I Woke up Next to Lukas Podolski and Holy Crap We're Married

*Lukas POV*
I had never known before how boring and utterly useless life was. What is life for if not to spend it with the one you love? But then again the one I loved didn’t care for me. There was nothing to do but be tormented by memories of my disloyal wife. I walked through my home like a ghost, there but not really there. Every room held a memory of her passing: the kitchen was we had made out on the table, the pool where she had pushed me in, the living room where we had watched movies and played endless games. The worst was my bedroom, I felt dizzy each time I went in there and it got so bad I had started to sleep in the one of my hallways on the first floor where nothing remind me of Reyna.
Most days I did nothing but sit there and stare at my family ring which I had placed on the floor beside me. I could still see clearly in my head the day Reyna had left it for me. Standing beside the mailbox with her red eyes and a defeated posture but I made myself forget her. I only went out for practices and most of the games I sat out, my coach seeing that I could not win games for him at the moment. Along with my general disinterest in going out the paparazzi made it impossible to go anywhere without being hounded. Bastian came everyday to pester me into doing things but I tuned him out, I had become very skilled at doing that to everything around me.
That morning I had woken a little better, Reyna’s face was starting to fade from my mind and I thought it safe to wonder into the living room and watch some TV. The problem was that all the sports channels and gossip news was about Reyna and I’s break up. I sighed and ordered my finger to flip the channel but Reyna’s face on the screen stopped me. It seemed that the paparazzi had been following her as much as me during our month apart because they were passing a video of her walking to Denis and Julia’s bookstore with her friend Teresa shouting at the cameras to leave them alone.
My eyes never left Reyna’s small huddled form as I half listened to what the host of the show said, “It has been officially a month since the Golden Couple split up and there is no sign of a make-up anytime soon. Rumors are now circulating that their marriage was in fact the result of a drunken night while others say that the marriage wasn’t even legal. Neither parties have confirmed or denied the allegations. But with the Champions League final coming up tomorrow the thought on everyone’s mind is whether or not Lukas Podolski will be fit enough to play—.”
“Keep dreaming,” I replied putting my feet up on the table as I grabbed an old bowel of chips I hadn’t bothered to put away. If I didn’t even care that I was eating stale chips why would I about a stupid football match?
“— with Bayern Munich facing the undefeated Real Madrid all of us are hoping the duo of Bastian and Lukas will be restored.”
“Shit,” came Bastian’s angry voice as he walked through the front door for his daily ritual of annoying me.
“What now?” I asked not bothering to look at him as I flipped the channel to the weather reports, the only program that I could think of that would be safe from anything Reyna related.
“Your life is shit!” he yelled at me as he stood in front of the TV screen maybe thinking that it would make me react but he would be disappointed.
“Tell me something I don’t know,” I replied lazily crossing my legs at the heel.
“Your house is starting to look like shit, you’re playing shitty football, you’re treating your friends like shit, you smell like a whole bunch of shit, and now you are eating shit!” Bastian pried the bowl of food out of my hand with a disgusted noise in the back of his throat.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized without conviction as I crossed my arms behind my head before leaning my head back to look at the ceiling.
“Bullshit!” Bastian’s red face appeared over me.
“You really are loving that word today,” I said giving him a smart ass smile.
“That’s it shitface!” Bastian screamed waving his hands in the air like a lunatic.
As he grabbed me around the shoulder and heaved me without gentleness to my feet I asked, “How many times is that now? Nine? Ten?”
Bastian bullied and pushed me up the stairs until I was in my room, refusing my protests and attempts to flee. He made me walk past that horrible bed and into my bathroom where he roughly pushed me into the shower and ran the cold water.
“Shit that’s cold man!” I cried wanting to get out but he blocked my path.
“Well at least you are feeling something now,” Bastian glared at me with seriousness written all over his face. “I am sick of your moping around and depressed attitude!” He pointed an accusing finger at me. “It’s your damn fault she is gone! If you still want her go find her or else pull it together and move on!”
His words washed over me and chilled me the way the water could never do. He was right, it was my choices and I had to live with them.
“Let me out.” My tone must have made Bastian realized I was seeing some sense because he let me climb out. “Give me a minute will you?”
