Chapter 17 | FICTION | CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
A Man, Torn Between His Wife and a Past Love, Faces a Defining Moment
In a quiet park, Adrian and Oorun address their deteriorating relationship.
Adrian’s iPhone lay silent on the nightstand, its screen lighting up with a notification. Simultaneously, his wristwatch vibrated, abruptly rousing him from his slumber. Groggily, he fumbled to silence the devices while squinting at the glowing numbers on the clock. 6:47 AM. He realized he was still dressed in yesterday’s clothes.
Swiftly rolling out of bed, Adrian went to the bedroom door, carefully shutting it before answering the call. It was Oorun, his wife, and she spoke with the same sad tone that had become customary in their recent conversations following the revelation of her infidelity.
“Adrian?”
“Hey, Oorun, what’s up?” he asked, whispering.
Matching his hushed tone, Oorun softly replied, “I’m sorry for waking you, Adrian.”
“It’s okay,” he continued to whisper, adding a small white lie. “I didn’t hear from you yesterday, so I’m glad to hear your voice.”
‘Why am I lying?’ he pondered. ‘Hearing from her doesn't make me feel happy.’ It felt like this marital routine had become second nature, a charade he continued even if his heart wasn’t in it.
Oorun, oblivious to his inner turmoil, pressed on. “Did you catch up with Gisselle?”
Adrian’s gaze shifted toward the bathroom door, and after a moment of silence, he cleared his throat. “A-hem… yes. We spent a good deal of time together.”
Oorun seemed to contemplate his response, maintaining her silence. Adrian quickly changed the subject by sending her pictures of four houses he had seen the previous day, a subtle suggestion for them to consider as future homes.
“Take a look at the text I just sent. I think you’d like the third one — the one with the Antebellum architectural details,” he added, hoping to divert her attention.
Oorun’s voice crackled, “I’m on my way to you in South Carolina.”
A hint of panic crept into Adrian’s voice. “You’re coming here? That’s… unexpected. When will you arrive?”
He glanced at the door again, realizing that based on Oorun’s estimated arrival time, he had less than two hours to shower, dress, and pick her up from the airport, which was quite a distance away.
“Okay?” she asked into his silence.
“Okay,” he replied softly, and they hung up without the usual pleasantries, leaving Adrian to contemplate his next steps.
Pausing, he stood with his palms on the basin, arms extended, staring at his reflection in the bathroom mirror. ‘Dude, what the hell are you doing?’ he questioned, quizzically looking at his reflection.
“Tsk!” he tutted, exasperated with himself, and rinsed with mouthwash to gather his wits before returning to the bedroom. The room was bathed in the gentle morning light streaming through the curtains, and he paused to take in the sight.
Gisselle, his high school sweetheart, lay on the bed, breathing softly, fully dressed like him. Their house-hunting journey the previous day had been filled with shared meals, car sing-alongs while exploring Denmark, South Carolina, and a night of reconnection marked by a profound and lengthy conversation extending into the early morning hours. These experiences rekindled a bond with this woman he had forgotten.
More than once during the day, he couldn’t help but think about how she and their time together represented everything he desired in a loving commitment, a stark contrast to his current relationship with Oorun.
Adrian tiptoed to the edge of the bed, physically and emotionally moving closer to Gisselle. He leaned in, gently touching her shoulder. Still lost in dreams, Gisselle emitted a soft, almost inaudible moan as if protesting, her eyelids fluttering slightly, signaling her desire for a few more moments of peaceful rest. Adrian’s heart quickened at the sound, his passion for her vivid for a fleeting moment. Nevertheless, he continued his gentle ministrations, tracing a feathery path along her arm.
‘What are you doing, man?’ His logic and loyalty to Oorun wrestled with his desire for the woman before him. “Gisselle…,” he murmured her name. “It’s time to get up, honey.”
Her eyelashes fluttered open, and the sleepiness in her gaze gradually gave way to recognition. “Well, sugar-honey-iced-tea,” she whispered in a sexy, groggy tone, offering a soft, affectionate smile as she met Adrian’s eyes, her features transitioning from drowsy reluctance to surrender.
They chuckled at her use of the Southern euphemism as she sat up. Looking down at her clothes, she remarked, “What did we do?”
“Everything,” he responded with a good-natured laugh.
“Adrian, did I tell you yesterday I missed hearing the sound of your laugh?”
“Girl, stop trying to make me blush.”
“But, it’s soooooooo much fun,” she said, stretching as she spoke the words.
He glanced at her body and then returned to her face, his features shifting into an apologetic expression. “Ah, oh. What’s up, Ade?” she said, using the familiar pet name from his secondary school years.
“Oorun is on her way. I have to pick her up at the airport soon.”
Gisselle’s arm instinctively moved to cover her chest, although the white cotton Alexander McQueen blouse she wore concealed everything. She hesitated before responding.
“Adrian, I didn’t think it would end like this before we even began.”
