Chapter Five
1103 Words
The next morning was perfect. I woke up to the sight of Dryan. His handsome features softened as he lay on his side. I thought he looked completely beautiful, but he was completely oblivious to that fact.
My face flushed when I recalled last night's events. It felt… “Magical,” I whispered.
Dryan moved slightly on the bed. I studied him intently until he opened his eyes. He reached for my hand underneath the sheets and squeezed gently. “Hey,” he said in a raspy voice.
“Hi,” I replied softly, squeezing his hand back.
“You look beautiful.”
I smiled and ran my fingers through his hair, “Thanks.”
We spent most of the morning in bed, talking, holding each other, kissing. When we got up we made pancakes from scratch, a skill I had learned from my mother. After that, we watched movies and spent the evening talking while taking a warm bath in the candle-lit bathroom.
Most of the days were just like that. We’d talk, lie in bed, make breakfast together, and watch movies. Sometimes we swam in the pool, went on a hike and also attended musical recitals.
Dryan was protective. It was one of the things I admired about him. During one of our daily walks, a man bumped into me, causing his coffee to spill on both him and me. Dryan confronted him when the stranger proceeded to blame me for it instead of apologizing.
“Do not speak to her that way,” Dryan groaned, his jaw clenched and his brows arched into a frown. The man walked away after apologizing, evidently intimidated by Dryan’s presence.
I was having the time of my life. I was until Dryan informed me that he had something urgent to take care of at work.
“I have to be in Boston by tomorrow,” he said while typing a mail on his laptop.
I watched his fingers press against the keyboard for a moment before speaking. “Can't it…wait?” I asked quietly.
“Uh no, it can’t,” he responded without taking his eyes off the laptop screen. I stood at the doorway of the bedroom for longer than a minute until he looked up to meet my eyes. I was wearing his shirt and a pair of socks with shorts.
He sighed deeply, then got up from the bed. Slowly, he walked towards me and touched my face with his palm. I melted at his touch. Our eyes met and he planted a soft, tender kiss on my lips. “I’m sorry,” he said, his face inches away from mine. “Allow me to make it up to you when we are home.”
Home, I thought to myself. I was going home with him. My heart fluttered and my face turned a light shade of red. He smiled and kissed me again. “Deal?” he asked.
“Deal.”
The flight back home was quiet. We’d giggle whenever each of us remembered our inside jokes. However, for the most part, Dryan was occupied with answering emails. Since we both decided to put away our devices during the honeymoon, he had a load of emails to respond to.
We returned to New York together where he took me to his house. A place I now refer to as home. The next morning, he traveled to Boston for work. I spent the day getting acquainted with the staff, all of whom were extremely friendly and respectful.
I had just gotten dressed for bed when my phone beeped. It was Jack. I bit my lip and then answered the call. “Hey,” he said sadly.
“Hi, Jack,” I replied, sounding much better than him. “How are you?” I asked when he didn’t speak.
“Good. How are you?”
“I’m okay,” I said, nodding as though he could see me.
He sighed heavily. “I saw the news, Ava. You’re married,” he said.
I had specifically requested an intimate wedding but I knew word about our marriage would still be discovered. “Yes, I am.”
“Why?” he asked, sounding more cheerful.
“Family business.”
He laughed softly and murmured to himself. “I love you, Ava.”
I was quiet until he spoke again. “Could I see you?”
“No, Jack. I don’t think so,” I said, remembering just how lively and positive he usually was. I was also aware of the fact that he was drunk. So, I chose to be patient. “I have to go now, Jack. Take care.”
“Goodbye, Ava.”
I sighed deeply and lay down on the bed, my eyes searching the ceiling. A lot can change in a month, I thought to myself. About a month ago, I was partying and hanging out with Jack and now, I was at Dryan’s home, married.
My phone rang again. I sighed as I picked it up expecting to see Jack’s name. Instead, it was Dryan calling. “Hi, love,” he said over the phone in a cool voice that made my heart flutter.
“Hi, stranger. How are you?”
“Good. Listen, I have some news. I will be heading to Australia tomorrow. I have a business meeting there,” he explained.
“Okay. Thanks for telling me. When will you be home?”
“Monday,” he said, but he was not home on Monday. He was not home for the whole of that week. To make matters worse, I couldn’t reach him. No one could. Not even Raymond.
I started panicking. I called my mom, not sure of what she was going to do, but also not wanting to handle this alone. “Darling, everything will be okay,” she said, sitting in my bedroom, holding me.
“Will it, Mom?” I cried softly in her arms.
“Yes, baby. It will,” she replied while stroking my hair.
A week after Dryan had been declared missing, there was still no lead as to where he was. He had checked out of his suite Monday morning and had not been seen since then. Dryan liked to drive himself around and had rejected the idea of having a driver.
He had been spotted exiting the hotel, but that was it. Almost as if he disappeared.
I was seated in my living room, staring into space when Raymond barged into the house, soaking wet, his breaths unsteady.
“There has been an accident,” he said.
- Writer
