Savior

Chapter Twenty

Luna

Yesterday was still heavy on me, as my eyelids refused to lift up. The day I lost him was the most painful memory but the day he was born was more joyous, which is why I devote my time in celebrating my child’s birth than lamenting his sad demise. This time it was even more difficult as I’d met Sole again. He reminded me so much of our baby and why I lost him. On top of everything, he had the guts to pretend to not know about Solare.

Wondering how I could fall in love with someone like Sole, I lay in bed refusing to find the energy in me to go to the store today. But I guess my family had pledged to not let me relax even for a day, for Gina knocked on my door and shouted, ‘Luna!’

‘What is it?’ I shouted back.

‘Someone’s here to meet you.’ Did she call Dave again? Thankfully she’d agreed to ask him not to accompany me to Solare’s grave yesterday but she might’ve asked him to meet me today. I was already feeling frustrated.

‘Gina I’m in no mood to meet Dave today.’

‘It’s someone else. Your friend Emily.’ She called out and I shot up from bed. Emily?

I quickly changed my clothes and then came down along with Gina, to find Emily sitting on the couch being scanned by my Aunt as if she was about to be interrogated. ‘Emily! What a surprise?’ I said quickly making my way towards her.

‘Luna, how are you?’ She said as she stood to give me a hug.

‘I’m good. Weren’t you supposed to leave for Italy today?’ I asked. She’d told me on the day of the wedding that they’d be going to Italy for their honeymoon, then what was she doing here?

‘We will go but there were some things that needed to be sorted out before that.’ Her tone made both me and my Aunt shift awkwardly.

‘If you’ve postponed your honeymoon I’m sure it must be something important.’ My Aunt said.

‘It is.’ Emily replied with a courteous smile and then turned to me, ‘Can we talk in private?’

‘Sure.’ I said and glanced at my Aunt who did not look pleased at all. Emily and I went to my room and only after shutting the door carefully, I asked her, ‘What happened?’

‘You tell me Luna. What happened three years ago?’

‘If this is about Daniel knowing me….’

‘He told me everything. I know he used to like you and that you never reciprocated his feelings. I’m not here because of that.’

‘Then?’

‘What happened between you and Sole, Luna?’ She asked in concern.

‘Didn’t Daniel tell you that too?’

‘He did but I want to hear it from you because I think there is something missing in both of your stories.’

‘Both?’

She brushed her hair out of her forehead and said, ‘Sole came to see Daniel yesterday. He told us what happened back then and it was something totally different from what you told Daniel.’

‘You think I’m lying?’

‘No. But I think you also might be unaware of certain things. There’s definitely some sort of misunderstanding between the two of you. So tell me exactly what happened that day when you guys were supposed to get married.’ The conviction with which she looked at me, made me tell my story for I knew as a friend she might want to know everything that happened that day from me.

Three years ago

Standing at the altar in a wedding dress is something that most of the girls dream of. I didn’t know I would be living the dream at such an early age. Being twenty was already a hectic job for me as there was so much to do in life and then suddenly I was here, in front of the mirror, admiring my own reflection. I was wearing my mother’s wedding dress, altered by Mrs. Anderson. Sometimes I wonder what that woman cannot do. She made the dress a total bomb as it fit in the perfect places, revealed the perfect skin and appreciated my neckline. The moment she’d shone me the altered dress, I’d fallen in love with it. Sole had even joke about me loving it more than him.

I was supposed to do my make-up and hair on my own but unexpectedly Gina arrived soon after Sole left to help me. Surprised that she even knew I was getting married I’d ask her not to be there but she insisted to be by my side today. Family was the last thing I wanted to see on this day as I was still not over the fact that my uncles and aunt had send goons to my house to scare me to a point where I would accept their guardianship.

‘You look beautiful.’ Gina said smiling proudly at her work on me.

‘Thank you for helping me out today.’

‘Someone else should be receiving that thank you.’

‘Who?’ I turned around.

‘Sole. He was the one who asked me to come, thought you might need my help.’

