CHAPTER 1: DIVORCE

"Actress Katarina 'Catty' spotted at the airport with Lawson family's son, George in intimate photos." This headline was plastered across the front page of the Daily Paper and had been adopted by other news agencies, with the picture of the couple scattered everywhere. Lauretta would have admired them as a beautiful couple if George had not been her husband. She felt a stab of pain piercing through her chest as she held on to the paper she had only picked up at 8 pm that night. The cup of tea she held on to slowly gave way, falling on the mattress. This wasn't an alien experience; it was frequent, especially with Katarina, but Lauretta felt a deeper wave of sadness, a feeling she had never experienced. The pain was unbearable, not because George was an unrepentant philanderer but because she had reminded him that morning that it was her birthday, and he promised to have dinner with her that night. She had spent the entire morning and afternoon ensuring the reservations were booked to the finest taste, and at the minute he should have been picking her up, he was lost in the arms of another woman miles away at the airport. This wasn't just any woman; it was the infamous Catty that George had been engaged to in the past. She held a special place in his heart, never vacating space or allowing Lauretta, who walked down the aisle with him, to rent it temporarily. George would always talk about how he would have ended up with her if various circumstances hadn't gotten in their way. She flung the daily across the room, smashing it against the mirror. She fell on her knees sobbing heavily; her heart felt a pang as her head spun around violently. She began taking off the flower-patterned dress she had worn for the date. She pulled at the pins that held her hair in place and flung them across the room; next was her heel, which she had chosen instead of platforms because she felt it was classier. She pulled it off, almost spraining her ankle in the process, and flung it as well. In the middle of the chaos, her phone beeped. The restaurant was calling because they were hours late for their dinner. "Hello… I want to cancel." She said silently, trying to conceal her hoarse voice. "Oh…. we do hope it's not something serious however you would have to pay for the food that has already been prepared in anticipation for your visit." The waiter responded over the phone. "Charge it to the Lawson account that was used to pay the deposit or mail your invoice to the house." She responded before dropping the call aggressively. The phone beeped again, and it was a message from Katarina. She tapped on it, and it was a picture of her all loved up with George. The affectionate smile plastered across his face as he struck a goofy pose for the photo. The picture needed no caption because it pierced through her heart immediately, but she trusted Katarina to accompany it with a nasty message. "Having fun with my man..," she said before adding "Happy birthday." This affirmed that she hadn't made a mistake when she sent the picture to her. The intention was to spite her, but it worked because Lauretta was overwhelmed with sadness. She began biting off the fresh acrylic nails she had done at the salon earlier, paying zero attention to the pain or bleeding. She reminisced about how she had given up her affluent background to be with George. She remembered how every one of her family members had advised her against marrying him, and her friends had reluctantly attended their wedding. It's been three years since their alliance was formed, and he still had zero care about how she was doing, which made her feel insignificant. He paid no attention to their marriage, and it made her wonder if she had just been living in a fantasy all this while. She rolled over on the floor and remembered how she had many admirers, but she had shunned all of them just to be with George, who despises her. She wished someone would have told her it would end like this, that it was all a mirage, and that she wouldn't have walked into his deceptive embrace eagerly. She picked up her phone and opened his message; the last one she had sent to him read: "Where are you? I've been waiting all dressed up for the dinner date, please come…." He had read it but left no reply. She steadied her fingers and typed: "I saw the news. I want a divorce ASAP." George called her up immediately and began scolding her. "What more do you want from me? I know it's your birthday and we made plans but Katarina is newly back in town and I had to make sure she's doing fine! I'm tired of you always manipulating me to gain attention!" He screamed angrily. It was clear as day that their life was one-sided; she had tried without luck to get his attention, and it was over. "Call up your lawyer tomorrow morning and file the paperwork or else go to the media and tell them all about your illicit affair with Katarina!" She screamed before dropping the call. There was no point pretending that everything was fine. Nothing had been fine since they got married, and she had always known that he loved another woman but tried to convince herself that he'd love her as well, but all that was over. She was not going to mold herself to his likeness anymore. If he loves Katarina that much, he should be with her. She gazed around the mansion that was meant to be her matrimonial home and realized how empty it was. She had wanted to build a happy home with George in the house, but all those dreams had slipped away from her now; she just wanted to live now. **** The night was tough on her as she spent the entire night reflecting on her life. She packed up all the essential documents she would need in court and prepared to step out when she received a call from her mother-in-law. The family had always treated her like an outsider and bossed her around like a servant. Lauretta's mother-in-law was exceptionally bossy and treated her like crap; she hated that her daughter had not married a well-connected socialite that could help their business, so she took it out on her all the time. She screamed through the phone, and hearing her grating sharp voice, Lauretta realized that if her husband had loved her, he wouldn't have allowed his mother to treat her like crap all these years. "You silly girl! Where are you right now?! I told you to be here by 8 am sharp because guests arrive by 10 am and your lazy self isn't here yet! Are you deliberately trying to humiliate me? My don should have married a better woman not a rodent like you and I hope he divorces you soon!"