MY EX HUSBAND’S REGRET

Watched

The phone nearly slipped out of my hand.

I read the message three more times, standing barefoot on the sidewalk outside my building, the cool concrete biting into my feet. The more I looked at the picture, the more my stomach drop a little further.

*Didn’t waste any time did you? Whore.*

Unknown number with nothing to identify who was on the other end.

So someone has been there tonight. Sitting somewhere near that restaurant, close enough to photograph us through the window. Close enough to see Adrian’s hand cover mine, to watch me smile for the first time in weeks and decide to punish me for it.

My eyes shot to the street around me instinctively. It was empty, with just parked cars and a couple walking their dog half a block away, not paying any attention to me.

Whoever it was, they were already gone. Perhaps it was the same person that framed me with those pictures.

I took the elevator up to my apartment with shaking hands and locked the door behind me, sliding the chain across even though I never used it. Suddenly, I am feeling watched, the apartment felt smaller than usual, like the walls are coming closer together, and the shadows in the corners darker.

I sat on my bed and stared at the message again.

Who knew about my dinner with Adrian?

It was only Natalie. That was it. I hadn’t told anyone else. I hadn’t mentioned it at work, hadn’t breathed a word to anyone except my best friend.

Which meant either Natalie had told someone, or whoever sent this message had been following me.

My fingers were trembling as I called her.

She answered on the second ring, with a bright voice and expectant. “So? How was it? Tell me everything. Did he kiss you? Did you…”

“Someone was watching us tonight.” There was a pause from the other end before she replied.

“What?”

“I got a text from an unknown number when I got home. They sent a photo of me and Adrian at the restaurant, it was taken through the window. They called me a whore.” I was slightly trembling as i spoke.

“Oh my God.”

“Did you tell anyone about tonight? About where I was going?”

“No! Of course not. Ivy, I would never.” She sounded genuinely horrified. “I didn’t tell a single person.”

“Then someone followed me, Nat. Someone knew where I was going and followed me there and sat outside, watching us through the window.”

“Forward me the message. Right now.”

I screenshot it and sent it to her, listening to her sharp intake of breath when it came through.

“This is insane,” she said quietly. “This is genuinely insane. Who does this?”

“That person who hates me enough to create deepfake photos and destroy my marriage and my family and apparently isn’t done yet.” My voice cracked on the last word. “They’re still watching me, Nat. Even after everything they already took from me, they’re still not done.”

“We need to tell the police.”

“And tell them what? That I got a nasty text from an unknown number? They’ll laugh me out of the station.”

“We have more than that. We have Marcus’s forensic report about the photos. And now we have this text. We have a pattern.”

“A pattern that any halfway decent lawyer could explain away.” I pulled my knees up to my chest, making myself small on the bed. “The photos are technically undetectable as fakes. The text is just one message from a blocked number. There’s no proof of anything.”

“So what do we do?”

“I don’t know.” My head fell back against the wall. “I genuinely don’t know anymore.”

We stayed on the phone for another hour, talking in circles. Natalie wanted to call Marcus first thing in the morning, and to take the text to the police anyway. She also want to reach out to Ethan again and show him that whoever was behind this was still actively targeting me.

I agreed to everything she suggested because I was too tired and too scared to argue and to admit that even if we did all of those things, it probably wouldn’t matter.

After I hung up I sat in the dark for a long time.

Then I opened Adrian’s contact and typed: *Thank you for tonight. I had a really good time.*

Three dots appeared almost immediately. He was still awake.

ADRIAN: *Me too. Get home safe?*

ME: *Yeah. I’m home.*

I stared at the screen, fingers hovering. I wanted to tell him about the text. But I don’t want to drag him into this. I don’t want to watch him look at me differently once he knew the full story. Tonight had been perfect in its simplicity. Just two people having dinner, talking, laughing, and existing without the weight of everything.

I wanted to hold onto that feeling for a little while longer before the real world crashed back in.

ME: *Goodnight Adrian.*

ADRIAN: *Goodnight Ivy. I’ll see you on Monday.*

I set my phone down and tried to sleep which proved futile. Every time I closed my eyes I saw that photo. Me and Adrian at the candlelit table, our hands touching, both of us completely unaware that someone was standing outside in the dark watching. But I must admit that the picture was beautiful. Magnificent.

Saturday morning arrived gray and drizzly, making the weather feel personal. I was up before seven despite barely sleeping, already dressed by the time Natalie texted to say Marcus could meet us at a coffee shop in Midtown at ten.

I took the subway with my hood up and earphones in, watching my reflection in the dark tunnel windows. Checking faces around me without trying to be obvious about it. Wondering if any of these strangers was the person who’d been outside that restaurant last night.