Six

I parked my car in the parking lot of her condominium, hopped out of it, and headed to her. As soon as I stepped out of the elevator, my eyes caught one of our good friends, Greg, but I decided to ignore him. He was a great talker, so starting a conversation with him just wasn't advisable. 

Finally, I reached her door. Though I knew the pin code of the door, I was really hesitant to insert it. It felt like I was a stranger. Should I just press the doorbell, I thought. No, that wasn't a good choice either. Not hesitating further, I inserted the code, and walked in. 

As if I hadn't ever been here, I scrolled my eyes around the place. To my surprise, the portrait of her and I was still laid beside the huge television. There was no doubt that she also hadn't gotten rid of me yet.

But, where was she?

"Looking for me?" I flinched, and snapped my neck around when I heard her voice. She stood beside the counter in her kitchen, leaning over it. I couldn't help but scrutinize her. She looked so good in the red robe she wore, her wet, bronze hair falling past her shoulder. As she walked toward me, her anklet jingled, her flip-flops making the flip-flop sound, her hips moving gently. She smiled, and stood in front of me. "Hey, baby. You came to me."

I swallowed. My chest hurt so much, hurting because I felt a strange connection between us. "You said you were in trouble." I spoke in a low voice.

"Aw…" She caressed my cheek with her finger, those sapphire blue eyes glinting so much. "That's so cute of you. Maybe you can even spend the night with me."

I was forced to frown. "Are you playing games? You don't seem to be in trouble."

She giggled. "Who said I was in trouble? I only asked you to come over. Didn't mention my reasons."

"Fine," I spat out, glaring harder. "What did I expect? Now that I see that you're fine, I'll leave."

Attempting to walk away, she gripped my arm back. She turned to stand in front of me, and this time around, she had a stern look on her face. 

She cleared her throat. "Ivan, what're you doing to yourself? Heard you're planning to get married. Are you for real?"

"Is it a problem?" I looked away in embarrassment. As if she had expected me to do that, she pulled my jaw, so I'd face her. 

There was a little glare on her facial feature. "Are you crazy? Do you even know what marriage is? And, you're gonna get married to a stranger?"

I sighed. "Please, it's none of your business. You don't have the right to say anything about it."

"I have that right," she retorted. She cupped her hand around my jaw, her eyebrows creasing as if she was worried. "I'm the one you love. I'm the only one who deserves to be called your wife. Do you even know anything about the person you wanna get married to? What if she's a criminal?"

I scoffed. "I don't do things without being careful. I'm Ivan Kurt. See, my aunt and I have checked her background. Her family has a good reputation."

"Rhonda?" Tears dunked in her eyes. "That tiny devil?"

And, that was it. I hated it when anyone said anything bad about my aunt. It always pissed me off, because she was the only one I trusted, and the only one who loved me no matter what happened.

"Hey." I gripped Tanya's arm, yanking her close to me, glaring really hard. "Don't say anything against her. A guilty person has no right to insult anyone. You say you deserve to be my wife, right? If you knew you wanted that, then why in the world did you cheat one me?"

"I said—"

"Why did you break my heart?!" I hollered at the top of my voice. After the night I had caught her with another man, I hadn't confronted her about it. I guessed this was the right time to do that. 

She whimpered. "Ivan, we dated for years, but you actually believe that I cheated on you? I was framed. I'm not a bad person, and you know it."

It hurt my heart to think of it, but I uttered it out, "I saw a tape. It was a sex tape."

"This is really wrong." She rubbed her palm against her cheek, sobbing. "It is. I was framed. I-I didn't do it."

"Liar." I released my grip against her arm. Heaving, I kept my hands in my pocket, and swallowed. "Now that I see you're fine, I'll take my leave. There's no point in wasting my time for something that isn't worth it."

She lowered her eyebrows in a deep frown, her hands balled in a fist. "You're naive and foolish!" She cried. "How can you think of doing this? Do you not care about me? How do I start all over? How can you let your aunt convince you to get married to an unknown woman? You're not a child, you dummy!" 

I sniggered. "This is it. You know, even before I saw you in bed with someone else, I've always doubted if it's a good choice to spend the rest of my life with you. You're dominant. You don't respect me. You treat me like one of your servants. And, you want me to get married to someone like you?"

"But you know me better than the woman you'll be getting married to." A tear escaped her eye. She stepped closer, took my hands, and shook her head. "Please, don't do this. I beg of you. Don't. It's a risk. It isn't worth it. We can get back together, and fix things. I promise to be a better person."

"Some pain can't be forgotten," I marked out. "Tanya, it's over. You're still in my heart, but I know I'll eventually be able to move on. I'll forget about you. I know it."

She sighed as if she was frustrated. "Can't believe you're this insensible. This is a dangerous matrimony. I assure you of that. You're too naive to sense what I'm sensing. Whoever wants to get married to you, either wants your money, or needs fame. She doesn't love you."

I smirked. "Let's leave that topic for another time. You're equally guilty in that way. You also needed the fame, right?" I pulled my hands from hers. "Our break up is now official. See you in the future."

With that, I attempted to walk past her, but, once again, she held my arm back. With a glare, I turned around to look at her. She looked serious. 

"As long as I breathe…" Her nostrils flared. Her eyes darkened, nothing but wrath sprinting through them. "As long as I live, Ivan Micheal Kurt, you won't get married to anyone else. I'll ruin this matrimony. I promise you that. Mark my words."

I scorned in disgust. "Let's see how that happens, traitor."

She smirked. "Good."

Adding that, she turned around, stormed up the stairs, leaving me speechless and furious. I tightened my fist, gulped, breathed hard, halted in my tracks, feeling the need to break something. No one had ever dared me this much. She cheated on me, and still had the guts to treat me this way? How had I fallen in love with such a person? I should have listened to my aunt when she had warned me against her. 

With a weak and heavy heart, I twirled around, heading out of this proximity. As I walked to my car, I began challenging myself. All that mattered was to prove to Tanya that she couldn't control my life. And, the only way to do that was to… get married? How ridiculous. 

***