The Broken Heartlock. Ch. 2.

The morning after was uneventful. Lui’s apartment was a mix between messy and clean, a pile of clothes on top of a chair, a neatly organized closet, a shelf with various books and manga. Lui, still apologizing over yesterday, offered you some breakfast which you denied. Lui figured you just wanted out.

Still, you swapped numbers. Lui saw you out and tried to say something before your departure.

“Thanks. For everything, I mean, I had a lot of fun yesterday.” She spoke.

“Me too.”

She wanted to ask if they could do it again sometime, but kept shut as you waved her goodbye and walked down the stairs. Now you need to get home.

~*~

A couple of days went by quickly, you found yourself working on autopilot at your job, immersed even in the most mundane tasks, anything that could bring you a few seconds of distraction from your life. Soon you found yourself at Roberu’s bar.

“So, tiger, how’d it go?” Asked Roberu.

You stared at your hands.

“I’m not cut out for casual encounters, it seems.”

“Hah…” Roberu tapped on the counter. “So, what now?”

“I don’t know…”

Silence ensued. The bar was quiet tonight. You glanced over to the seat Lui used, now empty. The TV played some old comedy with a lead no one recalls.

“This place sure is gloomy sometimes.” You spoke.

“Guess so.”

You remained silent for a bit, you've never noticed this part of the table was a bit peeled off.

“Man, I’m still hung up on Marine. I know her so well, I could remind her who she was in case she forgot, just… why, why would she…”

Roberu sighed. He had a thousand things to say to you, hoping that you’d stop wandering in circles. He’s seen this scenario before, a bartender hears a thousand men claiming they’re the most miserable and he always gives them the same advice, but he was unable to crush whatever spirit you had left himself. He poked around the subject he wanted to discuss in hopes that you’d catch on.

“You’ve been coming here more often ever since she became an idol a few years ago, haven’t you?”

“Yeah…”

“It’s know it’s not easy being with one. I did date an idol, you know.” He half bluffed.

“I know, I know, but here’s the difference, you weren’t married to her before she was an idol.”

“So you knew things would take a shift after she joined Hololive, right?

“Yeah. You know, I miss how simple those days were, so to speak…”

“How simple were they?” Roberu asked.

“I’d wake up, find her sleeping like a noodle and I’d bring her coffee while she went over her sketches. I’d come home from work and she’d have two cups of instant ramen waiting in our old table. When we didn’t have much for dinner, we’d just go to bed and starve while we made love slowly. That simple.”

“Simple indeed.” Roberu nodded.

“Mhm. Then we got married…And a few years later, she joined Hololive.” You added. “And I saw just how much of a workaholic she was.”

Roberu’s smile faded away as yours began dissapearing like the flame of a candle.

“You also became paranoid again about cheating, you were really uncomfortable with the character she played.”

“Any man would be, I know she’s eye-catching, Roberu, it didn’t help that thousands of people were seeing her either.”

“Maybe you’re right…” Roberu let your own words sink in. He felt he was about to see you spill your heart out. “An idol wife must be a nightmare.”

“Yeah…” Something void began growing inside you. Your leg jumped up and down in place. “It’s a demanding job, for her I mean, dance lessons, singing lessons, streaming, dealing with everything that comes with that...”

Something clicked for you.

“Well, now that you mention it, she has been caught up in her idol life more than anything. Even her manga, you know, her love child, has gone on hiatus.” You leaned back on the bar stool. “Before she got the email from Cover, I was still giving her money so she could go out and buy herself art supplies or a new tablet. Now I just receive her packages in the mail… All kind of stuff. She’s even bought sexy lingerie, like a baby doll type of dress, but, she won’t use it when we fuck because it’s for her ‘Costume’.”

Roberu’s eyebrow perked up. There it was.

“She stays over at her genmate’s houses for sleepovers…” Just now you realized how that sounded in your own words, a torrent of emotions violently unleashed inside you. “She...She tells me about how hot they are...”

You felt the blood rush to your face and your breathing became loud.

“Shit, Roberu, you don’t think she’s been fucking some superstar all this time, do you? Right? She wouldn’t, Marine would never.”

Unable to muster a response that wouldn’t make the situation worse, Roberu just stared as he saw your crumble.

“Fuck..!” You dryly muttered. A single tear rolled down your eye, your fist clenched.

