MISLED

“Sandra, it’s okay. You can’t keep sulking all day!!” Lily calmly said with pity to Sandra who just went to make coffee for both of them. They settled on the dining table that could accept a whole gathering. “I don’t understand why he has changed?” With her eyes fixed on the coffee mug, she began to regret her decision of ever marrying Alex but deep down, she wanted things to work between them. Lily, who was seated with a calm expression, looked at Sandra. “Changed? Why do you think or feel so?” She said as she took a sip from her coffee mug. Sandra brewed the best coffee ever and Lily was fully addicted to it that she was so close to finishing her’s and started eyeing Sandra’s untouched mug. With a broken hearted voice, she voiced “I don’t know what I did wrong. He is always on his own and even before he travelled, he almost killed me for touching his phone.” “What?” Lily, who was sipping her coffee, got shocked and confused. “Kill you?” She said in confusion as she looked at Sandra for more explanation. “He returns from work super late, he is always looking sober and sad but calm as well ahhhh!!.” She exclaimed as she was now beginning to lose it. “I had a conversation with Pete the driver and he told me that Alex visits the hospital more often. I feel so sad because even if he is sick or something is wrong, he won’t make mention of it to me”. “Do you perhaps know his reason for going to the hospital?”She asked as she looked at her with so much expectation of a positive response. “No? I have no idea”. She said in a slow and lost sounding tone. “He doesn’t tell me much though. Did you by any chance ask Pete the reason why he goes to the hospital?” “I did but to no avail. He doesn’t seem to know the reason why. I tried looking in the room and even his library for any hospital report, but still nothing!” She half yelled in disappointment. “Have you tried asking him? She asked, eyeing Sandra’s untouched coffee mug. “I have tried asking stylishly not to alert him that I got the information from Pete that he is going to the hospital”. She said feeling worried and frustrated. “It always ends up either by him yelling at me that he is fine or he’ll just ignore me and give me a deadly stare.” “We were never like this Lily. We tell each other everything and anything but now, we are like two walls that are very apart from each other”. She said feeling so wistful. Lily saw this and tried comforting her, “I feel when it’s time he’ll tell you whatever he may be hiding ok” she said looking at Sandra pitifully. Alex started doing almost everything secretly and she almost didn’t have access to him nor his phone. She picked up his phone only to give it to him because it had been ringing for a while. He snatched the phone from her immediately after seeing that it was the doctor calling. He looks at her with a disdainful look. “What the hell are you doing with my…” he almost yelled but called himself to order. This came as a shock to her because he had never raised his voice at her before. “It has been ri ringing for a a a wh while now” she stuttered in fear. He grinned and finally yelled.“I have told you not to touch my phone. Don’t you listen?” With so much th thoughts in her mind, she stood confused after being yelled at. He angrily held her neck and said with a hoarse voice as he barked at her face, “Is that clear?” She couldn’t look him in the eye so she turned her face to the side and struggled to reply affirmatively “ye yes, I won’t co come c cc close to y yo your phone a ah again” She finally stuttered out before he released her neck and she dropped to the floor like a bag of mashed potatoes. “What just happened?” She asked not believing what had happened. She stood up and went to the mirror with confusion clearly written on her face. The moment her figure appeared in the mirror, her eyes flew to her neck that was covered by her hand. She removed it and she finally burst into tears. Being so fair and white, her neck turned red and her face also. Her neck had some bruises too. She just sat there and continued crying. Alex walked out of the room with an angry expression as he looked down at his phone to the call back. Sandra was still in the room, seated on the floor with her hand on her neck and her eyes showing fear and hurt sobbed bitterly not understanding his sudden change in attitude. “He has been very indifferent and I don’t know why” she lamented to herself as she was not understanding what went wrong. “You’ll be fine”, Lily who was trying to be calm was at the verge of breaking down at Sandra’s dilemma. As she was about to console her more, she heard a loud bang as the gate was brought open. She went to the window and peeped. “He is back” she said with open eyes and rushed to the kitchen to wash her face because it was the closest at the time. She came out while pressing her black long hair down and putting them in place. She isn’t one to use too much makeup so she simply smacked her lips that were adorned with red lipstick which complimented her fair skin and facials. “Please promise me that you’d talk to him on my behalf”.she said with pleading eyes to Lily. She held her hand and replied.. “I will, trust me. I’ll sit him down and we’ll have a conversation ok? Whatever he says, I’ll relay to you”. Lily said, staring back at Sandra. “Ok I’ll go get the welcome gift box and wait at the door for him”, Sandra said with a bit of hope glistening in her eyes. She had already arranged a welcome back gift for Alex because he was returning from his trip today. She went to the center table of the second living room to get the gift from the table. She wanted to give him customized cufflinks since he always gets her something from his trips. She took out a small box which contained the cufflinks and a small piece of love letter. The box was well and neatly wrapped and adorned with a red ribbon. Lily went to drop the cups in the kitchen. Seeing as Sandra didn’t touch her coffee, she decided to drink it for her but she couldn’t rush on it seeing as it was still hot. Sandra, who was walking to the first living room, walked with elegance. She was a bit scared but what she would do is to call herself to order. ‘It’s going to be fine. We can do this’. ‘Remember, this is my only shot. I can’t afford to miss this opportunity. I’ll present this with a smile, he would have his meal and we would converse. That sounds nice’. She thought with a smile on her face as she reached the door. She adjusted the beautiful off shoulder red gown that flowed to the ground. Her long black hair that rested on her shoulder complimented her fair skin. Luckily she was so beautiful that she didn’t need to do too many touch ups on her face. She stood a reasonable amount of meters away from the door to prevent herself from getting hit when it eventually opened. As she was looking at the box she was holding, the door flew open and behold she raised her head to welcome her husband with a smile but the smile withered when she saw what was facing her…