It still hurts

When she heard footsteps approaching the living room, Rose lifted her head and her gaze rested on her son and Miya.

"Mom, we are going out. I just hired a nanny to come over, but can you stay with the kids for a few hours until we get back? Also, there will be a few other people coming over, would you please supervise them as they carry out their task?" Jackson said.

"Sure, you two run about your business, and I will be right here with these adorable cuties," Rose mumbled with a smile as Milu's tiny hand grabbed onto her finger.

His lips curved into a smile as Jackson watched his mother's face glowed with joy. Then he breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Thanks, mom."

"You don't have to thank me. These are my grandbabies, and I would do anything for them." Rose said.

The corner of Jackson's mouth raised as he watched the bright smile on Miya's pinkish lips.

After a few minutes, Jackson drove out of his yard with Miya in the front seat of the car.

"You got people coming over?" Miya mumbled while staring at the vehicles passing by her window.

"Yeah," Jackson replied as he glanced at her before putting his focus back on the road.

"Why?"

"It's a surprise."

After their brief conversation, they didn't say much to each other the entire ride. Then after a twenty-minute drive, Jackson finally brought his car to a stop in the police station parking lot.

With worry hiding behind the calmness in his eyes, Jackson gazed at Miya and asked, "Do you want me to go in with you?"

"Thank you for the offer, but this is something that I have to do on my own." Miya softly said.

Then she faintly smiled at Jackson before getting down from the car and heading into the station.

It took a while, but Miya patiently went through all the station procedures, and at last, she was sitting in front of a glass staring at Lucas on the other end of the window.

"You came?" Lucas mumbled with the telephone pressed against his ear.

"Well, you said you wanted to see me, so here I am." Miya straightforwardly said as her hand tightened around the phone.

When Lucas and her eyes met, Miya felt goosebumps creeping on her arms and fear seemed to rise behind her eyes as her heart began to hammer against her chest.

"I didn't know what came over me yesterday. But Miya I love you, and I feel so terrible for laying my hands on you. I promise that once you bail me out of here, I will seek help so that I can be a better man for you."

"Is that so?"

The angry burning inside of Miya mixed with pain and fear as she sat there patiently while watching Lucas plundered through his thoughts, looking for his next response.

'Yes, babe. I swear to you that I am ready to change." Lucas finally said with his eyes clouded with sadness.

Sniffing back her tears, Miya sadly laughed and said, "Should I count the number of times I have heard those exact words? Even if I try, there will be too many for me to remember."

"Babe, I know it's my fault now. I spent the entire night in the cell, thinking about where I went wrong in our marriage…" Lucas replied.

"And!"

"I see now that the words that I said to you and the things that I did to you were wrong of me. All you did was love me and in return, I brought you pain."

As Miya stared at Lucas in disbelief, her wet eyes allowed tears to roll out of them, she hastily wiped her face.

Although her heart clutched onto those words so desperately and tried to make them sound sincere to her, she knew that she couldn't trust her feelings for Lucas anymore.

"I am filing for a divorce," Miya mumbled while coldly staring at him.

Even though she wore a brave face, Miya could no longer control her hand, and it was shaking as she nervously stared back at the rage in Lucas's eyes.

"What! Babe listening, you mean everything to me. I can't live without you. I love you, Miya. I love you so much." Lucas hastily cried.

For a couple of seconds, Miya sat still, feeling hesitant as she closed her eyes and allowed her tears to roll down her cheeks.

Then she raised her eyelids, wiped her face, and said, "I am tired, Lucas, so tired. I'm sorry, but this is my final decision."

In a fit of rage, Lucas clutched his fist as he coldly stared at Miya.

"You slut. It's because of him, right! Is that his sweater on you?" Lucas rudely said with a hint of disgust in his tone.

"Yes, but it's not like that!" Miya cried out.

With madness glowing in his eyes, Lucas stood from the chair and banged his fist against the glass, causing Miya to jump back in fright.

"How shameless! You have found yourself a rich baby daddy, so you don't need poor old Lucas! Do you think you are special! He's just going to use and dump you like the trash you are! I am the only man who truly loves you! I am the only one who's willing to put with a woman like yourself!" Lucas screamed as the officers tried to pull him away from the window.

Part of Miya wanted to run, yet the fear holding her captive took control of her entire being as she stood still and watched the officers dragged Lucas away.

Everything became blurry for a moment as Miya's heart throbbed loud and irregular in her ears, but she could barely hear it since her mind was clouded with fear and her heart was aching in pain.

Then when she felt a manly hand gently grab her by her wrist, Miya felt calm as she turned around and her wet eyes gazed at Jackson.

Without uttering a word to her, he pulled Miya into his arms, hugged her tightly, and whispered, "Are you okay?"

All Miya could do was nod her head. Then she burst into tears as her head rested against Jackson's chest and her hands tightly grabbed onto his shirt.

"It's finally over. But why does my heart hurt so bad? The pain is so unbearable." Miya mumbled while choking on her sob.

A few minutes later, when they got back in the car, and Jackson drove off, Miya fell asleep after sobbing silently for a while.

Although he planned to drive her home, Jackson found himself driving towards the highway.

Time went by naturally, and when Miya finally opened her eyes, her sight rested on the dashboard. Then she sighed and mumbled, "It's three o'clock already?"

Still feeling a bit sleepy, Miya gazed to her right. Then she stared behind, and when she didn't see Jackson, she pushed the car door open and got down.

'Sand? Where am I?' Miya thought as she stared down at her feet.

When she raised her head, her sight landed on Jackson as he sat in the sand, gazing at the ocean.

"Why are we at the beach?" Miya said after she had met up with Jackson.

Without answering, he patted the sand beside him, and Miya sat down. Then both of them silently watched the waves.

"He was wrong." Jackson abruptly mumbled without taking his focus off the water.

"Uh?" Miya asked.

After taking in a deep breath, Jackson looked her in her eyes and said, "Lucas was wrong. He's not the only man who's loved you."

Miya felt her heart skip several beats, the last time her heart felt this way, it was on the day Lucas confessed his love for her.

For a moment, she felt speechless, then Miya gazed at Jackson with confusion in her eyes and asked, "What are you saying?"