MARRY MY HUSBAND

CHAPTER TWO (back to the beginning)

I forced myself to act normal , too much too soon and they'd sense something was off . I needed them to keep believing I was the same old Sophie, the one who gave without asking , who listened without speaking, who forgave and believed without questions.

But I wasn't her anymore .

The office smelled the same as it had ten years ago . A mix of burnt coffee, cheap perfume and fake laughter filled the air . I never noticed it before, but now every detail pressed against me with an edge , reminding me that this wasn't a dream . "It was real".

Claire leaned over towards me , her hair swinging forward in perfect waves .

"Sophie, lunch later ?" With a casual tone but a sharp eye , searching my face like she was testing for cracks .

My old self would have jumped over the roof with excitement without hesitation, grateful she wanted me around, and that was how she manipulated me .

I curled my finger under the desk to hide the shock running through them ..

"Sorry" I said softly, sliding a stack of papers into order . I already have plans ." Suddenly her smiles vanished like the morning dew, but I caught it , the faint tightening at the corner of her mouth , the small flash in her eyes .

Plans . I didn't have any but the lie tasted good on my tongue.

Across the room , Henry's voice was echoing too loudly , he always wanted to be noticed, he leaned back in his chair like the owner of the company but everyone knew he was just another junior employee like the rest of us.

He looked towards me expecting my eyes to be on him as usual. I focused on my computer pretending not to notice.

The silence between us became louder, he shifted in his chair, chuckled again but this time louder and more desperate.

I almost smiled,Almost.

At home that night , I opened my old dairy , the handwriting was younger , filled with little doodles in the margins , back when I thought I was making memories, looking at it now , it reads like a record of my own surrender, every entry was a list of ways I bent myself smaller for someone else's comfort. I closed the book pressing my palm against the cover until my hands ached no more.

Tomorrow I'd start small, let them show themselves to me , I would let them believe they were in charge and when the time was right, I'd be ready.

They say memories soften with time . I use to

look back on those early days with Henry

and picture them as warm , almost perfect . But now , standing here in the second chance , I can finally see them for what they really were . Fragile, beautiful from afar .

I remembered our first dates , the way he always showed up late always filled with excuses. Traffic, a last minute meeting, drinks with a friend. I always sit waiting with a smile fixed on my face , telling myself it didn't matter . When he finally walked in , his grin careless , I used to feel like the luckiest woman in the room .

"You waited ?" He would ask, almost surprised. " Of course ", I would answer too quickly. At the time I taught loyalty meant patience.

Now I know it only made me easy .

Claire was always there too, she used to joke about being the "tag along" teasing me for blushing whenever Henry brushed his hands against mine . I taught her laughter meant happiness, the kind of teasing only best friends shared. Looking back now , I hear the sharpness in her tone , the way her eyes lingered on him longer than they should have . They were happy moments , or what I thought they were . Late night walks with Henry, he always talked about his dreams, his big house , his car , his "big future " like he always called it . I thought it meant we shared something and he for once never allowed me to talk about mine . But I clung to those words like they were proof that my sacrifice meant something.

Even now with the betrayal still fresh and raw inside me , I can't erase my younger version who believed it all . She smiled so easily at his lame jokes , trusted her friend and thought she was building a future worth fighting for. If only she knew.

I shut the memory out , there were illusions I held to because I was afraid of being alone .I shut the memory out and opened my eyes to the present , the office filled with chatter, keyboard clacking, phone ringing .

Ten years younger, ten years healthier but the memory of the so called happy days still hovered like smoke in my lungs .

Claire sat into the chair beside me during a coffee break , her voice was light and sweet " you've been quiet today .everything okay?"

I studied her face , the same friendly but deadly smile , the same mask I once mistook for love .

"Just tired "I replied, my voice was even but my heart bittered .

She laughed softly, like she cared " you work too hard .don't let them take advantage of you ". The irony nearly made me choke .

If only she knew.

Across the room Henry was holding his phone pretending to check messages while sneaking glances at me . He expected me to be all over him like before, fetching coffee, asking if he'd eaten. This time I didn't come. Instead I walked past him without a word , he looked at me confused, wondering why ..

A small victory, but it was like a butterfly in my stomach.

This time , I wouldn't be the woman who waited, this time , I would be the woman who watched , learned and who chose . And when the time came ,

I'd be the woman who struck first .