Bastian nodded and closed the door on my dripping form standing in the middle of the bathroom. I placed my hands on either side of the sink and took a deep breath. I looked up at the mirror and frowned at the man before me. It was my face but wrong. My eyes were dim with shadows under them, my face looked sullen and like I hadn’t gotten much food, my skin was a sickly white. Standing there I knew it was time to face everything. In those silent minutes I was able to think clearly for the first time in a month and I knew what to do.
I opened the door, walked purposefully to the phone beside my bed and dialed a number.
*Reyna POV*
It was a task everyday to wake up. It was an even bigger effort to go to work and pretend that I was fine. I wasn’t and I don’t think I fooled many people. I couldn’t hide the fact that I was no longer with Lukas and hated the pitying looks I would get from my coworkers. It was bad enough that I gave myself those looks every morning when I got up and looked in the mirror at the disgraceful figure I had turned into in just a month. Then I got that look from Teresa even when she tried to follow my lead and act like everything was normal. She was really the only reason I did anything, pushing me to try to forget Lukas.
That was just never going to happen.
Along with losing my only love I had lost my parents. The only way I received news from them was through my brother as they refused to talk to me. Not that I cared, I was finally done with them. Only if they changed and reached out to me would I talk but I didn’t think that I would ever full trust or forgive them for what they had done. My brother informed me that my parents were back in the States and pretending that I had disappeared off the face of the earth and I had a feeling from the tone John used while talking about them and what they had done to me that he was soon going to sever ties with them as well. I would feel sorry for my parents but it was their own fault as we had given them plenty of chances to be parents to us. I also learned that Matt was engaged to Susana Kentington, whom I knew from my childhood and felt they deserved each other. I knew they were going to drive each other crazy and only wished I could see them crash and burn the way Matt had witnessed my lowest moment in life.
“Reyna wake up! It’s the last day of shooting!” Teresa said with false cheer as she shook me awake. I sat up and didn’t look her in the eye as I let go of Lukas’s jersey that he had given me so long ago as a gift to my brother. I had found it at the bottom of my suitcase where I had stored it and had started to sleep with it. I knew it was sad and pathetic but I couldn’t help still loving Lukas and needing a small piece of him in my life. “Oh honey.” Teresa gave the jersey and me a look of concern as I stopped my urge to hold the jersey to my heart and away from her gaze. “One more day and then we are going back to America.”
“Yup,” I replied emotionlessly. I was not positive if that was something good or bad. Deep down I knew that what I had with Lukas was over and I had to face the fact that I had to move on but then my heart said to fight and get him back. Maybe if I were to try to contact him one more time he would listen.
“I saw Jack when I went out to get us breakfast and he told me to tell you that he wanted a word with you whenever you had time.” Teresa passed me hot coffee and a bagel. I tried to eat but it tasted of sawdust and I didn’t even try to take another bite. Putting it down on the counter I sipped my coffee as Teresa rambled on about the latest gossip on set. It was soothing to hear her voice but I still longed for another that was deep and sent tingles down my spine each time I heard it.
“I should get to work, hurry up and get dressed or you’ll be late.” Teresa walked out the door but not before making sure that I had gotten up from the coach that served as my bed and dragged my feet to the bathroom. I took a quick shower that did nothing to chase away the cold that had settled deep in my bones. Uncaring for fashion, I braided my hair in a long strand and put on black pants matching heels and a green silk shirt. Grabbing my papers with a rewritten scene along with phone numbers I would need to call for all the promotional posters that would need to be made I took the elevator downstairs.
I walked through the lobby with my head down, not wanting to meet anyone’s eyes and didn’t dare look out the door which I knew would show me the paparazzi that had persistently pestered me in my time of loneliness.
I spent the first half of the day making phone calls: booking our flights home, getting lunch delivered, figuring out the premiere schedule, and getting a photographer to shoot promotional movie shots. Then once everyone was taking a break to eat I worked on the last few lines in the script for Jack. I had found that working was the only thing that kept my mind from wondering to Lukas and the painful memories of our parting.
“You need to eat Reyna,” Teresa cornered me with a sandwich in hand.
“Not hungry,” I said biting my pen as I reread the lines I had corrected.
