Hard Love

Author’s Note:

This piece of work is a fanfiction to “In Love, Never Say Never” or “When There is Nothing Left But Love” – I really loved this story and was searching for the name of the author so I can personally thank him/her for giving me this inspiration to write this book, and to dedicate this story to him/her.

In the original story, Marcus White died, leaving Camelia with their son, and putting an end to the Camelia-Marcus unrequited love story. I loved the ending of the original story, but I felt bad for the characters who died or did not have a happy ending. Initially, I rooted for Mace and Jared, and I was sad when I learned that Mace died. However, the death of Marcus was more painful. I felt so bad for Camelia that I would like to give justice to all her sacrifices for Marcus

Camelia was so nervous the entire time they travelled towards the church. The thought of marrying Marcus has not registered well in her thoughts. Few days ago, she had tried to blackmail Scarlett into marrying Marcus because that was his dying wish. She never thought it would come to this day when she, herself, would be marrying Marcus, the man she loved all her life.

“Are you ready?” Scarlett asked her.

“What if we got noticed?” fear filled her eyes, “he could die at any second with this illness of his,” she continued to worry.

She should be the happiest bride on earth since she is finally marrying the man she loved, Marcus White. For years, she had devoted herself to this man and she even bore his only son, Tobias. But despite being the mother of his son, Marcus is still in love with Scarlett, to the point that he sacrificed his life in order to save her.

“Just like you said, he could leave at any moment. Are you really willing for that to happen without an official marriage?” Scarlett asked her.

Scarlett would have known Camelia’s answer. After all, she did put on the red wedding dress that was given to her. But she had seen the many times that Marcus stepped on Camelia’s feelings. She had seen Camelia before. She was gorgeous and very sophisticated. She used to be bubbly but the years of unrequited love made her suffer both emotionally and physically.

After a moment of hesitation, Camelia finally gave her a determined look. They exchanged places in the car so that it would be Camelia who will go out wearing the red wedding dress and a veil to cover her face. Marcus was already near the car when she came out.

Camelia reached her hand out to Marcus, who now stood calmly with his support. She felt how Marcus gently held her hand as if she is the most priceless fragile possession. This was something new to her. Marcus never touched her this way. It pains her to realize that it was a touch not intended for her but for Scarlett, but she could not be sad about it because when she looked at Marcus, he was wearing a bright smile, as if he was not tormented by the pain that his body is enduring after getting too much radiation from the torture he had been through.

Together, Camelia and Marcus held hands as they walked towards the church. Marcus thought that he is finally getting married to the person he loved. His smile masked his deteriorating health.

“Are you two ready?” the witness who is at the same time the emcee for the event asked.

Marcus did not reply. Instead, he turned to Camelia and gave her an expectant look.

Panic filled Camelia’s heart but after a short while, she finally whispered, “Yes?”

Marcus smiled saying, “I’ve been waiting for almost ten years.”

Camelia let out a soft sigh in relief that Marcus did not have any suspicion about who really was his bride.

“Let’s get on with it,” Marcus continued to utter.

Joseph, the emcee and at the same time the witness, nodded and then spoke, “Have you come to offer yourselves to each other, freely and without reservation?”

A triumphant “yes” came out from Marcus’ mouth while a Camelia whispered a ‘yes’.

“Will you love and hone each other for life?” Joseph continued.

Once again, both uttered yes.

After the ‘yes’ being said, Marcus turned to Camelia while Joseph uttered, “You may – “

However, Marcus stopped him before he could finish.

“I’m sorry, but please wait,” Marcus told Joseph.

Once again, fear and worry enveloped Camelia.

“Did he realize I was not Scarlett?” Camelia thought.

Marcus was calm when he stared at Camelia. There was a tormenting silence before Marcus exhaled and smile, then said, “Enough.”

He then looked down and whispered, “this is enough. At least now I know that loving you was worth it.”

Camelia’s forehead creased as she could not understand what Marcus meant.