I looked at her surprise. Sole sent her? ‘Since when do you guys talk?’

‘We don’t. In fact today was the first time her contacted me.’ She put the veil on me and then continued, ‘You’re lucky to have him. I know my parents and our uncles haven’t been nice to you but I want you to know that you can count on me as your family. I’ll be there, whenever you want me to be. And I’m happy that now you have Sole as your family too.’ I gave her a hug and she accepted it.

‘Now don’t cry and spoil my hard work.’

‘Wasn’t that make-up water proof?’ And both of us smiled at each other. But happiness seemed to be short-term thing in my life for I heard some noises from outside. Someone had arrived, but who?

Gina and I went out to look who it was and when we did, my heart sank. ‘Mom what are you doing here?’ Gina asked Aunt Maria who looked ready to hit me anytime soon.

But surprisingly she started to cry. ‘Luna, my dear child, is your aunt so bad that you didn’t even invite her to your wedding?’ Unable to understand her changed stature I stared at her. ‘I know I did some questionable things in the past but that doesn’t mean we are no longer a family. How can you invite Gina but not us? Imagine how your uncle Alessandro must’ve felt when he got to know his brother’s daughter was getting married and he wouldn’t be there to bless her.’

‘Aunt Maria, I thought you wouldn’t approve.’ I said nervously.

‘What nonsense! How can I not let you choose your happiness darling? You won’t believe it now but I do love you like my own daughter which is why what I did earlier was out of your own concern. There has not been a single day when I had not worried about you. Can you not forgive your aunt?’

Since it was a good day for me and I wanted everything to be nice and happy, I chose to forgive her. She might not have been the best aunt but she still was my mother’s sister and an elder to me so I decided to let bygones be bygones. ‘I’m happy that you came.’ She smiled gleefully and embraced me in her arms.

‘Can I be part of this group hug too?’ Uncle Alessandro said and both Aunt Maria and I nodded to him. All of us hugged each other for another minute and then separated only to sit in the living room together.

‘So when do we leave?’ Gina asked.

‘It’s almost time, I think we should leave now.’ She nodded and I was adjusting my dress when Mrs. Anderson hurried inside looking completely disheveled. ‘Mrs. Anderson, is everything alright?’

‘Some people have come.’

‘People? Who?’ Just when I asked two men appeared from behind her and greeted me.

‘Hello miss Agosti, we are Mr. Accardi’s bodyguards.’

‘Mr. Accardi? Sole?’

‘Yes. He has sent us to tell you that he won’t be able to marry you today.’

‘What?’ I asked in shock. What were they talking about?

‘His father is in the hospital, sir has gone to visit him. It might take some time since things are pretty serious. He hopes you will understand.’

What they said made sense but I was still not able to understand why Sole would send his bodyguard to tell me we weren’t going to get married today when he himself should’ve done it. Since it was about his father, I tried to understand. Obviously sad about the wedding not happening I stayed in my room for the rest of the day and then days went by without any news from Sole.

One day when I thought I had waited enough I went to see Sole’s father in the hospital hoping to see him there as well. But when I reached there, I got to know I had chosen the wrong day to be there. Unfortunately, his father passed away the very day. I saw Sole sitting outside his father’s room, sobbing uncontrollably. He looked like a small child needing a support. I moved to console him but someone was already there to give him a shoulder. A girl. There was a girl. He cried there holding on to her and I cried looking at them from behind the pillar.

I couldn’t believe that he had someone else in his life. Not wanting to confront him on a day like that I decided to wait. Then few weeks later another bomb dropped on me, I found out I was pregnant. I rushed to Sole to tell him about it but he refused to see me. It confirmed my fear that he was with someone else but I had to tell him so I kept visiting his house but his staff refused. Then one day I found his step-mother waiting for me inside the house. She’d seen me coming there every day hence wanted to know the reason. So I told her everything, even about the baby I was carrying. Sole was informed about the same that very day but he told me to get out of his life. That he didn’t want to see me again. Because I had to keep the dignity I was left with, I swore to never see him again.

