Chapter 2 Chapitre 2

A freezing honeymoon, that's what they had. Not a breath of love, not a spark of hope. Just two souls trapped in an imposed destiny, two bodies forced to share a space without anything warm to connect them. The sea stretched out on the horizon, calm and implacable, just like their situation.

Luca got up from the table, a glass of whisky in his hand, his gaze fixed on the sea that passed before him. The luxury of the bridal suite did not touch him. He did not even see the splendid view, nor the softness of the furniture around him. He felt as if he were suffocating in this heavenly place, because the air had become heavy with unspoken words, resentment and frustration.

He glanced at Amelie, sitting silently in the corner of the room, her head slightly lowered, her hands resting on her knees, her posture straight and elegant. She seemed perfectly at ease, as if this place was nothing special to her. And this indifference... this implacable tranquility. It irritated him.

- Aren't you hungry? Luca asked in an almost disdainful tone, staring at his glass.

Amelie slowly raised her eyes, as if she had just emerged from a long reflection. She answered in a calm and measured voice, without a shadow of emotion:

- No, thanks. I'm not really hungry.

She wasn't hungry. No desire, no need for affection. Nothing. Those words hung in the air between them, a cruel reminder of what this marriage represented. No love. No passion. Just a formality.

Luca walked away, giving his wife one last cold look before leaving the room. He didn't want to be near her. Not now. Not at all. He would have preferred to be alone, lost in his dark thoughts, without the weight of her presence. And yet, he had no choice. It wasn't as if she was a stranger. No, she was his wife now, but that didn't change the coldness that separated them.

Amelie, for her part, remained motionless. She did not seem bothered by the heavy silence that reigned around her. She was content to stare at the sea, her eyes lost in the endless horizon. She knew that Luca wanted to flee from her. She could feel it. But she did not feel the need to hold him back. She had understood from the first moment that this marriage was only a matter of family, of duties. She expected nothing from him. No love, no tenderness. She had accepted this union with an almost tragic indifference, concentrating only on her own thoughts. After all, what was love compared to what she carried inside her? She had a secret, something that Luca was still unaware of. And it was precisely this that made her implacable, this certainty that she did not have to conform to his expectations.

Luca found himself on the balcony of the suite, watching the waves crash against the rocks below. His mind was gripped by an inner rage, a dull frustration that he couldn't seem to calm. Amelie, this woman so calm, almost passive, exasperated him. She did nothing to defend herself, to fight. She just ignored him, accepted him, and it drove him mad. She never answered him, never tried to embarrass him or provoke him. No scenes, no shouting. Nothing. It bothered him deeply. He needed conflict, tension, dynamism in a relationship, even if it was for the wrong reasons. He hadn't wanted this marriage, but he would have liked it to be more alive, more... human.

He turned abruptly toward the inside of the suite, where Amelie was still sitting, her back straight as an iron bar. He looked at her for a long time, an idea crossing his mind. Maybe he could end this marriage more quickly. After all, he had no intention of living with this woman for the rest of his life. He had had enough of this game of false appearances. He had to act, push her to ask for a divorce.

When Amelie entered the next room, he spoke to her in a cold, almost clinical tone.

- You know, I'm not going to lie to you. I have no intention of pretending. I don't love you.

Amelie looked up at him, her gaze remaining impenetrable.

- I never asked you to love me, Luca.

Those words, spoken with such simplicity, hit Luca hard. He hadn't thought she would take it so calmly. He wanted her to rebel, to get angry, to yell at him, to fight for her dignity. But no. She remained stoic. That calm indifference was crushing him.

- You really think it doesn't affect me? Luca added, with palpable sarcasm. I'm stuck in a loveless marriage, with a woman I don't even know. You think it doesn't affect me?

Amelie didn't move. Her hands were still on her knees, her gaze fixed in front of her. She simply answered:

- You don't have to pretend, Luca. I understand the situation. It's not easy for you, I know that. But you don't have to play this little game. I'm well aware that you have no desire to see me here.

He stared at her, almost shocked. What did she mean by that? She was the one who remained calm, she was the one who understood, she was the one who seemed to... give him all the space for his weaknesses, for his insults, without ever defending herself. He suddenly felt vulnerable, as if everything he had said made no sense.

He took a deep breath. She wasn't what he had imagined. She wasn't a weak, docile woman ready to be crushed under his reproaches. No, she was strong, implacable in her calm, in her lack of expectation. But that irritated him even more. How could she be so calm? Why didn't she rebel, make him suffer like he wanted?

He turned away abruptly, closing his eyes to avoid seeing her presence. It was no use. He had to act.

The next morning, Luca went to his office, his mind focused on the one goal that obsessed him: to push Amelie to ask for a divorce. He was going to drive her crazy, lock her in a corner from which she would no longer be able to escape. She wanted indifference? Well, he was going to give it to her. He was going to treat her like a simple obliged. But maybe deep down, it hurt him a little. Maybe he would have liked her to rebel, to scream. Maybe he was losing himself in his own game.

He closed his eyes for a moment, the stress rising. The plan was coming together. He knew he could succeed, but a small voice deep inside him whispered that something unexpected was going to happen. This marriage was too complex, too tense to stay in this cold logic. He was going to have to go further. What if she refused to bend to his will? What if he lost everything in this endless game?

But right now, he didn't have time to dwell on those questions. He had one goal: to make Amelie file for divorce. It was going to be easier than anything he had imagined.