Chapter 4

"Beep!" "Beep!" The clock blowed off.

Carmen lazily opened her eyes. Still in a confused state of mind, her hand reached out for the alarm clock. Instead of pressing the off button, she knocked it off the nightstand.

"Beep!" "Beep!" "Beep!" The alarm screamed louder as the sound echoed all over the place.

"I think I broke it." Carmen mumbled as she pushed the comforter off her.

Her toes flickered when they touch the cold tiles and chilled run through her body.

Carmen grabbed the clock from the floor, shut it up, and set it back on the nightstand.

Her sight then caught the other side of the bed, and Carmen sighed at the empty sheet.

"Good morning, Carmen." She mumbled before walking into the bathroom.

Carmen dragged her feet as she walked towards the face basin, feeling hollow in her soul, and gazed into the mirror. Her reflection stared back at her, and she could barely recognize herself.

When the pajama slipped off her body, and Carmen became naked, she finally realized how pitiful her appearance appeared. The bite marks on Carmen's body were no stranger to her, and the bruise on her lip did not matter.

"You and Liam have had one bad start in your marriage, so what? I am sure if you work hard to make your love work, he will come around eventually." She mumbles, doubting every word that rolls off her tongue.

After her downhearted pep talk to herself,  Carmen stepped away from the mirror and advanced toward the bathtub.

Lukewarm water rises in the tub as Carmen's body sinks into the bathtub. She draws her knees towards her breast and rests her head on her kneecap, then her tears roll down her cheek, mixing with the water.

A few minutes later, Carmen was out of the tub and into her bedroom. Her eyes rolled to the left and caught a glance of the time on the wall clock as she wore her dress.

"Knowing what kind of guy Liam is, I'm sure he's not awake yet," Carmen said with a bit of excitement in her tone, realizing that she still has time in her favorite to fix a morning surprise for her husband.

Carmen got a hold of her phone before she rushed out of her room. Her eyes sadly stare at the guest room for a second as she walks past the door.

"Snap out of your self-pity. He can wake up at any time." Carmen whispers, then she hurries towards the kitchen.

The kitchen stood sparkling as though it had never had any visitors before. Everything seems so well organized and neat.

"Okay, where should I start?" Carmen cried with a frustrating tone.

She decided to make breakfast for Liam, with the hope that it may help ease whatever issues he has with her. However, Carmen as the only child of a wealthy family has never cooked in her life.

"Internet. Yes! Carmen, you are a genius." She shouts in joy.

Carmen took out her phone and clicked on chrome, then typed in the search box, "how to prepare a lovely breakfast for your husband?"

Within a second, the internet had presented Carmen with several options. However, the Eggo Waffle Breakfast Sandwich became her final pick since it was simple and could get made in ten minutes.

Everything started well from the beginning. Carmen was following the recipe and the instructions to the letters, and she had the maple syrup poured in a frying pan at medium heat. However, things began to turn ugly when it was time to place both waffles in the pan.

Carmen mistakenly dropped the first waffle too carelessly into the pan, and some hot oil splashed on her hand.

"Ouch!" She cried, but that did not stop her. Instead, it was a lesson to her when she placed the second one in.

Ten minutes later, Carmen got done with her Eggo Waffle Breakfast Sandwich. Although it looked nothing like the image on the internet, she was proud of how it turned out.

A few minutes later, Carmen had poured out a hot mug of tea when she heard footsteps approaching the dining room. She then turned to face the entrance, and her heart skipped a beat when she saw Liam standing at the doorway with a frown on his face.

"Good morning," Carmen said with a smile.

"What is this?" Liam coldly replied, ignoring her greeting.

Carmen felt a wave of pain hitting her heart, but she did not portray the hurt on her face. Instead, she continues smiling warmly and answered, "I made breakfast for you."

"Have you prepared a thing in your life?" Liam harshly asked as he approached her.

"Not until now," Carmen replied as she drew back a bit.

"Do you want to poison me with this junk?" He rudely utters as he gazes at the dishes.

"No, my only desire was to make breakfast for you." Carmen cried, her tears were now pouring. She did not intend for things to turn out this way and make him even more madder.

"Trash it! I am not desperate enough to eat a mess like that!"

Carmen stood still with her hands tightly clasped to her dress. She gently bit her bottom lip from crying louder.

'I can fix this.' She thought.

Carmen released her dress, walked to the table, picked up the mug, then approached Liam.

"Please have some tea since you are not hungry." She mumbles.

"I said, "I don't want anything from you!" Liam screamed, knocking the mug out of Carmen's hands.

"Ouch!" She cried as the hot liquid spilled on her hand and the pieces of the mug shattered around her.

In fear, Carmen tried to pull her hand to her side, but Liam grabbed Carmen's hand by her wrist and stared at her finger for a brief moment at the earlier burns she had from the oil. He then releases his grip off her.

"You should get that check at the hospital. Don't get the wrong idea. I don't care about you. I just don't want my grandpa nagging me because of you." Liam stated.

Carmen did not say a word, but her tears were proof of what she was feeling inside. She watched Liam cold back as he walked out of the room, leaving her alone with a bruised hand and heart.