One More Chance
Chapter 68: I am no longer your wife!

~~~All the pain and the truth I wear like a battle wound, so ashamed, so confused. I was broken and bruised. Now I'm a warrior, now I've got thicker skin. I'm a warrior, I'm stronger than I've ever been and my armour is made of steel, you can't get in. I'm a warrior and you can never hurt me again.~~~

-Demi Lovato-

-'Ohh...'-

I gulped. I didn't know her words would have a huge impact and a sting in my heart. It was a slap in the face for the two of us to hear those words from our daughter and I couldn't help but blame myself again.

"I'm sorry, baby, I didn't know---" Luke interrupted me putting his hand on mine which at that moment was holding my daughter's hands over the table

"No, Sam, it's me who should apologize. I'm sorry..." He was stopped for a second when I pulled my hand out of his grip. "...for what I did. I'm sorry, my princess for not having been with you all these years, but I want you to know that starting today, daddy will do everything to make you happy and give you the family you dreamed of."

"Luke!" I called him as I didn't like the last line he said. It seemed to me that he was promising her to have a complete family which we both know would never happen.

But he just ignored me.

"I promise to go out with you and your mommy and we will do the things that we haven't done as a family. We will watch movies together, eat together at your favourite restaurant---ouch!"

That was the next word he accidentally added to his sentence as I kicked his leg under the table. He glanced at me but I glared at him.

"Hmm? Why, what happened daddy?" Cali asked him worriedly.

"Oh, uhm... I-I just accidentally bit my tongue, baby."

-'Jeez!'- I just bit my bottom lip to control the smile that wanted to curl up my lips when I heard what he said.

"Does it hurt?"

"No, daddy's fine, anyway, as I was saying, starting today I will be by your side in every step of your way. I will now do the things I should have done before."

He turned to me when he said the last line, but thanks to my daughter as she was the one who asked the silent question in my head.

"Huh? But what are those things, daddy?

He smiled... at me instead to his daughter.

"There were a lot of things that I wanted to change and start doing them right. Things that I should have done before and now I regret not doing it when I still had time. But I think time will run out if I state them one by one, so I can only share to you one of them and that is to love you and your mom unconditionally. We will be a family from now on."

I held my breath and sat up straight. The anger has started boiling inside me again, but I can't do anything at the moment but glared at him as I don't want to kill my daughter's mood.

But opposite to my reaction, Cali's eyes widened in surprise which was I already expecting. Her reaction when she heard her dad's promise was priceless. Happiness and excitement clearly manifested through her eyes. "Yehey!" She even clapped her hands.

I sighed, trying to blow the frustrations out of my body and promised to talk to him about it later.

When our order came, he was the one who helped my daughter eat while I just sat across their seats, ate in silence and smiled every time Cali glanced at me.

If I had known this would happen, I would have asked Jack to come with us. I don't know what's going on in Luke's mind. I have no idea what he was up to and what he was thinking about doing such things. If he's thinking of using my daughter just to get close to me, then that will be his greatest mistake. A waste of time.

We were on our way to the cinema when Cali saw a photo booth, so we stopped and I was forced to have a picture with her dad. We also had a photo as a 'family' as requested by Cali, a photo with the two of us and of course, she and her dad.

We watched a movie after that... one of the cartoon movies that Cali's like. And inside the cinema, I refused to sit next to Luke, no matter how Cali forced me. Even though I have no idea what the things they talked about before that day, I wasn't that naive not to notice that it was Luke's plan.

I didn't listen to Cali's alibis or what she was trying to explain and urged her to sit between me and his dad. I don't want Luke to win the game he started.

I felt his stares when we were inside, but I pretended to ignore him and kept looking on the screen even though I couldn't really focus on what I was watching.

When the movie was ended, Luke took us to the department store and bought his daughter a lot of dress, shoes, and all the things she asked for her father. I wanted to stop him from doing it, but when I saw my daughter enjoying the attention he's giving her, I couldn't help but smile inwardly.

'It's for my daughter.' I kept repeating in my head as helped Cali choose the dress from the clothes rack.

Well, to be honest, it was Luke's obligation and responsibility to buy her those things which he hadn't done in years. Yes, it may be too much but we can donate them to charities when Cali no longer needs them or when she can not wear them at all.

"Sam, let's go to the ladies section after this, we will buy clothes for you, shoes, bags and everything you want---

"Thanks, but you don't have to and I don't want to," I said with a forced smile.

"Sam, I insist, besides, it's the least I could do---"

But again, I didn't give him the chance to finish what he was saying.

"No." I shake my head. "I told you, you don't have to do it and to make this thing clear between us, I don't want to get involved with you again. I appreciate the attention and effort you're doing for Cali, for showing your support and fulfilling your responsibility as her father, but just a little reminder, I'm no longer your wife, so I am not included in that responsibility you have to fulfill."

"Sam---"

"Thanks, but no, thanks. Why don't you just buy something for your partner? I'm sure she would appreciate it. But I'm sorry, I don't know what kind of dress she's wearing, so I can't help you with that."

I stood up and followed Cali into the dressing room just to avoid him.

"Are you okay, mommy?"

"Huh? Y-Yeah, I'm okay. Why do you ask?" I couldn't help but frown and be confused at my daughter's question.

"Because your face is all red even your neck."

I gulped as I checked myself in the mirror only to find that she was right.

"Are you not feeling well, mommy?"

"Ohh..." I chuckled. "I'm fine, baby, don't mind me, this will fade later."

She stared at me to check if I wasn't lying. She even checked my temperature by placing her little hand to my neck and forehead, the mannerism she used to witness from me whenever she gets sick.

"I told you, I'm fine." I pulled her to kiss her on the forehead. "Have you already chosen the dress you want to buy?"

Her eyes suddenly lit up with excitement as she nodded.

"Can I see those dress, baby?"

And she started showing me the dress that she likes even the shoes and some stuff she personally chose.

I could see in her eyes how happy she was in that moment, so I think the only way not to cut that happiness is to talk to her father. I don't want him to give Cali a false hope that we will become a family again. It's better for us to stay this way than to break her heart with a lie.

And since it's still early to go home, we stopped at an amusement arcade which was, of course, Luke's idea. I was pulled to play a basketball game where I have to shoot as many balls as possible to score points and beat the highest points on the scoreboard. Luke obviously know how to play that game as it was his sports in college.

After that fun-sweating game, we also tried some other games in which I witnessed Luke's other side for the first time. I didn't know he's also going to such a place like that... well, knowing how serious his personality was back then, I wasn't sure if he knew that a place like that exists.

He seemed to enjoy what he was doing even Cali. I could tell based on his every reaction, but the need to talk to him still hasn't faded in my mind.