Roberu came around the bar to comfort you. Sitting beside you, his arm came around you and grabbed you by the shoulder. He held you there for a good while, reaching across the counter for napkins for you. The tears wouldn't come out however, no matter how much you tried. Your eyes didn't yield a single one.

You asked Roberu for a beer, he accompained you with one as well. You gulped half in one go and let the cold liquid gold cool down your throath. You took out some cash which Roberu refused, he took out some change for the drinks you had shared with Lui the other day and handed it to you.

“This one’s on me." He pointed at your beer. "Your drinking habits are more expensive than a therapist at this point.”

You giggled amidst your sniffles.

“You dipshit…” You spoke.

Someone else entered the bar and Roberu scooted over to serve them, leaving you alone with your drink.

The situation laid bare before you. You combed your memories for happy ones, looking back at them, basking in their warm embrace. Reliving those moments is such a strange feat. If you wanted, you felt you could recall every last detail, from the covers in the bed to the last speck of dust around a corner, every last line perfectly hand drawn and Marine as pristine and beautiful as ever, with her mismatched eyes that you thought were beautiful, with her obscene body that drove you wild, with her hearty laugh that kicked in your protective instincts. Everything about her merging with the visions of your old life.

The more you clutched those memories, the more you needed some time alone. Right now, this bar isn’t the place for nostalgia.

You waved Roberu goodbye, leaving him with a half finished beer. As he saw your distressed face, he beckoned you, just in case.

“Anon!”

“Yeah?”

“Call me if you need to, alright?”

“Sure, thanks.”

~*~

You took off your jacket and turned the lights on, a perfect silence veiled the apartment lightly, disturbed only by sounds from outside. You announced you were home to no one. She must be out, and you’re not going to call her and ask where. You wouldn’t be able to bear hearing her voice right now.

You opened your closet to get something comfortable to sleep with, and perhaps with more intent than going to bed, you rummaged over a drawer that held nothing but random items neither cared enough to sort somewhere else, batteries, an unused photo frame, an old medicinal hand ball, a stick of 2GB of RAM, dull scissors, and amidst all of those things, a necklace. A small heartlock necklace. Involuntarily, you swallowed as you held it in your hand. You played with it for a bit, hanging it by the chain and interlacing it on your fingers before gathering the courage to open it. Inside was a picture of Marine with her hair in a ponytail and wearing glasses, smiling for the camera while you hugged her from behind, a smile frozen in time. The necklace itself was nothing more than a piece of cheap chinese sweatshop jewelry you two had found ages ago, but you had bought it for her because she liked it. While moving to this place, both discarding stuff that they were hoarding, she found it in a small drawer and jumped in excitement.

“I knew it was still here somewhere!” She had spoken.

“My God, why do you still have that thing?” You had replied.

“It’s special!” She had winked.

Now your finger gently touched the plastic that displayed her picture.

“Maririn…” You spoke dully. Now you wondered, over the past few years, how much had she been hiding from you? At what point did she grow bored of her run of the mill husband? She plays a character for thousands of viewers, how hard would it be to play a character with you?

Getting up too quickly, you accidentally tripped and dropped the necklace, your foot sent it flying under a table and you heard something snap.

“Shit, shit!” You muttered and you knelt looking for it. You found it in two pieces, one of them under the bed right next to a hairband, and the other one under the table.

You sighed. You pulled out Marine’s picture checking if it was damaged. Your heart sank as you flipped it over.

“You’re my treasure!” Written in Marine’s delicate handwriting.

You sat in your bed looking at the picture.

And you cried. You cried until your eyes burned. After that, you put the lock back in place, and calmly went to sleep.

~*~

For the next few days you’d come back home and, if she was in, you'd greet Marine coldly, with the same formality one greets their coworkers. Marine tried to act cheerful in front of you, but she couldn’t get through your thousand yard stare.

Tonight you made meatloaf for dinner. After you set it on the table with the plates, you went to Marine’s door and lightly tapped.

“Coming!” She spoke. She sat down and thanked you for the meal. “Your cooking’s the best, as always!”

You didn’t respond.

Marine lost her appetite.

Your mind was wandering endless halls, looking for a place to rest, but all that it found was shattered floors and damp walls.

Marine asked for your glass and poured you something to drink.

