NovelEnglishIn the late afternoon, Aurelia took William to Lisa's spacious suburban hafter work.
William had been missing his little sister, Nova.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"Hey Nova, big bro's here! Look what | brought you. It's a spaceship | made by myself!" Nova, who had just finished her bottle and was cuddling up to the nanny, ready to sleep, perked up immediately when hearing William's voice, her eyes wide with excitement.
"Babble, babble, coo coo." Aurelia scooped her up from the nanny's arms.
"Wow, our little Nova has grown again. Getting heavier, huh?" Nova responded with a gummy smile as if she understood every word. Her milky, rosy-cheeked little face was too adorable for words.
Aurelia whipped out her smartphone. "Sweetie, let's snap a few pics of you to send to Daddy, okay? He'll be so happy to see how much you've grown." After capturing sshots of Nova, Aurelia tried to get a few of Lisa, but Lisa waved her off. "No need. Just Nova's is fine. Don’t worry about me." Arnold didn’t want to lay eyes on her.
So observant as she was, Aurelia sensed something was off. She put Nova down in the crib, urged William to play with her, and took Lisa by the hand.
"Let's go for a stroll in the backyard." Together, they stepped out into the waning light of the day. The setting sun pierced through the clouds, casting a sorrowful glow on Lisa's pale face.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm"What's up?" Aurelia asked in a gentle whisper. "At odds with Arnold again?" Lisa's gaze fell to the ground, her fingers absentmindedly toying with spebbles.
"He cto see Nova the day before he left. He said we would start the divorce proceedings when he returned, and I... | agreed." Her voice was barely audible by the end.
Aurelia knew about it. Arnold had confided in her.
"Maybe divorce isn't a bad thing. Men never treasure what they have until it's gone. The minute you walk away, they begin to realize your worth." It seemed to offer Lisa ssolace. She looked up at Aurelia with curiosity in her eyes. "Is it the swith you and Leopold?" Aurelia's lips curled into a wry smile. "Four years ago, Leopold wouldn't givea second glance, let alone marry me. Every the looked at me, he couldn't despisemore, as if he was staring at a toad who'd somehow lucked into swan territory." Lisa was stunned. She could never have imagined Leopold scorning Aurelia like that! Aurelia paused, her smile bigger. "We've been through a lot, like the separation, a near-death experience, a broken engagement, and now a pending divorce. He's finally seeing my good qualities and realizing I'm not as bad as he thought." Lisa blinked, an indescribable emotion flickering in her eyes. "Do you think you two might get back together?" Aurelia's smile morphed into a sly grin. "Not sure, but I'm not about to make it easy for him to winback. He's lefttwice. He must learn that tormenting your wife may be fun for a while, but chasing her back is like running through a minefield." Lisa watched her, clearly comforted by her words. Maybe after the divorce, Arnold would cto see her in a new light, too.
"Aurelia, you're so strong." In a soft voice, Aurelia said, "Nobody's indispensable. The key is to let go of obsession, not to let it imprison you." Lisa nodded in understanding. Divorce wasn't the end. If Aurelia and Leopold got back together, it would mean Arnold had truly moved on, and maybe there was hope for her.
As they returned to the living room, Aurelia's phone pinged. She received a message from Arnold. He had seen the photos she'd sent.
[Did you go to see Nova?] Aurelia replied, [Yeah, William wanted to see her.] Arnold texted, [I just got in. It's snowing outside. We're likely going to be stuck indoors for the next few days.]
Visit our social media platform to read fascinating stories every day and connect with the community!
