* Emmy’s POV

The day after,

I woke up early today, much earlier than usual, I needed to talk because Kendall's words still resonate with me, and when I want to talk I come to Sofia, my sister. Sofia is my little sister and my best friend, we are just a year apart, she is the only one in my circle who knows that Kendall and I are married through an arrangement, the others believe the story we have edited to justify our engagement: "we met in France, I was an architecture student, he was on vacation in Paris, we fell in love and it was on returning home that I knew he was the son of Mr. Ngnan, my benefactor, he asked me to marry, I accepted with joy without hesitation” a whole tissue of lies!

The first time Kendall and I met was six months before our wedding in her father's office to get to know each other so that we could fool our loved ones who thought that if Kendall and I weren't together often. it was because of the work of the latter, quite pathetic the real story of this marriage!

Sofia, unlike me, deliberately chose to work in the family business, imagine the joy of our father! The eldest daughter that I am refused to continue her father's work but her sister, the youngest, even wants to take the reins, what a joy!

''Méli, what is it?

I look at Sofia who has just sat down on an armchair in front of me, I like coming to my sister's house but I hate the ceiling in her living room, I find it too low, a fairly low ceiling means having a house sweltering with heat but if I tell her one more time she will say that my passion for architecture is driving me crazy.

'' Meli…

'' There is nothing So, finally nothing new.

My voice is shaky.

''Méli, she says in a soft and compassionate voice.

I burst into tears, my heart hurts, Kendall hurts me.

Sofia gets up and takes me in her arms.

“Méli, please stop.

“So, I'm dying slowly…I'm dying, my God!

She just caresses my back, my breath which was panting gradually settles.

'' This year is the most horrible of all the years of my marriage So, the past four years there were things I could turn a blind eye to but now everything has been wrong, since… since the day when…

I close my eyes, it's too hard for me to talk about it, talk about the day my husband brought another woman home, that night he came home with one of his many mistresses, I was sitting in the living room when they both entered the room, I thought I had a heart attack, weaving in an extravagant red color, multicolored nails, endless high heel, very short mini dress, finally if we could call it a "dress", if all this assembly was supposed to make this girl beautiful and desirable and well I found her vulgar and repulsive. I had hoped that night with all my heart that he would tell me that my imagination was playing tricks on me, that he couldn't be so disrespectful to me by taking one of his mistresses even though he knew I would be away. home like every night and that this girl was just one of her many cousins ​​that I hadn't had the opportunity to meet yet. But unfortunately for me it was indeed one of my husband's lovers, Kendall had passed with her in front of me without worrying about my presence while I was sitting on the sofa with two big tears that kept flowing, I I couldn't believe it, he didn't consider me to this point, my hands were shaking in pain and disappointment but I didn't say anything, I just cried staring at him, for the first time since we got together. knew I dared to cry in front of him when I usually waited to be alone to give free rein to my sorrow. Kendall hadn't said anything either, he hadn't even noticed my tears, making me cry in front of one of his conquests, what a humiliation! He had spent the night with her in our house in one of the guest rooms, he had certainly taken her to one of the guest rooms but it was still in MY HOUSE! The next day I hadn't told him about it and I never even told him when I had spent the whole night crying alone in bed while he and that girl were having a good time together.

It was since that evening that I had decided not to cry anymore for Kendall or at least not to show her my tears anymore, but Kendall… God in heaven! He knows how to touch where it hurts with just a few words and me without being able to control myself, last night, I cried… But can we always control the pain that our heart feels? For a year I have done it, I have mastered the pain that my heart feels in the face of Kendall and all his nonsense, for a year I managed to cry in my corner without him being able to see it but yesterday... I broke down…

With Kendall our relationship has deteriorated for a year, I'm not saying that before between us it was mad love but there was a certain conformity, when he came home in the evening he ate my meals, these late outings s ended no later than 11 p.m. and it met the body of the woman that I am. But in a year everything changed, he now said that he was not hungry every evening when he came home, which meant that I ended up no longer setting the table for food he wouldn't eat, he was coming home more and more late and didn't even pay attention to me anymore but everything, I really say "everything" has gone downhill since the night he took that girl away, it was that night that I realized that my husband, Kendall, didn't care about me. will never love!

Sofia consoled me again like every time I talk to her about the harm my husband is doing to me, then we talked for a while, it was when her fiancé, Bastien, arrived that I decided to leave. go, I love my little sister very much.

