Angela's P o v
As I remained on the couch with the duvet tucked around me, Brian made me a soup which I rejected, offering it to him instead.
Puzzled, he obeys.
As I continued to watch him, I just couldn't get all the chaotic thoughts out of my head. How could he do this to me when we are just a few hours from getting married?
"Can we go to bed , Brian? I'm better now and it's getting pretty late." I ask him as politely as possible.
"Of course honey. Come on." He helps me off the couch and off to our room. He tucks me under that duvet on the bed and slides in next to me, pulling me close to his arms and cuddling me after kissing passionately.
I can't believe I fell for all of this which blinded me from seeing who he truly is, what he's really doing.
After a while I noticed his phone screen come to life as a message came up. Curiously, I got off the bed and took the phone. I noticed Brian was already fast asleep before I looked into the phone.
A message has popped up on the screen but because it is locked, I cannot see the content so I gently walk into the bathroom and lock myself in.
I put the password, but it didn’t work. The password Brian set for his phone had always been either my birthday or his. I flipped the phone over, inspecting the back, but there was no sign of the dent I had left on his usual phone. This wasn’t the one he normally used.
Since neither my birthday nor his work, I tried another combination. Maybe he had set it to our engagement day, but that turned out to be incorrect as well. I sat frozen in frustration, unsure of what to do next.
Then, Laurel’s name suddenly crossed my mind. I started testing a series of dates tied to her birthday. After several failed attempts, the phone finally unlocked. Unconsciously, I smiled—a mix of pride and sadness washing over me. It seemed this was the phone he used to communicate with Laurel.
Unfortunately the notification which had called my attention was just a system notification but curiosity had gotten the better of me so I went into the call log. Apparently he Brian has been talking to a contact saved as plainly Laurel for so long.
I felt my heart shattering when I entered the message box to find all the conversations they have both been having for a very long time since Brian and I got together. They were even discussing my wedding,
He even told her that he was only dating me so that the company and families would see him with someone and not suspect their relationship.
They were even making plans of traveling out of the country for a vacation together.
Apparently, they have been traveling around the world together for a long time now. He even told her about the times we had misunderstandings and fought as a couple, always reminding her of how he didn't love me.
And they still had plans of having a vacation together immediately after my wedding to Brian.
They discussed my wedding like it was Laurel's business more than it was mine.
My heart broke even further when I saw all of their sex chats and all the pictures and videos they exchanged. All of Brian's dick pictures and naked and masturbating videos of Laurel.
I had to stop reading before I threw up and if I continued further I would lose my sanity.
Just as I'm about to leave, I noticed a file just at the bottom of the chat. I curiously opened it to find out it was a will.
Apparently he has given all of her wealth to her if he dies in the future. All of his properties to her and the child he is planning to have with her.
Not a single page with my name on it. This is where I got lost, staring soullessly at the screen.
The screen dimmed after being idle for too long and in the sudden reflection, I saw my own lifeless eyes and rear streaked, reddened nose staring back at me. I was a renowned financial planner, celebrated in my field. Yet here I was, blindsided by a truth that should have been obvious.
I also saw the image of the ring he sent to her that he promised to give to her. My heart sank as I recognized it. That was the same ring I'd chosen the day we went to get my engagement ring.
Brian had discarded it, saying "my beautiful wife deserves something prettier and more luxurious."
The attendant had blushed with a smile, thinking how lucky I was to have such a gentleman.
But it was all a lie. Even though I loved that ring so much, to make him happy I had to pick another.
I didn't know he was saving it for Laurel.
I spent the next twenty minutes crying my heart out in the bathroom before walking back and putting the phone back on the nightstand.
Tomorrow I will be gone.
I picked up my phone and scrolled down to John's invitation. I'd left him to read because I wasn't sure if I wanted to go with him. But now I'm sure more than ever. So I accepted and he replied that he would be expecting me tomorrow.
The following morning I woke up to an empty bed.
When the maid walked in with a tray of food she said "Good morning Miss Duncan, Mr. Rocha had to travel urgently for a business meeting. He also asked me to inform you that the wedding had been postponed by two days."
Without looking at her and with the little to no interest, I just nodded.
He couldn't tell me by himself. My wedding has just been postponed by two days and this was the best he could do.
Two days. He wouldn’t find me by then. By the time he returned, I would be gone. Vanished from his world forever.
