I wrinkled my nose for the millionth time and Christine approached me. She seemed too comfortable in her tight dress and had her blonde hair tied in a bridal bun. Even with all her makeup, I could still see the dark bags under her eyes and the tension on her shoulders. For the past three days; Everyone had been so focused on ensuring that the event was a success. Madame Amelia wanted everything at a particular time, position, and theme. I used to think planning for weddings was the most exhausting task after attending my aunt's wedding a decade ago; but this entire event beat that. I ran my hands over my chest and sucked in a sharp breath. I could barely breathe in the blue dinner dress Amelia had ordered; Of course, I had to explain when and how I had gained so much weight. Then suck it up and wear the tight dress with an uncomfortable corset. Whoever Louisa was; She was not eating right during her stay here. "Come, Louisa, Let me introduce you to some of our guests," Christine

I groaned. The sound of glass shattering from downstairs was unbearable. It felt like the glasses were being thrown in front of my ears. I sat up and let out a frustrated huff. Who in their right mind was constituting such a nuisance at three am in the morning? I returned from the hospital yesterday. I had insisted on returning home as soon as possible and the nice doctor accepted on the condition that I would use crutches. I wasn’t a fan of the idea; But at least I would be walking and I would be able to leave, right? I swung my sore legs over the bed, I glanced at my side and noticed Moore wasn’t there. Ever since Amelia forced us to share a room; I neither slept nor woke up to him. I wasn’t sure where he spent his nights and I felt guilty because I was taking up his room. Christine had told me to wait for the right time before I brought up the psychological sessions to Moore, but if he was not interested in getting better, why marry me in the first place? Why bind me to him for t

It was still hard to accept that Moore had agreed for me to continue working at Moore Hospitals as a psychologist. Being away from work; even though I had been working, was pure torture. Ever since the night I spent with Christine, she and I had grown closer. She opened up about the abuse she had faced from her father and how she had suspicions that Moore went through the same too. I could not help but feel uneasy at the thought that he could have gone through that too. I realized that Christine shared a rather intimate relationship with Moore, she didn't see him the way I saw him and it wasn't just a sibling thing, Christine had been practically forced to take on the role of being a mother for an elder brother. She felt responsible for him despite her own traumatic experience so far and the entire thing was disturbing."We are here." The driver spoke when the car came to a halt, I peeked out the window and sure enough, we were standing outside Moore Hospital. The grandeur of the i

"Did you hear that?" I asked and raised my head from Amelia's lap, the woman stared at me confused but she spoke her head. I frowned, the noise had also stopped but I still wanted to check it out and confirm. I had taken two steps away from the couch when Melissa, The cook scurried into the kitchen with a bright smile. "Dinner's ready ma'am." Amelia and I walked over to the dining and sat down, the table had already been set and waiting for us, as much as I wanted to leave and go check the room upstairs, Amelia kept jumping from one conversation to another and it was honestly hard to keep up. Moore walked in with Christine who seemed exhausted and Andrew followed next. Soon, we were all seated and began to eat, but the noise of cutlery speaking was cut through by a loud clash. the kitchen, everyone stood up except Andrew. I was the first one to get off my seat and hurry into the kitchen. We were met by a rather upsetting sight; Milagros, one of the maids at the house had her finge

The entire truth of Malawi was a blur. Neither I nor Moore could have a stable conversation after the outburst in Los Angeles. I gradually began to realize that this wasn't the life I had pictured for myself when I went against my family and left Miami. This was stupid. Here I was; Living the life of a dead woman and being the perfect wife when I had abandoned my family for the same cause. Instead of getting entangled in this mess and being sent on Th this ridiculous trip; My home in Miami sounded like a great idea at this point. I swallowed thickly when the car pulled to a halt, Our flight had landed two hours ago and we decided to finish the journey by car. The ride to the Resort wasn't far, or at least that was what Christine told me. The blonde-haired girl informed me that they had spent practically half their childhood there and The Villa at Malawi was Moore's safe space. I barely registered Moore getting out of the car, but when I finally snapped out of my thoughts; The bonne