“You’ve stopped eating and it’s not healthy.” Teresa wouldn’t let my eating habits drop. “Eat this sandwich and I will leave you alone.”
“Fine.” I took a huge bite and raised my eyebrows as if to say, “Are you happy?”
Teresa stood to leave, clearly seeing work was my way of dealing with my situation.
“Don’t forget to talk to Jack.” I nodded and when she was gone spit what was in my mouth in the garbage and dumped the rest of the sandwich in as well. When the lunch break was over, I went to find Jack to see what else he needed from me. I found him replaying the last shot as the actors fooled around and laughed, oblivious to my pain. How strange life was that one person could suffer so while another smiled?
“You wanted to see me,” I said tearing my eyes away from the playful teasing of the actors and wishing I was them.
Jack held his finger up for me to wait as he frowned at the screen, “What do you think?”
“I think the words are a little too formal for the scene,” I replied honestly without my usual reservation and shyness when asked my opinion.
“I agree. Did you rewrite it?” I handed him the paper in response to his answer and he quickly scanned it. “Brilliant! Just perfect!”
“Was there something else?” I prompted.
“What? Oh yes!” Jack grinned as he held up the papers. “This is brilliant work.”
“You said that.”
“Yes, well what I mean is I am firing you.”
My mouth dropped at the words, all I had left was this job! He couldn’t do this to me! “But sir I’ve done everything that you’ve ever asked and worked hard and—.”
“Calm yourself Reyna.” Jack held up his hand and gave me a small smile. “I meant that I want you to be my screenwriter.”
“W-what?” I was in shock and took a seat before I fell on my ass. Me, a real screenwriter?
“You write the scripts better than my own writers so why shouldn’t I just make you write and save all that time. The pay is much better and I already have my next movie planned which I really want you to write for me. What do you say?”
“I’d be honored.” I smiled as big as I could under the circumstances and left him after thanking Jack a million times. Were things finally getting better for me? This job would give me a financial freedom I hadn’t had before and even more time to write a book like I had always wanted. I rushed to tell Teresa the news and she insisted that we celebrate tonight but I declined saying I was going to be tired. It didn’t fool her but she said she would go buy us some wine for later. I was going to go check on how the packing of the props was going when I spotted someone that made me freeze in my tracks.
“Reyna!” cried Sarah as she spotted me. She ran to my side and hugged me. That comforting touch and because she represented a part of my life with Lukas which had come crashing down made me choke back a cry. “I’m so sorry I didn’t come sooner but I went out of town after Oktoberfest and then I wasn’t sure if you would want to see me.”
“I always want to see you,” I said as we pulled apart and I wiped the tears that had escaped my eyes. That blissful day in October seemed so long ago. “You are my friend, at least I hope so after all the things that you must have heard about what happened.”
“I believe that Lukas saw one version of the story that he thinks in true. Men are pig headed about what they believe in and often need a knock in the head to see straight again,” Sarah squeezed my hand in friendship as I chuckled. She looked at me seriously, “I know you love him and what Bastian told me about what Lukas said happened just doesn’t seem right.”
I held my hand over my mouth as all the horrible words Lukas had said to me and the raw anger and sadness in his eyes came back to me. Sarah saw the pain I was in and led me to a deserted room where she let me cry in peace while I told her my side of the story. She listened patiently and cursed the pride of men. As I dried my tears—all I seemed to be doing was crying like a baby!—and finished my story Sarah said, “You have to talk to him.”
“He doesn’t want me anymore,” I said miserable.
“Don’t you at least want to try?” Sarah asked me with disbelief in her eyes. “You told me yourself that you leave tomorrow, do you want the regret of not trying to reach out to him when you could on your conscious for the next ten years?”
“Maybe he’s cooled down a bit to allow me to explain to him. Maybe he could see reason now and is as unhappy as me,” I looked over at Sarah’s kind eyes and hope blossomed in my chest.
“Believe me if any of Bastian’s stories are true Lukas is ready to have you back.” I smiled and felt determination and optimism replace my dark thoughts.
“I am going to go talk to him tonight!”
“That’s the spirit!” Sarah clapped her hands together in joy as I felt my phone vibrate.
“Crap,” I swore. “Can you wait one second?”
