The Billionaire's Pearl Ring

Chapter 5 - The Aftermath

Chapter 5 - The Aftermath

Emily's POV

That night, after dinner with Robert and my parents, everything ended up being a bigger mess than I could have imagined. After all that I have learned I'm surprised I was allowed to stay the night at my parents' house, and even more surprised that I actually chose to stay. Alright, fine, the truth is that I don't have another place to go, and I was so numb in the end, that I couldn't bring myself to care that I am in the same house as my parents anymore.

And because I am less than pathetic and, thanks to my lovely husband, I don't have any friends that I can call for help, I still find myself in my parents' house more than a week after.

Every day has been pretty much the same, with me staying locked away in this guestroom and thinking back to the night I felt I have lost my parents. While my mother was getting drunk on the expensive wine meant to impress my husband, my father told me their secret agreement with Robert and his father.

My mind went back to when I felt like they were treating my marriage like a business deal, and boy was I right! At the time I was just just too dumb, too young and too in love to take notice of it.

Soon after I started my internship, my parents bought a new house. After I started dating Robert, they got a bit overexcited and apparently started to spend money that they didn't have in order to make our family look wealthier to Rob's parents.

They dared to say it was all for me, or because of me, I can't remember exactly how they've pharesed it, but the bottom line is that they were in deep s**t, the bank threatening to take our house, and before you ask, no, my mother did not have the slightest intention of ever getting a job. She always believed her life's purpose is to be a housewife who spends her husband's money. According to my mother, her getting an actual job would have defeated the whole purpose, and made our family look even poorer.

I spaced out all through my parents' senseless explanations as to why our family couldn't overcome that hurdle, but then my dad said something about Anthony Cooper, that is Robert's dad, and I started listening again. I wish I hadn't, because the whole thing made me sick to my stomach.

Apparently Rob's dad needed his son to look picture perfect and I was the key to that. I was the perfect future wife: young, untainted in any way, smart but gullible, and most important... for sale.

This time I don't try to cry myself to sleep after the flood of bad memories, instead I get dressed and make myself presentable. Robert made good on his promise, or threat, and I got a call from his lawyer who took it upon himself to draft up the divorce papers. Today is the day we have to meet up, lawyers present, and sign those documents that undo our marriage.

I find myself in a small conference room with my divorce attorney. I found her after a search online for a 'cheap divorce attorney near me'. Lame, I know, but anyone with a law degree and right to practice would have sufficed, I don't need to sell a kidney to afford the fees. She's a middle aged woman who seems sympathetic to my situation, as she calmly explains the process.

Basically Robert takes everything that was earned during our marriage, as per our prenuptial agreement and I get to keep whatever money I had in my personal bank account before we got married, which totals to an outstanding £687.12. Fantastic!

My attorney seemed surprised that I didn't want to fight the prenup, find a loophole, or something, but she also seemed relieved. I guess it makes her job easier and her pay comes faster.

After we went over everything and I told her I understood and wanted to go ahead, she takes me to a larger room where Robert and an older man, with bushy eyebrows and hair that doesn't match those eyebrows, are waiting. We step inside and take out seats opposite the men without exchanging any words. Soon after the door opens and another woman walks in, sporting a bored expression.

"She's the mediator." My lawyer whispers as soon as she sees my confused expression. My mouth just forms an 'o' and I don't say anything else.

The mediator spends about an hour or so, talking legal gibberish mostly to our lawyers, explaining the divorce procedures and such.

This whole time, Robert is sporting an evil grin. I know him better than he knows himself, so I already know he's hoping I'll get scared about not being able to survive on my own and call this whole thing off. Well, luckily I'm feeling overconfident today. I'll f*****g break off the chains and do everything to make it on my own.

"Mrs Cooper, if you would kindly take the pen and sign on the dotted line here and here." The mediator holds the pen out for me as my lawyer nods that it's alright to do as told.

"This will convey you taking back your maiden name and renounce the surname 'Cooper'." She explains, and I stop with the pen mid-air. I never really thought about that, but the reason I stopped is because I have no idea how I should be signing my name on these papers. My cheeks burn red when I look at my lawyer, but luckily she understood right away. It must be the years of experience with situations like this, because she leans into my ear and whispers that it's alright to sign as Cooper on the divorce papers and that after this I will legally change my name. I give her a small smile as to thank her and then my eyes go to Robert.

His face literally falls when I take back the pen I had put on the table while my lawyer was explaining things, and without breaking either my smile, the eye contact with Robert, or a sweat, I sign on the dotted line. Man, that felt so good!

"Your turn." I slide both copies towards Robert, and shaking his head, he gives me a weird look full of disgust and hatred and proceeds to take out his own pen to sign.

I was half expecting the mediator to say a few words after like 'I now pronounce you divorced', or something, but she just thanked everyone and left quietly, with an angry Robert and his attorney storming off right after. Well, I guess that was that, it went better than I expected, to be honest.

I look around and think to myself that s**t just got real. It's done, I'm finally free and I don't really know how to feel about it. On the one hand, I'm happy and relieved, excited to live my life as I want it, without following whatever rules someone else enforces for me. On the other hand I feel like I just lost everything, not only the comfort that I had being married to Robert, but I also lost my parents, and that hurts. It hurts to know that I only ever made them proud once, and that was because of who I was dating. It hurts that they tried to convince me to get back with Robert even after telling me how they practically exchanged me for a life in comfort and no more money worries.

I thanked my attorney again for her services and, after she wished me good luck in my new life as a single woman, I walked out of the room, praying that my ex-husband had left the building already.

I exit the building a bit weary that I might bump into Robert, but luckily that doesn't happen. I take advantage of the area I am in, and walk straight into a cute cafe to get the chance to think about what just happened and how my life has changed as of half an hour ago.

The money I'm left with after paying the fees of the divorce attorney is £17.12. And I've decided to be overly celebrating my divorce with a coffee and a slice of cake, so I'm left with £5.10. I have officially hit rock bottom, but the strangest and most scary thing is that I'm content and not concerned about my future at all. I just have this feeling that this is what's best for me. And truth be told, I can only go up from here, so, you know - optimism and stuff. I'm full of positivity and good thoughts like a freaking piñata at a quinceanera.