Broken Strings

It was all a misunderstanding. That's all it was. One misunderstanding tore their marriage apart. And shattered their love. She still loved him though, she really did. And he still loved her too, a lot. But neither was willing to admit it. And so, they spent fourteen years trying to hurt one another. All because of a misunderstanding. Fourteen years ago, Anisha was doing her first year of residency at UCLA Medical Center. Her five-month pregnant sister-in-law had been rushed to the ER after overdosing on pills. As a first-year resident, Anisha couldn't do much and had instead watched as the doctors tried everything to save her sister-in-law. But ever since that day, Andrew has held resentment towards his wife for not doing enough to save his sister or the baby. Despite what anyone told him, he blamed his wife for not trying hard enough to save his sister. Their marriage changed from love and promises to betrayal and lies. But neither was willing to end the vows that bound them together. Twelve years ago, Anisha agreed to stay in a broken marriage for the sake of her newborn son. To give her little baby boy the family he deserved. But little did she know that her husband's hate and anger towards her would strain her relationship with her son. Eight years ago, Anisha gave birth to her little princess. A little princess that was the light and hope of her mother's life. The little girl that loved her mother, unconditionally. Five months ago, Anisha received a letter. A letter that promised to ease the pain, to end things for good. But the problem was she didn't want it to end. She had held on for so long, held onto the broken strings of her marriage, held onto the loose strands of his love. Because she still loved him. Anisha never left. And Andrew never asked her to. The put on a great act, no one could ever guess what was truly going on in their marriage. But over the years, their marriage continued to weaken. Anisha Hayes acted like the cheating, insults and bitter words didn't affect her. But they did. They were tearing her apart. It wasn't her fault. She couldn't have done anything about it. But still he blamed her. He blamed her even though she had done nothing wrong. But she still refused to let go. He would change, he would forgive her, he would love her. She tried and tried to convince herself but broken hearts don't heal easily. Especially ones as shattered as hers. Andrew Hayes acted like he was okay and in control. But he was miserable, so f*****g miserable. Every day was a constant struggle between trying to save his broken marriage and telling his wife how much he still loved her or ending the vows that no longer held any value for the both of them. Losing his sister was hard. Knowing he had lost her for good and hadn't even had the chance to say goodbye hurt. And fourteen years later, he still didn't know to let go. Anisha could've tried anything, she could've tried harder. And maybe if she had, his sister would be with him today. But still, it was a lot easier to put the guilt, anger and pain onto his wife. It seemed like everything was fine, that they were happy together. But that was far from the truth. The vows that bound them together were only words now, words of empty promises. They were both miserable, so f*****g miserable. Andrew Hayes was filled with guilt, pain, anger and heartbreak. And regret. He had no idea how to save the marriage he had spent years destroying. And Anisha Hayes had suffered more than enough in her life. She had lost the one thing she had valued more than anything in her life– her husband's love. Now, after reading the letter she had received five months ago, she had lost hope too. Without hope, there was no reason to fight. She was truly lost and this was it– she was finally letting go, for good. But he was begging her to hold on.