Chapter 24 \u2013 Like A Stranger\u00a0<\/p>\n
DARIUS\u00a0<\/p>\n
The hospital fluorescent lights had given me a headache that pounded behind my eyes as I finally walked through our front door. Dawn was breaking through the windows, casting everything in a gray, exhausted light that matched how I felt inside.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d spent the entire night in that sterile waiting room, then by Vivienne\u2019s bedside once they\u2019d stabilized her. The doctors said it was severe dehydration combined with her medication, nothing immediately life\u2013threatening, but they wanted to keep her for observation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Every hour that ticked by, I\u2019d thought about Sera. About how I\u2019d left her in our bed, vulnerable and wanting, to rush to another woman\u2019s side. About the look on her face when I\u2019d grabbed my clothes and walked out on what could have been the beginning of us finding our way back to each other.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was an ass. A complete and total ass.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My feet felt heavy as I climbed the stairs to our bedroom. The door was closed, and I could hear the shower running. Part of me wanted to knock, to slip inside and try to explain, but I knew I didn\u2019t deserve that kind of reception after what I\u2019d done.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Instead, I went to Luna\u2019s room to check on her. She was still sleeping, her dark hair spread across her pillow, one arm wrapped around her favorite stuffed elephant. She looked so peaceful, so innocent, completely unaware of the mess her father had made of everything.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I kissed her forehead gently and headed back to the hallway. The shower had stopped, and I could hear movement in our bedroom. My heart started pounding as I approached the door.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I knocked softly. \u201cSera? Can we talk?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Silence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I knocked again, a little louder this time. \u201cSera, please. I know you\u2019re angry, and you have every right to be. But let me explain-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The door opened abruptly, and Sera stood there fully dressed in jeans and a simple sweater, her hair still damp from the shower. Her face was completely calm, almost serene, and that scared me more than if she\u2019d been screaming.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, you\u2019re back,\u201d she said, her voice flat and uninterested. \u201cHow is she?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s\u2026 she\u2019s fine. Stable. They\u2019re keeping her for observation.\u201d I searched her face for any emotion, any sign that she cared about my answer or about me being there. \u201cSera, about last night\u2014\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat about it?\u201d She stepped past me into the hallway, like I was just an obstacle in her path.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry. I\u2019m so sorry for leaving you like that. The way I left was-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWas what you had to do.\u201d She shrugged, adjusting her sweater. \u201cShe needed you, and you went to her. It\u2019s fine.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201c1\u00a0<\/p>\n
But it wasn\u2019t fine. I could see it in the careful way she held herself, in how she wouldn\u2019t quite meet my eyes. The\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/4\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013 2\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u26ab25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
distance between us felt like an ocean.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not fine, and you know it,\u201d I said, following her down the stairs. \u201cWe were\u2026 we were finally connecting again, and I ruined it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t ruin anything.\u201d Her voice was so calm it made my chest ache. \u201cNothing happened. We got carried away for a minute, but nothing actually happened.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The dismissive way she said it, like our moment together had meant nothing, hit me harder than any screaming fit would have. I wanted her to be angry. I wanted her to yell at me, to throw something, to show me that what we\u2019d almost shared had mattered to her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Instead, she was treating me like a stranger.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSera-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDaddy!\u201d Luna\u2019s voice interrupted us as she came bouncing down the stairs in her pajamas. \u201cYou\u2019re home! Where did you go so early?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I crouched down to catch her as she launched herself into my arms. \u201cI had to help a friend who wasn\u2019t feeling well, princess. But I\u2019m home now.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIs your friend okay?\u201d Luna\u2019s big eyes were full of concern.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe will be.\u201d I glanced at Sera, who was watching us with that same carefully neutral expression. \u201cWhat do you want to do today, baby girl?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to see Miss Vivienne!\u201d Luna clapped her hands excitedly. \u201cMommy told me she\u2019s in the hospital, and I want to bring her flowers to make her feel better.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My stomach dropped. I looked at Sera again, and she was still watching us, waiting to see how I\u2019d handle this.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWell,\u201d I said carefully, \u201cMiss Vivienne needs to rest today. Maybe we could do something else? We could go to the playground, or the zoo, or-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I want to see her!