2. The Imperfections

Eizlina stood up on her feet and ran towards Anton. She hugged him tightly.

Exhaling a heavy breath, Anton wrapped his one arm around her.

“Calm down, Eizlina. You are fine now,” he said to her, hearing her sobbing in his arms. He slightly withdrew her from his embrace, and looked at her tear stained face.

“Anton, he…he was scary. He….” She didn't even know how to describe it to him how badly that man had scared her. She just couldn't even describe it to herself.

“I told you that I will send someone to pick you up, but see, your carelessness resulted in something so dangerous,” his words made her shut. Eizlina lowered her head because she knew he was right.

But she just didn't want to trouble anyone. Besides, nothing like this had ever happened to her before.

“I am sorry. I didn't know something like this would happen,” she apologized, looking down towards the floor. 

“I just thought he needed my help, so….”

“So you decided to get closer to a stranger all alone at that place, even after knowing how this world is, Lina,” he sounded disappointed, and this hurt her even more, because nothing hurt her more than disappointing those people who meant to her.

And Anton, he was the only choice her fate had given her. How could she disappoint him in any way?

“That's the height of your carelessness, Eizlina,” 

Tears silently flew down from her eyes.

“I am sorry, Anton. I…I just wanted to help him. I thought he needed it,” she said to him. Anton sighed, and then placed his palm over her shoulder.

“Don't think too much about it. Now go and get some sleep. We have a big day coming,” he uttered to her. She silently listened to him while keeping her eyes grounded.

“Good night,” he wished her. She slowly nodded at him, and then witnessed him leaving her room.

Taking her head upward, she watched the door getting closed.

How badly she wanted to tell him to stay with her, hold her hand and tell her that she didn't need to be worried about anything, that he was always going to be there for her. But all she got was this loneliness and those terrifying thoughts of that bleeding masked man.

Was she hoping too much from that man, whom she had always believed to be her only destination?

FLASHBACK OF 3 YEARS AGO 

19 years old Eizlina, entered Kloez manor, her home, with a big smile on her face. Today was her very first day at college, and it went extremely well. More than she had expected it to be.

“Mum, I am…..” she stopped when her eyes fell on that man sitting on the sofa of the hall. She immediately guessed who he was.

Anton Kloez. Her uncle, Mr. Airkin Kloez’s only son, who was six years older than her. In her childhood, she had barely seen him home. He used to live in a foreign country with his mother, Darla, who was the ex-wife of her uncle Airkin. They both got divorced when Anton was 5 years old, and since then he had been living with his mother in foreign, and sometimes visited his father back here too.

“Come, Eizlina,” she heard her uncle Airkin saying to her, who was sitting beside Anton. 

Forcing a smile, she walked towards them.

“You know, Anton, today was Eizlina’s first day at her college. She is a brilliant and bright student,” Airkin praised her. Anton looked at her.

“Good to know that. So how are you, Eizlina?” She heard Anton asking her. She gulped. The last time she met him was almost three years ago.

“I am good. How are you?” She asked him, politely. He smiled, and sent her a nod.

“Eizlina, you are back?” She heard her mother's voice. Looking in her direction, she saw her mother entering the hall with her father. They both were carrying trays of tea and snacks. 

“I told you, Gisella, to tell someone else to bring it,” Airkin said to her mother. Her parents had been working as Airkin's house staff for more than decades now, and somehow now Airkin had started treating them like his own family. That was why, Airkin had enrolled her name in their cities, one of the most prestigious colleges after she passed high school, and not only this, Airkin had always made sure about never making her and her parents feel inferior here in any way.

He had always given respect to her and her parents. That was why she respected and cared about him a lot too.

“It's okay, Mr. Kloez. Anton is like our son too,” her mother uttered, smiling, which both Anton and his father returned.

“Lina, go and get freshen up,” Gisella said to Eizlina, who sent her mother a nod. 

Eizlina passed everyone a smile of respect, and then turned around and started walking out of the hall.

She had just gotten a bit away from the hall and everyone’s eyes, but her feet stopped when her ears caught her uncle Airkin’s words.

“So, what did you both think about our proposal regarding Eizlina's wedding, Vincent?” Her uncle Airkin's words froze Eizlina.

