Aurelia spoke with a defiant edge in her voice, "So, I never planned on marrying him anyway. I could just find a man who's never been down the aisle."
Upon hearing it, Leopold felt a sharp twinge in his heart.
Of the three of them, the only bachelor was Elvis.
He could feel the wound inside him deepen by tenfold. One of these days, she was going to be the death of him with her words.
"Our remarriage won't change your status, and you'll always be my first and only."
Aurelia's lips curled into a wry smile, "I'm the first wife in the history of the Stirling family to be kicked to the curb. Coming back would be beyond awkward, truly a real blow to my pride."
A thorn had lodged itself in her heart, never removed. Usually, it lay dormant, but with every touch, it flared up, causing all sorts of discomfort.
Leopold let out a helpless sigh, "Aurelia, it's not what you think..."
He was cut off before he could finish, "I know there must have been a reason you divorced me, some grand plan or dire necessity. But regardless, the divorce is a fact, and no reason can change that. You said you'd change, but you haven't. You're just as autocratic as you were three years ago, never consulting me, never considering my feelings."
Leopold fell silent, each of her words hitting him like a bullet, targeting his vulnerabilities.
"Can't we just forget the past and start over?"
"No one can forget their past. I will start over, but not necessarily with you." With those final words, Aurelia pulled open the door and walked out, leaving a trail of melancholy in the air, so thick that Leopold felt suffocated.
He suddenly realized he had been too naive initially. He thought that by revealing the truth, Aurelia would forgive him and return to his side.
But now, he saw the chasm that had grown between them. It was widening every second, stretching the distance between them, pushing them further apart.
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