The Painful Forever (Unhappy Wives Series #1)

“We met when he was reviewing for his specialization exam,” I found it so hard to bite back the tears as I recited my wedding vow in front of Ice. Tears were welling up around the corner of my eyes making the words on the paper I am reading blurry. I stared at Ice only to see him crying, too. My heart swelled at this sight of him. He looked so handsome with his hair brushed up as he sports his white suite. His thick brows accentuated his teary gray eyes. His lone dimple on his left cheek makes him look angelic and even more heavenly. I took a deep breath and swallowed the lump forming in my throat. “He is always in his sweatshirt and jersey shorts as he reviews in the café I am baking for. Wearing his eyeglasses, he reads thick books every single day until the night.” The crowd laughed. I looked at my parents who are also teary-eyed at the moment. Mom was already crying a river of tears. Dad cried when he talked to me last night. But even when they’re crying, I know how proud they are for me. I know that they’re proud I married well. I smiled widely. “Never had I known back then that you, Isaiah Zachary Gonzalez, are going to be the best gift that has been given to me. I have never imagined myself spending the rest of my life with someone but when I met you, I seemed to have thought otherwise.” Ice reached for my face under the veil to wipe my incessant tears. I am sobbing really hard and I am aware of how horrible I look right now. But I don’t care. Ice’s touch makes me feel beautiful. Ice’s touch makes me forget about all of my insecurities. He always makes me feel good about myself. He brings out the best of me—something no one has ever done for me. “Every day that I am given the chance to live, I thank God for giving you to me. Without you, I will be incomplete. Without you, I will not be this happy.” Ice smiled widely at me. “I love you so much, Lily,” he said, interrupting my vow. I chuckled as tears fell. “I vow to always make you happy, to always give you your well-deserved massage after a long-standing surgery, to always cook your favorite Adobo, to always bake you your favorite brownies,” I paused and everyone in the church laughed with me. “I vow to make you my priority, after God. I cannot promise you that our marriage will be perfect but know that I will always be beside you to weather whatever storm comes our way.” I looked at Ice once again and smile. “Sweetheart, you can count on me to love you whatever happens. You can count on me to always be faithful to you and to make you the only man that I will love in this lifetime. I love you, Isaiah. So much.” I ended my vow with a new set of tears falling down my face. This day will mark the start of my forever with the man I love. This day will mark the start of my lifetime with my husband. I have never understood the obsession with forever but I guess when one finds the right man for her, she can never ask for anything more. Or maybe forever cannot be enough. “Dulce Analilia Hernandez,” Ice started his vow with a raspy voice. His bloodshot eyes are smiling at me. “Don’t you know that you are the girl who brought me life when I was at my darkest days?” My eyes slightly widened before I smiled. I nodded at him. “You’re the one who brought back direction in my life. You are my compass. You are my map. And above all, you are the only love of my life,” he paused and the crowd cooed. I can even hear his cousins tease him. “You probably know me better than myself and I could never be thankful enough for your existence.” He brought his hand to his face and wipes away the tears falling from his eyes. I laughed at him as he stared back at me with a deep breath. “Your smiling face is the only thing I want to see when I wake up every morning and when I get home from a busy day at the hospital. Your laugh will always be the music I will always long to hear. Your voice will always be my favorite melody.” I stared at him as my heart constricts with happiness and pain. I have never imagined this feeling, not even in my dreams. But I will be lying if I said I have never longed for this. Ice was the only person who made me feel this way. “I vow to love you when you are having a good day and love you even more when you’re not. I vow to love you when you’ve baked the best brownies in the whole wide world and love you even more when you had not. I vow to love you when you’re happy and love you even more when you’re crying. Baby, you can count on me to make you happy at all times. I love you, Lily. So much more than one could ever imagine.” I took his hand and squeezed as both our eyes are filled with tears of happiness. The two of us will unite today as we start our path to forever. “You may now kiss the bride,” the priest announced. I faced Ice and stared at him as he slowly lifts up the veil. His bloodshot eyes showed a different kind of eagerness as he cupped my face. His thumb brushed my cheek before leaning closer to give me the most passionate kiss I have ever had. The crowd cheered for us as we literally made out in front of all of them. I smiled through the kiss and wrap my arms around his neck. He broke the kiss smiling widely but I give him several more pecks. “God, I love you!” he uttered before brushing his lips over mine once more. His kisses are sweet and full of compassion that I try to match his emotions. “I love you, too…” I said to him before getting carried bridal style to the entrance of the church.