\u201d Luna\u2019s bottom lip started to quiver. \u201cShe reads me stories and teaches me piano songs. I want to make sure she\u2019s not scared.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The guilt twisted in my chest. Luna genuinely cared about Vivienne, and I couldn\u2019t fault a four\u2013year\u2013old for having a kind heart. But the thought of taking my family to visit the woman who\u2019s health was putting a strain on mine and Sera\u2019s relationship made me feel sick.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe another day, princess. This isn\u2019t like last time, her state might be quite scary for-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not scared!\u201d Luna crossed her arms defiantly. \u201cAnd you always say we should help people when they\u2019re sick. Don\u2019t you care about Miss Vivienne anymore?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The question caught me off guard, leaving me at a loss for words. How could I explain to my daughter that caring about someone didn\u2019t mean dropping everything for them? That sometimes caring meant setting boundaries?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course I care about her,\u201d I said weakly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why can\u2019t we visit her?\u201d Luna\u2019s eyes filled with tears. \u201cMommy said we could go after breakfast. You said\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/4\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 24 Like A Stranger\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
we should always keep our promises.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked at Sera in panic. She\u2019d promised Luna we could visit Vivienne? After everything that happened last night?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll go,\u201d Sera said calmly, like we were discussing the weather. \u201cAfter Luna eats breakfast and gets dressed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBut-\u201cI started to protest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLuna, go pick out something pretty to wear for our hospital visit,\u201d Sera said, ignoring me completely. \u201cAnd brush your teeth.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYay!\u201d Luna bounced up and down before running back upstairs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stared at Sera, trying to understand what game she was playing. \u201cWhy would you promise her that? After last night, I thought-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou thought what?\u201d She turned to face me fully for the first time since I\u2019d come home. \u201cThat I\u2019d be petty enough to use a four\u2013year\u2013old\u2019s feelings to get back at you?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, I-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cVivienne is sick. Luna cares about her. It\u2019s the right thing to do.\u201d Sera walked toward the kitchen, then paused and looked back at me. \u201cUnless you have a problem with your wife and daughter visiting your\u2026 friend.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The way she said \u2018friend\u2018 made it clear she knew exactly what kind of position this put me in. If I objected, I\u2019d look guilty. If I didn\u2019t object. Nothing was going on but after last night\u2026i feared something might happen, like what happened at the back garden on Sera\u2019s birthday.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t have a problem with it,\u201d I lied.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cGood.\u201d Sera continued toward the kitchen. \u201cLuna will want pancakes before we go. She always does when she\u2019s excited about something.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I followed her, watching as she moved around the kitchen with mechanical efficiency. Getting out the pancake mix, heating the griddle, humming softly to herself like this was any other morning.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And I had to stand there and watch, I wasn\u2019t sure what to say, how to fix this. We\u2019d made a breakthrough yesterday and now it was back to what it used to be since she came back from New York.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I watched her cook, standing in the corner foolishly, hoping she would say something, anything.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDaddy! Mommy! Look!\u201d Luna came running into the kitchen wearing a bright yellow dress with flowers on it.\u201d Do I look pretty enough to visit Miss Vivienne?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou look beautiful, princess,\u201d I said, my heart breaking a little at her innocent excitement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMiss Vivienne is going to love that dress,\u201d Sera added, setting a plate of heart\u2013shaped pancakes in front of Luna. \u201cEat up so we can go see her.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
As I watched my daughter eat breakfast and chatter about the flowers she wanted to pick for Vivienne, I realized that Sera had outmaneuvered me completely. She was being the perfect wife, the perfect mother, agreeing to everything with grace and kindness.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Souls Remember What Matters \u2014 Corey Gibson 24 Chapter 24 \u2013 Like A Stranger\u00a0 DARIUS\u00a0 The hospital fluorescent lights had […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[59],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23470","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-day-i-signed-the-papers-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23470","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23470"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23470\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23470"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23470"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23470"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}