169 ALMOST UP EIGHT YEARS AGO ARIEL’S POV It a worse moment, like always, but now I knew things would get even worse. After coming from the wedding, I winced as Luke’s grip tightened on my arm, his eyes ablaze with anger. We stood in the doorway of his mansion, my new home, a place that should have been filled with happiness. Instead, the air was heavy with tension, and it was all darkness roaming about. “I don’t love you, Ariel!” he exclaimed, his voice filled with anger and disgust. “I will never love a woman like you. You are nothing but a piece of trash.” “Why do you have to keep throwing these abusive words at me?” I asked, trying hard to hold the tears within me.” “Don’t play dumb with me,” he spat. “If it wasn’t for my grandfather, I would have never event considered marrying you. You’re just a goddamn golddigger, trying to take advantage of my family’s wealth.” Tears started to well up in my eyes. The pain was too much for me to bear. But what could I do? I had to go through the sorrow just for my family. Luke kept on talking nonsense, but arguing with him would be pointless. He was too consumed by his anger and hatred towards me. So, I decided to stay quiet and let him say whatever he wanted to say. “I should have never listened to my grandfather,” he continued. “I should have followed my gut. I shouldn’t have given a damn about what the people said.” Each word felt like a knife piercing through my heart. I had never felt so much pain in my life. This was just the beginning of a flawless heartbreak. I knew there would be more to come if this marriage lasted.” “I’ll make you a deal, Ariel,” he said, his grip on my arm tightening. “You can have all the money and assets you want; just leave me alone. I never want to see your face again.” I couldn’t take it anymore. I pulled my arm out of his grasp and ran inside the house, tears streaming down my face. I was surrounded by darkness now, and my mind was brimming with pain. If only I could just put an end to all this, but no, I had to go through the pain for the sake of my family. They were counting on me, so the business would be stable. Luke, being their son–in–law now, had tugged them out of the hard zone since we almost went bankrupt. I heard someone’s footsteps, and when I turned around, it was Luke. He glared at me before storming out of the room, and then I heard him locking it from the outside. I quickly advanced towards the door and tried opening it. But just as I thought, it was locked. I leaned against the door, closing my eyes, still in tears and still in pain, and I slowly sat down. END OF FLASHBACK 169 ALMOST UP 2/3 And thinking about all those moments really made the pain unfold within me. Now look at us, friendly with each other, laughing and chatting like nothing had happened in the past. Look at me, developing feelings for this man. I didn’t even know if I should be disappointed in myself. The moment I traipsed through the gate, walking past Marcus, I saw Mason standing. He smirked at me before stepping closer. “Good morning, Ariel,” he greeted, not taking the smirk off his face. “Seriously now, Mason? What do you want?” “You shouldn’t be asking me that every time.” “And you shouldn’t be pestering me every single time,” I retorted. “I know why you’ve come here. But you don’t have to worry; the deadline is…” “Today, I think,” he cut me off. I wore a puzzled face. “Is it?” “Yes, Ariel, and I can see that you haven’t even made any progress.” “Who told you that? Luke has finally fallen in love with me,” I defended. What the hell was I even saying right now? “Oh really?” Mason gave me a skeptical look. I sighed, not quite happy with my words. “Yes.” “What are you waiting for then? Make him sign those papers. You don’t want your children dying, do you?” And with the mentioning of my kids, I glared at him. “Don’t give me that look. I’m not scared of your ugly face, or whatever. Just get the job done. You’re the one who keeps on doing shit around here, Ariel. It’s that simple; get Luke to sign those documents, and I’ll leave you and your children alone. It’s as good as that. And why do you keep on hesitating, huh? I thought you hated Luke.” “Yes, I do.” “Yes, I do,” he mimicked me in a mocking tone. “You keep on fooling yourself everyday. But I can see that you have feelings for that man. Well that isn’t my business, just get the job done. That’s all 1 want.” “Why don’t you just go tell Luke about this? Tell him about your girlfriend. You need to hear his side of the story first, before you do anything else,” I suggested. “I need to hear his side of the story? Are you crazy, or what? I saw the video, Ariel, with my own two eyes. The video where that man choked my beloved Sofie to death. I didn’t even know how the video came up, but that’s not my concern. Luke killed my girlfriend, and I’m going to make him pay for it.” 169 ALMOST UP 3/3 “You had to wait for eight good years,” I told him. “And you have to wait for five years before you decided to carry on with your vengeance, right? So apparently, it’s the same thing we’re taking about right here. Now goodbye, and when we meet next, I want to see Luke’s signatures on those papers.” n got into his car, and drove away. That was when Luke showed up. “Who was that?” Mason “Just a friend,” I answered, before making my way back to the house. I didn’t even bother to glimpse at Luke. Because right now, my head was not straight. LUKE’S POV I was still standing outside, trying to get why Ariel’s face changed all of a sudden. Perhaps that person must have done something to upset her. When I decided to turn around, I spotted a car driving towards me. It stopped, and Tiffany came out, along with her brother, Todd, who had different gold chains around his neck. They both treaded to me, Todd walking behind her. “Tiffany, what are you doing here?” I asked her. “Isn’t it obvious? I came to live with my husband.” “Your husband?” I gave her a weird look. “Yes! Aren’t one who made her pregnant?” Todd snapped at me immediately. you! I chuckled. “Okay, okay. Look, I don’t want you guys to get things wrong around here. Tiffany can give birth to that child, and if course, I’m going to take responsibility. But getting married to her?” I chuckled for the second time. “Come on man, that’s not happening.” “Why huh? Isn’t she worthy to be your wife? Isn’t she pretty?” Todd continued with his thunderous tone. “She is beautiful,” I replied, surveying Tiffany. “But come on, I don’t like her.” “But you liked it when you got in between her legs, right?!” “Okay, calm down. Keep your voice down. There are little children in the house, and they might be playing close to us. You don’t want them hearing you. “Oh fuck shut up!” Todd pulled a gun out of his pocket, and pointed it at me.