He nodded and bowed his head, placing the thumb of his right hand in the pocket of his jeans and taking a step back.
“I’m not the type of woman who would ever share a man. So…,” she broke off, swinging her legs out from under the cover and onto the floor. “You have to free yourself if we are ever to do anything like this again. We can keep things strictly professional until then. Intimate time together like this will lead to more, and I will never be the other woman.”
“I’d never ask you to do that, Gisselle,” he protested.
Standing up, she was the same height as him, just inches apart. She looked him in the eyes with a sad expression before turning away. “All right, Ade, go fetch your missus.”
With Oorun’s impending arrival, Adrian had to prepare to pick her up from the airport. He stood in front of the mirror, locked in an internal dialogue, struggling to discern his true desires and needs from his wife and Gisselle. ‘Take time later to sort this out. Maybe the time with Oorun today will help me decide.’
At the airport, he watched his wife emerge from the arrivals gate, realizing that the internal turmoil had widened the gap between them. They didn’t embrace, kiss, or even touch. He also noticed that she didn’t have any luggage. ‘So, she’s not staying,’ he thought to himself.
Forcing a smile, he said, “Hey, Oorun. How was your flight?”
“It was fine, Adrian. But we need to talk,” she said, her tone revealing resignation.
Adrian’s nerves tingled as he replied, “Sure, we can talk. Do you want to see the houses I liked?”
Shaking her head, Oorun said, “No, Adrian. I don’t want to see houses. I want to have a conversation with you. We’ve been going through the motions and saying what we always say, but we haven’t truly talked. That ends today,” she emphasized the word “talked.”
Adrian’s fingers dug into his palms as he bit his lip, his eyes widening in surprise at her unexpected words. He felt as if the ground was shifting beneath his feet as they walked toward the parking deck. He couldn’t shake the feeling that her words and her presence were akin to a concealed weapon aimed directly at his heart.
“It’ll take an hour and a half to get to Denmark, Oorun,” he said through his clenched jaw. He glanced away for a moment before turning to look over at Oorun. “Would you like to talk in the car?”
There was an edge to his voice as if he expected Oorun to accept the offer and was ready to defend his choice to drive in silence. She must have sensed his defensiveness because she softened her tone.
“Um, is there a park nearby where we can walk or sit and talk?”
He remembered one, but at that moment, Adrian recalled the first time he saw Oorun sitting alone in a park, engrossed in a book. He had fallen in love with her at first sight. ‘Well, this is ironic,’ he thought, having an inkling of what was coming.
Within fifteen minutes, they arrived at Lake Olmstead Park. They walked silently, with Adrian leading the way along one of the natural paths to the edge of an idyllic lake. They stood at the water’s edge, gazing out at it as a family of ducks floated by.
Oorun broke the silence, her voice choked with emotion. Adrian hadn’t looked at her, but he could hear the tears in her voice when she said, “Adrian, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking. We’ve drifted apart, and I don’t want to continue this way — ”
‘Wow!’ was the word that came to his mind. He’d inadvertently stopped listening as he brooded silently what she had just said.
She was mid-sentence when he returned to the moment, saying, “ — and I think you need someone different as well.”
Adrian’s eyes glistened as he looked at the woman he had considered his life partner. He furrowed his brow, a deep sigh escaping his lips. His fingers clenched and unclenched, mirroring the turmoil in his heart.
He stepped back, offering a faint, sad smile, and choked, “Oorun, I… I tried.”
“I know, Adrian. I know. But this shouldn’t feel like a chore or a burden,” Oorun whispered, her voice carrying the same sadness and understanding. Her eyes held a gentle but firm gaze as she continued, “Love should be like this body of water, flowing freely, not a cage that keeps us from growing.”
Unable to stop, he quipped, “But this is a lake — nothing flows here.”
Oorun smiled and shook her head. She knew he was trying to lighten the mood, his way of deflecting and avoiding conflict.
“Adrian,” she said with a warm smile, lacing her voice with a hint of playfulness as she raised an eyebrow, “You’ve always had a way of finding loopholes, haven’t you?”
Adrian nodded, his shoulders slumping as he looked down at the ground. “You’re right, Oorun. We’ve lost sight of what brought us together in the first place.”
They stood there in a poignant silence, the weight of their unspoken decision hanging between them. After a long while and a deep breath, Adrian finally spoke, “I hope you find your river, Oorun.”
Oorun smiled, a tear escaping from the corner of her eye and rolling down her cheek as she softly said, “I hope the same for you, Adrian.”
© Scarlet Ibis James, 2023: All Rights Reserved.
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Disclaimer: This story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or deceased, or events is coincidental. All characters and incidents in this narrative are products of the author’s imagination.
Go to: 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝟷 or 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔: Part I, Part II, Part III, 🎯 ʏᴏᴜ ᴀʀᴇ ʜᴇʀᴇ: Part IV.
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