FALLING IN LOVE WITH HIM - HER FIRST LOVE

Sebastian was in utter shock. He couldn't believe that he heard it right. Like a poisonous arrow, each word that came out of his cousin's mouth pierced into Sebastian's chest. It hurt more than the bullet wounds did.

'Why didn't I die before hearing this?'

Deacon's loud, obnoxious laughter blew the inside of his sensitive eardrums. Sebastian never hated the sound of it as much as he did at that moment. He knew his cousin laughed at his pathetic soul. It brought a disgusting feeling that crawled under his skin like invisible insects. He had a hard time believing what Deacon revealed.

As though he could read his mind, Deacon tsked, pitying Sebastian.

"I know, you can't believe it, Sebastian, but it's true.. Your dear wife is in love with me, but can you blame her, though?" Deacon asked and continued without waiting for Sebastian's response. "What would a hot-blooded woman do when her husband doesn't have time to satisfy her needs?" he asked, mocking Sebastian with a disapproving shake of his head.

"Fortunately, I was there to keep her bed warm when she needed a man. Do you know I fucked her brains out countless times on your bed? You've no idea how much it pleased me. She knows how to take a dick," Deacon chuckled as if he cracked the funniest joke. "And today, she can't wait to hear the good news," he said and added in a whisper, "that you are dead."

'My Amelia wouldn't betray me with such cruelty, would she?'

Her innocent-looking pretty face gleamed behind his eyelids when he closed his eyes, but it soon turned unbearable to look at her.

Amelia, his wife, never looked this hideous, and Sebastian opened his eyes to get rid of the ugly feeling encircling his heart.

She was a club dancer, and their lives collided one night when Sebastian was there looking for a refreshing break. He noticed how a few men tried to molest her on the dance floor. She struggled to get away from their prying hands, which roamed all over her body without her consent. The moment her tears spilt out, Sebastian rushed to her rescue.

He was never good at tolerating the harassment of women. He wouldn't allow any man to force himself on a woman, especially in his presence. His visit to the club became frequent, and Amelia quickly became the subject of his interest. He soon learned she was the sole breadwinner in the family and appreciated how she supported her aged grandparents, drunkard father and helpless mother all by herself.

Amelia needed more money to support her family's medical bills, and Sebastian couldn't stop himself from offering financial help.

One drunken night of heated sex led to many more of their passionate nights. Sebastian was sure that Amelia had worked her way into his heart. He genuinely liked her and wanted to take her out on an official date.

However, his love story seemed too perfect to be true. It didn't take much time for Sebastian to know Amelia was lying to him right under his nose. She was using him for his money under the guise of a poor girl struggling to meet the needs of her family. It would've been easy for Sebastian to walk out of her life if it wasn't for his twisted fate.

The unexpected happened. 

In his drunken state, Sebastian had made the mistake of sleeping with her without using protection. The unsafe sex had led to Amelia's pregnancy.

Much to Sebastian's displeasure, Amelia was ready to get rid of the pregnancy in exchange for money, but Sebastian wanted his child. So he offered her a marriage proposal. She tried to decline, but she didn't have much of a choice when the mafia boss' right-hand man threatened her. Sebastian Romano was good to people until they betrayed him.

Sebastian accepted her as the mother of his child and respected her as his wife. He forgave her the day her baby bump started to show. His child became the centre of his universe, and so did its mother. He took good care of her, provided for her every need and thought he gave her a happy married life.

But it seemed all these years he was living in an illusion. Deacon swore she was unhappy with Sebastian.

"What an idiot you are, dear cousin. It was so easy for her to make a fool of you. All those years ago, did you seriously believe she was mistreated or molested by other men?" Deacon asked, sneering at Sebastian. The latter nodded, realising that it was all part of her plan to lure him in.

Sebastian listened with his broken heart while his cousin told him how his wife always wanted to leave him. She loved her previous life, her freedom and the way men showered attention on her. She never liked Sebastian and only wanted to extract money from him. But her plan backfired when Sebastian decided to marry her.

"She never even wanted to have your son. She wanted him to die in her womb. Did you know how much she cursed that boy in your absence?" Deacon spoke again. Sebastian's already broken heart shattered into bits and pieces at hearing that.

'Can a mother be so cruel to curse her own child?'

Sebastian would have forgiven her for betraying him, but he would never forgive her for not loving his son.

"I have a surprise for you," Deacon said while dialling a number on his phone. "Listen," he whispered to Sebastian and put the phone in speaker mode.

"Did the bastard die yet, Deacon?" the voice from the other end spoke. Sebastian could recognise that voice even in his sleep. It was Amelia. Sebastian scoffed as he listened to her while she asked Deacon to kill him and return to her soon.

At that moment, the only regret Sebastian had was that if he died today, he wouldn't get the chance to strangle her to death with his own hands.

"Yeah, it was my stupidity to think of giving her a homestead," Sebastian said, keeping his voice as loud as he could. He wanted Amelia to overhear. "Only a desperate, shameless whore would choose a brothel over a home. That bitch surely deserved a dog like you, Deacon," Sebastian concluded. His cousin laughed in response and nodded as if he couldn't agree more.

Sebastian heard his wife cursing at him, and his lips twitched into a sad smile while she asked Deacon to hurry up and finish his job. It was deception at its best.

"Your wish is my command, darling," Sebastian heard his cousin reply to his wife. Before he could react, Deacon fired his gun at him, causing another wound in his chest. "You're good for nothing except for licking Alexander's boot as his favourite dog," Deacon stated, firing again. He snatched the phone from Sebastian's hand and threw it into the lake.

Sebastian's eyes grew wide in shock. He had clicked a few pictures of the people he had asked to deliver the box.

'How will Alessandro find the clue to reach Hera?'

Sebastian knew he wouldn't survive. His only concern was somehow to let his boss know that he had made sure of Hera's safety before dying. With his phone gone, the photographs captured and saved in it were gone too.

Meanwhile, Deacon walked away only to peep in the direction in which he threw his phone. He studied the green water as if measuring the depth of the lake.

Sebastian didn't have the time to waste. His eyes scanned around until it fell on a small stone nearby. It had a sharp edge. He hurried his injured body to move and stretched his hand to grab the stone. He used it as a pen to scribble Benson's truck number on the inside of his forearm. It tore his skin as he applied pressure, and the blood coloured his forearm.

He was relieved that the blood coating his skin would hide the number scribbled on his forearm, and Deacon wouldn't get a clue about it.

"I can't see any traces of human swimming in the water. Did they all drown so quickly?" Deacon asked, turning around to look at Sebastian.

Deacon checked his wristwatch and scowled as if realising he had wasted enough time. He aimed his gun at Sebastian's head. "No offence, Sebastian. The money I got paid was too big of a treasure to decline," he admitted, pulling the trigger. "Amelia is waiting for me in the hotel room. It'll be our short vacation in California," he said informatively and smiled at Sebastian.

"Goodbye, Sebastian," he said and nailed the last bullet into Sebastian's skull.

Sebastian was breathing in hiccups, a final struggle before resting in peace. Deacon turned around to wave his hand in the air, a signal for Johnathan to come.

Amidst all the blasted cars and littered dead bodies, Johnathan had to walk on foot to reach Deacon as another vehicle couldn't pass through the ruined road and burning cars.