Days turned into weeks, and weeks into month, as Ryan found himself entangled into the labyrinth of concussion. With no brief interval of relief in sight, his heartache grew in intensity, distressed etched into every line in his weary face. The dark cloud of incompleteness loomed, shattering every semblance of peace.
Within the walls of his marital home, serenity remained elusive as well. Anne couldn't help but notice how gloomy Ryan had become in the past few weeks, even as Ryan tried hard to conceal his emotion. Severally, she tried talking it out with him, but he was never ready to spill the beans.
"You shouldn't worry yourself much, my love." He always tells her in reply, trying to wave the topic off -with the fear of how she would react if she ever finds out. "I'm only stressed due to excess work, I'll be fine in no time."
The once burning love between him and Anne had cooled to barely smoldering ember. The once unbreakable bind fraying with each passing moment, as Ryan's thought danced between the love he sought to maintain and the love he refused to acknowledge.
He was stuck in between Anne's love for him and his sudden growing feelings for his long gone enchantress -who did not only gain his mother's love and support but his heart too.
It was then that Ryan's inner turmoil was gradually increasing into a dramatic climax, the waves of despair crashing down on him mercilessly. Clasping his hand tightly, as if holding his very own soul, he knew that he could no longer ignore the feeling nor the void that continued to gnaw at his core.
He decided, with hesitation and determination, to confront the storm, the greatest tempest of doubt and longing that tormented him so pitilessly -if only he could locate Ciara, then hopefully, he would be at peace with himself.
-and if only but one way to locate Ciara, it was through his mother. He was hesitant in his thoughts of standing in the presence of his mother once again.
(What if she would rather not see me again...？' He couldn't help but question himself several times , but at last, he only had one answer-to face his trepidation and confront his mother, that way, he can finally fill up the emptiness he keeps having inside of him.
******
Ryan braced himself as he paused in front of the wrought iron gate of his mother's magnificent mansion. The grandiose estate stood in stark contract to the gloomy skies above and was a testament to the wealth and opulence that Ryan's family possessed.
The butter wind whipped around him, seemingly reflecting the turmoil that was unfolding in his life. It has been barely two months since his confrontation with his mother over his decision to will his fortune to Anne, his wife.
That fateful decision had changed the course of their relationship completely. It has been two months of silence between mother and son -two months since he had last seen her face or stepped foot into her mansion, which was rare.
He gets to see her or instead pays him a visit, either in his or home or place of work, at least once every week -to check up on his affairs, she usually says. Not seeing her for two months seemed awkward, and he did not know if he still got the courage to face her as of the day he challenged her.
A torrent of emotion surged through Ryan as he recalled his mother's harsh ultimatum; he could either adhere to her wish or she would disown him. He had chosen to stand by Anne, and in doing so, had severed him ties with the woman who had raised him.
However, today, he was here for Ciara, the one person who seems to have suddenly and forcefully reached the depth of his heart. It was Ciara who had made the feeling he held for Anne pale in comparison.
Ciara, with her warm smile and a heart of gold, had captured Ryan's attention in a way that no one had ever been able to do. The vivacious and hardworking young nurse had been taking more and more space in Ryan's thoughts as the days worn on.
It was for her sake that Ryan had come back to his mother, he never thought he would -at least not this soon. While his mother has been the one who insisted on his contract marriage, to secure his inheritance with a reputable woman, she had always seemed to know Ciara more than he did.
He hopes to enlist her help desperately, if not to be reunited with the one ho had managed not to flee into the dark night alone but with his heart.
The echoes of his mother's reproaches still rang in his ear. Upon entering the large, opulent reception room of the mansion, Ryan noticed a figure standing before the fireplace, silhouetted against the dancing flames.
Although he could not discern her features, Ryan knew immediately that it was his mother. Gathering his thought and steeling his resolve, he approached her and with a deep breathe, he proceeded to talk.
As soon as she noticed her son's presence, she turned to face him before he got the chance to speak, as she greeted him with an unwavering gaze that spoke of steely resolve even before she uttered a word.