After leaving my sister's I'm going to take a sports outfit at home and I decide to go to the gym, it sometimes helps me to let off steam, spending energy often gives me the impression that my pain is will attenuate while each time I know that after my session, this pain will always be present, but hope keeps alive so I hope. I get out of my car and I arrive at the gym, after having greeted the receptionist who already knows me, I sit on the bike putting on my headphones which are playing music at the bottom, there is already some music in the room but I prefer to listen to the one broadcast by my telephone. I am not thin, I am a beautiful round young woman without wanting to brag and my curves I have always assumed and appreciated since my adolescence. I have always been beautiful with these curves worthy of an African woman as some will say and to top it off nature gave me an average size and a line that is not at all wide and I want to keep this beautiful line so I play sports two to three times a week, depending on my schedule. After the sport I go back to my house still empty of human warmth as usual, Oumou the cleaning lady has already gone home.

* Emmy’s POV

Two days later,

There are often things that we want to immortalize in life, an event, an action, a moment or even a smile. This is why a photographer is currently in my office to immortalize one of my achievements. I got into the habit of having the models that I consider to be the most beautiful photographed, most of them are those that I design and make for clients and since I almost never keep them myself, I have them photographed, not by myself, no, by a professional, it seems crazy what I'm doing, moving a photographer around just to take a few shots of tiny buildings, but it makes me happy.

'' Guillaume, is that it?

'' Yes ​​Madam.

He smiles at me.

Usually I work with another photographer but he is away, it bothers me because I do not like to change my habits, I had to call on this new photographer, I will see if he is talented.

'' Do you understand what I want?

'' Of course ma'am, can I start?

'' Yes ​​go on !

He gets up and opens his bag where there are various cameras, he looks at the model then his cameras, he looks again at the model then his cameras, I am standing on his left and I admit that I don't really understand the ride of this young man who seems to be a little older than me, he finally seems to have made up his mind since he chooses one of his cameras and begins to photograph the model, I observe him and I can say that he seems to be really concentrated, he takes pictures of the model a dozen times from all angles, he finally removes the camera from his face.

'' You have finished ? I say looking at the model.

[Click]

I turn to him, his camera is pointed at me, he has just taken my picture.

"But what are you…

[Click]

I get the flash in the face.

'' But what are you doing exactly?

He pulls the device away from his face, then smiles at me.

“I can't meet such a beauty and not want to take a picture of her.

No sooner has he said this sentence than he puts his camera back in front of his face.

[Click]

I'm confused...

[Click]

What is happening ?

[Click]

I'm so surprised that I can't even utter a single word and he takes the opportunity to take my picture several more times, I have to pull myself together.

'' Mr. Guillaume, please stop taking my picture, I say in a calm tone but with a lot of firmness.

He removes his camera then looks at me.

'' Sorry madam.

I walk around my desk and sit down.

''When will I have the photos?

“Next week,” he replies, putting his camera back in his bag.

'' Fine, you'll go get your check from my secretary.

He raises his head towards me and looks at me without any expression but all the same with insistence.

'' Is there a problem?

“No of course not, thank you and goodbye.

He takes his bag, opens the door and leaves.

I'm still stunned, what happened in this office?

Is this man in his head? There really are crazy people dressed in this country!

With all that feeling of amazement he created in me I completely forgot to tell him to delete those photos of me.

Two days later,

If there is one thing that my marriage to Kendall was able to reconnect with, it was my ties with my father, my father was more than proud when I announced to them my marriage to one of the Ngnan sons, to see his daughter marrying the son of one of his great friends is like a way of solidifying the ties between the two families, he said, but if he had known how I had come to become Mrs. Ngnan son, I wonder if his feeling would have been the same.

I came to spend the morning with my parents today, it really makes me happy to be with them, I think that beyond our disagreements, our parents are the priceless wealth that life gives us.

Mom told me about the preparations for Sofia's wedding which will take place next year, she is proud to see her two children all having a home, she also complained that she wanted me to give her little ones children, she will not be eternal and wants to be bothered by her grandchildren, for all answer I simply smiled at her, if she knew!

After the visit to my parents I go to the office to take files, my secretary calls me, she gives me an envelope, the photographer dropped it off this morning.

I go into my office and I sit on my chair, I open the envelope, five photos of my model are there, they are really successful these photos, I like it, I notice that inside inside the envelope there is another envelope, smaller this time. I take this envelope and a handmade inscription is engraved in it with black pen.

“For beauty matched only by the splendor of a magnificent sunset”

I frown, what does that mean? I open the envelope and remove the contents, my heart skips a beat, I'm surprised, three photos are before my eyes, three photos of me that Monsieur Guillaume had taken last time.

These pictures are beautiful...

They are sublime...

Magnificent…

He really has talent, and the fact that these photos were taken under the effect of surprise gives them a certain naturalness that I appreciate...a lot.

Maybe these are the three most successful photos considering the number of times he took my picture, he should normally have more.

To be continued....