My Soulmate's second chance

The deafening silence inside the hall made his heavy breathing resound throughout. Ace put pressure on the wound on his chest and dragged himself towards the room where she was.

There were open gashes all over his body, and his dress was completely drenched in blood. Crawling towards the nearest decorated table, he used the cloths to bandage his wounds.

It was the only way to control the heavy bleeding. Ace had to stay alive until he made sure that his beloved Woman was out of danger.

Patched up, he took the support of the wall

and the chairs to move forward slowly. Every step he took drained him of the little life left, but no part of him was ready to give up yet.

Once Ace's knees gave away, but he clutched at the sofa nearby to regain balance. Not.much strength was left in his body, making it hard to stand still or move forward. He tripped again and crashed to the floor.

To his horror, Ace found he had stumbled on a severed human hand. Dizziness overwhelmed his senses. He had lost too much blood.

Ace jammed a hand over his chest wound and

the pain shot up. He let outa cry of anguish,

but the blinding pain helped clear his fuzzy

mind.

He ground his teeth, riding through the agony, and started to crawl with the last bit of energy left in his body towards the room where she was.

The dim light and blurred vision did not help.

Ace's eyes caught the sight of something

shiny under the moonlight. It was a ring, The

wedding ring he gave her. He blinked and

rubbed his eyes to get a better look.

Yes! She had their wedding ring on all this time! It was the sanme ring that she had once refused to wear. A delirious smile crept into his face. Ace had finaly found her!

Melinda! But why was she out of the room? Did she get hurt as well? Why was her hand not moving?He started panicking.

Ace crawled towards her as fast as he could in his miserable state. He was about to reach her, just a yard away, when his body faltered, and he started losing consciousness.

Ace tried to reach for her hand, the hand she

had the wedding ring on. He had always

wanted her to wear it, but.. After all those

years, when Melinda had finally put it on, it

was going to be his last day.

He smiled

bitterly at the irony. His fingers lingered in the air, reaching for her with the last ounce of life left him.

"

Ace..." He could hear Melinda's shallow

breathing as she tried to call out to him. Pain and helplessness were evident in her voice. She was hurt as well.

He wanted to announce that he was there, right by her. However, the dying man had already lost his voice.

Ace heard footsteps. A group of people was

rushing towards them. Witha final desperateattempt, he managed to grab onto her ring finger with his trembling hands.

Oh, my love. A deathly smile spread on his

lips. His last smile.

"Hey! This girl here, she is still alive! She needs medical attention immediately." They were the people who came to rescue the duo.

"Oh no! This is Melinda. Madam, please open your eyes! Madam!" a girl urged. She was the one who had led the rescue party inside the hall.

"Ace.."

Even amidst the loud voices and bustle, he

could hear her beautiful voice whispering his name. Ace held her hand tightly to reassure her.

"

Oh my God, she is in a critical stage! Let us

rush her to the hospital," a man instructed.

As the people picked her up, Ace's desperate

grasp of her hand slipped, and away she

went.

He could not see her face, but the

bright diamond ring sparkled on her finger. "I

will wear it the day I forgive you," she had said.

'Melinda, my love, you put on my ring.' Ace

told himself.

You forgave me, but I could not

complete my promise to live a happy life with you. If I get a second chance, just one chance,I promise it will be all different.

I will love you more, protect you from every little harm. I will never misunderstand you again. The next time, Melinda, we will live a long and happy life together. If I get a second chance, I will not hide my love for you. I will make you mine!"

Ace's surroundings dimmed, and everything

came toa standstill. Cold crept into his heart. He breathed his last as he fell into a dark silent pit.

****t

Melinda was in her room when she heard

noises from outside. She did not want to skulk there like a coward. The woman pulled out the gun that was a gift from Ace. She always carried it with her.

Melinda left the room to find Ace. However,

she could not find him in the darkness. A

scuffle began- bullets flew all over the place.

Melinda fired shots and killed two of the

assailants, but she was not trained. She was

shot several times. After a prolonged fight,

the noise died down. Either everyone in the

Scuffle lost their life or was on the brink of

death.

Melinda had already lost much blood and

could not move an inch. Her beautiful white

gown was now dyed red. She tried to call Ace, expecting him to be somewhere around and searching for her.

"A-ce!" she cried into nothingness.

Melinda wanted to move, but her body just

would not. Tears rolled down her cheeks and mixed with her blood.It took years for Melinda to forgive Ace. The Woman finally found out what heartache was.

She wanted to confess her feelings to him

right then. Regardless of whether he

accepted or rejected her, she wanted to tell

the whole world that she,

Melinda VWilson, was madly in love with Ace Williams! She wanted to be Mrs. Ace Williams for the rest of her life!

Sadly, her life was about to end.

'Ace. I am sorry!I am sorry for

misunderstanding you! I am sorry for all the

hatred! f l get another shot at this, I will make everything right. I will punish those who did this to us!' Melinda had been lying on the floor, bleeding and delirious.

She felt a slight touch on her ring finger. A

familiar warmth filled her heart. Ace?

She knew it was him even though it was too

dark, and her eyes barely opened.Melinda tried to speak his name, but only a whisper escaped her.

"

A-ce. "

Tears streamed down her face as the hand

slowly gripped hers. A weak smile found its

way to her lips.

You found me, Ace,' Melinda thought in

morbid ecstasy.

Strangers rushed over, and before she could

figure out what was going on, she was being

carried away.

Ace's final touch lingered on her hand.

I put on the ring, Ace.' My love for you will endure not only in this lifebut in the next and all upcoming lives. I willfind you again, Ace, and love you with all my heart. AIl| need is a second chance.!'

Deep within her, emotions welled up as ifa cosmic switch had been flipped. Something

told Melinda that her wish would be fulfilled.

Darkness engulfed her. Oblivion greeted her

with welcoming arms.

****t