelings for her husband.

"Diana. . . Will you rather love him and keep suffering? Or will you rather leave him and find happiness elsewhere?" She asked her friend.

Maria's words hit her hard and she did not know what to say. She was torn between two worlds.

"You have to make a decision, Diana," Maria added again.

Diana sighed and hugged herself with her free hand. She suddenly felt a coldness sip into her. The whole thing about divorce was making her nervous. She had threatened Matteo about leaving him but she had never meant any of them. Now, Maria was forcing her to make it real.

"Well, I— I would rather —" Diana was cut off by her husband.

"Who are you talking to at this hour?!" He exclaimed in anger.

Diana flinched and turned to see her husband standing behind her. Due to his height and the way he looked down at her, he seemed even more intimidating. She felt her hands begin to tremble with fear.

"I was. . . I was just t— talking to my. . .my friend," Diana stuttered.

“What friend? So you're cheating on me now? Is that what this is? You are seeing someone now?” He attacked Diana.

Diana’s eyes went wide with shock. She felt insulted. She felt cheated.

“If there's anything I have been to you through out this marriage then it's loyal. I have been loyal to you for the past three years. I have never cheated on you and I certainly won't start now. Don't you ever dare insult me like that again!” Diana blew up at him.

Matteo looked taken aback by her words. The last this he had expected was for Diana to talk back at him. A woman who he merely saw her his loyal sex toy! How dare she talk back at him?

He started to approached her and the dangerousness of his aura went up a hundred percent. “It must seem that you have forgotten your manners. Is this his you address your husband? It seems I have to teach you manners!” Matte exclaimed and grabbed Diana by the neck.

She gasped and tried to release herself but she could not. “Let me go!” She struggled to say.

But the danger in Matteo’s eyes could not be tamed by her pleas.

“Now, I will show you how I treat women who forget their place!” he yelled and pinned her to the wall.

Diana struggled against his hold and hit him in the stomach with her knee. He released her and she tried to run but he recovered and pulled her back by the legs.

“Let me go! Please! Leave me alone!” she screamed but Matteo had already made up his mind.

He was going to force himself on her tonight. He was going to roughly have her again and he was going to make the sex very painful for her. He would make it hurt her so much that she would regret ever talking back at him.

This was what rude girls like Diana deserved. Matter thought to himself.