DIANA
Strong and familiar hands rocked me while soft lips pressed against the corner of my mouth. My eyes opened and I heard Nathan whispering some comforting words. My cheeks were wet with tears and I wondered if this was another kind of dream. I was so confused. But it was not a dream…He was really cuddling me. “You're safe now…You're okay” He whispered and brought his lips to mine. I felt the wetness of his tongue at first and then he slipped into my mouth gently. I froze… and his kiss deepened too fast. Before I knew it, his hands were underneath my top, rubbing against my skin. “Nathan…” I said, trying to get his hands away but he was not understanding that I needed him off me. His fingers stroked my bra and the moment I felt them rolling around my nipple, I was repulsed. I pushed him away from me but he won't let go. “Diana please, let me love you.” Was he drunk? Had he gone mad? “Get off me!” I yelled and turned my face to the side because he wanted to kiss me again. He stroked my cheeks gently. “Diana…” he whispered softly and I pushed him off me with all the strength that I could muster Some days ago, I would have embraced the chance to have sex with Nathan, because I rarely ever had any chances with him. Our romance had died a few months into the marriage. I was eager to have him and fix it but he was more than happy to get away from me. And here I am, deeply disgusted. My chest heaved as I fought hard to breathe. He ran his fingers through his hair and climbed off the bed. “What the hell is wrong with you? First you hide our daughter from me and now you refuse me?” he yelled I could not even believe the words that were coming out of his mouth. I wondered if it would be wise to leave tonight. “I told you to stop acting childish, we can fix this! We don't have to get divorced. I bought Neah a dress for her birthday, it's in my car.” I felt my guy twisting, I was going to throw up. “So you're not going to say anything? Fine!” Before any other words could be said, he stormed out of the room. My phone started ringing on the bedside table, taking a glance at it, I felt my heartbeat quicken. I grabbed the phone and went to the balcony. The night was windy and cold, I shivered as I sat on the chair. “Jaylen…” I whispered but my voice broke. “Oh my goodness, Diana… is it really you?” Nothing was said between us for a few seconds. I fought hard to hold back my cry. The last time I spoke to Jaylen was on my wedding day. He had begged me not to marry Nathan and yet he watched me walk down the aisle. “I've missed you so much.” he said, his voice was rough with emotions but I could tell that it has deepened over the years. “Me too… I didn't expect you to get the message, I wasn't sure if you still used this number.” “I didn't change it in case you needed to reach me. Congratulations Diana.” “For what?” “On your divorce.” *** NATHAN Diana walked past me in the hallway and I grabbed her hand. “Where are you going?” She raised a brow and looked down at my hand, but I didn't let her go. “We are divorced.” she said coldly and pulled her hand free. I let her walk out of the door and after a few seconds of waiting, I followed her.DIANA Strong and familiar hands rocked me while soft lips pressed against the corner of my mouth. My eyes opened and I heard Nathan whispering some comforting words. My cheeks were wet with tears and I wondered if this was another kind of dream. I was so confused. But it was not a dream…He was really cuddling me. “You're safe now…You're okay” He whispered and brought his lips to mine. I felt the wetness of his tongue at first and then he slipped into my mouth gently. I froze… and his kiss deepened too fast. Before I knew it, his hands were underneath my top, rubbing against my skin. “Nathan…” I said, trying to get his hands away but he was not understanding that I needed him off me. His fingers stroked my bra and the moment I felt them rolling around my nipple, I was repulsed. I pushed him away from me but he won't let go. “Diana please, let me love you.”Was he drunk? Had he gone mad? “Get off me!” I yelled and turned my face to the side because he wanted to kiss me agai
DIANAI stood in front of the bed, watching all the boxes that contained Neah's things. I wondered if it was best to let go of hold on to them. I picked up her blanket from the bed and sniffed it. I decided that it was best to send everything off. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw a piece of paper that sat on the bedside table, I didn't notice it there before. I walked towards it and realized that it was a drawing made by Neah. There were three stick figures and a writing at the bottom left of the paper. “Daddy, mommy and I miss you so much.” I stroked the words and then decided I was going to take it, as a reminder. I folded it up and placed it in my purse. I went through my phone and sent a text to a number that I haven't dared to call for the past six years. “Hello Jaylen, I'm divorced now, I need help in moving some things to charity. Can you come and pick me up tomorrow?”Under the message, I texted the address and hoped that Jay still uses this number. I went to sleep
I sat in the lawyer's office, trying to distract myself from the fact that it was too cold and stark. Even the waste bin that stood at the corner was white. There were no colours, just emptiness. Nathan sat opposite me, with a frown on his face and his hands clamped together on the table. I tried to pull my eyes away from him, but they were the same shade of blue as Neah's. It was a bittersweet feeling, for her to be so close and yet so far away. “Why are you doing this? Is it because I forgot Neah's birthday? You followed me to the hospital yesterday simply because I was ignoring your calls and you made up a stupid story that Neah was in the ICU, so I'm not the only one that is petty. Something came up yesterday so I couldn't make it to Neah on time, Camille fell and knocked up the vase with her leg, she was bleeding and I couldn't ignore her.” That was the first time he spoke to me this morning. “Look, your eyes are puffy and red from crying, you don't really want this, do you?
As I sat in the funeral home, I could hear Neah's voice. I might be running mad, but I accepted that madness, if it meant that I could still have Neah with me. My phone buzzed in my pocket and I reluctantly pulled it out. I tapped the notification and I was directed to an entertainment page where they showed a picture of Nathan and Camille. The headline said that they were spotted in a luxury store, shopping together and as I skimmed through the page, I read that they've confirmed dating rumours. Our relationship had always been lacking in many aspects. He didn't love me then, but we learned to live with each other. Neah was the thread keeping us together. He used to be kinder to us, and one time I was delusional enough to think that he would finally love me and Neah, but the moment Camille returned, he snapped. He was never at home and when he was, he was never aware of our presence. Neah always tried and failed to get his attention. And invisible knife twisted my guts when
BEGINNING It was cold and Neah understood that she shouldn't have snuck out of the school. But it was her birthday and she was tired of waiting in the empty school, knowing that her dad wouldn't show up to pick her as he promised. He had forgotten her birthday. He had forgotten her, even after he promised to bring a gift to her, and it was not the first time it was happening. She looked up at the dark sky and noticed that the wind was picking up, in a second a cold droplet of water landed on her head and the sky broke down. She turned back but it was too late, she was far from the school already. *** DIANA I let the panicked words of Neah's teacher float around my mind like ghosts searching for a place to rest. “Mrs Diana, you need to come quickly, Neah is missing.” My heart was hammering against my chest so violently that I feared that it would punch a hole through my ribs. My entire body was shaking, not from the coldness of the merciless rain, but from fe