Three months to forever

EpisodeThre

NOAH

I played with my son. He looked mostly like his mother, which was fine with me. She was beautiful anyway.

But not as beautiful as Evelyn. My jaw clenched at the memory of her this morning.

Of course, she didn’t care. That’s why she betrayed me in the first place. It was crazy, and till now, I still could not grasp it. Why would she do that to me?

“Noah,” Lisa drawled, her hands seductively rubbing my back. I knew what she wanted, but there was no way I was giving her that.

“I’ve missed you,” she tried again, her nails tracing seductive lines on my chest. I dropped the baby back in his walker and turned to her.

“What do you want?” I asked, bored and tired. My encounter with Evelyn this morning that already thrown me off. She made it clear that she did not care.

But she looked a lot like she did.

“What are you talking about Noah?” She asked with fake anger. I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose.

These days, she was even more annoying, and my temper around her was always thin.

Everything had to do with Evelyn. She would not leave my mind, and I noticed she was spending less time in the mansion than before.

The thought of who she was going to see boggled me. She had never told me she did not care about me seeing Lisa until today, and apparently, that ruined my day.

“You’ve not touched me in a while now Noah,” Lisa spoke, bringing me from my thoughts. I internally groaned. Could she not read the room?

I wasn’t in the mood for her nagging. I removed the hand that was draped around my chest and turned to completely face her.

“I need to go.” I said, my voice firm and devoid of emotion. Her eyes widened, and I saw hurt flash through them as she struggled for what to say, her mouth opening and closing.

“But you just got here!” she finally said, throwing her hands up in exasperation. I ignored her and continued walking, then stopped dead in my tracks when I heard her scream my name again.

“It’s because of her right? That witch!” She screamed.

This lady really knew how to test my patience. I turned to her, my eyes holding a dangerous glint. “Don’t ever call her that. Ever again.” I commanded; the threat evident in my tone.

I don’t know why I felt a surge of protectiveness was through me, even after everything. I should not be defending her, where did that come from?

She scoffed and voiced out my thoughts. “After all she did to you, you’re still defending her, see how much evil she is in your life.” She said.

I was not sure if she wanted to spite me, but her words hit me like ice cubes. I schooled an expressionless face, grabbed my suit jacket and left her apartment.

The drive home was a blur. Lisa's accusation echoed in my head, a jarring note against the doubt and confusion churning inside me.

Why did Evelyn act so… unbothered this morning? Didn't it affect her at all that I had a life outside our marriage, a life with a child and Lisa?

Reaching the mansion, I pushed the door open, expecting to find her in the living room, maybe reading a book, or staring out the window with that lost look in her eyes.

But the house was eerily quiet. I called her name, the sound bouncing off the empty walls.

Where was she? Shouldn't she be here?

The emptiness mocked me. I checked all the usual rooms – the living room, the kitchen, her office – but she was nowhere to be found.

Then, on the bathroom counter, I saw it – an almost empty bottle of painkillers. My heart lurched. Was she sick? Had something happened? The thought sent a jolt of terror through me.

Frustration gnawed at me. Where did she go when she wasn't here? Did she have someone she met with? The thought was absurd, yet I couldn't shake it.

Madam Claire, the housekeeper, emerged from the kitchen, her face etched with concern. "Mr. Smith, is everything alright?" she inquired.

"Have you seen Evelyn?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

"She spends most of her time in the… in the child's room, when she's around, sir," she replied hesitantly.

The child's room. A pang of guilt stabbed at me, a familiar ache in my chest. My curiosity piqued. "Does she go out often? Does anyone come to visit her?"

She shook her head, her eyes filled with a sympathy that irked me. "I don't know, Mr. Smith. No one ever comes to see Mrs. Smith."

Dismissing her, I strode towards the f*******n room.

The last I came here was when I was heavily drunk. That was about two months ago. I had avoided the mere sight of the door to the room like a plague.

But here I was, all for Evelyn. My hand trembled as I grasped the doorknob.

Taking a deep breath, I pushed the door open. The sight that greeted me shattered the carefully constructed wall of indifference I had built around myself.

Evelyn lay curled up in the crib, her face pale and streaked with dried tears. Her eyes, usually sparkling with life, were red and puffy, a stark contrast to the fragile beauty of her features. She looked like a broken angel.

Ignoring the traitorous pang in my chest, I scooped her up, cradling her close. The warmth of her body against mine sent a jolt through me.

She didn't fight, didn't protest. In her sleep, she nestled closer, her soft breaths tickling my neck.

Back in our bedroom, I gently laid her on the bed. An ache, unfamiliar and unwelcome, settled in my chest.

I wanted to wake her, to ask her what was wrong, to hold her close and chase away the ghosts that haunted her eyes. But the memory of her betrayal and her cold indifference that morning held me back.

The warmth of her body seeped into mine, a stark contrast to the cold emptiness I had been carrying.

Her ragged breaths fanned against my neck, and I buried my face in her hair, the familiar scent sending a jolt through me. Exhaustion finally claimed me, and I drifted off to sleep, holding her close.

The sudden jerk of her body jolted me awake. Her eyes, wide and fearful, locked with mine. The raw pain in them mirrored the turmoil within me.

I wanted to hold her tighter, to whisper soothing words of comfort, to somehow erase the hurt etched on her face.

But the words wouldn't come. The anger, the betrayal, it still simmered beneath the surface.

“Evelyn,” I rasped, my indifference washing over me, as my expression turned to one devoid of emotion.

"What am I doing here?" she whispered; her voice hoarse.

I simply shrugged; my eyes devoid of any warmth.

"I don't know," I mumbled, rolling away from her. That was not a lie. I did not know what she was still doing in my life.

Why she would not leave after pushing me away. I wanted to be divorced from her. Our marriage was just a contract in the first place.

Courtesy of my Grandma. May God bless her soul.

I closed my eyes, beaconing sleep again. My indifference is what she deserved after what she did anyway.