As I passed Sophia, I slipped the wedding ring from my finger and placed it on the table beside her.
“This,” I said, “should cover your vase.”
The sight of the ring on the table finally seemed to break through Jack’s rage. A flicker of panic crossed his face.
“What do you mean by that, Erika?”
12:42
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Chapter 2
Chapter 2
12:42
4
He was shouting behind me, his voice a mix of anger and bewilderment.
That ring had never fit properly anyway. It was never meant for me. He’d bought it in a rush seven years ago, right after Sophia announced her engagement to someone else while she was abroad. It was his panicked, rebound proposal to me.
An eight–carat diamond ring, a fortune on my finger, yet it was always a size too big. For seven years, I had worn this ill–fitting sym-
bol like a sacred treasure.
Now, taking it off, all I felt was an immense, liberating weightlessness.
It seemed that after that last collapse, the original Erika had finally, truly, let go of Jack.
As I waited for a cab by the roadside, a small figure came running out of the house. It was Tim.
He stood in front of me, blocking my path.
“Mom, where are you going? Daddy is really mad. You need to come back with me.”
He wasn’t asking for a reconciliation. He just knew that as long as I was there, Jack’s anger would always be directed at me, not
him.
“No, Tim. He told me never to come back. You should go inside.”
The cab pulled up. I turned and got in without a backward glance.
“Go then!” he shouted, his voice muffled as the door closed. “Go as far as you can! Then Sophia can finally be my mom!”
The sound of his voice faded away. The driver shot me a sympathetic look in the rearview mirror.
I felt nothing. It was as if my fainting spell had purged the last vestiges of the original Erika’s attachments. There was no lingering
sadness, no final pang of regret.
I had a decent amount of money in my bank account–savings the original Erika had squirrelled away over the years. It was more than enough to live comfortably for the rest of my life. The fact that I was now homeless didn’t bother me in the slightest. I found a hotel to crash in and started contacting a real estate agent about finding a new place.
5
Those first three days away from that house were the most peaceful and liberating I had ever known. All I wanted to do was lie in
bed and think about absolutely nothing.
Meanwhile, Jack was making headlines. He and Sophia were plastered all over the celebrity news feeds. One day, they were phot- ographed on a family outing with Tim. The next, they were caught holding hands under the moonlight. The day after that, Jack booked out the city’s most luxurious hotel for Sophia’s birthday, even arranging for her to meet her favorite ceramic artist.
It all felt so performative, like he was trying to prove a point to someone.
Not me, I figured.
My days fell into a simple rhythm: eat, sleep, and occasionally play online games with the delivery guy who frequently brought me takeout. He was surprisingly good, and I discovered a simple joy in winning.
“Are
you
sure it’s okay for you not to be at work?”
Ethan, still in his bright orange Go–Get–It Delivery uniform, was lounging on my hotel sofa as if he owned the place, casually munch- ing on my snacks. He had a habit of delivering my food and then staying until we’d shared dinner, only leaving late in the evening.
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Chapter 2
12:42
“You can’t just lie there,” he said, nudging a takeout container toward me. “Eat up before it gets cold. I snuck you some extra duck.”
I looked at the generous layer of meat in the container and raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure you’re not going to get fired for this?”
The roasted duck from this place was incredible. I didn’t want him to lose his job over it.
He just waved a dismissive hand. “Nah, don’t worry about it. Just eat. We’ve got to get some gaming in after.”
“Not tonight. I have to go look at an apartment.”
He paused, his phone hovering in his hand. “An apartment? I thought you were just here on vacation.”
“Nope,” I said, my tone as casual as if I were discussing the weather. “My husband cheated, I got kicked out, so now I need to find a
place to live while I sort out the divorce.”
He stared at me, his mouth slightly agape. “Whoa. You’re… incredibly chill about this. It’s kind of impressive.
6
Ethan insisted on coming with me to see the apartment. He said my good–natured personality made me an easy target, and he
needed to make sure I didn’t get taken advantage of.
We looked at a few places, but I fell in love with a condo overlooking the ocean. He… seemed to like it too.
On the way back, my phone rang. It was Jack. His voice was frantic.
“Erika, you need to come back. Tim’s sick. He’s asking for you.”
I could hear Tim’s faint crying in the background.
“Okay,” I said.