Marcus eyes were filled with tears when he looked at Camelia while saying, “I have always known that Ashton was the man you loved. I knew you have never loved me. Still, I never understood why you loved him and not me.”

Camelia’s heart crushed. Didn’t she have the same question? Even before she decided to love Marcus, she already knew that he loved Scarlett. She knew that there is nothing she can do to make him love her. Scarlett loved Ashton, and despite everything, Scarlett will always choose to love Ashton. She too could not understand why Marcus would still love Scarlett despite this.

“I never ever wanted to hurt you. I just didn’t understand why you never even looked at me in that way,” Marcus continued.

Camelia blinked her tears aways despite breaking her heart again. Marcus words were a mirror of how she also felt towards him. She would do everything for him but he will never look at her the way he looked at Scarlett.

“Now though, I think I understand. If it was up to me, no matter if Ashton were still here, I could never give you up so willingly. He’s willing to do anything for you, but all I can hope for is that only death will do us part,” Marcus continued to cry as he uttered.

“Marcus, even at the end, your thoughts were at Scarlett. I ever crossed your mind,” Camelia sadly thought.

“Yes, I’ve lost to him, but I won’t admit it. Just because I didn’t love you the way you wanted to be loved doesn’t mean I never loved you,” Marcus was hurting both physically and emotionally.

Camelia stayed quiet. This is probably Marcus’ wedding vow, and it was clearly directed to Scarlett and not to her.

“You were stubborn because you didn’t want to give me a chance, and I was stubborn because I kept pestering you. Neither of us was willing to step back, and we ended up butting heads for the rest of our lives. Or at least, the rest of mine,” Marcus proceeded.

Camelia uttered a soft cry. She could not help it anymore. She was right in front of him, in a wedding dress, but all he talked about is how much he loved someone else. Even until the end, Marcus would never think of her or of their son. It was as if he breathed only for Scarlett, and that was painful because she seemed to breathe only for him.

“Since you’ve stopped butting heads with me, what’s the point of me even trying anymore,” Marcus chuckled mockingly but his tears continued to flow, “Actually, you’re right. Pity, sympathy, or anything that’s simply given to me – my pride won’t allow it. You’ve let go of me, so I’ll let go of you now. Let’s stop here. We don’t need to say any more vows.”

“Wait, what?” Camelia thought as she panicked, “did he just stopped the wedding?”

Marcus looked at Joseph and said, “go back and pass a message to Ashton for me. I may have lost this round to God, but I won’t lose again in my next life. You may leave no. Thank you for all you did today.”

Both Camelia and Joseph stiffened but after a while, Joseph nodded to acknowledge Marcus and then he walked out of the church.

Camelia do not know what to do. She came here to marry Marcus even though Marcus thought she was Scarlett. She is finally going to be his wife but he stopped it. She did not know what to do but she overcame panic when Marcus suddenly stumbled and held on to the podium near him.

Before Camelia could do anything, he stumbled again and fell to the ground.

Camelia quicky bent down and pulled him against her; thus, making him lie within her embrace, and then said, “Don’t worry, help is coming soon.”

Afraid that this will be Marcus’ end, she looked at the camera hoping to ask for help. But before she could utter a word, Marcus held his hand on her cheek saying, “You’re actually crying for me for once. Even your voice sounds different from how much you’re crying. What if I can’t remember what you sound like?”

“No, no. Just hold on for a while longer. Someone will be coming soon, so please – “Camelia said but Marcus interrupted.

“Scar – “he mumbled weakly while he reached for her veil and said, “C-can I take your veil off? After that, w-we’ll be married. Then, you’ll be my wife officially. It’s okay, even if no one knows it happened. I-I just want to take another look at you. Is that okay?”

She cannot let it happen. Marcus will surely know the truth and he might hate her for the rest of his life. But she does not want him to go just yet. She needed to give him a reason to stay a bit longer so she said, “Y-yes! Okay! As long as you stay awake, anything is fine!”

“Y-you’re the best – “Marcus uttered but he was no longer able to lift the veil away from her face. His hand fell and landed on Camelia’s dress. His eyes closed for the last time.

