Part two of A. E. Charles's Untitled Book!
By A. E. Charles
Untitled Book - Part 2
Her son no longer in sight; she sighed and walked into the kitchen. She walked around the island and stopped when she was in the middle. She opened the cabinet up on top, grabbed a glass, pulled it down, and set it on the counter. She then walked to the other side of the island, opened the small wine fridge, and pulled out a White Zinfandel bottle. She didn't know how old it was or where it came from, nor did she care. She just needed something to drink. She opened the bottle, poured the pinkish liquid into the cup, closed the bottle, and put it back in its rightful place in the fridge. She then grabbed the cup and took a sip of the alcohol, savoring the citrusy, vanilla flavor that assaulted her taste buds.
As she began to take another small sip of the wine, she heard a man's voice calling her name. She froze. She knew that voice. She would know that voice anywhere and everywhere. It kept repeating her name over and over, beckoning her to find the source of it. It wasn't a wrong sort of tone the voice spoke with, but instead, it had a calm, warm note in its agent.
She put the glass down on the counter and cautiously moved her way around the island. The voice called her name again; only this time it was significantly louder. She moved down the hallway, quicker than she had when she first heard the voice, but still slow enough that she wouldn't rush into anything she wasn't prepared for. She kept walking down the hall, passing the guest room, the bathroom, her son's room, and then finally stopping at her bedroom door. The voice was almost at a yell now, still calling out to her, but now the voice had a sense of urgency floating within the calm. She walked slow and passed her bed and closet and moved into the doorframe of the master bathroom. She stopped for a minute, bracing herself for whatever or whoever she might see. Could she handle seeing him again? After he had been gone for so long? After he left her and her son alone and broken? She contemplated these thoughts that would not stop circling in her brain but ultimately decided that even though she wasn't entirely healed from the crack he left in her, she still wanted him back with her. So she took a deep, deep breath, taking in as much air as her body could handle and turned on the light. There was no one there. Nothing in the bathroom should have made any noise that remotely resembled a human's voice. Much less, his voice. She started to turn to walk back into her bedroom when she heard his voice again. Her muscles tensed, and she quickly spun on her heels and stepped fully into the bathroom. She looked around, knowing there was no one in the bathroom. Her heart dropped, and she turned and put her hands on either side of the sink and looked into the mirror.
The tears were building up, and she didn't want to let any of them fall. She was fed-up with crying. She had cried so much and for so long that it felt like her body physically had no more tears left to cry. But unfortunately, that wasn't the case, and a tear slipped from her right eye, down her cheek, and fell from her chin into the sink, leaving a wet line down the middle of the side of her face. She looked down into the sink to where the tear had fallen and watched it slink down the white bowl-like amenity, and eventually go down the drain.
She looked up once more, and when she saw her reflection, her breath caught in her throat. Looking straight at her in the mirror was the man she never thought she'd see again. His head was perfectly aligned with hers, which made his and her faces morph together. His eyes bore holes into hers, gathering any information they could. He smiled at her and looked at every inch of her face, as she did the same to him. They were looking at each other as if the other's face was to be the last thing they'd ever see again, and they were so happy about it. He said her name once more, this time with only love and adoration in his voice. Only minutes ago, the urgency in his voice was gone entirely because he had achieved his goal. He repeated her name, and her heart swelled beat faster than it ever had before. She smiled wider as another tear fell down her cheek. She started to stay his name, but as soon as it registered what she was saying, his smile dropped and turned into a look of fear and angst. The syllables of his name rolled off of her tongue, and immediately after she finished speaking his name, he vanished. His face was nowhere to be seen in the mirror anymore.
In the blink of an eye, she found herself staring at her reflection once more. The tears were now falling freely down both cheeks wetting the sink below her. "No!" She whispered. "Please, no. Come back to me. I need you to come back to me." She whispered to herself. "Come back. Come back. Come back. Please." She pleaded with her reflection. She dropped her head and closed her eyes. She had no idea what was happening, and she had no idea what had happened in the first place. All she knew was that he left her again. He left her in tears, breaking down once again. She lifted her head once more and looked into her eyes, hoping she would see his. But she saw nothing. And she wouldn't see anything in the mirror ever again. So she turned off the light, left the bathroom, wiped her tears, and walked out of her bedroom and towards her son's room. She opened the door and saw her son sleeping in his bed wrapped in covers and clutching the stuffed ostrich he was given at his second birthday party. She walked in, kissed him on the forehead, and then turned around and walked back to her bedroom. She lay down on her bed and stared at the ceiling waiting for sleep to possess her and bring her peace, even if it was only for a few hours. She felt the calm of unconsciousness take a hold of her and drifted into the darkness of the night, thinking about the one person she couldn't have.
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