"Just in, CEO Damian Ravenscroft announces marriage to secure a major business partnership. Sources say the union is strategic, aimed at strengthening company ties, not romance. Investors and the public are buzzing. How will this affect those close to him?"
"It's him."
I dropped the remote. My chest burned as I tried to process the news. He was marrying someone to strengthen family ties?
That's not the Damian I've loved for so long. Especially when he already had me.
How could he do this to me… when I just woke up from a coma?
Is it because he's still angry at me?
Is this his revenge?
My questions came crushing into me.
I was in a coma.
But how long have I gone? Days? Months? Or years?
I never even thought to ask.
I looked around again and saw the calendar above the television.
"February 2026?" I murmur.
But my accident happened in August 2024!
A sharp pain suddenly sliced through my chest making it hard to breathe.
I pounded my chest, hoping that it would disappear or somehow lessen the pain I'm feeling.
His eyes, dark as ever but the look on it is different from how I see it before. His jet-black hair that I love was neatly styled now, no longer messy like he used to wear just to make the other girls stop from following him around. His sweet smile was gone and replaced by a commanding presence. His strong jawline and perfect dress code make him really look like a true and confident CEO.
He's not the Lovey I knew. He's not the Damian I fell for. But he's still the Damian I love so much.
What happened to you Damian?
What happened to us?
How… How could we end up like this?
I broke down… there was nothing else I could do.
No one knows about our relationship. No one knows about our connection.
No one would believe me that I was his secret lover.
I had become part of his past. And I was now one of those women with zero percent chance of ever meeting him again.
I was crying, pouring my heart out when the door opened. It was my older sister, Nadia Fairchild. She's my half sister.
Our mother married my father when her father died. My father died when I was 3 years old. My older sister is the one who takes care of me because our mother was always busy working for the both of us.
"Sierra?" I heard her call me.
I looked into her eyes, she was happy I was awake but her smile disappeared when she realized I was crying in pain.
She ran to me and hugged me, maybe thinking I was crying because I woke up in the hospital and no one's beside me.
She looked different too. Her athletic build is still there yet she looks mature and sexy. Her light brown wavy hair is now dropping straight to her back. But most of all, her bright and expressive eyes are still there.
"Hey, hey. I'm here. Sorry for not being here when you woke up." Her protectiveness is also still there. It silently comforts me.
I laughed softly, which made her separate and look me straight in my eyes.
"Are you okay? Did you lose your mind?" She even shook my shoulder thinking I've gone really nuts.
I gently push her hands away and wipe my tears up.
"You okay?" She seriously asked again.
Really? Is she really serious right now? Haha.
"I'm fine, sister. Don't worry. Mom was here when I woke up." I explained so she would stop asking me again and again about the same question.
She sighed in relief but asked me again. But now, a different question.
"But why are you crying?"
I stiffened, unsure how to respond or what to say.
I think it's fine to tell her now, she's not even gonna believe me.
I'm also one hundred percent sure that a lot of women claimed that they're Damian's wife, girlfriend or ex.
"Well, I just woke up today and found out that my boyfriend is now getting married." I told her to make it sound like a joke so she won't take it seriously.
I pouted at the television so she would know who's the boyfriend I'm pertaining to.
She looked at the screen and saw Damian.
"I work at their company," She said calmly while peeling an apple for me.
I looked at her ID lace and saw Damian's company written on it.
Shit-I didn't notice that.
Well, at least she doesn't believe me—
"I work there so I can meet him for you…" She said it in a weaker tone, but enough for me to hear it.
My eyes widened and my heart beat fast.
What?
"What do you mean?" I ask her to confirm if I'm thinking right of what she meant.
"He's your boyfriend, right?" She asked, staring straight into my eyes waiting for me to tell her the truth.
I know she already knows the truth. She may be asking because she wants to hear from me directly. But how did she find out?
"How?" Words that I unconsciously utter.
I might be really surprised.
"You two had dozens of pictures together." She simply answered without looking at me. She continued peeling the apple.
I didn't answer. I was stupid because my sister always goes in and out in my room and Damian and I always go to photobooth. All of our pictures are in my drawer.
She stops what she's doing and walks towards me.
"When you get into an accident, we notify your school. News of your accident wasn't announced to prevent panic or rumors. Mom also requested it." She stopped. Trying to fill me up from the day I got into an accident.
"I kept waiting for Damian, looking for him in your school but the day you got into bed he stopped attending school too. Rumors said Damian wasn't in good health." She continued. Looking at me and holding my hands making sure that I understand everything she said.
"So, he didn't know I got into an accident?" I ask. Hoping that she knows the answer.
"No. One time in his interview the first time he became the CEO, he said he loved someone so dearly but suddenly disappeared. And I know that he was talking about you. He thinks you abandoned him."
I hold her hand tightly, trying my best not to cry in front of her. I was in pain thinking he abandoned me when he was miserable too thinking I also abandoned him.
What the hell happened to us?
Why the hell is this happening to us?
"When I watched it. I did everything I could to get hired at his company just to meet him, but a regular employee barely has a chance of meeting the CEO. But I am still hoping to meet him. I was thinking you might wake up if you heard his voice." Her voice cracked.
I couldn't fight the tears that wanted to escape my eyes. We're both crying at the same time.
"Sister, I dreamed of him before waking up." I cried when I remembered the scenario I had with Damian on campus before I woke up.
"See? You woke up because of him." She also cried but her eyes were full of joy.
While mine was full of regrets and pain.
"Tell me, what do you want to do? I'll help you." Now, she's seriously asking me while tears are still falling in her cheeks.
What should I do, Damian?
Should I fight for our love that already belongs to the past? Or let you go… now that you seem to move on?