Mock Funeral: Deep Love Cannot Overcome All Difficulties

I sent it, and then immediately pulled it back.

It almost slipped my mind—we never did get that marriage license.

I headed back from the cemetery to what she calls home, really just a pit stop for Jane.

She's glued to Winston, only gracing our home with her presence if I plead enough for her to see Emily, just for a night.

By morning, she's out, treating us like the plague.

I cleaned Emily's room meticulously, wiping away the dust and setting everything in order.

Then I tossed out all of Jane's things and told her assistant to haul them off.

But the assistant never showed—Jane did.

Winston tagged along, looking worse for wear.

"Mike, what's the matter with you? Kicking all my stuff to the curb—are you out of your mind?"

She strutted in on spindly heels, brows knitted but unable to mask the radiance of her face or the tell-tale hickeys that spoke of last night's indulgences.

At that moment, I was done talking.

Emily's gone, why didn't you show up, do you even consider us family... Seeing those love bites, I suddenly didn't want to know anything more.

This condo was supposed to be our marital nest. Initially, I wanted Jane's name alongside mine on the deed, but she outright refused, content with a ceremony, no legal strings attached.

Back then, it broke my heart, and left me feeling insecure, begging her to reconsider.

Now, it seems not tying the knot legally spared me a world of hassle.

Jane thought I was just having a tantrum, given my deep love for her.

She snapped, "It was just a mock funeral, right? Not real. We can always do another one tomorrow."

"No need."

With Emily gone, nothing matters anymore.

Winston, ever the charmer, clasped Jane's arm, casting me a defiant glance.

"Bro, had another heart episode last night. Jane didn't mean to bail—it's on me, this broken-down body always dragging you down."

His face flushed, nowhere near that of a man battling heart disease.

Jane soothed Winston with gentle words, "Winston, it's not your fault, you're ill, it's only right that I look after you first."

I laughed bitterly, "He's sick, sure, but wasn't Emily too? Ever as devoted to her as you are to him? You couldn't even spare her one last look!"

Emily was so young, grappling with the sheer terror of her impending death, courageous enough to stage her own funeral.

It crushed me to hear why—why she wouldn't use the remaining time to do something delightful.

She hoped the mock funeral would bring her busy mom to her side, so she could see her mom with her eyes, if only for a moment.

But even that modest wish was too much for Jane to honor.

Just how busy can one be, to always be at Winston's side?

Facing this heartless woman, it felt like my heart had sprung a leak, the love seeping out grain by grain.

Yet, Jane remained indifferent, "What, thinking I should be guilty about Emily now?"

"Remember, you were the one who pleaded with me—that's the only reason I agreed to have her."

Jane and I ended up married because of Emily.

Five years back, after Mike left her to go abroad, a night of drinking led to a mistake.

Jane dismissed it as a one-night stand, and told me not to make a big deal of it, so I pocketed the engagement ring I had been carrying.

Her pregnancy was unexpected, and though Jane wanted to abort, the doctor warned her frail health made abortion risky and might prevent future pregnancies.

I begged her on my knees, and only then did she agree to keep our child.

I had hoped that Emily, being her flesh and blood, would mean something to her.

Clearly, she was colder than I ever imagined.

I had no more words for her, just one cold farewell.

"This place is mine, just leave."