Sharon and Benjamin watched with horror at the wide screen in front of them. They had just witnessed the death of their only son.

Sharon looked away as Camelia wailed not knowing how to mend her broken heart.

“I knew Scarlett will not only destroy our son’s life,” she angrily uttered and then turned to Benjamin, “this was all your fault! If you hadn’t brought Sally Fuller to our family, our son would not have met that woman.”

“Have you forgotten?” Benjamin faced her, “I needed to clean up your mess and it was just so timely that the Fullers needed my help so I traded my help in exchange for the reputation of their only daughter.”

Sharon clenched her fist as she remembered the terrible mistake that she had done.

“You could have confronted me,” Sharon uttered, “I’d rather have my reputation tainted than feeling sorry for myself because you made me think that you fell out of love that is why you have chosen a younger woman to replace me.”

“I was so hurt and I could not bear to face you after you cheated on me,” Benjamin explained, “the man you cheated with threatened to expose your infidelity so before he could do so, I decided to turn the blame on me by divorcing you and marrying a younger woman so that it would look like the failure of our marriage is not because of you, but because of me.”

“Why does it have to be that way?” Sharon is now crying.

“Because people are more forgiving to men if they cheat. If it is a woman, she will be condemned by everyone,” Benjamin said.

Sharon could not say anything anymore. She was tricked that night. Somebody put something to her drink that is why she passed out. When she woke up, she was already in bed naked. Benjamin had no idea how traumatic it was, but she decided to keep it to herself because she wants to least keep that decency to herself. She thought that it was well-hidden until after Benjamin died.

Sally told her the truth. She learned that Benjamin thought that she cheated on him and that he was blackmailed by the man who had actually raped her.

“Didn’t you wonder why I followed you here?” pain was evident in Sharon’s voice.

“After you learned about the truth, you came here to make it up with me,” Benjamin said in a calm but firm voice.

Sharon shook her head and said, “you’re wrong.”

“Whatever is your reason, the fact that you allowed yourself to be touched by another man, there is still no reason for us to be with each other even after death,” Benjamin uttered and then continued, “you should have not followed me here. You should have stayed with our son and guided him.”

Sharon continued to cry as she nodded. Benjamin was right. After she followed him to death, he never gave her a chance to explain. For him, they are already over.

Now that she saw his son’s death, she wondered what it would be like if she just stayed with him. Would Marcus find happiness?

“I-I’m sorry,” Sharon uttered, “I-I thought he was old enough to take care of himself. It turned out that I never knew my son. I guess it was because you kept him away from after you divorced me.”

“I could not let my son stay with a cheater,” Benjamin said.

“That’s enough!” a young man stood between them.

The young man’s name is Sardius, he was actually the keeper of the gate and he was the one who let them watch the death of their son on the wide screen.

“I did not let you watch the death of your son so you can fight,” Sardius said, “I wanted you to see what happened after the mistakes you made.”

Both Sharon and Benjamin did not dare to say anything so Sardius continued, “after the death of Marcus, Camelia died soon after due to depression. Their son, Tobias, was left behind at a young age. As I looked into the future, Tobias path will be bad and he will cause the deaths of too many innocent people.”

“Are you going to bring us back to life so we can correct our fates?” Sharon asked.

“That would be too difficult to do,” Sardius said, “the ultimate god does not allow people to undo their mistakes, but he spoke to me because Tobias’ life went to waste not because of his own doing but because of his ancestors.”

“So why are we here for?” Benjamin asked.

“The ultimate god decided to reset Marcus and Camelia’s lives so they can decide on how to take care of Tobias’ future. You are then given the task to be their guardian,” Sardius said.

Marcus opened his eyes and saw that his surroundings is white.

“Is this heaven?” he thought.

He remembered dying at the arms of Scarlett during their wedding. A pinch of happiness filled his heart but it faded away when he felt pain as he tried to move.

“You’re awake!” he heard a voice from the side of his bed. It was also then that he heard the hospital machines surrounding him.

