Resilient

Domestic violence

Her eyes had a faraway look in them, though her body was going through the steps of the dance as she twirled around in the grand, perfectly lit room. The well dressed spectators clapped happily as the couple danced at the center of the room, but she barely smiled at the cheering crowd. To everybody, she was the luckiest woman in the world, she was married to one of the wealthiest men in the country and lived the life of a queen. Only designer made products ever graced her skin, and her parties were so extravagant and elite that they were featured in all the top magazines. Most of all, she had a husband who adored her and constantly showed it, what more could she want?....but that's just what the world knew.
"Rico, make sure you put the water on the left side of the tray, my husband doesn't like it on the right side" Tessa instructed the help in the kitchen as her husband's breakfast was being made.
"Christy be sure to place the spoons in the right order, he gets upset when things are not arranged properly" she continued,
"he made that quite clear" she whispered to herself, touching her side which still hurt from the last beating her loving husband gave her.
"Bye Tess, love you "
"love you too Kevin"
She watched as the chauffer drove the black Chevrolet out of the estate with her husband in the back and sighed with relief. It was the singular moment that gave her peace in her life, watching her husband leave. She spent the rest of the day planning for the dinner she was hosting for the State Secretary's family. His son, Daniel was Kevin's best friend and the families had been close for many years.
"You look very tired Tess" Kelly said worried as she sat across from her at a coffee table in the living room of Kelly's house.
"It's nothing, I'm fine" the latter replied sporting a weak smile on her worn out but still beautiful face.
"Tess, please talk to me. Is my brother treating you badly again? I'm going to make sure he stops" Kelly spoke with seriousness in her voice.
"No, no, Kevin is great. He takes good care of me, it's just the stress of planning so many parties and dinners. You know how it is, you were brought up in this" Tess replied trying to explain to Kelly who was looking at her, clearly not buying her explanation.
"Mum keeps asking me if you and Kevin are doing alright. She hasn't seen you two in months, you know since Kevin called her a bad mother in front of all her guests on her birthday." Kelly said as she led Tess into her beautifully modest kitchen.
"You know he was drunk, he didn't mean what he said " Tess tried to defend her husband, though she knew deep down in her mind that he meant it he hated his mother.
"Well, mum's just worried because he's behaving just like our dad used to, and though i spent most of my childhood in France with my aunt, i remember how abusive my father was especially to my mum"
"Yeah" Tess said, placing her hand on her sore side and remembering how she begged her husband while he hit her continuously.
"Please, Kevin, please! " she cried as her husband abused her, deaf to her pleas.
"you alright Tess?" Kelly asked, puzzled by her sister In law's suddenly upset look.
"Oh, i'm fine" Tess replied, smiling while trying to keep the tears welling in her eyes from falling.
She helped Kelly make lunch and left when Kelly went to pickup her daughter from school.
"Hello Julia!" Tess said smiling gladly as she welcomed the also smiling wife of her husband's best friend.
"I love your dress and you smell divine" she continued as the two waited by the door for the rest of the guests to come in.
"Mr and Mrs Fairway, welcome. Mrs Fairway, you look as radiant as always" Tess complimented Daniel's parents, welcoming them into the house. They were all smiles as Kelly led them into the dinning room.
"Your husband really loves you, look how he's holding you so close to him. I wish his friend was as affectionate" Julia joked to Tess and Kevin, while looking at her husband who sat beside her.
"We all know Kevin loves Tess and he can't live without her, their love is so beautiful" Mrs Fairway said smiling at the two.
Maybe it was because of what everyone was saying, or something else, but suddenly, Tess felt so uncomfortable that she lost her balance on her chair.
"Tess you look sick, maybe you should go up and lie down" Mr Fairway said concerned, just like everyone at the table.
As Tess stood to go upstairs, she collapsed and Kevin had to carry her to bed.
"She's just tired, i gave her a glass of water, she'll be fine" Kevin informed the dinner guests.
"Good night dear, please make sure Tess gets better" Mrs Fairway said when she was leaving with the rest of her family who all expressed concern for Tess.
"How are you feeling now?" Kevin asked kissing Tess's forehead as she lay on the bed.
"I'm feeling better now. Thanks Kev." she replied happy. It had been a while since her husband actually cared about her.
"We can go to the hospital tomorrow if you still feel sick. Good night love." he said finally, before turning on his side and falling asleep.
She looked at the man beside her and thought about the charming brother of her best friend she first fell in love with, they were not the same person. The man she fell in love with was kind and gentle, he always cared about her wellbeing and did everything possible to make her happy, but the man beside her was a monster. She remembered when she started seeing signs of his aggressive anger shortly after their highly publicized million dollar wedding. At first, he would just scream at her for the smallest things, then come to beg her with expensive gifts when she threatened to leave. It was in their first year of marriage that he hit her for the first time . She was so shocked that she ran out of the house and drove to Kelly's house and stayed for days.
"I did this to myself" Tess whispered as she stopped remembering and tears quietly flowed down her face till she fell asleep next to her husband.
"I don't know what I ate. I almost fainted last night, and i could almost not get out of bed this morning." Tess said weakly after returning from her third time throwing up in Kelly's bathroom.
"Oh darling, I can't believe this" Kelly said with an excited glow in her eyes
"Alright don't freak out, but i think you're pregnant!" she continued excitedly.
Tess fell to the closest chair, she thought about it and it actually made a lot of sense.
"No, no. That's not possible, it's not possible" she told herself over and over while Kelly went to get a pregnancy test kit. The five minutes of waiting for the results were torture for Tess, will she could do was pray that the result was negative. The last thing she wanted was to have a child with Kevin when she knew the kind of person he really was.
"Two lines! I'm going to be an aunty!" Kelly screamed, hugging Tess who was far from thrilled.
"Tess? Tess? What's wrong?" Tess heard Kelly ask her, just before she blacked out.
"She'll be fine as long as she rests and reduces stressful activities." Tess could hear a familiar voice say over her, it was the family doctor.
"How long does she have to stay here?" she heard her husband ask
"You can take her home tomorrow. Congratulations my boy" Dr Richards said smiling at Kevin before leaving the room.
"Oh my love, you're awake. We're going to have a baby my love" Kevin said kissing his wife's hands, almost in tears.
Tess said nothing and decided to go back to sleep, hoping it was all in her head.