Page 24 of Be My Wife

It always does.

Loneliness is a part of me now.

Not that I’m complaining.

Sleeping alone is ten times better than sleeping next to someone who’s checked out.

I stretch out flat on my back.

Stare at the ceiling again.

Wait for the pills to kick in.

They don’t usually take this long.

Damn.

I was hoping to avoid this.

The restless tossing and turning.

The doubts.

The regrets.

My thoughts are too strong.

The past is breathing down my neck and the future is chomping at my heels.

Should I take another pill?

Maybe it’ll work faster.

Yeah. If you’re trying to off yourself.

In the stillness, my phone blares.

I answer.

“Hey.” It’s Elizabeth. She sounds tired, out of breath. “Um…”

When she goes quiet, I ask, “Did your mom leave.”

“Yeah, she and my aunts went home.”

I sit up. Turn on my lamp. “They sounded… excited.”

“They wanted my marriage more than world peace so, yeah. They’re pretty happy.”

“And you?”

“I wanted personal peace.”

“Congratulations?”

“He’s a lucky guy.”

I chuckle.

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