Shadows Of A Forgotten Spring

The smile froze on Emma's face as the breath caught in her throat. The room seemed to tilt, her mind struggling to process the words. Divorce? The word rang in her head like the peal of a cracked bell, cruel and sharp. All these years, she had braced herself for many

things-his distance, his coldness, his silence-but not this.

Her hands were shaking, and she quickly clasped them together in her lap to hide the shaking. A wave of nausea washed over her, and her vision blurred as tears welled up in her eyes. She had fought so hard and waited so long for even a glimmer of hope in their

marriage, only to have everything taken away in one single, devastating moment.

Annie. The name was like a dagger thrust into her heart. The woman who had always been a shadow between them, a ghost from the past whom Emma just couldn't compete with. Now she was back, and with her, she had taken whatever small hope Emma had clung to. Emma felt a tightening in her throat, her speaking suddenly very hard to do, but she willed herself to swallow the growing lump down her throat. "A-Are you serious?" she managed to whisper, her voice barely audible, as if speaking louder would make a nightmare more real. The look in Alexander's eyes, though, told her all she needed to know. He was serious. And in that moment, Emma felt her heart shatter into a million pieces, the weight of his words crushing her beneath their finality.

"Kevin is preparing the divorce papers. I will send you a copy tomorrow," Alexander added, as his voice was cutting through the thick silence strumming in the room.

Emma turned her eyes at him, brimming her eyes with full containers of unshed tears. But she quickly blinked them away, refusing for them to fall. Her body was so weary, her heart in pain, but she willed herself still to speak, when everything in her never wanted to. She had spent years trembling at his words and his presence, always trying to be the perfect wife, all for him to never be satisfied. But now, after all she had given, all she had endured, this was how it ended a divorce paper as his final act.

"Okay," she said, a little steadier this time, but hollow, her fists clenched hard at her sides, under the table, where he couldn't see.

The silence returned, more weighted than before. Alexander watched her face with his eyes, trying to find something more, possibly. But Emma had nothing more to give. More than a moment passed before he finally broke the awkward silence again.

"I think you should be the one to break the news to my mother. She'll take it better if it comes from you."

"Okay," Emma agreed, her tone flat, void of warmth that she once tried so hard to give him.

Alexander's gaze lingered on her, piercing and intense, before he continued, "Regarding alimony, I'm ready to pay you 20 million dollars."

He rose to his feet, his decision made, and began to walk away, his footsteps echoing in the quiet room.

Emma sat a little longer, her mind was in a whirl at all that was happening. Then she pushed her chair back and stood up, her voice cold as she spoke, "All I need is a week to find a new apartment. Bring the papers as soon as possible."

Alexander stopped and turned towards her, his face unreadable as if he wanted to say something more. Something flickered in his eyes-something she hadn't seen in them before, but she was too drained to really think about that. It didn't matter anymore. It was over between them and she was done being the girl he had been forced to marry by their parents.

Emma didn't say anything; she turned around and walked away. There was a firm heaviness in her steps. She was walking towards her room-a haven where, at last, she could let go of the pretence. Upon the door closing behind her, the tears that she had held back all night began to spew forth; they were silent but relentless. Her shoulder shook with soundless sobs as she fell onto the bed, burying her face in her hands.

In that room, alone with her grief, Emma mourned not just the end of her marriage, but the end of the dreams she had once dared to believe in. The woman who had fought so hard to be loved by a man who had never truly seen her now realized that it was time to let go, not just of him, but of the life she had tried so desperately to build.

The night was a torture from which there was no refuge for Emma. The words of Alexander-that Annie was back-echoed in her mind like a cruel refrain that just would not let her rest. Every time she closed her eyes, the reality of all that crashed over her like some relentless wave, threatening to drown in despair. Annie. Here was the name that haunted her marriage, the woman who had always been at the center of Alexander's heart. If only she could go back, change the past. Perhaps things might have turned out differently. But now it was too late.

Morning had finally come around, dragging her into a whole new day she now had to face. She had not slept at all; the dark circles under her eyes testified to a personal battle that had raged all night long. There was so much she had to do, people she needed to see one last time before bidding this life goodbye once and for all.

Taking a deep breath, she then wiped her face of residual tears and stepped into the shower, hoping the hot water might help wash away some of that pain. But it didn't. That ache in her chest remained as fierce as ever-a reminder of everything lost.

She dressed with some care in her elegant outfit, which spoke of dignity, which she refused to lose whatever the shreds it was in, inside. As she came out of the house, she met Alexander in the dining room, having his breakfast. She didn't spare him a glance. There was nothing left to say, nothing to mend that chasm yawning between them.

She stopped first at a flower shop and bought a bunch of white lilies, her father's favorite flowers. The thought of that was what brought her renewed tears, yet she was resolved to finish this.

When they finally reached the cemetery, Emma's heart contracted at the view of her dad's grave. The headstone had a simple design, but it bore the significance of a man who held everything for her. She kneeled down, placing the flowers gently on his grave, her fingers lingering on the cool stone.

"Dad," she whispered, her voice trembling. "I tried... I really did. I tried to make it work out with the man you married me to. I wanted to please you, to make you proud. But..."

Her voice broke, and she swallowed again, using her will to keep herself going. "But I failed. I couldn't make him love me, no matter how hard I tried. I couldn't save the company, and I couldn't keep the life you wanted for me. I'm so sorry."

She didn't bother wiping at the torrent of tears sliding down her face. This was her final good-bye-not only to her father but also to a life that had been hauling her down, weighing her down for so long. It was time to let go, to know when some things just weren't in her hands.

"I'm leaving, Dad," she said softly, though her voice was firm despite the tears. "But I shall never forget all that you have taught me. I shall carry your love wherever I go."

She took a final, trembling breath and stood up, brushing the dirt off her knees. With a heavy, heart-sinking sensation, she turned her back to the grave and firmed up her resolve. There were a few more things she needed to do, a few people to whom she needed to bid goodbyes before she finally backed out of this life once and for all.