SHORT STORY
D is for Denial
The weather that morning was miserable, and things only got worse from there…
Thank you to JF Danskin for the fantastic weather-related prompt — Idea 2. You can find it here.
The weather that morning was miserable, and things only got worse from there. I knew that a storm was coming: Hurricane Claire. She was due to hit land mid-day. But she came early. I never liked the name Claire. In fact this is exactly how I’d expected her to behave. Crash the party, get high on power and leave wreckage in her wake. Thanks Claire.
To be honest, the only two things I care about in the morning, possibly my entire day, are my coffee and my hot shower. And I was screwed on both ends.
The worst of the storm had passed by the time I walked outside and saw the large branch that had impaled my windshield. Typical.
I ordered an Uber and waited. I decided that denial would be the word of the day, and I chose to simply ignore the state of my car. I’d put more money into that thing than it was worth that past month, and this was just one more thing. I seriously debated calling into work and just going back to bed. Things were clearly not going my way, and I couldn’t imagine them getting any better.
The Uber showed up fifteen minutes late, and as I got in my boyfriend texted me. Finally a bright light was shining in my otherwise crappy day.
Brian had been away on business for two weeks, and I really missed him. We’d been together almost six months, and they’d been some of the best six months I’d had in my adult life.
I settled in and opened up the text.
Brian: We need to talk.
That was not a great opening line.
Me: Ok…what’s going on? Are you stuck in Albany?
I had to wait for three whole minutes as I watched those three little dots scrolling, indicating that he was writing.
Brian: Yeah, my flight was cancelled. I have a new one tonight. I don’t think we should see each other anymore.
And that’s what I got for my three minutes.
Me: Ok…you’re making me nervous here. Are you joking?
Brian: I don’t feel like our aura’s are aligned.
Our what?!
Me: Ok…are you seriously breaking up with me over a text?! And since when did you go all Dalai Lama on me?
Silence.
Me: Ok, what can I do? We can work on things right?
Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and Acceptance. I’d skipped right over the first two stages of grief, and there I was smack dab in the middle.
Me: But we have so much fun together, and I love you…and you love me. But really our auras?!
I just couldn’t help myself.
Brian: It’s over Emily. It’s just over.
“All right Uber driver we’re going home. Let’s turn this puppy around, I’m going back to bed!”
You see, I’d temporarily forgotten that denial was the word of the day. So I decided to start again tomorrow.
Thank you for reading my story. I’d love to hear your opinions.
Get an email when I publish a new story. (She, Her) A proud member of the LGBTQ+ family. I am a writer and a freelance editor. I edit all genres, and I specialize in Romance. I write a little bit of everything, whatever is on my mind at the moment. My writing is greatly influenced by my past trauma, and I enjoy speaking openly and freely about my mental health diagnoses. You can check out some more of my writing and follow me here.
