Heartbreak and Hope.
Joshua Simmons b January 9 1997 MME 2018
Marriage 1 Ashley Simmons b February 1, 1999, AS 2018
+New Husband Justin Jacobsen b May 10, 1997
Marriage 2 Jennifer Marten b January 12, 1998, BS Accounting 2019
+Old Husband Aaron Marten b Sept 14, 1996
St. Ives Island Group
Group 1: Joshua and Jennifer. Jayson and Cara, Andrew and Stephanie, Zach and Sara, Anthony and Sophia.
Group 2: David and Brianna, Nicholas and Hannah, Ryan and Lauren, Brandon and Jessica, Nathan and Anna
Covid does not exist.
Fiction. Still my universe and still my rules. I know very well this would not happen in real life and timelines are compressed.
Song suggestions at points where the lyrics fit
I recycle names. This story has nothing to do with other series.
Moody and emotional. This is a long story about people adjusting to a vastly new situation. It is wordy and descriptive. They talk about their perceptions of how things are going for them. You were warned.
Heartbreak and Hope Ch02
Friday, February 14, 2020
...I walked into my corridor as she did the same.
Once I walked past that line, I was officially divorced from the wife that I love more than myself. The divorces were being handled in real-time in The Cornwall Islands.
I walked past that line, down the hallway and the enormity of it hit me. My former life, ALL OF IT, was gone. They were smart to have the marriages take place hours later rather than right after because my emotions were shot. I wanted to punch someone, but there was no one to punch.
My life was gone. My marriage was gone. EVERYTHING... All... gone.
Gone.
We were all led into a locker room and told to strip off completely, including our wedding rings. We were to have nothing from our old life. It was a room full of naked guys and a few were quietly crying. I won't lie. I was close.
I didn't allow myself to pause, and a minute later I was naked save for the wedding ring. It was the last thing I had on. I took it off, put it in a linen bag and drew the strings closed then put the bag inside the box with my clothes, phone, and wallet. There are two fucking dollars in that wallet and that was all I had. I looked inside the box and it was all there. The remnants of my life. We were told the boxes would be put in the containers with our possessions. I noted the box said Joshua Simmons on all four sides and the top. Movie Max was extremely thorough.
I sealed the box shut with the tape they provided and handed it to a clothed man who was collecting them. I still loved Ashley and hated the divorce, but circumstances dictated otherwise and we were already legally divorced.
I looked around and saw the room was cammed. THE WHOLE FUCKING THING WAS CAMMED!.
A man wearing clothing from Movie Max came in, announced names, and assigned everyone to a room. I was to go to room seven and wait. I walked out of the locker room and into a hallway... It was an odd feeling walking naked in the open like that. They were kind to us and it was warm enough for us to not have shrunken penises. I walked past a door that had a '1' on it then '2' and on. I came to the seventh door with a '7' on it, then entered it. The room was perhaps ten feet by ten feet and inside was a couch, a table, and a TV with the standard basic cable channels. I noted that Movie Max was not included.
There were two doors across from each other on opposite walls for entry and exit, plus a door to a bathroom with a shower. There was a clock and a video screen to give me instructions. It said, 'Wipe your genitals with the antiseptic wipes provided on a table. There was a shower with several sample-size packets of body wash and shampoo along with a comb, razor, and other toiletries in a basket. The monitor said that both sexes will take a shower to clean up to be presentable for their new spouse. Women will douche their vagina with the provided douche. I have to admit one thing, they thought of that before I did.
As I washed away my old life I realized this is my chance at a better life.
[Shinedown. Second Chance.]
After my shower, there was an announcement over the TV, 'For the next almost five hours, you will be alone to collect yourself. We know this is hard. This TV is a touch screen. You may use it as a terminal to order food and drink if desired.'
An hour later, I was actually hungry so I ordered a chicken sandwich. I was sitting there alone, eating and thinking, alternating between thinking of memories with Ashley and still hoping for one particular pick of the final five. I was still hoping for Jennifer. I'm going to have to live with someone for two years and we got along well. She wasn't the prettiest of the dates, but she was attractive. That date was the best of the twelve and it didn't hurt that she was brilliant.
A woman named Julie was my second choice and close, but there was something special about Jennifer and Julie had walked away from the contract so she was not an option. Jennifer was my number one choice and I even wrote in the comment section, "JENNIFER!"
I reflected that I had to do this and do it right. I had to make this opportunity work because it was given to me based on me making the good faith effort to make this work out and I was determined to give it my all. Danielle was my third choice and Kayla was my fourth. If it wasn't Jennifer, would Danielle be so bad? She was very sweet and very smart with an IQ of 130, just not Jennifer-level genius smart. No matter who I end up with, I must give it my all and be good to her.
Sex with any of the women was bound to be wonderful. Movie Max had made it clear that sexual compatibility was something they selected for early. Being a friend and lover is key. Having just one would lead to an unhappy marriage. Of all the marriages of older people that I knew who had been married happily for a long time had one thing in common. They were indeed based on being both lovers and friends.
Even if it was not Jennifer, I had to make it work. It wasn't fair to either of them or myself to give anything less than one hundred percent to my new wife, regardless of who she was. I had paid the price of admission and was helpless to stop Ashley from marrying another man at this point. I was sure there was plenty of security to prevent anyone from backing out. The ONLY path was the path forward.
Suddenly... an odd feeling.... Two hours later, peace came over me. I just accepted it. Ashley was gone from my life and probably forever. Whoever my new wife was, it was clear that Movie Max had worked hard to provide me with only good choices. Carlos was correct, there were no awful choices, only ones that may lack a spark.