After that you finished eating in silence. In your bedroom, you grabbed a pillow and got yourself warm covers. Marine asked what you were doing. You told her you’d sleep on the couch tonight.

“Anon… You’re...”

You didn’t respond. Marine hugged you from behind and gently, sensually nibbled on your ear. She smelled like sweat and cologne, you didn’t want to guess if it was hers. Holding you by your waist, she lead you to bed.

You made love to Marine mechanically, like a chore. Her usual dirty talk went silent, other than a few moans. She cuddled you as always, but she knew something was off. She knew you were just holding her, not holding her.

“Honey…” She muttered.

“Hmm?”

“The office’s going to throw a party ...”

“Ha…”

“Could you come with me?”

Closing your eyes, you sighed.

“Alright.”

Mandatory parties were the worst, but at this point, hat do you have to lose? Drinking with others might be more fun than doing it by yourself at home. It’s probably going to be short anyway.

~*~

Marine insisted in wearing a more jolly outfit, while you dressed in your trusty jeans and the same shoes you use for everything that isn’t work. She had picked a sweater for you. A cab came to pick you two up, two other guests already in the car. The drive was tense but quiet. You kept to yourself, looking at your phone to avoid speaking with anyone. Soon you arrived at your destination, a cabin rented out for events.

You saw a lot of familiar faces, her coworkers, some of their partners that you knew, some kids too.

You glanced at a little girl with long black hair and fluffy ears running through the crowd, before a gentle, mature voice called her.

“Akari, come back!” A woman with the same black hair and ears made herself present in the crowd, a carbon copy of the girl except for a red streak in her hair. A man was carrying her by her waist.

So Akari, ran back to her mama and papa. You sighed.

Are they serving anything stronger than this? Surely someone must’ve gotten whisky or such. Marine spoke with a few of her friends while you kept telling everyone who tried to make small talk with you that you hadn’t seen the world cup.

Sitting by yourself in the yard, you sipped your drink bit by bit, looking at the little bits of snow covering the yard.

The sound of heels approached you, you turned your head and saw a bit of cleavage peeking out from a cut dress, it was Choco. You smiled.

“Evening.” She greeted you.

“It’s been a while.”

“It sure has.”

At last, someone you knew a bit more. You’ve known each other since Marine’s debut. Your wife and you shared a few drinks with the girls from time to time, Choco was one of them. To say the least, she was fond of what a cute couple Marine and you made.

Choco sat beside you, holding a drink in her hand.

“You’ve always been a bit reserved, but you’re going overboard today, huh?”

“Yeah, I’m just tired. You know work spikes up around this time of year.”

Choco eyed you scrupulously, paying close attention to your tone.

“Then why come?”

“Marine’s here.”

Choco’s heard that response before from you. It wasn’t the first time you accompanied your wife to an event, but she noticed your tone was a lot more dull. It was missing a spark.

“You usually spend you time with her, however, not by yourself."

“I’m just tired.” You repeated yourself.

“Tired from what?”

“Choco, what do you want? I’m really not in the mood for this.”

She took a sip of her drink.

“So aggressive.” She said, realizing it was best to be upfront about it. “Marine has you down, doesn't she?”

You sighed. Somehow, you knew she was going to bring it up.

“How much do you know?”

“How much do you want to know?” She replied. “Gossip travels fast around an office made up of women.” She smirked.

“Why, why are you talking to me about it?”

“I know how you feel, Anon. I've dated a fair amount of.... men like her, and I can't imagine what it's like to be married to one. I thought you needed some comfort.”

“Choco, I apprecciate it, but I don’t see you that way.”

“Oh, no, no, I don’t mean it like that, I meant you needed someone to talk to, that’s all.”

“Oh…” You looked away and sipped your drink, cringing internally. "Everything this woman does comes off as flirting..." You thought.

“My-my, my good looks must be fading then.” Choco half-joked, your comment did hurt her to a degree. “So, how are you holding up?”

“Other than drinking, I'm doing very well.” You joked, Choco didn’t laugh.

Lui came back to your mind for some reason.

“Well… There’s a girl I met at a bar, I guess, we went to her place, but…”

“Couldn’t get it up? Sometimes it happens with guys when they change partners, you know.”

“No.” You replied bluntly. “She was pretty and all, but she wasn’t into it. I knew. There’s a huge difference when someone just sleeps with you, and when they want to.”

