Aftermath

Damian Pov

I was so caught up in the moment that I didn't hear the front door slam.

I froze. My heart stopped, someone was home.

"Oh god" I said.

I ran out of the bedroom completely naked and sprinted down the hallway. My feet slipped on the hardwood floor but I caught myself on the wall. I made it to the front door and yanked it open, no one was there.

I could smell Bella's cologne all over the house, which means she came home.

I stood there in the doorway letting cold air hit my bare skin. My mind raced, she saw us. She had to have seen us, that was why she ran.

I walked back inside and slammed the door shut. I needed to call her, i needed to explain.

I ran back to the bedroom. Karen was sitting up in bed with the sheet pulled around her. She was smiling.

"Oops" she said and laughed a little. "Looks like we got caught"

I stared at her. She was laughing, my wife just caught us together and Karen was laughing like it was funny.

"Get out" I said.

"What" Karen's smile faded.

"I said get out" I walked to the closet and grabbed my clothes. "Get dressed and get out of my house right now"

"Damian come on" Karen stood up and let the sheet fall. "Do not be like this"

"No I did not know" I pulled on my pants with shaking hands. "I thought......I do not know what I thought but it was not this"

"You thought you could keep having fun with me and your wife would never find out" Karen picked up her dress from the floor. "That is what you thought"

"Just leave" I said. "Please just leave"

Karen put on her dress and grabbed her shoes. She walked over to me and put her hand on my chest.

"You know where to find me when you get bored of her again" she said.

I grabbed her wrist and pulled her hand away.

"I will never call you again. Do you understand me. Never"

Karen rolled her eyes and walked toward the door.

"You will change your mind" she said over her shoulder. "You always do"

She left the bedroom and I heard her heels clicking down the hallway. Then the front door opened and closed, then she was gone.

I stood alone in my bedroom. The room that smelled like Karen's perfume, the room where I betrayed my wife.

I grabbed my phone from the nightstand and called Bella. It rang four times then went to voicemail.

"Bella please pick up" I said after the beep. "I know you are mad and you have every right to be but please just let me explain......please call me back"

I hung up and called again. Voicemail. I called a third time. Voicemail.

I tried texting her.

"I am so sorry"

"Please let me explain"

"It was a mistake"

"I love you"

"Please just talk to me"

I sent message after message. My hands shook while I typed. My chest felt tight and breathing was hard.

What had I done.

I threw my phone on the bed and ran my hands through my hair. I needed to find her, i needed to see her face to face.

I grabbed my car keys from the dresser and ran out of the house. I jumped in my car and started driving. I went to her favorite coffee shop first, it was closed. I drove to her best friend Tanya's apartment building. Her car was not there.

I checked the park where we had our first date. Empty. I drove past the modeling studio where she worked.

Where would she go.

I drove around the city for hours. Every street started looking the same. Every red light felt like torture. I called her phone over and over but she never answered.

At three in the morning I gave up and drove back home. The house felt different when I walked inside. It was colder and emptier.

I walked to the bedroom and looked at the bed. The sheets were still messed up, i could still smell Karen's perfume.

I ripped the sheets off the bed with angry hands. I pulled off the pillowcases and threw everything on the floor. Then I dragged it all to the kitJake and shoved it in the trash.

I went back to the bedroom and stared at the bare mattress. It was not enough, nothing was enough to make this right.

I punched the wall. Pain shot through my hand but I did not care. I punched it again and again. On the fourth punch my knuckles split and blood dripped onto the floor.

I looked at my hand. Blood ran between my fingers, it hurt but not as much as the pain in my chest.

I walked to the bathroom and ran my hand under cold water. The water turned pink then bright red, i wrapped a towel around my hand and went back to the bedroom.

Our wedding photo sat on the dresser. We looked so happy in it. Bella wore a white dress and smiled at the camera. I wore a black suit and looked at her like she was the only person in the world.

I picked up the frame and stared at it. Tears filled my eyes and spilled down my cheeks.

"I am so sorry Bella" I said to the photo. "I am so sorry"

I sat on the floor with my back against the wall and held the picture frame against my chest. I cried harder than I had cried since I was a kid.

I thought about the first time I met Bella. She was at a gallery opening and she wore a bright red dress. I walked over and introduced myself and she smiled at me.

I thought about our wedding day. How absolutely beautiful she looked walking down the aisle.

And I threw it all away. For Karen. For someone who meant nothing to me.

I looked at the wedding photo again.

"What have I done" I whispered.