Tangled Hearts

Chapter 6

Aurora Woods

We greeted guest after guest, and could finally relax as we sent everyone off and concluded the day. Father was long gone while Lauren wanted to stay with me but I told her to get some rest since today was too hectic. As I changed out of the gown, a soft knock came on the door. 

Isabelle walked into the room as we took a seat on the chairs. 

"I'm sorry things turned out like this, Aurora. You were never meant to be a replacement today." She shook her head in disappointment as I comforted her, "It's not your fault, you don't have to apologise. Moreover, I don't think I would be able to say no after witnessing everything." 

The both of us then headed to the hall which was almost cleared out, as we noticed Grayson who was still sitting on the stair of the altar, staring blankly into space. Isabelle slowly walked up to him and asked softly, trying not to break down in tears, "Come on Gray, let's go home, okay?" 

He did not respond. Isabelle lowered herself as she squat in front of him and pleaded, "Let's go home, hm?" 

"You should leave first." That was his only response. 

Tears flowed down Isabelle's cheeks as she finally broke down, "There's no point in sitting here! She won't be back for you so stop waiting for her to appear. Stop please..." 

His jaw clenched tight as the vein on his neck visibly appeared. 

"We promised to stand here together, at this altar, to become each other's forever." His voice low and hoarse. All the tears that he had been desperately trying to hold onto finally came out. Isabelle held him tight in her arms, as though the moment she let go, he would be broken into pieces. Even though the fact was that his heart was already in shattered pieces. 

Tears uncontrollably flowed out the rim of my eyes, the feeling of my heart breaking for Grayson.  I could never understand how Amelia could easily break the man who love her with his whole heart. 

Isabelle soon had to leave due to a work emergency. As much as she was worried, she could not leave the company hanging so I assured her that I would be here with Grayson. She took one last glance at him before leaving the hall.

I watched him silently as he continued sobbing his heart out, while I stood at the farthest corner, crying silently for him. He did not deserve this. He was meant to get married and live a happily ever after with the woman he love. He was meant to be happy, not to sink into despair like this, crying for the one who will never be back. 

This went on for another hour or maybe two, until a heavy downpour began that Grayson finally rose to his feet. I hurriedly wiped away the dried tears on my face as I watched him walking down the stairs and aisle in his crumpled suit, looking void and blank. 

As he exited the hall, I quietly followed after him. He did not bother going back to the changing room to change out of his suit, but rather, he stepped into the pouring rain. My eyes widened as I instantly ran back to the changing room which was quite a walk from here. The rain was so heavy that I could barely make out what was ahead of me, that I fell flat onto the ground after tripping over something that felt like a branch. 

I got up from the ground and limped forward as I finally reached the changing room. I looked around the room and finally spotted an umbrella that was lying at the corner of the room and a few towels by the bed. Grabbing the items, I got out of the room not before opening the umbrella. 

Grayson was still standing in the middle of the rain, with no sign of wanting to seek shelter from the heavy downpour. I lifted up my arms more as I held the umbrella with one hand, and throwing the towels over him with the other hand. Whipping out my phone, I dialled for a cab which was going to arrive within 10 minutes, which was fast considering the heavy rain. We stood in silence as I felt the rain going slightly smaller than before, for which I was relieved. 

As the cab arrived, I guided Grayson towards the car and had to shove him slightly into the car before we set off towards his house. Isabelle had sent me his address before she left for work. I was thankful that the driver was not mad at us being dripping wet from the rain and wetting his car seats. He even offered me some tissue paper to wipe dry myself though I was practically soaked in the rain. 

The rain finally stopped by the time we arrived to his house. I quietly followed after him again as he punched in passcode and the door opened automatically. A woman who seemed to be in her mid 40s came into our view. 

She let out a small gasp upon seeing our soaked clothes as she hurriedly got robes and threw over Grayson, who then said nothing and headed upstairs. She then passed another robe to me for which I thanked her. 

"You must be Miss Aurora, Miss Isabelle had informed me just a few moment ago. I'm Heather." The lady introduced herself as she gave me a small smile. 

"You can just call me Aurora. Right Heather, could I use the kitchen for a while?" I asked, while she immediately agreed and guided me to the kitchen. 

"Do you have ginger here?" I asked again, as I poured hot water into a glass cup. Heather took out some ginger slices as I tossed them into the water. Passing the glass to her, I said, "Can you make sure he drinks it all? I don't think it's appropriate for me to do so." 

She looked at me with some sort of understanding shone in her eyes and replied, "I will make sure he does. You should get into a hot shower first before you run a high fever tonight. The bathroom is to your left. After you're done, please find me at the kitchen again to settle your wounds." Her eyes focused on my right knee and elbow, which had a mix of rainwater and blood together. 

I nodded, "Thank you so much, Heather."