Big Top Billionaire

Goodbye, My Love

EMMELINE

The rain poured down, blessing my husband’s burial. The sky cried as they brought the coffin down while the priest recited some words from the bible. I could only focus on him as my own tears flowed freely down my cheeks, realizing this was it. 

He was really gone, but I would never forget him. 

Every single person present paid their respects, each of them tossing a white rose in the hole that would be his home for the rest of his days. Each one holding an umbrella to cover themselves from the rain. 

Not me. 

I wanted to feel the cool water coming down my body, soaking my black dress and veil. 

As they approached me, giving me their condolences, I could feel my heart swelling at their good intentions. They all loved John and they always wished the best in our marriage. All of them except his parents, who stood across from me, giving me their dirty looks as they tossed their flowers.

I tried to ignore them as Freddie stood by my side, holding me closer to him while gently rubbing my arm. It felt comforting.

“I’ll miss him, Freddie. He was my everything,” I whispered, leaning against his shoulder while looking at the cemetery workers filling the hole with dirt, covering John’s coffin forever. I held a red rose in my hand, symbol of my love for him before I kneeled and tossed it over the rest of them.

“I’ll love you until the day I die. That’s my true promise to you, baby.”

I stood up as his parents approached me, still looking at me with disdain.

“Looks like you got what you wanted. My son is dead, and it’s all your fault,” Margerie accused me.

“What I wanted?” I asked, upset, “I never wanted him to die. We loved each other and I would have never wished for him to leave me like this.”

“If that was true, you would have left him alone instead of intruding in his life and making him join that awful place you all call form of entertainment. And as for you,” she said, facing Freddie, “be ready for that court order.”

With those hurtful words, she walked away. Peter, her husband following behind. When I married John, they were the closest I had to having parents, since mine were not in my life. But they never accepted me, they never loved me. 

“They will love you very much, baby. You’ll see,” I remember John’s words as soon as we had arrived at their house as husband and wife. It was the first time he would introduce me to them, and I was nervous. We had married without them present and I think that was one of the reasons they resented me. 

“It’s better if we go. The rain won’t stop anytime soon and it’s getting cold. I don’t want you getting sick,” Freddie said. 

“Why don’t you wait for me in the car? I just want to say goodbye for the last time,” I replied as he nodded, giving me a kiss on the forehead before walking away. The rain had stopped and as I looked up into the sky, I could see the sun sneaking through the clouds and shining down on us. 

“You’ll be happy up there,” I smiled, “Please, watch over me. Watch over Freddie. I won’t be able to keep that promise I made you, and I hope you can forgive me. But I can’t bring myself to move on like that.”

After a few minutes of talking to him, I blew him a kiss and headed to the car. As I walked there, I saw a man standing by a gravestone just a few yards away from me. His back was facing me and his head was hung low, but I could still tell he was tall. 

He suddenly kneeled down and put a bouquet of flowers in front of it, kissing his hand before he touched the stone and walked away. 

I felt my heart beat for him. Whoever was there, must have been someone dear to him. We were feeling the same pain in our souls. 

As I got in Freddie’s car, the events of the day got to me and I felt exhausted. But there was a small smile on my face, a sense of peace inside my body. I looked at him, who had a frown on his face.

“Take me home, please,” I said before I looked out the window, giving John’s gravestone a last glance before Freddie drove off. The ride to my house felt long and the increasing feeling of sadness was taking over my body, a few tears falling once again down my cheeks.

Be strong for him.

I kept repeating those words in silence the entire way back. 

We arrived and Freddie parked the car in my driveway, right next to the moving truck that would take my belongings to Virginia to start a new life. 

The guys were already at it, moving my things inside the vehicle as I stepped out of Freddie’s car to get the last of my things. 

A "Sold" sign stood at the front of the house, and the movers kept putting my furniture inside the truck. It was painful to leave this place which had been my home since I came here from Venezuela to pursue a career as an architect.

Sadly, I was never able to pursue after college. But I never regretted it, as I loved what I was doing. Being in the air, feeling the freedom that hanging from the silk gave me. 

“Are you sure this is what you want, Emma?” Freddie asked, concern laced in his voice. I turned to face him, giving him a faint smile that didn’t reach my ears, but I nodded. 

“It’s better this way. I’m sorry I won’t be here to help you with the lawsuit, but I can’t stay another day.”

“No worries, princess. You need to take care of yourself. Besides, my friend is taking care of everything as we speak, it will be okay.”

I folded my arms on my chest and narrowed my eyes, studying him. 

“Who is this mysterious friend of yours? Is it a lady?” I asked, wiggling my eyebrows and making him laugh.

“No, it’s not. He’s a good old friend from high school. If you stayed, you might even meet him,” he mentioned and before I argued, he raised his hands knowingly, “I know, I know. It was just a suggestion, but I understand you need to do this for yourself. I’ll just miss you very much.”

I would miss him and the entire crew as well. My life won’t be the same and it hurt me to see how much my departure affected them. 

“I’ll come visit you soon. All I need to do is settle down. Besides, that job offer is too good of an opportunity to pass,” I replied. With a big hug, we walked into the house and finished doing what needed to be done. 

A black car parked outside not long after, and I instantly knew who it was. 

“Not now, please,” I muttered to myself as I walked outside to meet the unwelcome visitors. As I waited out on my front porch, they stepped out of their car and approached me, standing just at the bottom of the steps.

“What are you doing here now? Didn’t you have enough by tormenting me at the cemetery?” I asked Margerie. 

“Oh, no dear. We want to know why did you sell this house?” She asked, curiously, but I could tell she was upset. I cleared my throat, holding back from snapping at her as I didn’t want to cause a scene here. 

“As far as I know, this house is mine. John and I bought it and I can do whatever I want with it,” I replied.

“I knew it. You wanted my son dead, so you could keep everything and get rid of it, you manipulative w***e!” 

I kept my tears at bay as she kept spitting out insulting words, no matter how much they hurt me. I wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of seeing me at my weakest. 

Be strong for him.