Chapter 8 The Void She Left Behind

• “Is your heart made of stone, Calista?” he mumbled to himself, hastily finding his way into the empty home. It wasn’t completely empty, as he had presumed. The house still looked luxurious and well-fashioned, but the things Calista had bought to make the house less cold and frightening were gone. She had brought colors to his home, and her absence made the whole place feel extremely out of place for him. It felt quiet, making it look less like home.
• With his heartbeat pounding loudly against his chest, he roamed the entire house seeking something connected to her—a single item she must have touched or something he had gotten for her—but he found nothing.
• He walked through the rooms, his footsteps echoing in the silence. The apartment was filled with memories of moments shared and emotions felt. He searched for any sign of her presence but found nothing. No lingering scent, no personal belongings. It was as if she had never been there.
• Before she came, his home was void of colors. The walls held clean, flawless yet deserted black and white paints. His cushions were white, with black throw pillows. His bedroom was the same, exuding nothing but whiteness. But when she came, after a hot night of sex that left him derailed, she requested to add some touches to the house. He had only nodded, just to make her feel at home.
• He saw the joy in her eyes. It made him feel at ease. And when he returned home from work the next day, he was baffled at the transformation she had made. She even brought a fluffy white dog they both cherished. She made him cherish Nal until his sudden death last year.
• He remembered she had cried for the second time since they met. This time, he didn’t feel irritated; he felt pain surging through him, seeing her in despair. He badly wanted to get her another dog as a gift but refrained. He constantly reminded himself not to get too emotional with her to avoid silly assumptions. He reminded himself he couldn’t get too comfortable with her presence.
• But now, sitting in a rather suffocating emptiness, he wished he had gotten her the dog.
• He picked up his phone, dialing her number, which he had saved as “Calista,” but the call diverted to voicemail. He tried again, hoping she would pick up. Ranya seemed confused by his current state. Why was he calling her?
• He tried again, but it diverted. Angrily, he smashed the phone on the floor.
• “Argh!” he groaned, feeling pain consuming his whole being.
• “What on earth is wrong with me?” he whispered quietly, standing up from the chair and running his hands tactlessly through his smooth, well-combed hair.
• “You don’t have any feelings for her, Ranya. What you’re feeling right now is guilt because you’re already used to her presence. You did this to yourself when you allowed her into your space,” he whispered to himself, closing his eyes. “Vivian is back. Focus on that, man, and pull your fucking self together!”
• “Probably she left completely because I’m a bad, grumpy, and selfish Dominant...”
• “No! I’m no Dominant. We both had an agreement of convenience and I’m...”
• “God!” Ranya groaned loudly, shutting off the war going on in his mind. It was obvious he was going insane. Calista made her point clear; she was done with him. She took everything away, making herself completely out of reach.
• Now he understood why she withdrew the money the moment she left his firm. She also took away her luggage in a day. He had given her a week, and she did it all in twenty-four hours!
• His heart twitched again. The intensity to see her, hold her, and tell her whatever it would take to make her not leave him dejected overwhelmed him. Maybe going to her house would help.
• “Why should I go to her house? She did what I asked of her. Vivian is the only woman I want, so why am I feeling like I lost something?”
• “Maybe going to her house will make things better. I just need to ask her why she disappeared with everything,” he fumed, unaware he had been talking to himself repeatedly. “I don’t even know where she lives.”
• He picked up his keys, walking out of the room, feeling the heaviness in his heart growing more intense. Maybe it was a good thing she left, he thought as he entered his car, heading back to the office.
• Calista had made her point crystal clear and he would let her have her way. He had her family records and could easily get her home address from them, but allowing himself to go to her would portray him as weak. Vivian was the only woman he wanted.
• “Damian’s words are only making me feel strange. It’s nothing. Vivian is my woman and I will bring her home. Only then will I prove whatever thing is going on in my head wrong,” he said to himself, adjusting his hair before zooming off, still feeling the emptiness and heaviness in his heart.
• *****
• “Aren’t you rushing this traveling stuff, Cal? You’re making me cry already,” Emily called, clinging tightly to her friend, her head resting on her shoulder.
• “We still have thirty more minutes to be all lovey-dovey,” Calista said, holding her and smiling as she watched the time with keen interest. “Thank you for all you do, Emily. I somehow wish you were coming with me.”
• “You don’t mean that, do you?” Willie chipped in defensively. “You want her to leave everything here and follow you to a destination we really don’t know what’s in store for us? That sucks.”
• Ever since Mr. MacQuoid told his youngest daughter and Calista’s immediate sister about the impromptu travel plans, she had been sulking.
• The twenty-year-old student of Yale University couldn’t bear the fact that she had to leave everyone behind without informing them and just disappear because the eldest daughter insisted they all leave Texas for a country no one knew what to expect.
• “I would have actually accepted to come if I wasn’t already betrothed, Willie. But I can always come check on you guys,” Emily assured, smiling broadly at her.
• “You really want to get married?” Willie fumed, wearing a displeased expression. “Men suck.”
• “Don’t say that, little woman,” Mrs. MacQuoid said, hitting her defensively on the head, causing her to yell. “Your father isn’t one of those men you’re referring to, right?”
• “Let her be. She’s only angry we’re leaving Texas. I’m sure she doesn’t know Calista wanted us to go to the Philippines in the first place,” their father interjected, causing an uproar of laughter from everyone.
• “Eeww!” Willie coughed amidst laughter. “I’d rather stay here.”
• “The Philippines are nice people, seriously. I just don’t know why you think my choice of destination isn’t cool,” Calista replied, rolling her eyes at their ignorance.
• “Not like you want us to disappear from the surface of the Earth...” Willie interjected, putting on her earphones. She was an adherent lover of music.
• “So, Emily, who are you getting married to?” Mrs. MacQuoid asked, turning towards Emily with a broad smile. “I see matchmaking is a common tradition of the rich.”
• Emily laughed at Mrs. MacQuoid’s question and turned to face her fully. “I haven’t met him either.”
• “You haven’t?” she asked. “But you sounded so excited.”
• “I am, Mrs. MacQuoid, because I want to be with him, and I will stop at nothing to achieve that,” she said sweetly, turning her gaze back to her friend. “He has a little distraction at the moment, but he will soon realize he’s mine later than sooner.”
• Calista could swear she sensed a high level of desperation in her friend’s voice, and it got her worried. She couldn’t seem to understand her obsession with some unknown faceless man she had refused to let her know about. His name remained a mystery to her. Before her mom could say anything else after recovering from the shock of Emily’s words, the announcer spoke, asking the travelers to board.
• Calista stood, holding firmly to her friend, who seemed joyous at her decision to leave Texas for good, while she accompanied them to the terminal.
• Willie followed suit, a little distracted by her phone when she stumbled into someone.
• “You’re not blind, are you?” he groaned angrily, staring intently at Willie, who was about to say something unfair before Calista interrupted, dazed by the young man’s cuteness.
• “I’m sorry, sir,” she apologized on her sister’s behalf.
• “You’re…”
• “...Anthony!” someone called, causing the intended harsh words to remain unsaid. Calista furrowed her brows at his displeased look of hatred as he walked past her, sticking his index finger at her.
• “Rude brat,” Willie said, walking away to the terminal.
• “Let’s go, Cal,” Emily beckoned, drawing her away from the spot. “You don’t want to be left behind.”