Vow

Chapter 10

It was 11 at night. Lana and Charles were curled up, asleep with the sound of the air conditioner running. Charles slowly stretched in the bed, waking up. He was looking over at Lana who looked so beautiful when she was asleep. It was dark, but he could see the beauty with her mouth slightly open, her light snoring and her eyes closed gently.

Charles woke up to use the bathroom quickly, and then he would go back to sleep. As he was about to get up, his phone started blinking on the nightstand next to his side of the bed. He looked over at it, seeing several texts from Sarah.

He grabbed his phone, then walked over to the mini bathroom connected to the bedroom. After using the bathroom, he washed his hands then looked at the messages from his mistress.

"Why haven't you talked to me today?"
"Please text me. I love you."
"I need to see you."

He sighed before leaving the bathroom, heading back to bed. He didn't know what to do, but he decided to just go back to sleep. Thoughts weighed heavily on his clueless mind, of how things will turn out if he continues to lie.

The next morning, Lana was up really early, to prepare for the day. Mostly because her mother wanted to make sure the day went perfectly for her. Lana's special day. The day she always dreamed of. Her mother took her out for breakfast first, gossiping over coffee and bagels. Lana spent the majority of the morning with her mother, but the time was getting closer. The time to start getting ready and dressed up for the wedding. Lana's heart beat with excitement.

Charles was still sleeping when Lana left to hang out with her mother. He woke up a little over an hour after that, stretching slowly on the bed. His phone was buzzing and he picked it up and squinted at the screen. It was an incoming call from Sarah.

He accepted it and held it to his ear. "Hello?" His tired voice spoke into the phone.

"Why haven't you seen me or talked to me? You need to come see me now." Sarah's voice was shaky, full of worry and anxiety. Charles had been running through her mind crazily.

Charles' heart was beating fast, he grew with fear and worry about everything. The wedding was today. Even though the wedding was all he thought about for days as it was coming up, he seemed to forget that, it's actually here. And he weighed so many options on his hands, he didn't actually prepare for this. It wasn't always easily distinguishable to figure out what could be on Charles' mind, he couldn't even comprehend it himself.

Sarah was at her home, on the outside patio. She nervously picked at her nails as she waited for his responses. She rubbed her belly, staring out into the garden.

After talking a bit more, mostly a conversation brewed from anxiety and fear on both ends, Charles says, "I will be over."

Less than half an hour later, Charles' car pulls up to Sarah's home. She was already waiting on the patio, looking worried as she stood up and walked over to him. He got out of the car, then she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a hug.

"You have to explain to me. Why have you been avoiding me? What is happening?" Sarah asked and fixed her red hair, with dark roots growing in.

Charles sighed. "Look, I don't know. There are a lot of things on my mind right now. And right now, I just don't think.."

"You don't want to be with me anymore?" Sarah was growing with a combination of anger and hurt. Tears quickly formed in her eyes, and then she looked away.

Charles held her in his arms, then made her look up at him. "Let's sit down. Okay Sarah?"

She quietly nodded and the two sat down at the white chairs seated at a table, under the front patio.

Charles explained everything. About how he has Lana, and how he's been with Lana before he met Sarah. He explained that he developed feelings for her after being with Lana. He described that even though Lana was an amazing girl, he just didn't deserve her, and he lost feelings, replacing them with feelings for Sarah instead. He made sure to defend himself, saying that he didn't realize how messed up it was until it went too far. He didn't realize how much this could hurt either women. By the end of the explanation, Sarah's head was down, tears on her face. She didn't know how to react or what to say.

"So I'm just some side piece of yours? That's what this is to you the whole time? Charles, I'm pregrant with your baby. Our baby, you said. How could you lie to me?" She cried, not even wanting to look at him anymore.

"I feel horrible. I distanced myself because I wasn't in the right state of mind, I needed to find a way to tell you." Charles said, guilt clearly written all over his face.

"Go. Leave me. I've heard enough Charles," Sarah got up, tears falling from her face as she tried to make her way inside.

Charles grabbed her shoulder, pulling her into his embrace. "Please don't go. I know this is really hard to hear, but I love you. I lost feelings for her. But I gained them for you." Charles told Sarah. She was still upset, disappointed and stressed out. She crossed her arms, looking up at him.

"How do you expect me to forgive you for this?" She said.

"I am going to make it up to you. I'm so sorry, it's you that I want to be with Sarah. I promise. That's why I'm here right now." Charles said as he gently caressed Sarah's face and traced the outline of her jaw subtly.

Thoughts ran through Sarah's head, wondering if she should believe him or not. She was madly in love with him, and he always knew how to wrap himself around women's hearts.

"What about the other woman?" Sarah asked.

"I already ended things with her."

Charles stepped closer and hugged the woman tight, as she slowly loosened her tense on her shoulders and hugged him back.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Lana was sitting in her mother's living room with her, the two of them listening to music as they relaxed before later's events. Lana was scribbling cursive words on a yellow piece of notebook paper. She put emotion in every swirl of ink, and she hoped Charles feels just as emotional as she does when he reads it.

"What's that?" Her mother asked.

"Something for Charles." She smiled and continued to write. Soon after, she folded the paper and slipped it into her purse.

"I'm so happy for the both of you. And with a little one on the way, you will have such a beautiful family and life." Lana's mother smiled gently and Lana returned the smile.

Lana grabbed the empty glass that she drank water in, and walked over to the kitchen to rinse it off.

Suddenly, her phone buzzed in her pocket. She reached for it, scanning the screen and once she saw the message displayed, the color drained from her face and she covered her mouth.

Charles: I can't do this. I love you, but you deserve better than me. Goodbye.