The Periods of Being

Chapter XX

Chapter XX

     She lays in bed, on top of her duvet, with her wedding ring between her fingers. She twirls it around and holds it to her face so she can watch the sunshine sparkle onto it as she waits for the dinner gong to go off— which will be hours until now. She keeps the ring in a tight grip as she observes the love promised with it.

     She'd taken off her gloves when she was safe in her room. It was then when she was reminded of the ring on her left hand. It's been such normal idem she forgot how special it is. She almost forgotten what it looked up close. Her heart breaks at her foolish nature to almost forgot such a treasured piece of their marriage. She hopes this won't happen to her memories of him.

     Her eyes go off to the bedside table closest to the window to look at the wedding picture Neil brought her. She slips the rings back onto her finger without taking her eyes off of the photograph. She stretches her arm toward the photo. The silver frame is cold to the touch, not as warm as the photograph is. She grasps the frame and lays flat again. She grips the frame and stares at the photograph. Her eyes swell up at the sight of it. Her fingertips trace the outline of her husband and she wishes with all her might that she could somehow conjure a spell to take him out of the photograph. Mostly, so he would be alive. Mostly, so he could hold her.

     A knock sounds on the door and before she can tell whoever it is to leave, the door opens, revealing Julie. Her figure is slouched and worrisome like she isn't sure if she wants to be in Olive's room. Olive lays the picture frame on her stomach, near her heart, as she waits for the reason behind Julie's visit.

     "Is everything all right?" Olive asks. This question should be asked to Olive rather than Julie, but Olive swallows her tears fast so she didn't give Julie the reason to ask her the question. She can't bear to be asked it right now. Not after today's mess of events. She'll break completely.

     Julie nods.

      "Are you?" She asks back.

      Olive gulps. She finds the result to the curved statue of Julie to be the doing of worry, not for herself, but for Olive. Olive's heartbeats bounce on the frame as Julie comes closer to her until she is sitting at the bottom edge of the bed, being close to.

     "I saw what happened today through a window."

     Olive's eyes drift away to her own window, wondering if Julie was in here when it all happened. She had hoped no one saw Andrew and her in the garden.

     "I don't want to talk about it."

     "Is it troubling you? Is that why you are in here?" Julie asks.

     "I'm okay," Olive answers. "I'm not troubled by that." She then admits.

     "How did the will reading go today?" Olive sighs and looks over to Julie.

     "I don't want to talk about it," she repeats to her. Her heart can't handle the idea of repeating what the lawyer told her today.

     He wished for a son and I never gave him one...Her mind finally slips through. And because of that, I lost everything.

    The manor. The money. All ties with her dead husband. She feels sick to her stomach at the thought of it. The manor and the money are one thing, but the idea of how Mark pictured himself to live a long life to witness himself being a father and having a son is the worst part of it all. Her heart swells up, ready to burst, at the thought of her not full-filling those wishes he never mentioned. She should've known, but she was always content with just the two of them. She never imagined another in the mix.