When I Leave, Love Disappears

“Cancel it. Return everything now!” Raymond stormed over, trying to snatch my phone from my hand. Once, he could unlock it with just a fingerprint, but now he was trying everything and failing miserably. “Did you change the password and switch to the fingerprint unlock? What is this, Ari?”

As I was thinking of one good excuse to get away, my phone buzzed. It was my mom calling. I frowned and reached for the phone, but he beat me to it, answering the call and putting it on speaker. Just as he was about to complain, my mom’s excited voice burst through the speaker.

“Happy birthday, sweetheart! I know I was supposed to call yesterday, but I got so busy. I’m so sorry. You’re not angry with me, are you? I promise I’ll make it up to you. Now tell me, what did Raymond give you? Is he taking you out? Romantic dinner?”

Raymond froze, guilt washing over him. He hadn’t even remembered my birthday yesterday, not when he had gone to see his little lover right in front of me. I snatched the phone back and held it to my ear, my smile returning. “Of course I’m not mad, Mom! How could I? I know you and Dad love me the most in this world!”

We chatted for half an hour without mentioning Raymond even once. When I hung up, Raymond was frowning, clearly conflicted.

He cleared his throat, “Well, I guess you can keep them, since yesterday was your birthday. Consider them your birthday gifts.” He defended himself, “Don’t blame me. I left because I’m hurt and I don’t want to hurt you. And you could’ve said it nicely if you weren’t in the mood.”

I didn’t respond, busy chatting away with old friends in a group chat.

Raymond stood there awkwardly for a moment, then said, “I’ll get you a cake. You should cook something nice for dinner tonight. We’ll celebrate it properly.”

As I watched him leave, I exited the group chat and opened a message from my manager.

“Have you talked about it with your husband, Mrs. Matthews? Although the branch office is in your hometown, are you sure you can live across the state far away from him? Have you earned his permission?”

I typed my reply quickly, “I’ve made up my mind. And it’s Kelleher, because he’ll soon be my ex-husband.”

The chat window flickered as my manager hesitated to reply, but eventually, she sent, “Okay, I look forward to working with you, Miss Kelleher.”

After that, I checked the time and put my phone on silent to sleep. I was drifting off when the noise from the living room jolted me awake. As I opened my eyes, still groggy, Raymond yanked me out of bed.

“Why are you sleeping? I invited my friends over to celebrate your birthday! You need to get up and cook.”

I stumbled into the living room to find it packed with people, a sea of laughter and empty snack shells strewn everywhere. I felt a surge of annoyance rise within me. I clenched my fists, then released them, deciding to give Raymond some face.

“Wow, I didn’t expect everyone to show up for the party. Well, since you’re all here, we could order takeout or eat out.” I flashed my friendliest smile.

“Are you sure you want to take all of us out to eat? I mean, I’m sure it’ll cost a lot and we really don’t want you to spend so much. Besides, Raymond’s been bragging about your cooking all the time. We couldn’t wait to try it!” Lidia stood up as soon as I finished speaking, a smug grin on her face.

Raymond approached with a frown, pulling me aside and whispered. “You spent so much on groceries last week and my money is running thin. We can’t afford to take them out. Come on, you’re good at cooking. You can even turn a napkin into a gourmet meal. I bought some seafood and greens on the way. They’re in the kitchen. Just make the first thing that comes to your mind. Won’t be that hard.”

Raymond bought groceries? I could sense something awful was coming. I ran to the kitchen quickly, flung open the kitchen door and was shocked by the sight. Eels, shrimp and catfish were jumping all over, some even hiding beneath the stove. He bought them alive. I took a deep breath to calm down and slammed the kitchen door behind me shut.

Lidia stood behind me and whispered, “Raymond’s not really broke. Just a couple of days ago, he booked The Golden Truffle for me three days in a row to celebrate my birthday. Looks like you’re not the favorite here, Ariana.” The Golden Truffle was a high-end restaurant often frequented by the town's old-money elite, with dishes starting at no less than one hundred fifty dollars. Booking the venue for an event would set you back at least ten thousand dollars.  Before I could reply, Raymond was showing up right behind Lidia.

“What are you two chatting about?” he asked, his tone light and carefree.

“Honey, why aren’t you cooking? The guys are starving. We wouldn’t want them to chew on the sofa, would we? ” His face was smiling, but his tone was thick with irritation.

I was about to refuse when I caught Lidia’s smug face and an idea came to my mind. “We’re missing a couple of spices. I’ll go grab them. It’ll be quick.”

“Name them and I’ll go get them,” Raymond said, holding my arm. “I run faster than you.”

He tried to make me stay and cook for them. I suppressed my anger and replied calmly, “You’ve never set foot in the kitchen, Honey. Even if I told you, I doubt you’d get the right ones. I’ll go get them myself. It’ll be quick. I promise.” With that, I walked past him and Raymond was speechless.