Forbidden Love with My Fiancés Uncle

Sitting in front of a pew during a funeral always scared me, because of how personalized the loss was.

I remembered watching my school girl sitting in front of the pew during her father's burial months ago, and I remembered feeling sad for her as she bawled her eyes out.

But what I couldn't remember was imagining that girl to be me a few months later.

It was a nightmare. It had to be.

But no matter how many times I blinked, or how many times I pinched my arm, I wouldn't wake up.

Instead, I was still sitting in the front pew. I could see the pity stares from friends, and business associates, but nothing made sense.

The only thing that made sense was my mother's smiling face in a large portrait in front of a casket. Her warm smile seemed to mock me, a cruel reminder of what I'd lost.

I refused to believe she was the one in that casket.

It didn't make any sense.

One moment she was there with me, and the next, she was lying lifeless.

I refused to believe it.

I scanned the crowd, meeting the pity-filled stares of those around me. Some faces were familiar, others unknown, but all shared the same sympathetic expression. Yet, I felt utterly alone. No family, no true friend, to offer comfort.

My phone lay in my lap, my boyfriend's message a constant reminder of his absence.

"I'm sorry I couldn't make it, princess. My dad gave me a shitload of work to do, but I'll make it up to you. Be strong for me, love."

His words brought a fleeting sense of comfort, and despite myself, a ghost of a smile made its way to my lips knowing my boyfriend was thinking of me even though he was absent.

I understood, because I knew how his dad could be. Plus, he was being groomed for to take over the CEO position after his father.

In between the sad smiles, gentle squeeze of my shoulders, and comforting words from people, the rest of the event passed in a blur, and the casket was rolled into the ground in our backyard.

I stood there for what felt like hours, unable to move.

Slowly but surely, the crowd dispersed till I was all alone.

The sun dipped below the horizon, casting a dark shadow over the empty space, only then did I force myself into the house.

Silent. Hollow. Empty.

The house was everything I felt inside, and unable to stand on my own two feet, my knees buckled underneath me, and I fell on a heap on the floor.

I hugged my knees to my chest, and the first ball of tear since that dreadful night, rolled down my cheeks.

How I'd kept my tears in was a mystery even to me, but after the first tear, I couldn't stop.

I didn't want to stop.

I felt like my heart was being ripped open and stormed on as I wept for the loss of my mother. My best friend. The only family I had.

The pain I was feeling was unbearable, and I knew I had to leave the house before it swallowed me whole.

With shaky legs, I stood up and sprinted out of the house, one location in mind.

I needed him. I couldn't do this. I couldn't spend another second in that house. Not when everything reminded me of her, and her scent still lingered in the house.

I pumped my feet as fast as I could. My lungs begged me to stop and filled them with air. My limbs protested, but I didn't stop.

I couldn't.

My body was on fire with pain, and the simple activity of breathing became really difficult. But none of them could compare to the painful throb in my heart.

I needed him.

I ran faster, only stopping when the tall roof of his house came into view.

I collapsed by the front door, gasping for breath, and giving myself a few seconds breathe before walking in.