What connects us, and drifts us apart (short-story)

You x Ventures, Unsplash

Sitting next to my wife, focused on a missed notification on whatsaap, I failed to notice her remark on my lack of attention, again.

Third strike and dinner was not over yet.

I apologized, for a second time. But my mind began to drift again. I had a pending task.

For tomorrow.

Yeah, tomorrow. But I needed to prepare myself mentaly.

In the middle of dinner?

Not my best call. I struggled returning to the present. Not enough, though.

She knew something was going on and left it at that, for the moment.

It’d come back eventualy. It always does.

My phone had betrayed me.

And yet it kept us so close at lunch.

As I finished my home-made food, at around 12:50, we got to chat five minutes.

Five minutes before I had to return and explain why it was ok for our division to lose $300 thousand dollars.

Btw, it was not ok.

Blessed five minutes.

I didn’t want to return in there. I wanted to stop time and lunch forever.

However I wasn’t looking forward for dinner.

Guess I wasn’t hungry anymore.

And I wasn’t very hungry at night either.

But she cooked so deliciously.

Why didn’t I compliment her tonight?

I thought of doing it. Right before I checked my phone.

Everything went blurred after that.

I knew this would happened after I took that promotion.

The very same promotion that allowed us to get married and rent the house.

After dinner she waited for me at bed.

I expected retribution when a phone rang.

Not mine, though. Not this time.

She looked at her phone, unsettled. She attended the call outside while I prepared for sleep.

She came back in a hurry.

Two hours later we were driving her friend to her parents house. Her friend was explaning everything in detail and I just wanted to go home.

I felt for her. I really did. The first and the second time. That one as well but it had been such a long day.

She’d seen her husband’s phone. And his facebook.

I felt for Mike too. A little less. He introduced me to Meg.

From her parents house is another hour drive back home.

It was mostly a silent ride. We made it a little before midnight.

Meg no longer wanted to talk. She’d tired as well but kept hooked to her phone. They’d probably text each other all night.

I no longer mind.

I welcomed the calmness and jumped into bed. A well deserved rest.

Then my phone rang.