Chapter 2 Sofia

Dhalia. 

"I will apologise to Dahlia, but I must marry Sofia." He concluded, his words filled with finality, like I didn't get to decide anything, like I wasn't a significant player in it all. And a sob finally pushed its way past my lips, bitter, sad, and broken.

Hot tears tickled down my face and my body shook as I sobbed even harder. 

Ten years. Ten years of loving him, seven years of secretly loving him, nursing his crush, one year as his girlfriend, and two years as his fiancée. Ten f*cking years! All wasted on the wrong person. A person who saw me as a spare, to keep around, until he found his true love. And after he did? He sealed my fate.

And all that I was worth? A simple apology, one laced with nonchalance and pride, like I wasn't even worth it. 

" Dahlia is understanding. She will understand this time too." He went on, and I felt like my heart was being crushed. 

Understanding? That was a polite way of calling me stupid, and when I recalled the very many times I had played the understanding card, giving him my whole heart, thinking that that would make him love me more, and now, after listening to his opinion on me being understanding, I felt utterly stupid, disgusted, even. 

" Dahlia is strong. She can take care of herself. As for Sofia? She is weak, she needs my protection, my love." This time, he whispered, his voice soft and tender, laced with love and warmth, something that I had never received, not even when I was about to become his wife. 

" I hope you won't regret this, Jason. Because Sofia Brooks? She is not worth it, in my opinion. " Tired, and conflicted, Max stated, but my mind went blank as I processed his words. 

Sofia Brooks. Sofia Brooks. I repeated the name, mumbling it softly, my voice dying with sobs as I pushed myself up, tired, broken, and humiliated. 

Yes. Humiliated. 

Jason had not just betrayed me, he had done it with Sofia, nothing less. 

He could have fallen in love with anyone, did it really have to be Sofia? That homewrecker's daughter? 

I hated her, I hated her mother, and Jason knew why. He, of all the people, knew the drama that had happened in my family fourteen years ago. 

I was seven then, and Jason was nine. As my best friend, he had seen how broken I was when my family fell apart. 

My Mom divorced my Dad, all because of Sofia and her mother. 

It turned out that my Dad had an affair with Gwen, Sofia's mother while he was still married to my mom. The affair ended, but seven years later, Gwen showed up at our home, with the young Sofia in her arms, demanding a share of the Brooks empire. Sofia had been around the same age as me.

Gwen had come prepared, armed with DNAs and a surname. Yes. Sofia had the Brooks name next to hers. She was a Brooks by blood. 

Hurt, sad, and heartbroken, my mother had asked for a divorce. My Dad had tried to beg, asking her to reconsider, to forgive him, but she had refused, citing that her dignity couldn't be trampled on in her watch. When the divorce was finalised, my custody was split, fifty-fifty. My mom travelled to Silverdale, the capital city. Her family was based there, a rich and old-money family, she was an heiress, and they didn't hesitate before welcoming her back. 

And my Dad? He was a businessman, after all. In his world, business came first. He chose the safer way out. To protect his seemingly speckless reputation, he had decided to stay clear of Sofia and her mother, paying them handsomely, hush money, a one-time fee.

They stayed around, though, larking in the shadows, their presence a permanent stain in our lives. 

On several occasions, I had had encounters with Sofia. The encounters had seemed random, coincidental, but I knew better. She was competing with me, and my doubts were cleared when one day, we bumped into each other at a mutual friend's party. She had followed me to the washroom, smiled politely before she whimpered, ' How does it feel, growing without both parents? It sucks, right? I know. That has been my life for years, after all. Luckily, we are now even. Your mother lost to mine." She had thrown those words in my face, before she strutted away, proudly. 

And now, as I walked aimlessly, the city's bright lights highlighting my tears, my sorrow, I felt like my life was on a downward spiral, the irony wasn't lost on me, was it? 

Twenty years ago, Gwen helped my Dad ruin my Mom's life, and twenty years later, her daughter had successfully planted herself in the only thing that I had ever wanted so badly in my entire life, Jason Riggs. 

Now, I felt like a total failure, a loser. 

And as I took the dimly lit city streets, silent sobs accompanying me like a silent companion, I couldn't choke back the laughter that tore past my lips. 

I laughed and cried at the same time, the sound echoing around me with a chilling hollowness that seemed to mock my entire existence. 

Around me, cars zoomed past, and passers-by threw curious and concerned glances, but they were all blurry around me. I was losing contact with reality. 

At some point, I felt like I was floating, hallucinating, even. Maybe the heartbreak had really messed up my mind. But it was to be expected, right? 

I had spent a week planning my wedding, personally writing and sending out invitations, and travelling in and outside the country to arrange everything.  

For the past week, I had barely slept. There had been too much to be done, the rehearsals, the photoshoots, the meetings with the wedding planners, choosing a perfect gown? It had all rested heavily on my shoulders.  

Jason, always detached, had chosen to do little, if not nothing. Being the understanding fiancée, I had braved to do everything by myself, promising him that I would take care of everything. All he had to do was show up, but clearly, he wasn't even willing to do that. 

I was supposed to be in Silverdale for two weeks, since that was where the wedding was taking place. We had decided to hold the wedding close to my mom's place since we were planning on settling in Goldville after our wedding. 

But to get back to him faster, I had compressed my work, doing things that I was supposed to do in two weeks in one week just to get back to him. 

And while I was doing all that, for the future that I had assumed we had, he was busy, playing hero, falling in love with Sofia. It was all beyond insulting.  

I didn't know how long I had been walking. Somehow, the grief had led me into the remote streets of Goldville, and I was brought back to reality by a familiar ringtone, my Mom was calling. 

" Dahlia? Did you land safely? I just met with another wedding planner. I think we should work with those two. I want everything to be per...." She went on, her voice calm, but guarded.  

"There won't be a wedding."