I’ll give her a ring, I muttered, rubbing the back of my neck as I made for the front door.
Your lover called. Said hello! Irene tossed over the kitchen, never looking away from the pan where something familiar was sizzling like the way our life has always been, just a bit overcooked.
Andrew froze on the kitchen threshold. Twenty years a whole life flashed before his eyes in an instant. The keys slipped from his fingers, clattered onto the floor with a harsh metallic clang that seemed to cut the quiet
What are you on about? A lover? his voice trembled, spilling all the fear and turmoil of the past months. It felt as if the ground was giving way beneath him.
Alice. Your assistant, I think? Irene finally turned, arms crossed over her chest. Shes just twentyfive, says shes been seeing you for four months now. Happy birthday, love!
The hurt in her eyes was so sharp Andrew wanted to sink into the earth or snap awake like a nightmare finally ending.
Irene, Ill explain he started, but the words stuck.
Explain what? How you had a bit of fun with the secretary while I was hunting for doctors? Or how you lied, saying you were stuck at work? she laughed hoarsely.
The pan sputtered, the burnt smell of meat filled the kitchen. Irene switched off the gas as if that could halt the pain, the bitterness, the betrayal.
Do you know whats the most disgusting? she whispered, voice dropping. I guessed it all along those latenight calls, the business trips, all your meetings. I believed you, like a fool!
Come on, Irene Andrew took a step toward her, but she snapped a hand up, as if building an invisible wall.
Dont come near! tears flashed. God, its vile twenty years down the drain!
Enough, he tried to steady himself, voice shaking. Lets just talk calmly. This is complicated.
Complicated? Irene laughed again, a laugh that sounded more like sobbing. Whats so tough? Youve got a young lover. Shes flying in. And me? Her voice cracked. Im just an old woman who cant have kids, thats all.
Dont say that! he pressed forward, trying to hug her.
She twisted away, as if burnt. In the next heartbeat a sharp slap ripped through the kitchen silence.
Get out, she whispered, voice trembling. Go back to her if she can give you what I never could.
Eve
Go! she snapped, grabbing the salt cellar and flinging it at him.
Andrew recoiled; the salt scattered across the floor, tiny white crystals glinting under the kitchen light. Bad omen, he thought.
Ill call her, he muttered, shuffling toward the door.
Irene turned to the window, shoulders shaking as if from cold, though the evening was already warm.
He slipped on his coat in the hallway, hearing muffled sobs. His hand froze on the door handle. What could he possibly say? How could he justify the betrayal?
The front door slammed shut. The flat fell eerily quiet, save for the ticking of the mantel clock a wedding gift from his parents. It had ticked away twenty years, counting the seconds of their shared life.
Irene sank into a kitchen chair, eyes landing on the spilled salt. They say that brings bad luck, she mused, then burst into a hysterical laugh. It was as if the shattered crystals mirrored her own shattered world.
Her phone buzzed in the pocket of her robe. An unknown number texted: Sorry, I didnt mean for any of this. Alice
Bastard, she hissed, clutching the phone. Little monster
Outside, rain began to patter, the first drops hitting the sill like a sad piano playing on an unseen xylophone.
She stood, grabbed a broom and dustpan, and while scooping up the salt she thought, I didnt even ask if shes expecting a boy or a girl
She paused, dustpan in hand, the rain, the ticking clock, all blending into one relentless stream of minutiae. Nothing else mattered now.
Andrew sat in his car, staring at his phone. Fifteen missed calls from Mum Irene, of course, always loved her daughterinlaw.
What now? he asked his reflection in the rearview mirror. The man reflected was a weary 45yearold, eyes heavy with judgment.
The phone buzzed again: Alice.
Right, love
Where are you? her voice trembled, on the verge of tears. I was terrified she was terrifying!
Who? Andrew scrambled.
Your wife! She turned up at work, made a scene
What? When?
An hour ago, Alice sobbed. She screamed in the whole office that Id ruined your family, threw papers at me those were her medical test results.
He sank his head onto the steering wheel, a groan escaping him.
I didnt know Alice continued. I didnt know you couldnt have kids. I thought you just didnt want them
A flash of memory: I knew, and still why?
Come over, she pleaded. Im scared alone.
Im on my way, he muttered.
He turned the engine on, but before he could pull out the phone rang again. This time his mother.
Yeah, Mum.
Ah, you wretched dog! she roared. What have you done? Lost all sense of conscience?
Mum
Shut up! Irenes in tears, barely holding herself together after all these years. And you youve run off with a youngster!
Im I
Shes not my mother any more! she snapped. Unless you get your head together, dont call, dont show up!
She slammed the handset. Andrew let the phone fall onto his lap, feeling suddenly heavy. The world was silent except for the faint hum of his cars engine.
He glanced at Irenes house. Warm light spilled from the windows, a cosy glow. But he couldnt go there now. He couldnt go anywhere.
He turned the ignition off. The car sighed and fell still. He was alone in a silence that suddenly seemed deafening.
A short burst of beeps sounded from the speaker.
Bloody hell, he whispered, pounding the steering wheel until his fingers cramped.
Another buzz: a message from Irene. Divorce papers will be ready in a week. Collect your stuff at the weekend. Im leaving.
He read it over and over. Divorce. Everything. Twenty years, gone.
Then another incoming call Alice.
You coming? My stomachs hurting
On my way! he shouted, whipping the wheel around as if it could steer him out of the nightmare.
