It was finally the day of what was supposed to be my wedding. Harold and I had agreed to start preparing for the big day at 6:00 am, but he only returned at 9:00 am, when the sky was completely bright.
He was furious when he looked up and saw me sitting in the living room. “Are you trying to scare the daylights out of me? Why are you sitting there without saying a word?”
I didn’t speak as I looked at him. He’d had a night of fun and reeked of alcohol. His hair was a mess, and his clothes were unkempt. There was also a lipstick stain on his collar. He didn’t seem to be aware of it, though.
I would’ve been enraged in the past, but now, I merely looked away without saying a word.
Harold started berating me as he took his clothes off. “Do you have to be so excited over a dumb wedding? Look at your dark eye circles—they make you uglier than you already are. Don’t blame me for this when you don’t look like a blushing bride. I’m not going to go through this hassle with you again.”
He threw his dirty clothes at me. “Go and wash my clothes.”
Then, he slinked into the bathroom. His clothes reeked of a mixture of alcohol, perfume, and cigarette smoke. It was so pungent that it almost made me pass out.
I pushed the clothes away and moved to another spot. Soon, I heard Harold laugh inside the bathroom. “Really? I won’t believe you unless you take a photo for me.”
Ivory was the only one who could make him sound that happy. It couldn’t be anyone else. He turned on the tap, seemingly wanting to use the sound of running water to prevent me from hearing him.
He overestimated how loud it could be, though. Or rather, he didn’t realize he was always so excited that he couldn’t control his volume whenever speaking to Ivory.
Harold spent two hours in the bathroom before finally coming out. He asked, “Where’s the suit you prepared for me?”
“It’s still at the store. I haven’t picked it up,” I answered.
He spat, “Look at you—you act like you’re so busy with the wedding, yet you can’t even do something as simple as preparing my outfit. Am I the one who wants this, or is it you? You look like you don’t even care!”
Just then, his phone rang. He answered it, and Ivory’s sobs rang out. “There’s a bug at my place, Harry! It’s huge! I’m so scared!”
“Don’t be scared; I’ll be right there!” He turned to leave before he was even fully dressed. He caught sight of me as he headed to the door. Surprisingly, he stopped and looked at me diffidently.
He made an excuse for himself. “There are six hours to the wedding—that’s more than enough. I’ll go pick up my suit on my way back from Ivory’s.”
