Diavthebear

Elizabeth shades her eyes with a hand and looks out through the windows of the patio doors, watching William. “How long does he stay out there?” Rosa asks, spotting him sitting on the dock. As Elizabeth’s best friend, she had been the woman’s first choice to be her one and only bridesmaid and was invited to stay with them until the wedding. Taking any excuse to escape her day-to-day life, it was a welcome change for the girl. “Until noon lately…I wish he’d talk to me.” Elizabeth answers sadly, thinking about the last two weeks of dealing with her fiancé’s seclusion. “What&rsq

Sweeping his arm across the desk in front of him, William sends a glass jar used to hold miscellaneous items flying across the room, the resulting smash causing shards to go in all directions while the papers it had been beside fall gradually to the floor. Reluctantly, he stands and starts to pick things up, but as he grabs the same photo that had made him lose control of his temper, three of his fingers are cut open by a piece of the glass. “Damn it!” He cries out in frustration, followed by a swarm of profanity while blood starts to drip from his hand and Elizabeth hurries downstairs after waking to the slam of the jar hitting a

Calming notes of music from a small group of violinists fill the room, resulting in a few men asking their dates to dance as they receive questioning stares. Dressed in a black, long sleeve lace body-con dress with magnolia strappy sandal heels from Fredericks of Hollywood, Annette sits alone at the open bar, drawing miscellaneous shapes in the frost that has formed on the outside of the pewter cup her mint julep was served in. Being her first time attending an event for one of the programs she’s donated to, she isn’t quite sure what to do yet, nor has anyone approached her for more than a welcome regardless of her being the top c

 “What do you think about having kids?” Annette whispers the question in Michael’s ear as she clings to him. It’s the last weekend before school begins again, and families of all ages are making the most of it on such a gorgeous day by flocking to the beach. Off in the distance, lines appear to blend together down the sides of the pier where fishers gather and talk amongst themselves. Considering her question, Michael looks out at the kite surfers using their brute strength to launch themselves above the rolling waves. Trying not to reflexively shrug with her on his back, he counters with the question, “Do you t

Stretching upon waking, Annette yawns quietly. Something is missing. Saddened by the absence of Michael’s touch, she rolls over to find that he isn’t in bed with her, but sitting alone on his pillow rests a fist-sized, dark purple lotus blossom…her favorite. Carefully picking it up, she’s hardly surprised to find that it’s fake—made of satin. It more than likely would be impossible to obtain a real one and keep it alive in Florida’s climate. Inspecting the delicate fabric and the way it forms the lotus shape perfectly, she clutches it in her hand just tight enough to keep from compressing it before t

Nervously peering down into the dark tube, Annette says, “I hope I don’t go backwards.” Climbing into the four-man float, she looks at Michael and then unleashes a torrent of profanity as the ride’s staff member spins the raft so that her fear becomes a reality while her husband just grins and tries not to laugh before they’re pushed off with another couple. Her scream, along with the other woman’s, echoes back up to the line of waiting people as they descend. At the lip of the bowl, she curses again when she drops so rapidly that it produces a moment of weightlessness, involuntarily forcing her to grip th

“Where are we?” Annette asks curiously. Michael pulls up to the fairly large two-story house, stopping just before the long driveway. “I know you’re content with just trying to enjoy yourself for now, so this will be home for a while. It belongs to a friend.” Now focusing her attention on the building, she tells herself, “And here I thought I was the only rich person in his life.” Noticing that Michael is already halfway up the drive, she quickly gets out of the car and catches up to him, taking in details she couldn’t see before. The light-gray roof tiles are just barely tilted enough to the s

Starting from her sleep, Annette looks around the room as if for some invisible threat, then back at the bed beside where she had been. Michael, already upright and leaning against the wall, watches her closely. His face shows his usual level of seriousness that only relaxes as hers does, knowing what had disturbed her in the first place. Only a few weeks has passed since their home had been broken into, the intruder being a man who had become obsessed with Annette after meeting her in the local market weeks earlier. His body now lay unmoving in the city morgue with a few well-placed holes in his chest; body broken and bruised after a fight w

Head down and holding Elizabeth’s hand in his, William sits beside her bed, resisting the urge to breakdown after having been awake for three days with little to no food. She returned to his hospital for surgery once the holidays had passed and Rosa rode home with Elizabeth’s family. Building up immunity to the drugs she was being given, her body was beginning to weaken and it had been all too noticeable for the couple. Now, she lies in a bed, back in I.C.U., and has only woken up once in the last few days. The cancer has spread so severely in such a short time that she’ll need to undergo another procedure as soon as her bod

Limping around the bed, Will wipes his face with a cloth after finishing his shower. Rosa lets out a low whistle from beside Elizabeth as if to say, “Wow”. He hadn’t noticed that she was there, and is thankful that he’s at least covered by a towel. “So, what does the letter say?” He then asks, attempting to pull attention away from himself. Elizabeth looks at the paper in her hands, which she had already gone over, and replies, “Your dad owned a second house…and a boat.” The last few words are said with a hint of sadness. What the letter tells her is that Will’s father really did on