"I am coming home."
Zelda Liamson received a message from her husband, James Ferguson. Her husband had been away on a work trip for three months, and he was finally coming back.
Zelda was so happy she couldn't hide the happiness and the smile on her face. Her relationship with her husband had been strained because they had gotten married under different circumstances, circumstances that did not involve love. When James left, staying away for so long, for those three whole months, Zelda thought that he was going to ask her for a divorce.
She thought he took those three months away from her to give her space to get used to the idea of getting divorced.
Although this message from her husband didn't specifically mean that he was not going to ask her for a divorce, she thought this was a great thing. If he was going to ask for a divorce, he would have just sent her the divorce papers. She would have dealt with lawyers, but he specifically wrote 'home' in his message.
He was coming home to her. This was a prized offering. He was finally coming back. She couldn't help herself but squeak in excitement.
Today was her birthday, and it was also their fifth wedding anniversary. She wasn't expecting him to be here today. She had organized a small birthday dinner with her close family and friends, but she never expected that James would be here. This was turning out to be the best day of her life.
She immediately went home, making sure to pay extra attention to herself. She took a long bath, and wore a beautiful sexy dress, hoping it would get her husband's attention and keep it. As she was anxiously waiting for her husband to come in, he finally did.
James opened the door, got in, and stood in front of it, watching her. Zelda was struck again by her husband's charisma, how handsome he was, the power he had to suck all the attention in the room and make her feel like Jell-O.
She smiled brightly at him, but her husband only looked at her, didn't even greet her, and went straight into the bathroom.
A few minutes later, Zelda heard the shower running. She had stood up, but now she sat down again. She went towards the bedside table and poured glasses of wine, anxiously waiting for her husband to come back.
When James finally emerged from the bathroom, his face expressionless, he walked straight to the wardrobe, ignoring the glass of wine she had poured for him. Zelda felt her heart sink a little but tried to stay optimistic. She smiled nervously and approached him as he changed into fresh clothes.
"James, I didn’t expect you home today," she said softly, hoping to get a word out of him and build a connection. "I thought you had forgotten it was my birthday…and our anniversary."
James barely acknowledged her or graced her with a response, focusing instead on fastening his shirt. Zelda felt her nerves grow and her confidence deteriorating.
'Why wasn’t he saying anything? Why did it feel like they were strangers instead of husband and wife? Like they hadn't known each other for years?
When he finished getting dressed, he grabbed his phone and began heading toward the door. Panic shot through Zelda. She rushed to block his path, her hand trembling as she placed it on his arm.
"Where are you going? Can’t you stay, just for tonight?" she pleaded, her voice weak and desperate. "Please, James. I need you. I’m your wife."
James finally stopped and looked down at her, his expression cold.
"I have something important to take care of," he said, his tone devoid of any warmth or affection.
Zelda’s heart broke. Tears welled in her eyes as she held onto him more tightly.
"I need your attention, James. I need your love. You’re never here… I thought that today…."
Before she could finish her sentence, James roughly pulled her into his arms and carried her to the bed. Her breath caught in her throat, confused by the sudden shift in him as he threw her on the bed and climbed on top of her.
He kissed her with a hunger that left her confused and her body betraying her instantly as it responded to his kisses and attention. Then James reached for a condom in the bedside drawer. Zelda, caught between her desire and hurt, let herself be taken by him and enjoyed it too.
When it was over, she lay still, staring at the ceiling, confused by both James's reaction and her body's Betrayal when it came to him.
James, meanwhile, got up and as he took off the condom. His face changed immediately and he began inspecting the condom. His face darkened as he noticed it was torn.
"What the hell, Zelda?" he snapped, his voice sharp. "Did you do this?"
Zelda sat up, startled by his accusation. "What? What are you talking about?“ she asked him confused.
James stormed over to the bedside drawer, ripping it open and finding the rest of the condoms. He inspected one after the other and found all of them were damaged. His face twisted in anger as he glared at her.
"You’ve been planning this, haven’t you? Trying to trap me with a baby? Trying to steal my sperm!" he accused, his voice dripping with contempt.
“No, of course not!" she protested, her eyes wide with confusion.
“Then what is this?!“ James shouted throwing the torn condoms towards her on the bed.
Zelda shook her head, tears spilling down her cheeks.
"James, I swear I didn’t do it. I would never….."
“Then who did? Who tore these condoms? Do you think it's me? You think I am the one desperate to have a baby with you to do this?“ He asked mockingly.
“No! I know you don't want to have a baby James. But I swear I didn't do this. Maybe….maybe someone…..“ Zelda said trying to defend herself.
“Who? You're the only one who uses this room. You know I hate people in my space. Who did you let in here?“ James asked with displeasure.
“No one. I know this room is prohibited but maybe when…..“ Zelda said, continuing to defend herself.
But James didn’t listen. He grabbed his phone, sent a quick message, and stormed back to the bathroom, leaving her sobbing on the bed.
A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Zelda wiped her tears and opened it, only to find the maid standing there with a glass of water and a packet of pills.
"Mr. Ferguson asked for these," the maid said, handing them over and avoiding eye contact.
Zelda’s heart sank as she realized what they were, birth control pills.
She took them silently, her hands shaking as she returned towards the room.
When James emerged from the bathroom, dressed and ready to leave, he found Zelda standing in front of the door with the glass of water and the birth control pills. The two of them locked eyes in a wordless standoff, their eyes doing the conversation between them.
Zelda backed into a corner and feeling defeated, downed the pills, her throat tight with humiliation.
James smirked, satisfied, and reached for his phone as it rang. Zelda listened as a familiar female voice filled the room, her heart sinking further with each passing second. It sounded a lot like Susan Wenger, James's ex-fiancée, the woman he was in love with.
Zelda’s worst fears were confirmed as James made arrangements with Susan over the phone, promising her he was on his way.
“Don't worry, Just had to get home for a second. I am on my way.“ He said and hung up the phone.
"Are you going to see her?" Zelda whispered, her voice filled with dread.
James didn’t answer. He simply grabbed his coat and walked toward the door.
"If you walk out that door, I’ll divorce you!" Zelda cried out, her voice filled with desperation.
But James didn’t stop. He didn’t even turn around to look at her. He walked out, leaving Zelda alone crying for someone who was no longer there.