Later that night…
Sitting on the edge of her bed while having her face buried between her palms, Alicia cries bitterly. Taking a deep breath, she wipes the tears from her eyes and glances at the wall clock, releasing a deep breath afterward. Just hours ago, she was having a good time with her husband, only for him to leave the house in a hurry when he got the news about Ariel being rushed to the hospital.
She tried not to get hurt, but nothing is working. Not that she wants to think about it, but what is she supposed to do when it’s coming naturally? There was nothing she could do. It’s already past 8pm, and he’s yet to be back home. As much as she wants to be hardhearted and not get worried about him, knowing how dangerous it can be out there in the night, she can’t help but pray that he’s safe out there.
Still lost in thoughts, the sound of her ringing phone pulls her attention, and she glances at the screen to see her husband’s name displayed on the screen. She quickly picks up the phone and slides the answer button. Although she’s mad at him, his safety matters so much to her.
“Max… Are you OK? Why aren’t you back home yet?” Her voice quivers as she rushes him with questions.
“I’m ok, babe. Ariel is still hurt and would need a medical assistant, so I don’t think I’ll be home tonight,” Hearing this from him, her heart breaks into a million pieces, and her world comes crashing down to her feet. Slowly, she clenches her fingers around her phone while still holding it to her ear, as if she would break it into pieces anytime soon. How he still dares to call her ‘babe’ as if he cares about her is a puzzle she can’t bring herself to solve. This wasn’t the same man she married barely two years ago. This wasn’t the man that would sacrifice anything to be with her, not the man she could vouch for.
“Hmm. Take care,” Those words weren’t supposed to be spilled out, but can she help it? Even if he hurts her more than this, she would still love him so much. She stares into space as the call finally drops dead before she brings the phone from her ear, tears streaming down her cheeks.
Standing up from the bed, she drags her feet to the window and pulls the curtain to one side, as the darkness from outside welcomes her. Staring down at the parking lot from her room, she bites her bottom lip as she holds on to the curtain tightly. She can’t help but miss those days when he would return from work as early as 6pm just so he could spend time with her, the days he would call her all day while he was still at work, and the days he wouldn’t dare to come home late not because he was scared of her, but because he didn’t want to get her worried. When is she going to get her husband back?
She sighs briefly before finally dragging herself into the bathroom to have her bath and get some sleep.
Stepping out of the bathroom a few minutes later in her pink robe, she drags her feet to her messy bed and slumps on it, pulling the duvet to cover herself. Pushing all her thoughts to the back of her mind, she closes her eyes even if she’s not feeling sleepy.
Next day…
The sound of the door creaky sound pulls her from her deep sleep, and she forces her eyes open to see the blurry figure of Max hovering over her on the bed. Having her vision cleared in the next minute, her heart wrenches in pain as Max’s smile welcomes her. It annoys her that he still dares to smile at her even after what he did to her. Was he worried about her staying in the house alone all through the night? What if she was attacked in the night, or maybe robbers intrude on the house and hurt her? Did he think about her safety when he made that decision?
“Good morning, babe,” He removes the strand of hair on her forehead while having a wide smile dancing on his lips.
“Good morning,” She forces a smile as she sits up on the bed. Although she has so many things to say to him, she wants to scream at him and tell him how hurt she is, she wants him to know that she has had so much of this pain but realizes that she doesn’t want to appear like a bad person, she feels like enduring all the pain is the best she can do at this point. Because for how long will she keep complaining? For how long will she keep crying to him and looking pathetic?
She swings her legs down the bed and gets on her knees before she drags her feet to the bathroom, doing everything she can to fight her tears back. Letting her emotions take control of her at this moment is the last thing she would want to happen.
“Are you OK?” Almost at the bathroom, his voice brings her to an abrupt halt. She scoffs briefly and bites her bottom lip. How does he still have the gut to ask her that? Does she look like she’s OK? She’s not fucking fine with all of the disrespect, she’s not fine with the pain that he’s causing her, she’s not fine with the way he ridicules her before Ariel, and makes her look like she’s not worth it.
“Hmm…” She nods her head regardless, as she pushes the door open and walks in, locking it behind her. Stepping into the bathroom, she crashes her back against the locked door and slumps on the cold floor as she cries silently.
“Babe… Babe…” The knock on the door pulls her attention, and she quickly wipes her tears as she stands up to her feet before pulling the door open to see Max standing in front of the door.
“Do you need anything, babe?” She manages to ask him. Pretending to be fine turns out to be the most difficult thing to do, acting like it’s ok when it’s not, hurts more than anything, and having to hide her pain from him hurts more than what he did.
He stares at her blankly with many questions running through his mind. He has hurt this woman so much. Seeing the look on her face, he can’t help but ask himself what is going through her mind. At this point, he wishes he can read through her mind.
“Are you ok, babe?” Her voice disrupts his thoughts, and he quickly nods his head. She nods her head before she closes the door in his face…