Rain hammered harder, wipers fighting a losing battle, the city turning into a blur of grey.
His phone buzzed again probably Mum again. He didnt even look. What difference did it make now?
A year ago Alice had started as an intern at his firm. Fresh, bright-eyed, full of hope the kind of girl youd see in a university brochure. Shed looked at him the way Irene once did, with that naive admiration.
Then came the office party, a cheeky touch, a laugh, and everything spiralled. Hed told Irene he was busy, while whisking Alice off to restaurants, buying flowers, feeling young again. Hed rented a flat for their secret meetings, watching her glow with happiness, dreaming of a future that wasnt his.
Stupid old fool, he thought, staring at the slick road.
The phone rang once more.
Its not Alice, Irenes voice cut in, unusually calm. I did a test. Guess what? Im also expecting.
Everything froze. The ambulance siren wailed, then a blunt heart attack and severe head injury came over the hospital speaker.
Irene stood by the ICU window, watching the man in wires and tubes. Alice, pale, clutched a handkerchief, tried not to look at Irene.
Stop wailing, Irene said flatly. This isnt a drama.
Sorry Alice sniffed, eyes flicking to Irenes belly. Just were having a baby
Yes, of course, Irene smiled dryly. A baby without a dad. How amusing. And me without a husband. Lovely, isnt it?
Are you also? Alice whispered, looking at the faint swell.
Got one too? Irene chuckled. Twenty years of nothing, then bang! Must be nerves.
The heart monitor ticked quietly. Rain tapped the windows, a relentless reminder that life outside kept moving.
I loved him from day one at university, Irene said, not turning from the motionless body. He was skinny, wore glasses all the girls laughed, what do you see in him? Yet I saw him, the real him.
Alice stared at the thin hospital curtain, as if something behind it could rescue her.
Then came the wedding, rings, veil, everything proper. His mum even said, Shell be a good daughterinlaw. And I ended up broken.
Dont say that, Alice whispered, voice like a rustling leaf.
How else to put it? Irene snapped. Do you know how many doctors Ive seen? How many procedures? He kept telling me, Dont worry, love, well manage without kids. He was lying. Always lying.
He loves you, Alice said, but even she sounded doubtful.
Even when he? Irene laughed, a harsh bark. He pretended.
Alices shoulders shook, she covered her belly as if shielding herself.
I thought we had love, she murmured, eyes down. He was so gentle
And I, then? A careerdriven, childless wife? Irene shot back, sarcasm dripping. Exactly.
No! Alice stammered, unsure what to say.
You know whats funniest? Irene interrupted. I almost get you. Young, head over heels I was once the same. Only my mistake was falling for a man who was already mine.
Andrew shifted slightly in his bed at the hospital. Both women leaned forward, the room holding its breath.
What will we do? Alice asked, the silence pressing in.
What will you do? Irene replied, weary. Therell be two heirs or two heiresses. Does it matter?
And him? Alice asked, desperate for an answer.
Whatever he chooses, Irene said, a bitter smile forming. Either the old wife with a nagging past or the young lover with a baby bump.
Im not competing, Alice began, trying to pull herself out of the mess.
Youre all competing, Irene cut in. Everyone wants a piece. Listen, girl twenty years is my life. I didnt hop on someone elses train. This isnt your route.
A nurse cleared her throat softly.
Visiting hours are over.
Right, right, Irene said, standing. Lets get a cuppa. Ill show you where the tea machine is. Weve got a long day ahead.
A week later, Andrew woke to find Irene sitting on the edge of the hospital bed, a hand gently on his stomach. How did I never notice? he croaked.
Got a little one, love? she teased, a faint grin on her lips. Thought you were off gallivanting with angels.
Sorry
Dont start, Irene snapped, eyes narrowing. Your lawyers here. I wont split the flat you can keep the car if you like. Ive quit my job.
What? Andrew tried to sit up, panic flickering. Why?
Im moving back to the countryside, to my parents, she said calmly, as if discussing the weather. Cleaner air for the child.
Irene, no
Its necessary, Andrew. Ive realized I was a fool to trust you blindly. I was scared of being alone without you.
I love you, he whispered, as if those words could change anything.
You love? she replied, shaking her head. Its a habit, a part of life. I dont want to be just a habit.
She stood, brushed off her dress as if shedding a weight not her own.
Alice visited every day, cried, said shed give up everything. Silly thing I gave her a good gynaecologists number and a realtor to find a bigger flat. Onebedroom wont cut it with a baby.
You what? Andrew stared, disbelief written all over his face.
Nothing special, she shrugged. Were in the same boat now. Funny, isnt it? Years of emptiness, and suddenly weve got two lives intersecting. As they say, trouble never comes alone neither does happiness.
Outside a spring thunder rolled, cracking the sky.
Dont linger, Irene said, leaning in for a soft kiss on his forehead, as if it were a simple goodbye. Ive called a taxi, sent my things. Sign the papers when youre better wheres the rush?
Eve
She paused at the door, turning back. You know, I truly loved you. To the point of delirium. Now it feels like Ive exhaled. Thanks for that.
She slipped out, quietly shutting the door. The faint scent of her perfume lingered the same one hed given her each anniversary.
Andrew stared out the window where the spring storm mixed rain with a hint of snow. In that damp March town, two women now carried his children in their hearts. Two different worlds, oddly alike. One tangled story.
He thought, I wonder if theyll ever be friends or just share this tangled life forever?