“I am still alive?” he wondered and then looked at the nurse who is smiling at him.

“Wait for a while, Mr. White,” the nurse said, “the doctor is on his way here.”

“W-where’s my wife?” he weakly asked.

“Wife?” the nurse furrowed her forehead as she checked Marcus’ medical record. She wondered why Marcus was looking for a wife when he was actually single in his record.

Marcus noticed the confused look of the nurse and then remembered that they did not have a witness during the wedding. Even so, now that he is still alive, then it meant that he is married to Scarlett.

It did not take long for the doctor to arrive. The doctor immediately checked his vital signs, and run some tests on him.

“We were afraid that you would not survive the accident,” the doctor uttered.

“Accident? What accident?” Marcus asked.

The doctor looked at him worriedly and then asked, “do you remember your name?”

“Yes, Marcus White,” he immediately answered.

“I see, how about your age and family background?” the doctor asked.

“My father is Benjamin and my mother is Sharon. I don’t have a sibling but I have a son, Tobias. My age is beyond 40,” Marcus replied.

“Uhm, you are right about your parents but your age is not beyond 40, you were only 33 and there was no record about your son in your medical profile,” the doctor said.

“I think Mr. White is still in shock and might have mixed some of his thoughts,” a young man said from behind the doctor. He stepped forwards and said, “maybe we need to give him time first.”

“I’ll leave you then. I’ll be back tomorrow. I need to check your lab results first,” the doctor said.

“Who are you?” Marcus asked the young man who is standing next to his bed.

“I am Benjie and I am sent to be your guardian,” the young man uttered.

Marcus looked at the young man, who probably is in his mid-twenties, then asked, “how can a younger person be a guardian to older one?”

“Believe me, I may look younger but I have a wisdom of an old man,” Benjie smiled at him and moved a little closer before saying, “I know you are a bit confused so let me help you understand things.”

Marcus did not answer so Benjie started explaining. Benjie told him about how his actions in his previous life would cause his son to live a criminal life. He was then told that he is brought back to the time when he was hit by a car after attempting to kill Sally and Ashton. He remembered this part; this was after the burial of his parents. He was so devasted that he wanted to kill Sally. But Sally was witty enough to use Scarlett as her human shield. When he had a chance to hit both Ashton and Sally with his car, he did not expect Scarlett to stand on his way, causing him to swirl the car away from them.

Worried that Scarlett is hurt, he immediately went out of his car and cross the street without realizing that a car is on its way.

“You mean I went back in time?” Marcus was still in disbelief as he asked Benjie.

Benjie nodded before saying, “you are given a chance to live your life again, and this time, make it better.”

Marcus smiled and thought, “now that I have lived my life again, I’ll make sure that I’ll have Scarlett this time.”

“Whatever you do,” Benjie cut him off from his thoughts, “remember that the ultimate goal why this chance was given to you is to make sure that your son, Tobias, will not turn out to be a criminal in the future.”

“But Tobias is not yet born at this time,” Marcus uttered.

“Exactly,” Benjie nodded, “and a week from now, you will be meeting his mother.”

Marcus furrowed his brows with disgust and then said, “I won’t be making a mistake this time. I am not going to get myself involved to that clingy woman.”

“But she is the mother of your son. Whether you like it or not, you will have to make sure that Tobias will be born or your second chance to life will be cut short,” Benjie said.

“Now that I am given this second chance, I want to use it to win Scarlett over,” Marcus said.

Benjie was quiet for a while before saying, “maybe you can both pursue Scarlett while making sure that Tobias future will be okay.”

Marcus did not say anything but he was battling with himself in his mind.

“But Camelia will just be on my way,” he thought.

“However, if I don’t make sure that Tobias is born, I might die early and fail to have Scarlett for myself,” he again thought.

“You still have a long way to go,” Benjie uttered, “who knows, maybe this time, you’ll have a longer life.”

“Yeah,” Marcus smiled as he continues to think, “I’ll have a longer life with Scarlett. All I have to do is just to make sure Tobias is fine while I pursue Scarlett.”