THE TASTE OF SOLITUDE

No Longer Mrs. Cooley: The Architect's Return

Xiao Xiaosu

I went to the City Clerk’s office for a routine copy of my marriage license to finalize a trust fund audit. I expected a simple piece of paper, but the clerk’s pitying look told me my entire life was a lie. "The license was never finalized, Ms. Oliver. In the eyes of the state, you are single." The three-hundred-guest wedding at the Plaza and the Vogue features meant nothing. My husband, Gray Cooley, had intentionally filed the documents with a "procedural defect" so he could discard me without a legal divorce. Moments later, an iCloud invite titled "Our Little Secret" popped up on my screen. It was a photo of my best friend, Brylee, holding a positive pregnancy test at our Hamptons estate. Gray’s text to her was the final blow: "Happy anniversary, babe. This baby is the best gift. Once the trust unlocks today, we’re done with the charade." I soon discovered they were even stealing my career, reassigning my architectural masterpiece to Brylee while preparing my eviction notice. Gray's mother called me a "barren mule" in a leaked recording, mocking the infertility I suffered after saving Gray’s life in a construction accident. I wasn't a wife; I was a three-year placeholder used to secure his inheritance. How could the man I bled for treat me like a disposable prop? How could my best friend carry his child while pretending to comfort me through my darkest moments? The betrayal burned until it turned into a cold, hard stone of fury. I didn't cry. Instead, I walked into the penthouse of the Barretts, the Cooleys' most powerful rivals. I signed a marriage contract with Kane Barrett, the man the tabloids called the "Beast of Wall Street." "I want a wedding," I told his father, my voice steady and lethal. "Bigger than the one I had with Gray." If they wanted me gone, they would have to watch me become the woman who owns their world.

Modern Revenge Divorce

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At a random mansion far from the outskirts of magic city

"So you mean you saw her and you couldn't do anything?" A young man in his early 40's was scolding 3 hefty looking men. He threw the glass of wine in his hands on the floor, shattering the glass to pieces and making an annoying sound.

"We are sorry boss but there was really nothing we could do. We were on another assignment and Mia, well she was with a police officer in the hospital. If we had even tried as much as to touch her hair then we would have been caught '' one of the men showed a lot of remorse towards his enraged boss.

"Yes he is right, there was really nothing we could do" another of the men supported him.

Their so-called boss who had been backing them earlier on suddenly turned around and grabbed the collar of the first man that spoke with both of his hands.

"You are so useless. If you couldn't use your hands to hurt her, at least you should have used your brains to find out what she was doing at the hospital and why she was with the police. You could have tried to get me some valid information and not come here to tell me this nonsense" he was almost strangling the young man.

"Boss please stop, you will kill him" one of the men who was quiet all this while finally spoke up.

"Now you better leave this place and go get me some information. If not I will chop your fingers off and feed them to you before I separate your head from your body" he let go of the man's collar roughly, making him stumble and almost fall to the floor.

At the orphanage

"Mia, what's wrong?" Rebecca found herself asking against her will but as expected Mia didn't say anything to her, she just sat on the bench outside.

"Ever since we came back from the hospital you have been acting really strange. For instance, you didn't even go to see Miss Melinda where as you were the one that insisted we pay her a visit" Rebecca kept on talking, she knew that if she kept on saying things then it would surely push Mia into saying what the problem was.

"I mean, Miss Melinda kept on asking after you. The officer also told us what you did, that was very brave of you" Rebecca complimented and advanced to taking a seat beside Mia.

"You know I'm going to keep talking until you finally give me a reply" Rebecca tried to make herself comfortable beside Mia.

"What did she say?" Mia turned to look at Rebecca.

"Who?" Rebecca asked Mia back.

"Miss Melinda, what did she say?" Mia was quite attentive this time.

"Nothing much," Rebecca shrugged.

"But you just said she was asking about me? So you were lying?" Mia turned away from Rebecca slowly.

"I wasn't Mia, she really did ask about you" Rebecca tried to defend herself but Mia zoned off from their conversation.

"Lunch is ready" a lady working at the orphanage announced cutting their conversation short, the lady had been working in the orphanage for a while but she had taken a short vacation but returned when she heard what happened. Rebecca feeling guilty ran inside the house.

Mia was about to follow suit when she felt someone passed. She turned around thinking that someone might be behind her but she saw no one. She thought she might have just been overreacting because of the incident today but she had the feeling again, as if someone was walking up to her from behind.

"Common Mia, you have to come too" the lady approached Mia, Mia turned around and she didn't see anybody.

"I'm not hungry," Mia declared, trying to escape lunch.

"I know you are but you don't want to eat with the rest, that's not a problem, you can have your lunch outside" the lady rushed in and came out quickly with a plate of food. She offered to feed Mia but she rejected and began to feed herself.

"Miss Joyce, do you ever get scared?" Mia suddenly asked.

Miss Joyce who was lost in a world of her own even though she sat next to Mia, finally came back to herself.

"What was that Mia?" She shook her head and blinked her eyes.

"Fear? Do you experience fear?" Mia repeated but she chose her words carefully.

"Of course Mia dear, everyone gets scared sometimes" Miss Joyce gave a smile.

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