“Sure.”
I answered the phone, “Hello?”
“Hello, Ms. Mich—Podolski. This is Tim Parker.” Parker? What was my lawyer doing calling me?
“Yes, what can I do for you Mr. Parker?” My heart was racing because as much as my heart was screaming that nothing was wrong my head knew otherwise.
“I am calling because Mr. Podolski’s lawyer contacted me about an hour ago. He is drawing up the divorce papers and wonders if there is anything specific you are demanding of Mr. Podolski’s property.”
“Divorce papers?” I squeaked into the phone as Sarah’s head snapped from checking her make-up to looking at me in utter astonishment.
“Yes ma’am,” Mr. Parker’s tone was gentle like he knew this was hard for me. Great, I thought sarcastically as all the hope I had just had vanished into thin air. Even my lawyer feels pity for me now.
I turned away from Sarah and ignored the complete shattering of my heart, “I want nothing.”
Nothing but Lukas which was never going to happen.
*Lukas POV*
The drive to practice was quite. I didn’t tell Bastian that I had called my lawyer. Part of me was glad that I was finally putting Reyna and our lie of a marriage behind me but a little voice kept insisting that I was being an idiot. Practice was short because of our game tomorrow but I was more present than I had been in weeks.
“Good Podolski,” coach cried as I tackled Franck cleanly and got a goal. All through practice I showed signs of life again remembering the joys of football and loosing myself in the one thing I had left. I chided myself the whole time that I should have turned all I had been feeling into energy on the field. For one hour I was able to forget my life outside of Allianz Arena and feel like myself again. However, as soon as the whistle blew to end practice all my problems came rushing back.
“Glad that you are back with Reyna because we are going to need you tomorrow,” Luca slapped me on the back as I put my shirt on in the locker room.
“What?” I asked confused at his comment.
“There is only one reason that you could be back to playing to normal,” Miroslav replied from his corner.
“Yeah, you are back together with Reyna.” Thomas made me realize that the guys thought I had patched things up with her.
“No, I’m n—.” I was about to tell them they had it all wrong.
“It’s about time,” Willy commented. “We all knew you were madly in love and it was just a lover’s quarrel.”
“You’re too smart to let her go,” my best friend Bastian grinned at me.
“I’m not—.”
“There is no couple more perfect for each other than you two.” Luca placed a hand on his heart and closed his eyes, mimicking a lovesick person as everyone chuckled.
“It’s sickening really,” chuckled Philipp.
“I’m getting a divorce!” I yelled over my teammates. They fell silent in an instant and gazed at me in bewilderment.
“A divorce?” repeated Bastian, breaking the silence. “I thought we talked about it this morning.”
“You said I should call her or move on,” I reminded him.
Bastian hit his head, “I thought you would call her! You two belong together; even you know it deep down!”
“Don’t be stupid Lukas, you’re in love with her,” Luca had the guts to say.
“I’m not in love with her; everything about us is a lie.” I turned my attention to packing my stuff, sick of hearing my friends talk about Reyna and I.
“You’ll regret this.” Thomas didn’t take the hint that I wanted to talk about something else.
“Lukas you are not thinking straight,” Franck started but I cut him off.
“It was all fake! We had a drunken marriage and I never meet her before that! We lied for my reputation and a divorce was always going to happen so just drop it!”
None of them said anything about my confession and I could see that even though I had fooled the press I had never fooled them.
“It doesn’t matter what the plan was only what actually happened to the two of you,” Franck replied calmly.
“The fact that Reyna is the love of your life Lukas,” Bastian shook his head. “Hell, none of us are the romantic types but we all know that what you have with Reyna is something special and you are throwing it away.”
The guys all nodded and sounded their agreement while I tried not to scream and break the locker room apart. Why were they doing this to me when I had finally decided to let go of her? Why were they tormenting me? I wasn’t going to let them make me doubt myself. I had made my decision and that was that, Reyna was no longer someone I wanted in my life. I shushed my heart that was unwisely calling out to listen to my friends and get Reyna back, relying on my head which would not lead me into anguish.
“I’ll take a cab home,” I told Bastian as I swung my bag onto my shoulder and ignoring my teammates walked out.