Her wedding?

She dragged herself closer to the hall again to listen to their conversation.

“We thought about it, Mr. Kloez, and we think it would be an honor for our Eizlina to get married to Anton and become your daughter-in-law,” hearing her father, Eizlina turned appalled. 

They all were planning on getting her married to Anton? A man, she didn't even know anything about properly?

“Perfect then. We will have their engagement next month, and about their wedding? I think, we will wait for a couple of years as Eizlina has just joined her college, and then we will fix a date for their wedding,” 

A tear slipped down from Eizlina's eyes, knowing something so big about her life had been decided, but no one, not even her own parents thought about taking her opinion regarding this.

She knew her parents would never think about something which would harm her. Besides, which parent wouldn't want their daughter to become the daughter-in-law of their country’s one of the richest, well-reputed and such a good man like Airkin Kloez? And his son also seemed like a reflection of his father, so Anton might become a perfect life partner for her.

But for Eizlina, life had never been about perfection, because sometimes even perfection didn't bring peace, and the most imperfect things brought serenity to the soul.

And she needed peace, even if it meant embracing the imperfection.

FLASHBACK ENDS

PRESENT TIME 

Next day, 21 years old Eizlina woke up from her sleep a bit late because she couldn't sleep well last night after everything that had happened in that alley.

“So, no one knows who that man was?” Eizlina heard her best friend, Anezka, asking her on the video call. She had told everything to Anezka to get some kind of relief before it would suffocate her more.

“Anton told me to leave everything on him, so I think he would try to find who that man was,” her heart had been holding that hope that Anton would definitely do something to catch that man or at least to find something about him in order to make sure about her safety.

But only if she knew.

“But I think you shouldn't be taking this thing so leniently. We never know who that man was, and how he knew who you were. It could be something extremely dangerous, Eizlina,” 

Anezka’s words tensed up Eizlina more.

“Hey! I am not trying to scare you. I just want what is best for you,” Eizlina heard her friend saying to her.

“So I would suggest you to talk to Anton regarding this again,” 

“I think you are right,” Eizlina agreed. 

“I will talk to him regarding this again,” 

She saw her friend nodding at her with a smile.

“Okay, I will come in the evening to have our bachelor's party. After all, tomorrow you will become Mrs. Eizlina Anton Kloez, and then you will have your very first wedding night with your hubby,” Anezka teased her. 

Eizlina just smiled at her, which didn't even reach her eyes.

“Bye. I will see you in the evening,” saying that Eizlina disconnected the call.

Sighing, she looked towards the wall clock. It was 12 in the noon. She knew Anton must be home today because his father had told him to take some rest and spend some time with her today as they both had their wedding tomorrow.

Exhaling a soft sigh, she went out of her room.

The entire manor was looking extremely busy in the preparation of their wedding, which was going to be held privately and just in between very close family members and friends. 

She should be happy that tomorrow was her wedding, but her head was completely occupied with the deadly thoughts of that stranger, so she knew she needed to talk to Anton regarding this or else she wouldn't be able to get out of her thoughts, and it would eventually ruin their big day.

She needed to talk to him.

Reaching his room, which was situated in the quietest floor of that manor, where no other person lived, because Anton didn't like sharing his privacy with anyone, which she respected. Because somehow she loved her privacy a lot too.

Standing outside his room's door, she was about to knock on it but her soul froze, hearing those moans of a woman coming out of his room.

“Aaah….yes…. please….Anton…Aah..” 

Eizlina's blood ran cold, hearing those moans, and that voice didn't seem unfamiliar. She knew to whom this voice belonged.

“AAH ….Anton…. please,” 

Eizlina's eyes watered, realising what exactly was happening inside his room. Curling her fists, she pushed that door open and just like she had expected, she found him and that familiar woman completely naked on his bed in that carnal state.

“What the f#ck? How dared you to….” Anton turned his head around in rage, but stopped when his eyes fell on Eizlina.

A tear rolled down from Eizlina's eyes, seeing that man, for whom she had made herself forbidden for this entire world, committing that heinous sin with that woman on his own bed.

And especially a day before their wedding.