Lone-Woman

NATALIE

Before I could take in what I saw a while ago, the door to the ward flung open. 

I turned to see Adrian. 

He walked past me and didn't utter a word to me. It was either he saw me and didn't acknowledge it—an act he was used to when we were married, or he probably didn't see me. 

I didn't know what to do, what to say. 

What could I possibly do? 

All I did was watch in amazement how Adrian kissed that woman. She lay back on the bed after receiving a kiss from him and now, Adrian was adjusting the blanket used to cover her. 

How come I didn't see this part of him? 

How didn't I get to meet this? 

All through our marriage, there wasn't an act like this. Not even once and it made me wonder if there was something I wasn't doing. 

Adrian kissed her again. 

I didn't hear their conversation, couldn't hear it, but the woman, whoever she was, was shedding tears. Tears that weren't necessary. 

“Aww, can you see that?” 

The voices of so many in the space confused me. My thought process scattered and for one moment, I knew I wanted to hear more from them. 

“Serena Beaumont is such a beaut!”

“I know.” Another person nodded. 

“I can't wait to see them get married. I heard they've been dating for a while now. Adrian, who doesn't involve himself in commitment, is ready. I wonder what Serena did to him.”

I wondered what Serena did to him too. 

I wondered what she told him that made him walk up to me on the day of our marriage anniversary, only to break the news of our divorce. 

At the same time, I wondered why Adrian would think I deserved that at some point. 

There was an urge to shout at the top of my voice. 

But I couldn't. Not in a public space like this. Especially when nobody knew about my marriage to Adrian since all these while. 

No one would believe me. 

Adrian would ignore me. 

Tears gathered at the corner of my eyes and I wiped them off. I didn't deserve any of this, especially a divorce paper thrown at me like the marriage didn't matter to him at all at some point. 

“Take a look.” Someone sounded. 

I ignored my thoughts and looked into the ward. Serena was shedding tears. They weren't real. They didn't look real to me, but Adrian obviously didn't care. He leaned to reach for her and in moments, she was on her feet, holding him. 

Two weeks. 

Two weeks since I saw him last and when I finally do, he's with a woman who isn't me. 

He was with another woman, comforting her and showing her a side of him that never existed. Or maybe it did and I didn't get to see it. But why? Why was he unfair to me? What did I ever do? My gaze did not take off from them. 

What did I ever do to him? 

I was still lost in my thoughts when they walked out of the ward. While Serena stood at the entrance and everyone fixed their gazes on her, I carefully watched Adrian, who never was sweet to me, reach the ward to grab a bag. 

Wow.

“They're so cute!” 

The more I heard these people talk about how cute a married man was, the more angry I was. Adrian was married to me! 

I hadn't even signed the document. I planned to but I hadn't and that made him a married man. 

Two people walked past me soon enough. 

I was convinced at this point that I was seen. There was no way Adrian did not see me. 

The way he hesitated for a moment to look at me, and then the way he continued his journey with Serena who held onto him like a kid, told me everything I needed to know. 

That wasn't all. 

There was more to see. 

As people walked away, while some continued to walk behind them so that they could watch the final scene, I reached a window in the reception. 

As I leaned, I gazed out and watched. 

His car was parked at the center of the compound, with paparazzi surrounding it like he was a god. Like a gentleman I didn't know him to be, he opened the door for Serena. 

She walked slowly but reached the door and was pushed carefully into the car by Adrian. I didn't believe it, but I did because I saw him saying words and laughing, a facade of who he truly was. 

In a short while, the car zoomed off. 

The other cars that came along with him, drove off the next moment, leaving me in utter confusion. 

There was nothing to stare at any longer so I moved out of the reception so that I could stand in the compound for the sake of confirming whether or not I was dreaming. 

How could this be a dream? 

Adrian was here, with a woman, as her boyfriend. People from the gathering had talked about Serena's mystery man. How was I supposed to know it was the man I was married to? Finally, tears fell off my face. 

It was at this point I recalled my reason for coming to the hospital in the first place. I looked to my left and right, I was alone in the compound. 

Everyone had gone back to their business. 

There was no celebrity to watch, or a pretty woman as Serena Beaumont to see in a ward. I wiped my face, hung my bag on my shoulder, and now led my way toward the gate. 

It dawned on me at this moment how alone I was, even though the marriage was still on. 

This was more than enough reason to sign the divorce papers and look for a way to get rid of the baby. Adrian was never going to love me. It was hard to take in, but it was the truth.