Till The Clock Strikes Gone

o2 | turn of the tables

When William stepped inside the house, the first thing he heard piercing through the winter silence was the sound of someone humming a song.

That someone was his wife. He travelled towards the sound, traversed his hall and then followed the soft humming into the kitchen where Eliza was standing near the stove. Her eyes were closed and a small smile played at her soft, plump lips. She was wearing her red nightgown, the one that barely covered her thighs and her body swayed at the sound of a delightful symphony of her own music.

William watched her quietly as he leaned at the wall beside the entrance. The kitchen light gave Eliza's face a new glow. She looked happy and lost in her world. He watched her as her hips swayed from side to side in rhythm; her hands were on the countertop and her entire self danced to the tune.

William was desperate to find out why she was so happy but he didn't want to disturb the view in front of him. Eliza was always busy with something or the other but at that moment, she was different. She appeared like the rare calmness in his world of chaos and that was something he didn't get much from her.

His watch was broken when she suddenly opened her eyes, sensing that she was not alone in the room. She stared at him with her tantalizing gaze for some time; her eyes travelling up and down his body making the familiar rush of hot blood reach his groin. There was always something seductive in the way she looked at him and only him.

He wanted to grab her, lift her against the wall and watch her perfect lips curve as she moaned when he kissed her with every last bit of passion in this world, but he didn't. Something was about to happen; his gut feeling told him that and he wanted to know what it was.

Eliza smiled at him and he smiled back. She walked towards him, tiptoeing, and before he could ask her about her sudden change of weather, she wrapped her arms around his neck and placed a kiss on his cheek.

His hand moved to her waist and he pulled her closer to capture her lips with his, taking her in for a deep kiss. He wanted to kiss her for one last time before he broke the news of their divorce. He tried to put his tongue in but she wasn't opening her mouth, like always.

"Open your mouth," he demanded against her lips, but instead, she nodded and pulled away.

William looked at her, surprised. She had never pulled away from a kiss. It was the first time and he watched her curiously as she grabbed hold of his wrist with her soft fingers, pulling him towards the couch in the hall.

William was nervous; he couldn't stop himself from asking just to be sure they were on the same page when it came to the couch. "You wanna continue it on the couch?"

"No," she responded and made him sit on the couch while she stood looking down upon him. Even from this height, Eliza wasn't much taller. His head reached her chest and he couldn't help but smile a little when she bent down a bit so that her eyes were on his.

"I have news," Eliza said and William's smile dropped instantly. His eyes narrowed at her, waiting for her to continue.

"We are going to be parents..." Eliza conveyed her glorious news but the rest of her words were lost in commotion as William's entire world suddenly came crashing down on him. His ears rang as his mind repeated her sentence. Her soft, innocent voice not making any difference at the blow which had fallen upon him.

"I thought you were on the pill," he spoke in an intelligible whisper to which Eliza blinked twice.

"No."

That one word from her had such an impact on him that his body grew still, his head felt lighter and he felt sick like he was about to throw up. He dug his fingers on the cushions on the couch and tried to breathe, in and out.