Rebuilding Life, Far Away

od in the middle of the living room, the smooth fabric of her silk dress cool against her skin. She had chosen it specifically for tonight, a deep crimson that Ethan always said w

dows, his back to her, looking out at the city l

"I thought we were going to Celest

ly so open and full of warmth, was a mask of cold stone. There was no

e's," he said, his voice f

ad expected to see a bottle of champagne, sat two stacks of paper. One was a thick, legal-lookin

eart starting to pound a frantic

unwavering, "are divorce pape

he word didn't make sense. It was an alien concept, something t

for the papers. The legal jargon swam before her eyes, but his signatu

ness she had never heard before. He slid the other envelope across the

ide was a wedding invitation. The name

ited to celebrate the

h entrepreneur who had been a constant, steady

? To Liam?" she cried, the invitation c

o clearly want. You don't have to sneak around anymore. I' ve arranged it all. The venue is

before her, his eyes shining with tears of joy. He was a sensitive, brilliant artist, and she was an architect on the rise. Their love felt

c, vibrant painting, and he had come up to her and said, "It' s about the beauty you find

, her voice shaking with a mix of fury and desperati

pulled his phone from his pocket, his thumb hover

my one and only. The architect of my heart. Here's to fifty more. The comments were a flood of hearts and congratulations. #CoupleGoals, one friend

he said, his voice breaking for the first time. He turned and wa

ended again, heavier than before. A moment later, a loud crash echoed from the studio, the sound of shattering

hy. He was leaving, he was planning a wedding for her with another man, and he was convinced she had betrayed him. He believed it. And as she list