Ryan swallowed hard into nothing, suddenly feeling an invincible lump in his throat. "Mother..."He began slowly as he tried his best to avoid her blazing gaze, afraid that he might lose the little courage he managed to muster with her kind of uninviting stare.
As expected of her, she did not reply nor respond to him, patiently waiting for him to finish with whatever he had to say -even though she was boiling in rage, she managed to keep a serene loo.
"I know I have disappointed you and betrayed your trust." He paused, pressing his lips into a thin line and allowing the weight of the words to settle between them. "-for that, I am deeply sorry, mother."
She knows her son too well, better than he knew himself. For him to show up unannounced and out of the blues, there must be something that seems out of his reach. "What is it that you want?" Her voice was undoubtedly cold, cold enough to send chills down Ryan's spine.
He need not to cut through the bush anymore, his mother was already aware of his presence
-the reason behind his sudden visit. "I need your help to find Ciara." He uttered straightforwardly.
His mother's serene countenance was replaced with that of surprised, but she was quick to conceal it. "What did you just say?" She asked him in an icy tone.
"Look, mom, I know I've made a foolish move in the pass, and I'm ready to rectify those mistakes." He told her in a serious tone. "I'm sincerely sorry, and I require your help since you know much about her than I do. You are my first and last hope, mom."
Unmoved by his desperate plead, she dismissed him callously. "I have no help to render to someone who believes he is right with his decision." Her voice was stern, and she did not hide how angry she was at him.
"Go back to your so-called loving wife and live with your mistake, since that was your unwavering decision. I have no intention of being a part of your mistake, Ryan."
If Anne was Ryan's decision, then so be it-She wants no part in the disastrous love triangle that seems to be emerging, not after she had warned and threatened him severally.
Ryan's heartfelt heavy with disappointment, but a flicker of hope remained. "Mother, please..."His voice was filled with emotion, giving his mother his usual pitiful -the type she always finds hard to resist. "-you can't do this to your only son. I might die of longing soon, mother. Please, help, even if it's this once."
He beseeched his mother once more to help him find Ciara, the woman who had woken the boundless love within him. It was this love that encouraged him to humble himself before his mother in a last ditch effort to have the life he truly desired.
His mother's stern facade begins to crumble as she listened to his impassioned plead. Ryan's determination and love for Ciara was undeniable, despite her misgiving, his mother's innate maternal insist were touched.
Eventually, she relented to his son's wishes. "How can I ever deny you of my audience and aid, Ryan?" She muttered rhetorically with a short sigh. Though she confessed that she knew little more about Ciara than her occupation and enviable reputation as a nurse, she promised Ryan that she would do all she could to help him find his quest.
"You should go back home, I promise I'll give you the necessary help I can render." She told him. "-since you finally realized your mistake and ready to rectify it."
Ryan, though hesitantly, gave his mother a surprised hug. His mother was shocked, since it was the least she expected from him. "Let go, Ryan." She tried disengaging the hug, but Ryan wasn't ready to let go. "What are you doing?"
"I'm trying to appreciate you, I wasn't wrong when I told myself you won't turn your back on me." He muttered over her shoulder before releasing her from his grip. "I can't thank you enough, mother."
"I know. Just go." That was her hush reply, and she watched her son leave. She couldn't help but allow her lips spread in a soft smile -she was glad she hadn't completely lost her son to the wife of his.
As the door closed once more behind him, leaving Ryan out on the doorstep, his heart swelled with gratitude and determination.
He wasn't sure what the future held for him and Ciara, but with his mother's uncharacteristic support, he was willing to risk everything to chase the happiness that seemed to be tantalizing within reach.
This mark the start of a new chapter in Ryan's life. A chapter filled with the promise of love, of self discovery and of forgiveness. For Ryan's, the choice to reunite with Ciara was just not about pursuing the love of his life, but also about reconciling with the woman who had given him life and nurtured him to the man he had become.
In a surprising twist of fate, it was the very act of seeking the love he craved for one woman that simultaneously allowed him to mend the broken relationship he had with the other.