Thin Walls

Chapter 14

I eyed her as she took the first bite of the lasagna. I wanted to gauge her reaction. I really hoped she wouldn't lie about her opinion on the food, like Robin had done. Best case scenario, she liked the food.

"Oh, my God, this is by far the best lasagna I've ever tasted," Emma said and moaned softly. She really did seem to like it and I was very pleased to notice that. "No, this is the best thing I've ever eaten. Forget about sex, this is now the only thing that'll fully satisfy me."

"Do you really like it?"

"You know I wouldn't say that if it wasn't true. Can I get this recipe?" she asked and it was nice to have someone who enjoyed my cooking skills. I loved cooking, but since Robin had very little appreciation for good food, I didn't bother cooking a special meal when a simple salad would get the same reaction.

"It's my mother's recipe. She loves cooking. As do I," I said as I started eating as well. It was already pretty late and I'd been quite hungry, but both Emma and I worked pretty late. Even on Saturdays. Fortunately, I didn't have to do any work tomorrow, so I'd finally have a work-free day to myself. Without Robin.

"I like her already. Do you often cook this good? Because I already was jealous of Robin, but throw this on top of it and I'm going to switch places with him."

I chuckled softly and shook my head. "Barely. He doesn't really care for good food," I said. "Pizza will cure everything, according to him. Not even talking about a good quality Italian pizza." I noticed her briefly rolling her eyes and she held a playful smile on her lips. "But you said you're jealous of Robin?"

"Not so much jealous as pitiful," she responded. "Regina, I've known you for.. what, like, three months? And though you've done some questionable things, you're so eager to better yourself and to be kind. It's astonishing, really. Robin clearly doesn't notice that. I can't imagine what it has to be like to be married to someone so kind, but not even be aware of it all. He doesn't appreciate you enough for what you do and I think that's shameful," she said. "You're learning every day about all kinds of things. You're curious and interested in the world. Robin isn't. That's just sad for both of you, to be honest."

I didn't really know how to feel nor how to respond. Emma had been really honest, saying what she thought of Robin and my marriage, but there was nothing I could do with her words. Though I quite agreed that Robin and I had opposing personalities, I adored him. He was my husband and I was forever grateful for that. I couldn't ignore all the good memories we shared together.

"Sorry, I'm not really in the right place to judge your relationship. As long as it works for both of you, I'm in no place to say anything." She smiled sweetly, but I wasn't content.

"What would you do if you were me?" I asked. "Because I care about him so much. It's just that.. some tiny things that he does, habits or whatever, annoy me, lately. I start to notice more things I dislike about our marriage every day and I don't really know how to cope with it."

Emma kept quiet for a moment. I felt like she'd be one of the few people that could give honest and good advice on this topic. I did feel like a drastic change was necessary in my marriage, but how did I mention that to Robin?

"Talk to him," she opted with a shrug and sipped her water.

"I've tried, but he doesn't listen."

"Threaten with divorce if he doesn't," she said casually, as though she hadn't just suggested the most bizarre thing in the world. I wasn't going to threaten Robin, that was outrageous. He was my husband.

"That seems a bit much," I replied, calmly. "But we should probably discuss things. Anyway, I don't want to bore you with my marital problems. What have you been up to?"