My Perfect Marriage

Chapter 16

"I appreciate that she's more than just a beautiful face and an empty mind whose only talent is birthing Hale children. I selected her for her abilities," Mother directs towards Sophia, smiling warmly, and Sophia mechanically returns the smile. She feels nothing inside at those words because they have been ingrained in her soul since she was eleven years old.

"That's why POLO has achieved a level our forefathers never reached. Leon and Sophia make a powerful duo." Johnny interjects to ease the tension in the room, and Sophia nods gracefully and plays her turn. To survive in this artificial and ruthless society, one must play nice and surround oneself with a variety of catty frenemies. Ignoring them, showing nothing, feeling nothing, just as mother taught her.

"Speaking of which, where is your handsome son? We never see Leon at all. He must truly be a workaholic like his father was." One of the plumper, overly made-up women, adorned with her entire jewelry box, pipes up, looking wistful. Leon is still the talk of the town, even after being married all this time. Most of these women wait eagerly with the hope that one day he divorces Sophia and gives their daughters a chance.

"Ask his wife. No one knows better than her what he's doing or where he is. They have an excellent relationship." Mother retorts back without a moment's hesitation, and Sophia's face numbs with this pasted expression that churns her stomach. She feels Johnny tense beside her.

Her sweet, big brown-eyed boy, cuts in by pulling a card from her hand and tuts loudly. Her savior.

"Play this one, and you'll win. How can someone so intelligent and observant be so terrible at a card game? Why did you throw that one, you empty head." He grins, patting her on the shoulder, and retrieves the card she had put down to switch it out.

"I know, right. I guess I can't be talented in all areas of life." Sophia softly smiles his way, catching his eye and meeting the warmth always there in him. The complete opposite to his emotionless brother, who serves her only ice-cold at all times. Without Johnny, Sophia doesn't think she would have survived all these years, being that tiny glow of light in the darkness.

"I think you're probably too caught up in here." He taps her temple in a comedic gesture, beaming at her, and then turns to the ladies. "Always thinking about work. She really is no fun. Just like my brother. I'm such a lonely child who has to compete with acquisition files and board meetings." He laughs and gets a little round of subdued giggles. These women can't resist a handsome young man when making jokes.

"You're probably right. I have a lot to do, so I will apologize and take my leave. I can't focus when I know how much there is. Enjoy your game, ladies. Mother." Sophia stands up, placing her cards face down carefully, and gets ready to leave. Johnny frowns slightly with a supportive half-smile. Saving her, and she gives him an IOU face scrunch.

"Make sure Leon eats when he comes home. I know both of you skip meals all too often, but a woman's place is to care for his every need even when he isn't aware of what that is." Mother's suddenly serious tone hits Sophia in the belly, and anxiety rides up. This feeling is whenever she is reminded of her purpose in life, and she nods. She knows her mother's tone, her way of placing the words out without emphasis even though it screams of it.

"Of course. Leon is my priority in all things. Good night." Sophia nods to the table and turns on her heel, barely swallowing the lump in her throat and hating that she felt she needed a subtle chastisement in front of these women. She knows Silvia all too well. She knew it's been irking her and coming.

Lately, her little niggles and jibes about how long it's been since Leon came home early enough to see her or eat with her, yet Sophia does it frequently. Silvia thinks Sophia is neglecting to take as much of his pressure as possible and that he's doing more work than her. That Sophia is slacking and letting her care of the details slide. God forbid Sophia should let her precious son bear more than what she does.

Always her voice inside Sophia's head - Don't cry, Sophia. Pull yourself together, Sophia. Don't be weak. Don't crumble. Women don't get tired. Don't show him you're struggling. It's unattractive for a man. Don't burden him with your feeble emotions. Make life easier for him. Lighten his workload. Anticipate his needs. Push everything about you to one side and make Leon the most crucial thing in your existence. Isn't that why I let him marry you? So you could elevate my son to being the most powerful and successful at the head of POLO. You are here to compliment him, protect him, elevate him. Know your place. A wife should silently support.

Know her place. Know her gender. Know her worth. Know what it is she made her for. From the age of fifteen..... Sophia has been her little handful of modeling clay. It's so easy for Silvia to think in such black and white terms, for, after all, isn't that who she was for her husband. Sophia's life is always about Leon. Silvia only had one identity, and that was the wife of Joseph Hale. She has no personal achievements to show for it, other than providing him with two sons. A silent force that made him what he was and zero recognition. Sophia took her place in the company, and Leon took his. They became them.

And now Joseph Hale's not here, and Silvia's purpose in life is gone. She yoyos between despair and fake. Entertaining b***h wives so she can retain her status in some way and stay relevant in this circle. Getting on top of Sophia. Silvia doesn't know who to be. She failed. Her entire existence is an empty shell of a woman who thinks only in terms of the family legacy, and her only joy is knowing Leon's climbing higher than her husband ever did. Sophia's father's legacy doesn't even cross her mind or the fact that Sophia's doing it for him as much as she is for Leon.

Joseph Hale found solace in the bottom of a bottle when things got tough, and he lost his best friend and business partner. He turned his back on them, such was his pain of loss, but Sophia wasn't allowed to do the same. Hers wasn't recognized or understood. He let their empire crumble in the same way his heart was slowly turning to ash. He abandoned his family emotionally for his selfishness. Then where was that strong woman who was made to keep her husband sane? She's a hypocrite.

She left her son to bear the weight of everything he could, and she made Sophia an image in her place to lessen it. Sophia was the one who stood up to shoulder the burdens before she even became a woman. Sophia was a child, left alone. Sophia was the one who put aside grieving to let Leon loose from her side to take care of POLO because Sophia didn't want to do the same thing his father was. Silvia made it clear he wouldn't leave Sophia alone if she seemed to be struggling, so Sophia had to suck it up for him. Sophia couldn't cry for her parents, and she couldn't miss them. Sophia couldn't mention them anymore.

Sophia was the one who studied hard and graduated early while spending every waking moment of spare time in that company to learn the ropes. Sophia dedicated her childhood, what was left of it, to become what Silvia told her to become. Picking up where her parents left off, and yet Silvia's image of what Sophia should be was so different to her mother's. Sophia worked hard, and she learned how to turn off her pain.

Despite being pregnant, Sophia was the one who had to see her husband breaking at his father's death and take on every single thing in the company right under his nose so he wouldn't have to do it. Silently, stealthily, pushing all other things aside. Sophia protected him single-handedly, and Silvia encouraged it. Even when Silvia took Sophia to the hospital because she was bleeding, Silvia told Sophia not to tell Leon and get through it. Sophia had to be strong, and her baby wasn't.