Finding Yourself After a Breakup

“Leah, get on your knees. Can't you hear her?” David dragged me to get on my knees.

“Get your hands off me!” I pushed David Away, “If you want to be an ass-kisser, do it your own. Don't take me with you!”

“What's the matter with you? It's our wedding day. You don’t want to make us to look bad, do you?” David was angry, too.

"Honey, our daughter-in-law seems to have quite a temper. I'm afraid Daniel will be miserable in his household." Julia said, stirring up more complications.

“Son, there are many better girls out there, why did you choose this rude girl as your wife?" David's father said, then looked at me with a frown on his forehead.

“Leah, don't you want to get married?” David asked angrily.

“Who are you? Aren’t you so happy to be Daniel? You're not David, the man I'm going to marry. Besides, I'd rather be single for the rest of my life than marry into that fucked-up family of yours!” I dropped the words then pulled up my veil and turned to leave the place in my high heels.

I ran away from the wedding in full view of everyone. Since the wedding venue was far away from my hometown, I only had my parents to come for me. I went to my parents' seat, pulled them up and fled the wedding venue.

“Didn't you want to marry him so badly? Why are you running away now?”

“What happened, Leah? Why did you leave David near the altar?”

On the way, my mom and dad questioned me one by one, demanding an explanation. They didn't know what had happened. They thought I'd had a fight with David and that's why I'd left the scene so abruptly. I didn't have time to explain. I couldn't understand how David could become like this? Was this who he was in reality, it was just that he was disguising himself so good and pretending to be a really nice person?

David and I went to university together. To me, David was an honest and brave person. He had a calmness that didn't match his age. When I graduated, I stayed in the city for David. He was deeply moved and vowed to always make me happy.

A year ago, David took me back to his birthplace and that's when I met his mother for the first time. Trudy Mynard was her name. But since divorcing her husband, she had returned to using her maiden name, Trudy Wagner, or Mrs. Wagner as I like to call her, was a gentle and generous woman. She treated me with kindness and warmth from the very first day we met. Her nurturing spirit made me feel like part of the family and I often found comfort in her presence.

She had excellent cooking skills. Since her divorce, she opened a pastry shop selling old fashioned pastries. With her meager income, Wagner worked tirelessly to provide for her family, ensuring that her son David could attend college. Despite the financial challenges she faced, she prioritized his education, often sacrificing her own needs to make it happen.

Sometimes when David traveled for business, I'd go back to his hometown myself, help Mrs. Wagner with some of her work and keep her company, or so to speak.

The reason I agreed to marry David was because of his mother. She welcomed me with open arms and shared her wisdom, which reassured me about my decision. My parents knew about David's family circumstances. She said that the dowry we would receive would not be substantial. But David's mother told me that since I had been willing to live away from my parents for David's sake, she was not going to let me suffer. She insisted on giving me seventeen thousand dollars, the appropriate dowry according to local custom.

“David saved up all this money himself, don't feel bad about receiving this.” Mrs. Wagner insisted to me, putting the bag of money in my coat pocket.

Although I was skeptical that David could save that much money in 1 year, Mrs. Wagner insisted on giving it to me, so I couldn't refuse. After that, she also took all her savings to buy David and me a house for our wedding present. I went to see the house once and it was decorated in a simple and elegant way, very much to my liking. All the pre-wedding preparations went smoothly. Except for one thing.

David said we had to hold a wedding first before getting a marriage certificate. The city where we lived had a house purchase limit. David said we would stay at my place after marriage, work hard for a few more years and buy a nice house in a district near a school. I didn't care about any of that, though. From finishing our study, to pick a wedding dress, I think our love was greater than gold. Whichever came first didn't matter as long as we were together, but Mrs. Wagner strongly disagreed.

She insisted we should get the certificate first before the wedding. They had an argument because of this and finally, the ever-good-natured Mrs. Wagner had to take a strong action to her son. If David insisted on not getting the marriage certificate first, she wouldn't put a single penny on the wedding.

David and I had started buying our wedding necessities since we graduated a year ago and since we didn't have established jobs yet, we were really tight on budget. David was too stubborn to apologize and I'm too embarrassed to ask my parents to fund our wedding. David and his mom both won't budge. I tried to be the middle-man in this, but it didn't work one bit. I thought that it seemed our wedding would have to be put on hold.

Unexpectedly, a week ago, David informed me that the wedding would still go ahead as scheduled. As he spoke, I could hear the determination in his voice, which both reassured and surprised me. I thought that he and Mrs. Wagner had made up, so I went to pick out my wedding dress happily. Until the last second leading up to the wedding, I found out that all this time David had gone to see his father. He even changed his name as a price for him to pay for the wedding.

“Leah, get back here right now and apologize to my parents! We can still go ahead with the wedding. Otherwise, you will definitely regret this,” David's angry voice crackled through the phone. I felt a surge of defiance rather than fear. I understood his frustration, but I wasn't about to let his anger dictate my actions. I took a moment to gather my thoughts, refusing to let his demands overwhelm me.

“Apologize? I didn't do anything wrong, why should I apologize? It's you who owes me an apology. You changed your name without saying a word to me to be a good son in your father's eyes! How filial son you are!” I replied no less annoyed.

“You ran away from the wedding, just because I changed my name?” David asked incredulously. He still didn't feel there was anything wrong with what he did.

I felt very sorry for Mrs. Wagner. She had fought so hard for her son, pouring her heart and soul into ensuring he had a bright future. Yet, despite her sacrifices, David had become a man who seemed utterly unaware of the privileges he had. It frustrated me to see how little he appreciated the struggles she endured for him. While she worked tirelessly to provide support and guidance, he often took it for granted, focusing instead on his own desires and challenges

“David, I was wrong about you. I'm not coming back to apologize, let alone marry you. We're done. I'm breaking up with you!”

“No, you can’t just break up with me! Leah, listen to me. I'll definitely make you regret for-" David threw out scathing words on the other end of the line. I, on the other end, hung up immediately without waiting for him to finish scolding me. Listening to his words was a waste of time.

I regretted ever knowing David. After hanging up the phone, I waited for the right moment to explain to my parents about my sudden change of heart. It felt like a weight on my shoulders, knowing I had to navigate this difficult conversation. I wanted to ensure they understood my reasons and the clarity I had gained about my decision.

"What? He really seemed like a nice guy. I didn’t expect his true nature to be like that scary,” my mother exclaimed, clutching her chest in shock. Her disbelief was evident and I could see the concern etched on her face.

“He doesn’t respect his mother, if he’s married, he definitely won’t value his wife either. It’s a good think that Leah see it before they managed to get married.” My father agreed with me. He tried to sound calm, but he had a stern face, reflecting the deep disappointment he felt.

Mom, Dad and I stayed at the hotel for the night. The wedding wasn't going to happen. The next day, I planned to go to David's house to get my things. Before I entered, I heard shouting from his house. My heart raced as I paused outside, straining to catch snippets of the argument.

“This insolent girl! She's not even pregnant yet, she's so arrogant. What if she's actually carrying a child as the successor to the Maynard family? I'm sure she'll trample on our heads.”