Started as His Wife (ON HIATUS)

I'm Not Him

Greg's POV

"Morning," Wendy greets as she pokes her head out from behind the door. 

"Morning," I grunt, lowering the barbell weight back onto the ground. 

"I'll wait outside," she smiles awkwardly, about to close the door. 

"Why? Just come in," I invite, swiping up the towel dangling from my treadmill to wipe my sweat. 

"You're... shirtless," Wendy shyly says, looking off to the side at the wall. Her cheeks glow slightly pink and it warms my chest.

"Sheesh. You still get embarrassed by stuff like this?" I chuckle. 

"I'm used to seeing Vincent shirtless, but not you," she replies. 

Right. He's her husband. I'm not. 

"Well, I left my shirt upstairs, so is this towel going to be fine?" I ask, draping it over my shoulder so it covers my chest.

Wendy nods. She finally slips inside the room and closes the door behind her. In her arms is a large, wrapped box. It's size compared to her tiny frame makes her even cuter. 

"What's this?" I ask. 

"Your Christmas present," she beams. "I was going to put it under your tree, but you don't have one set up."

"It's just me here, so it's pointless to have a tree," I shrug.

"Don't your parents visit at least? Or your friends?" Wendy asks, her eyebrows slowly knitting together. Her lips curl slightly down and she almost leans forward towards me, anxious for my answer. 

"I usually visit them," I lie, worried I would only make Wendy concerned.

"That's good," Wendy's smile returns and I relax once again. "Well, I'll figured I would just give it to you since you don't have a tree."

"Thanks." I take the box from her. "Can I open it now?"

"Sure," Wendy agrees. "But it's a pretty lame gift. I wasn't sure what to get you since you could probably afford a lot of things. You might even have what I gave you already."

As Wendy rambled, I had already sat down and torn apart the paper to reveal a box with a picture of a back massager. I open the box and pull it out, holding it in my hands. The back of my eyes burn as I stare at it. 

"You're probably sore from work, so I thought maybe you could use this," Wendy explains. 

"Thanks, Wendy. I'll put it to good use."

Wendy's gift was my first in a while. My parents, my coworkers, my manager, everyone had always managed to forget. I never cared before. I was used to it. It was not until I received gifts from Wendy back in high school that I felt how nice it was. I missed it ever since. 

"I'm sorry I haven't gotten the chance to send you anything all these years-"

"It's fine. This makes up for all those years," I smile. "Plus, at least you're here with me this year for Christmas."

Wendy's smiles fades and she fiddles with her fingers. 

"Actually, Vincent and I are leaving this afternoon," she reveals. "We actually haven't gone on our honeymoon yet, so I booked us tickets to Hawaii. Vincent doesn't know yet, but it's actually his Christmas present."

"Oh."

My stomach knots. 

"Sorry I told you this so late. I meant to say this earlier in the week, but I got nervous," Wendy admits. 

"Why should you be sorry? Of course you guys should go on your honeymoon," I encourage with a heavy chest. 

"I'm sorry we're leaving early. You should definitely visit us sometime though. My house is always opened for you!"

"Mine is too. So if you ever get in a fight with Vincent, just call me and you can crash at my place," I joke. 

"Thanks."

"When's your flight? I'll drive you guys to the airport."

"It's okay. We'll take a taxi."

"It's fine. I'm free today."

"Yeah, but... I think Vincent wants it to just be us two. No offense! It's just he's been wanting alone time with me for a while now."

"I get it," I give in. 

"Well, I gotta go pack up now. Take it easy with the workout," Wendy says as she gets up. She opens the door to leave, but I instinctively call out her name. 

"Wendy."

"Yeah?" she stops to look back at me and I just look blankly at her. "What's up?"

Don't leave...

Stay here...

Because...

I'm still in love with you...

"Don't drown in the ocean," I randomly blurt. 

Wendy laughs. "Thanks, I'll try my best not to." She leaves and closes the door. 

You idiot. What are you thinking? She's married now. She's happy. 

If only you had come back before she met Vincent. If only you told her how you felt early on. If only you didn't encourage her to stay with him. Then maybe...maybe... you would be the one next to her.

But no. She wouldn't be as happy with you. Don't be ridiculous. Stop kidding yourself. She would've never loved you. No one ever did. 

That idiot Vincent. He still manages to get jealous even though he married Wendy. He's the one Wendy comes home to everyday. He's the one who gets to hug and kiss her everyday. He's the one who gets to share every moment with her. He's the one who's with her for life. He's the one who sees all sides to Wendy. He's the one Wendy loves. 

I'm not the one she comes home to. I'm not the one who hugs and kisses her. I'm not the one she share moments with. I'm not the one always there for her. I'm not the one she loves. 

I would give anything to be him...but I'm not him. 

*****

Sorry for the short chapter. I've been pretty overwhelmed and stressed lately with other stuff. I had a different chapter planned, but my mindset right now would just ruin it if I forced myself. I'll try to do better for the next chapter. Thanks guys!