But life has a way of making you do things you absolutely swore no to do again. After the initial medical examination the doctor told me there was something wrong with my immune system. There might be some complications in the pregnancy and that I was at a point where terminating it would be risky and continuing it would be too. They wanted to run some tests on Sole to check if he could be of any help in the situation.

Putting everything aside I went to him again, for no one else but our child but Sole refused meet me even then. I kept begging but there was no response until Gina decided I’ve had enough and that I was better off without him. Aunt Maria took me to France, she thought the change of environment and new doctors could be a breakthrough in my case.

There I met Dr. Daniel Clarke. He was the one who continued to stay hopeful throughout the term of my pregnancy, even when results weren’t positive. When finally the child was born, it felt I’d won a war against the destiny. But my happiness was short lived, Solare’s heart stopped beating on the tenth day after his birth.

Present

Emily took my hand in hers and patted them gently. ‘I’m so sorry Luna.’

‘I was so distraught that I didn’t feel life living. Daniel tried everything he could to save him but nothing worked. I think more he wasn’t in love with me but was feeling guilty, which made him be more careful about me.’

‘You don’t have to explain. I know if there was something more to you and Daniel then you would’ve been honest with me about it. I have faith in you and my husband.’ I pressed her hand in assurance. Sometimes I envied Emily for her maturity. She was the same age as me but the about of understanding she had, I don’t think I ever could have.

‘Now that you know, I hope you can tell who is lying and who’s not.’

‘I never thought you were lying. But…’ She hesitated.

‘But?’

‘I don’t think Sole’s lying too.’

‘If both of our stories are different then isn’t it obvious that one of us is lying?’

‘What if both of you got played?’ She suggested.

Scratching my head I asked, ‘As in?’

‘Sole said he got a message from you saying that you will be late in reaching the church and then when he tried calling you no one picked up. Not even the landline was attended to. And finally your phone was switched off which is why he could never contact you the whole day despite waiting for you at the church.’

I blinked at her in confusion and then retreated my hand from hers. ‘What are you talking about? I never send any such text to him.’

‘What? But he said he did receive it.’

‘That’s why I’m saying he’s lying.’

‘What about the calls? Did you receive them?’ She asked.

‘No.’

‘Do you still have that number? We can check it again.’

‘It was three years ago Emily. Besides I don’t use the same number now. In fact I haven’t used it since that day.’

‘Why, what happened?’

‘It fell into water and was there in it for too long to be repaired. So I just thought it would be better to just change my phone.’

‘And the number?’

‘I was upset about the whole Sole drama, I change it too.’

After giving me you-are-so-stupid look she said loudly, ‘Then how do you expect him to contact you Luna?’

‘He knew where I lived, he could’ve come home and talked to me or send his bodyguards like he did on the day of our wedding.’

‘Sole didn’t mention sending any bodyguards to you.’

‘You still believe him?’

‘Look Luna, both of you need to talk it out. There is a need of a face-to-face conversation.’

‘There’s nothing between us now, what’s the point of discussing the past.’

‘Because both of you are still not over each other.’ She looked me in the eye as if she could see my soul and I looked away, scared that what she was saying might actually be true.

‘I’m over him. My child died because of him. I don’t think I have it in me to forgive him for that.’

‘Whatever you decided I would suggest you take your time because I don’t want you to regret it later.’

My gaze fell on her wedding band and I replied, ‘I’m getting married to Dave in a week. I’ve lived these past three years in regret due to Sole, I don’t want to spent the rest of my life in regret too for not moving on from him.’

Emily shook his head in disappointment that I wouldn’t see her point of view but the thing was, I’d tried a lot, to move on from Sole, to move on from the past and when finally I was being given a chance to move on my heart was wavering. Sole shouldn’t have come back, but because he did, I’ve been thinking a lot about what could have been in with him instead of thinking about my future with Dave. To put an end to the constant dilemma, I had decided to go with my family’s decision and marry Dave. A week, just a week more to bare this situation and then Sole’s chapter would be closed for once and for all.