«𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐡𝐰𝐚 𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐬»

𝔽𝕝𝕠𝕣𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕚𝕒 𝕩 ℙ𝕖𝕣𝕖𝕫 (𝟛)

It looked beautiful. He looked stunning. She looked gorgeous. They looked enchanting together. With tears in her eyes, Florentia watched as the bride strolled down the aisle. The bride's lovely white dress, her perfectly brushed hair, her shining eyes that had already started to send water trailing down her cheeks.

Likewise, the groom was just as elegant. Smiling, he stood at the altar as he waited for his beloved to join him in this magical day. The groom looked so handsome with his white suit, his dark ebony hair slicked back, his watery crimson eyes and of course his captivating smile. It was their day, their happy occasion.

All the guests watched in excitement as the joyous couple stated their vows, promising to be with each other till death do them part. Then, crowd rose to their feet, clapping and cheering while the couple smiled, looking into each other's eyes. Now, they were officially married. A wedding, a celebration, a happy day.

However, for Florentia, it wasn't. Florentia wished she was the one who stood next to him. She wished she was the bride. She wished she was the one who could be with Perez forever. Except Florentia would never be her.

She couldn't gain the courage to congratulate the married couple. She couldn't gain the courage to clap for the married couple. She couldn't gain the courage to even look at them. She just couldn't.

Shakily, she lifted her head up to catch one last glimpse of Perez. Something inside her shattered when she could see just how blissful he looked. It wasn't Florentia who made him this happy. It was her.

For Perez, it was the best day of his life.

For Florentia, it was the worst day of her life.

And that's when consciousness hit her. Florentia shot up, breathing heavily. Her virid eyes scanned the dark bedroom. It was a dream. Just a dream. Knowing that didn't calm her emotional state. The bed was empty. The space next to her was empty. Perez should have been there. So where was he?

With her knees tucked, Florentia buried her face in her legs as tears seeped out of puffy eyes. Her mind felt chaotic. Her heart felt broken. Worst of all, it felt as if the dream was really true. Small choked sobs left her mouth while her body shook.

Quietly, Perez opened the wooden door as to not wake Florentia up. The sight in front of him split his heart into pieces. He, hastily, approached the bed and wrapped his arms around her trembling body.

"Hey, shh, don't cry.."

Gently, Perez tried his best to comfort the crying brunette but watching her sob like this was repeatedly stabbing his heart. He was still unsure of what caused her to become so upset. Her gloomy state was worrying him more and more. He had only left for a few minutes and he comes back to find her so dejected. What the hell happened?

"Tia..please, tell me what's wrong.."

His words came out as whispers. Perez couldn't bare to see her like this any longer. He lifted her face from her knees to see her tear-stained face. Her usual cheerful face didn't have that delighted smile that outshone everybody else's. Her usual lustrous eyes didn't have that spirit and determination that Perez loved so much.

"Please, what happened? Was it a bad dream? Just tell me, Tia.." Perez pleaded with a strained voice. Florentia seemed to finally notice it was Perez that was right in front of her. She mumbled his name over and over again. Each time, Perez would respond with soothing whispers as he stroked her chestnut hair.

"I had a dream.."

Eventually, Florentia was able to calm down slightly. Perez urged her to go on with her story.

"It..it was terrible. You-you left me.. for someone else and-" Her voice quivered when more tears swelled up in her eyes but Perez didn't need to hear anymore. Though, he could fully understand why her dream had grieved her so much. If he had a similar dream, he also wouldn't be able to shake it off easily.

"Tia, I will never leave you."

When hearing his calm voice, Florentia's head snapped up to meet Perez's beautiful face that had a serious expression painted across it.

"I love you so much. More than anything." Slowly, his face crept closer to hers. What mattered most of all was that Tia knew just how far he was willing to go for her.

"You're stunning, brilliant, compassionate, gorgeous, funny and so much more. God, I could go on for ages about everything I love about you."

Tia's body melted at his heart-warming words while the two deeply stared at each other.

"I will never and I mean never love someone as much as I love you." His eyes burned with passion, continuing to bore into Tia's very existence. Florentia could feel her eyes watering up but she refused to cry anymore. His sweet words of affection gifted her with hope, confidence and most of all love.

"Perez.."

Yet as soon as her voice came out, it quickly disappeared, as if it were never there. Tia wanted to speak to him, to tell him how much she loved him but previous images swirled in her mind. Her dreary dream continued to linger on her shoulders, weighing her down. Yet after the eloquent words that were just spoken to her, how could she just sit there as Perez poured his heart out for her?

Instead of utilizing words, she wanted to convey her love through actions. She needed reassurance, comfort but most of all just Perez's presence. Carefully, Florentia edged her body closer to his and brought her face near his.Slowly, their lips moved closer until they softly landed on each others. It was warm, gentle, caring.

She didn't want to think of the what if's. What Tia had with Perez right now was the most important thing to her. There was no point in worrying about the future but to focus on the present.

"Thank you..thank you so much. Perez, I love you too."

Perez slowly smiled at the lovely words that just slipped out of soft lips. It was always a euphoria when being able to just be with Florentia like this. And thus, the two cradled each other until sleep washed over their exhausted states.