The House

Chapter 35 - Day 3: Then Along Came Iris

I listen to the wind howling outside and the rain slamming into the vibrating windows. All of these threatening sounds, even the roaring thunder, are preferable to the words I just heard coming from David's mouth. 

I almost long for the good old days when I was just afraid that he might be a very friendly mop.

"What?" That is the most eloquent question I can come up with right now. My brain has gone into complete shutdown mode. Have I been all clingy with a married man? I'm depressed now. I miss the simpler times when I was just scared and freaked out and thought I was going insane.

David drinks the last of his coffee and sets the mug down, staring into it for a very long time. It feels like forever because I really need him to say things to me. Preferably nice things that don't include him lying to me about not having a family waiting for him to come home.

"Iris and I met during our first year of university and got married a year later. Everybody told us that we weren't ready to get married, but we did it anyway. I wish they'd been a bit more clear about what they really meant," David says, still staring morosely into his empty mug. "We didn't have much in the line of money, so we skipped the honeymoon, switched our studies to online and moved in here instead. We were eager to start our lives together and didn't see the need to wait."

I cannot imagine trying to study with an internet connection that is probably just as sketchy as the cell phone signal here.

"We were going to have a working honeymoon and bring La Belle Pêche back to life, filling it with warmth and love and, eventually, children. We were going to be a family... Well," he looks up at me, his expression grim and a bit self-deprecating. "That was what I thought we were going to do. Apparently, that was never Iris's dream. She was hoping to fix the place up and sell it and all the antiques in it for a massive profit. She wanted to tour the world and visit exotic places and finally settle down somewhere modern and fast-paced where she could pursue her planned career in the finance sector. She had no interest in the farm. I really don't know why she married an agricultural student..."

Grimacing at recalling memories he is clearly not enjoying, he shrugs and gets to his feet, mug in hand. Time for a fresh cup, I suppose. I hand him my empty mug as well when he asks if I would like some coffee. The milk had done wonders to calm my nerves and to help me settle down, but it was the mention of the word wife that made me go completely limp. I could use some coffee.

So, I take it he is not married anymore or... Golly, will he just tell me already and get on with it? I really want to know if he is still married or not... I mean... I really want to know who the 'they' in his story referred to. It sounded rather ominous, and when I ignore the frightening word 'wife', the word 'they' is really freaking me out.

I'm about to send him a homing pigeon carrying a note requesting more information when he finally stops fussing with the kettle, mugs, spoons, sugar, and stuff and takes a deep breath. I look at his face, and his eyes have become dark and haunted.

I'm a horrible person! This is clearly not easy for him to talk about. I should tell him it's okay; he can just jump to the 'who are they' part of the story... I don't need to know about his love life.

"The first couple of days here were awesome. It was everything I'd dreamed it would be. We explored rooms, found treasures, had romantic dinners and just enjoyed being together, talking, playing..."

Honestly! He can skip to the end now! I don't need to hear about him and Wifey braiding each other's hair! Yes, I'm a horrible person; we've already established that. I've just met the man; I'm being ridiculous, feeling all jealous like this.

"It was really great... then one night we had a lovely candle-lit dinner, as usual. Everything was sweet and romantic and filled with love. We went up to our room..."