“True.” Choco said.

“And I felt that, I would’ve been taking advantage of her, I didn’t want to.”

“Mmm.”

“In the end we just watched a show she liked. And that’s it.”

“Hmm… Just watched a show...?” Choco pondered something. “Was she pretty? Oh, tell me, what color were her eyes?” Choco's favorite question for teasing people was asking for a minimal detail.

"Her eyes? Sky blue, yeah, I think. It was one of the things that stood out the most.”

“Was that it?” Choco asked with a sly smile and tone.

“She did have a great bottom, too.” You added bluntly.

“There it is!” Choco laughed. “Sky blue eyes, could it be?” She muttered. She was about to ask you something else until the door behind you two suddenly opened.

A third person came by, a girl with long pink hair and kemonomimi ears, wearing a fluffy white suit and a hat to protect her ears from winter.

“There you are Choco-senpai!” She spoke.

“Evening, Koyo-chan.”

You greeted her formally. You had no idea who she was.

“This is Anon, Marine’s husband.” Choco introduced you.

“Pleased to meet you, I’m Hakui Koyori!”

“Pleased to meet you, too.”

“Mel-chan’s looking for you.” Koyori spoke to Choco.

“I’m coming, I’m coming, just give me a moment, alright?”

“Sure!”

“I know Lap-chan wouldn’t make it, but what about the others?” Choco asked her.

“Chloe-san’s ‘fighting a ghost’ at her apartment, Iroha’s inside, and Lui-nee caught a cold.”

“Lui-nee?” You said. Choco covered her gaping mouth.

“Yeah! We’re the latest generation of Hololive, surely you’ve seen us, right?”

“N-Not really, I haven’t kept up with anything relating to idols for a while, my wife’s enough.”

“Ahh, that’s no fun! Look, here we are!”

Koyori showed you her lockscreen with all five of the girls, and sure enough, Lui was among them. Your drink almost slipped from your hand.

Someone called Koyori from the house. She told you two to get inside too or you’d freeze to death. She left the next second.

You stared at the floor. Choco sipped her drink.

“What’s wrong Anon? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” She joked.

“Shit…” You said.

“I did hear her mention something the other day, something about a guy that just hung out with her and geeked out about stuff they both liked.”

Choco giggled, but realized soon that you were having your doubts about the whole situation. She's been in your shoes before, but she's also been in hers. Being the side chick is never fun. She didn't want to encourage you, but neither did she want to discourage you.

“Hmm.” Choco looked pensively at her glass. “She’s a good girl, Anon. Whatever you do, be gentle with her, alright?”

“Should I…?”

“I’m pretty sure you can figure out the answer to that yourself, right?”

Before you could sink in thought, Choco got up.

“Let’s go back inside, I’m getting cold.”

You fought a little oppression in your chest for the rest of the day. A couple of hours later you told Marine you were about to fall asleep, and so you left the party early. She saw you to bed and laid next to you.

You fell asleep on her.

~*~

For a while you fumbled with your fingers with Lui’s chat open. Had it been too long? Had she moved on? Either way, you lost nothing by asking her if she wanted to have a coffee together.

You could hear the shower turn off in the distance. Marine came out wearing nothing. You quickly turned your phone off and left it on the night stand.

“Honey~” She said as she walked towards you with a sexy strut, one leg in front of the other, her body jiggling with each step.

Guess tonight she wants you, you cynically thought as you began taking off your clothes.

On her end, Lui saw your message when she reached home. She recognized the name, and something more. A sense of unease washed over her, but even then, she replied yes. After sending her message and seeing the received mark, she sighed and sunk herself into a pillow.

"I hope I'm not making a mistake..." She sulked.

In your dimly lit bedroom, your wife blew you, taking your entire length down her mouth, barely grazing your balls with her tongue. Your phone buzzed and unconsciously you picked it up to see Lui's message. Marine grunted.

"Oigh." She gagged as she took you out of her mouth. "Put that thing down."

You swiped Lui's message to delete it from your notifications and quickly opened the camera.

"Say cheese!" You spoke.

Marine's expression shifted to a happy smile, then a lustful gaze as she held your cock with her hand and licked it from bottom to top, stopping right before your head.

You took the pic of your wife and put down your phone. The rest of the night was pretty enjoyable.