Leona
My decision to never see Wilson again, except in a courtroom, had been unwavering. I had convinced myself that I was done with the pain and the heartache, that I had finally found the strength to move on. But when he mentioned Willy’s treatment, my heart skipped and my mind spiraled into distress.
Sleep missed knocking on my door that night, as I lay awake, tormented by the unknown, and wondering if I could gather the strength to confront what was to come. The darkness seemed to close in around me, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that my world was about to be turned upside down once again.
The next afternoon my brother was driving us to Wilson’s place. I gazed into the rearview mirror, Willy’s bright eyes sparkled with hope, her tiny voice trembling with excitement, while we passed the new amusement park under construction.
“Mommy, are you and Daddy not fighting anymore?” Those sudden words sliced through my heart, leaving a trail of rising anxiety in their way. I felt the sting of tears pricking at the corners of my eyes as I struggled to maintain a neutral expression.
My brother’s hesitant glance met mine, his eyes filled with a deep understanding.
I swallowed hard, the lump in my throat threatening to choke me. How could I shatter the fragile hope etched on my child’s face? The sweet scent of Willy’s shampoo wafted up, carrying with it memories of lazy Sundays and family laughter, now taunting me with the promise of a happiness we might never regain.
My mind raced, searching for a response that wouldn’t crush her spirit. But the silence stretched out suffocated me, as I wrestled with the impossible task of explaining the unexplainable to a child. who didn’t understand the complexities of a broken marriage.
“Daddy and Mommy are going to talk about it, okay babygirl?”
Theo’s voice was a gentle balm, soothing Willy’s expectant gaze. His words hung in the air like a promise, a careful evasion of the brutal truth. I felt a pang of gratitude toward my brother for sparing Willy the harsh reality, even if only temporarily.
Willy’s face lit up with a trusting smile, her eyes sparkling with a child’s unwavering faith.
“Okay!” she mumbled, her small hands pressed together. The sound was a knife to my heart, a reminder of her innocence and joy that this divorce would inevitably shatter.
1 forced a weak smile, How could we continue to shield her from the truth when our very lives were about to be torn apart? The burden of unexplained reality settled heavily on my shoulders, a constant reminder of the pain we were trying to delay, but couldn’t avoid.
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“Hey Willy, what is this Beautiful Beast movie? Levi keeps asking me about it and now he wants to go see it coming out on the big screen,” Theo said, looking at her with a mixture of confusion and curiosity. But I knew that he knew about the movie and is bly trying to distract her precious
mind.
She slammed her palm to her forehead, playfully exasperated, as she rolled her eyes, clearly amused by my brother’s confusion.
“That’s Beauty and the Beast Silly Uncle!” She giggles whole heartedly.
The sweetness of her enthusiasm was the only sweet fragrance to the bitter truth I harbored. Her giggles were a contagious, carefree and Innocent, as she prattled on about the movie. “It’s about Belle and her Prince, who’s a Beast, I’m so excited to v it too!”
Her eyes sparkled like diamonds in the sunlight, radiating an unbridled joy that pierced my heart. I felt like an executioner, poised to strike down her happiness with the heavy blade of reality.
In this moment, I envied Willy’s simplicity, her ability to find delight in the trivial. Her excitement was a cheerful reminder of the fragility of childhood, a dream that I was about to shatter with the
harsh truth of our family’s condition.
As we pulled up to the familiar house, once a symbol of warmth and love, now loomed before me like a haunting remembrance of shattered dreams and broken vows. I felt the unspoken truths settling upon me, the thorns of reality piercing my skull like a crown of sorrow.
The memories of laughter, tears, and countless moments shared within those walls now seemed like a distant echo, a bittersweet memories of what could never be again. The very place I once called home now felt like a stranger’s house, its warmth and light extinguished by the harsh realities of our fractured relationship.
With a deep breath, I put together for the encounter that lay ahead, the confrontation of present and the uncertainties of our future. The door, once a threshold to a life filled with promise, now seemed like a portal to an uncertain destiny, one that I must face with a heavy heart.
As we drove inside the driveway, the familiar garden aside and brought back memories, but also- reminded me of the painful truths that had torn my household and relationship apart. It seemed distant, like a dream that couldn’t be recaptured.
I took a deep breath, preparing myself for what was to come. The encounter with Wilson would be difficult, a confrontation with the past and the uncertain future. The door, once a welcoming entrance, now felt like a threshold to an unknown outcome, one that I had to face with a heavy
heart.
Wilson flung open the door with a haste that was almost comical, as if he’d sprinted to get there. He stood before me, excited and panting, his chest heaving. For a fleeting moment, I searched within myself for the familiar flutter of attraction, the spark that once ignited whenever he was near.
But it was gone, lost beyond recall. The ember of desire that once burned bright, warming my very core, had dehydrated.
