Playing Married

3.

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Two years ago…

"Veronica, you never cease to surprise me."

Veronica Gale smiled smugly at her social friend, Welma Hamilton.

"Well, I was never stingy with what I have Welma dear." She said, taking a jab at the lady. "I like to share with others."

'And expect others to share their husbands with you.' Welma thought bitterly though she flashed her a fake smile before making her way to her other fake friends.

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Nathan Black and Violet Smith watched the façade that played out in the hotel ballroom, puffing on their cigarettes in the balcony.

"I still can't believe the fact that that thing is your biological mother." He said, turning to his best friend of four years.

"Me neither." Violet sighed, exhaling a cloud of smoke. "I would have preferred to be Mrs. Erindale's daughter."

The two friends looked wide-eyed at each other before they burst out laughing.

"You, my friend, is a masochist." He laughed, tossing his cigarette aside.

"That explains why I like to hang out with you." His best friend smirked as she dropped her cigarette and stepped on it with her blood red stiletto.

The two fixed their attire, tossing mint into their mouths as they walked back in for another round of faking and flattering.

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"So, when shall we expect the wedding?" Old woman Reminga asked.

They didn't mind the sixty-five-year-old. She was a sweetheart.

Before Nathan could deliver his witty reply, Veronica clanked her wine glass with a spoon to get everyone's attention.

"Hello everyone, thanks for attending this gathering tonight."

"Not like we had a choice." Nathan muttered under his breath, pulling his best friend closer to him.

Well, he did have a choice. He wasn't exactly invited. But he would always stick with his Violet when that vile lady was around. And since Violet had to attend the party, given Veronica the Witch was her biological mother, Nathan decided to accompany her.

"Anyway, I hosted this party today for one reason and.. "

"To show off her new pearl set?" Nathan whispered into Violet's ear, tuning out her monologue.

She shook her head.

"No, to show off her new nose job."

"Both maybe?"

"But that's two.!"

"Well, she isn't that good with numbers, now is she?" He asked, referring to the number of her marriages.

"Are you kidding me? Finance is her favorite subject."

Nathan snickered, knowing exactly what she meant. The woman loved only one thing in the world: M. O. N. E. Y.

"And that reason is-" Veronica went down on her knee, taking a blue box out.

Nathan and Violet looked at each other, shocked and whisper-yelled in unison. "f**k!"

"Arthur Black-"

"VERONICA!" Violet screamed, gaining everyone's attention.

The twenty-two-year-old quickly made her way to her biological mother, Nathan in tow.

"I told you, we will make the announcement." She said.

Veronica got back on her feet, looking dumbfounded.

"Yeah Veronica, we will make the announcement. Let's not go OTT." Nathan added.

Violet and Nathan had thought this through the first time Veronica showed interest in Arthur, Nathan's father. They didn't expect this to happen so quickly but now that it did, they weren't backing out.

Violet cleared her throat and turned to the very curious audience

"Ladies and Gentlemen, this party was to surprise Arthur with something."

Veronica nodded, though she was confused how the kids knew about it. And when had they discussed anything with her about the same?

"Violet and I are getting married." Nathan announced.

Violet gave a gorgeous smile, though she felt a pang of hurt in her chest. She wasn’t doing this for herself. She was doing this for her best friend; the best friend she was in love with and it kind of hurt knowing that for him, the whole idea was to save his dad from the vile woman, and it hurt even more knowing that the vile woman in question was her own mother.

“What?” Veronica was shaking, the crowd surprised and Arthur Black elated.

“WHAT?” He grinned as he moved towards his two children, “When did this happen and why wasn’t I told of this?”

“Yeah. And where is the ring?” Veronica was fuming with anger. This was not supposed to happen. And not in front of such a big crowd.

“Oh right.” Nathan moved back and got down on both his knees. Violet felt her eyes well up with tears – one would think they were tears of joy but they really weren’t. “I know you are mine and I am yours and we have already been planning the wedding but let’s do this the right way.” The crowed ‘aww’-ed. “Violet Andrianne Smith, will you brighten up my world by becoming mine forever, and marrying me?”

Through the sadness, Violet managed to let out a giggle. This man was just perfect, wasn’t he? And the woman who he was going to genuinely propose like this would be the luckiest in the whole wide world!

She nodded, a smile on her face.

The crowd cheered as he put on the ring on her finger, and stood back up.

While everyone anticipated a kiss, the two surprised them yet again. They high-fived, chest-bumped and Nathan embraced Violet in a bear hug, lifting her off her feet and rocking her sideways.

The audience laughed. That’s what happened when best friends of four years finally got engaged.

Reminga Mason, the old lady who had asked the couple earlier when they were going to tie the knot, looked at them with a faraway look – she knew in her heart that these two were going to love each other till their death. She hoped they stayed the same and never ever have anyone come in between them.

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Violet was again busy with her and Nathan’s work.

Violet knew that the man-child hated to have lunch alone. He grew up in the big Black manor alone. His mother had died at child-birth and Arthur Black was too busy building an empire for his son to rule over one day that he didn’t have the time of the day for him.

So, growing up, Nathan was all alone. He was home-schooled, had no friends because Arthur was sceptic about letting him in the sights of his business associates; he trusted no one. So, Nathan grew up to be brooding, angry and arrogant.

No matter how much Arthur wanted, he couldn’t keep Nathan locked up forever, so he was sent to the most prestigious business college in the country, St. John’s, the same Violet enrolled at. That’s where they met.

It was not normal for them to become friends because they were polar opposites but they just clicked at one of the sorority parties and the rest is history.

So Violet quickly facetimed her husband. Of course, it took a couple of rings before he picked up because he was hooked to his game.

“Lunch time!” She announced.

“Gimme a sec.” He said and quickly paused the game, taking the tray that had been placed on the nightstand and keeping it on the bed.

Violet rolled her eyes. Of course, he was waiting for her to call though their maid, Stella, had already served him lunch.

“Dig in Mr. Black!” She shook her head, a small smile on her face before she turned back to her work.

“How’s the day going?” He asked, sipping on his soup.

“Well, let’s just say Mr. Malcolm is not going to make a decision regarding Hamilton project until he has a personal meeting with the CEO or some other ‘man who can handle it’.” Violet rolled her eyes as she spoke. Some of the men in the business came from the stone age – they were so freaking sexist that it was sometimes impossible to hold her tongue.

“Ugh, ask Natalie to schedule a luncheon with him.” Nathan whined, switching the TV to the sports channel.

Violet sighed and looked over at her work and then at the clock. There was too much to do. And so she didn’t have time to take a lunch break. But what disappointed her was that, though she had found time to call him and make sure that he was having his lunch and taking his medicines, he hadn’t even noticed that she was skipping her meals, nor was he offended for her about Malcolm’s behavior.

She guessed that was the difference between the one in love and the one not in love.

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