WHAT REMAINS OF ME

Hinata's POV

I could feel the tightening of my chest like someone had dumped a big truck on it. Sudden. Unexpected. Merciless. I knew from the very beginning that days like this would eventually come. But nothing prepared me for the pain this would cause. 

I tightly gripped the hem of my shirt and bit my bottom lip as hard as I could, to numb the pain. I was in that state when our eyes met. I had no idea what shows on my face because he just smirked at me, then averted his eyes to the woman. 

My confidence sank even lower. Maybe my face looked so terrible that he couldn't even look at me for longer than what he just gave me. That thought made me feel ashamed to even look at myself in the mirror. I am terrified that it might be true. I couldn't take another blow to my ego; I had too much. 

"What the heck! Did that shameless devil just smirk at you, besty? He's really getting on my nerves. C'mon! Let's show him what he's looking for," Yasha uttered. Her voice was coated with anger, and when I looked at her, it was even more evident on her face. 

"Besty, don't. Let's just get out of here," I pleaded silently. 

She looked at me with disbelief. 

"What? Are you out of your mind? Let me just remind you that you are the legal wife. You have a ring on your finger, for goodness' sake, Hinata Marie! You have every bit of a right to go ballistic over what you have just witnessed because that bastard is clearly cheating on you."

"Yasha, please. I don't want to cause a scene in here. I might embarrass him and would really get angry at me," I calmly explained, doing all my best to make her see where I was coming from. But instead, that made her angrier. 

"Are you out of your mind? Or are you just blinded by that so-called love of yours?"

That hit home. My tears were streaming down my face, and I shook my head, not letting her see how pitiful her best friend was. 

"Am I that pathetic? Am I ugly? Maybe I'm undesirable, not sexy even. Maybe that's the reason why he's doing all this and maybe.."

"Hinata, stop," she cut me off. "God knows you're not. Stop doing that to yourself because you're beautiful. You're gorgeous. You would not be hailed as the Campus Queen during our college days if you were undesirable. You're the smartest person I know. You have a very big heart, and I swear! You are perfect in any way."

I raised my head. I was genuinely thankful for the praises that were meant to uplift me. However, I couldn't even see that on myself right now. I felt so low and useless. 

"Then why?" I asked her. 

Her eyes softened, and I could see that her heart was also breaking inside. Her lips quivered, and I watched as she bit her bottom lip, trying so hard to stop the tears from escaping her eyes. 

"That's because he is an asshole. You fell in love with an asshole who can't even see how lucky he was to have you. Oh, dear! Let's get out of here," she said and rose from her seat. 

I flashed her a grateful smile. I might have made a lot of wrong decisions in my life, but the decision to be close to her was clearly not one of them. She understood me like no one else could. She supported me in every way, and she would even knock some sense into me. 

I stood up and fixed myself hastily. How I wish I could also do a quick fix on my shattered heart, but who was I kidding anyway? Maybe I'll just have to learn how to pick up the pieces so it will be whole again. 

As I turned to leave, I accidentally glanced in Zeke's direction. Or maybe, I intentionally glanced in his direction. And there he was, chilling on his seat while blankly staring at me. I quickly look away because in that moment, my heart still skipped a beat. Stupid heart. Just plain stupid.