Comatose

True Intent

Chapter 8

Angelica stared at the front door of her house scowling at her husband that was no longer there. The chatter of the kids became background noise to her as she considered the man that had just left. Had there ever been a time in their marriage when he wasn't so oblivious to her existence? She turned back to the scene at the table watching herself as she interacted with the younger group. Other then her interactions with Cooper, this was the first time in this memory that Angelica showed a genuine smile. The kids too appeared to be more outgoing now that Kevin had left. He just seemed to oppress everyone around him. Had he always been that way? Angelica didn't think so, but clearly she wasn't as observant as she thought she once was. If she had been, she would have known that her children were unhappy. At least with their father anyway. While he did provide for them, it seemed to be all he did. In this memory anyway his family looked to be more of an annoyance to him then anything. Thinking through the memories of her family she couldn't remember a time when he was more involved with their children any more than he was in the current memory playing. Had she just never noticed before or had she merely turned a blind eye to it?

As she thought to herself the scene around her began to change. She found herself at the beginning of their relationship back in college. Angelica watched as rambunctious young adults loitered around the grounds chatting and hanging out together. A group of young women walked down the sidewalk waving and smiling at those that called out greetings to them. This had been her group that she hung out with. She had never had a clear major in college as she just couldn't decide on what she really wanted to do. The first year Angelica had worked through her general classes figuring she could always decide after that time period what genuinely interested her. She remembered the culinary classes had seemed fun, so did the idea of studying abroad at a culinary school. A few of the girls in her group of friends were in the cooking courses along with her and they had introduced her to the other girls. Looking at them now she realized how much she missed each one of them. After she and Kevin had gotten married Angelica had thrown herself into supporting her husband and lost touch with the girls over time. Each one had began a new stage in their lives and they had all become too busy to hang out anymore. Eventually they even stopped corresponding as each of them matured into the adults they would be. Thinking back Angelica was sure she had been the first one to lose contact with them over the years. With each new memory she viewed, more regrets were piling up on her list of things she wished she hadn't let happen.

Angelica watched as the girls met up with a rowdy group of boys that were showing off for the other students. Well, not all of them had been so outgoing she amended, recalling them to be the group that Kevin hung out with. There had been at least three of the boys that were more involved with their studies then the rest of the group. It had made them seem a little mysterious to some of the other students, Angelica's group included. She could recall that Kevin had quite the following of young women that were vying for his attention, but he never seemed to notice any of them. If she was remembering correctly this was the day that she had managed to turn his attention in her direction. Although she hadn't really been trying to do so. While Angelica was having fun in college the last thing she had wanted to do at the time was date anyone. A fact that she made noticeably clear as she generally politely rebuffed the young men that asked her out. Several of those had been apart of Kevin's group. She could recall how some of the girls in her group had come up with a way to gain the other groups' full attention. The ones that were in the culinary course were going to invite them to taste test their latest creations. Everyone knew if you wanted to get the guy you had to start with his stomach. Angelica had found it absurd but went along with her friends wishes anyway. She had never planned to gain anyone's attention and stood at the back of the group while some of the other girls offered up the invitation. Angelica watched as a boy named Terrance sauntered up to flirt with her. She had been studying and tweaking her recipe not really paying attention to the rest of them.

Angelica rushed across the quad trying to get a closer look at everyone before the memory continued. Luckily, the scene froze just before it moved forward anymore. She took her time studying each face as she walked among the two groups. Terrance was looking at her younger self with lecherous intent, a fact that was missed completely at the time as she had tried avoiding him altogether. The way he was looking at her made Angelica's skin crawl thankful she hadn't been naive enough to ever return any of his advances. Most everyone else was what she had remembered but the one that shocked her was Kevin. His attention appeared to be on his work in front of him but upon closer inspection Angelica noticed that he was looking in her and Terrance's direction instead. His look was dark as he glared at his friend. Any time he had looked unhappy before they had all assumed that it was because they were being disruptive to his studies. It had never made any sense that he would stick around at those times instead of just leaving to go find a quieter place to work. Not once did it occur to any of them that there might have been something else going on. Of course, it could have been because his face was always turned down to his studies instead of towards any of them. She wondered if there was a way to start the memory again so she could watch what he would do. No sooner had she thought it then the memory continued on. Angelica got as close to Kevin's face as she could with the angle he was hunched over in. She could hear Terrance laying it on thick in the background, but she paid little attention to it as she watched her future husband's face morph into something that could only be described as monstrous. She had never been aware that he had that side to him. Perhaps if she had she would have never given him the time of day.

As the conversations around her wound to what she knew would be the end of their interactions she breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't want to look away from Kevin but at the same time his reaction was making her sick to her stomach. Angelica leaned back slightly to watch the group of girls from her peripheral making sure she didn't miss their exit. She was just about to back up as the girls wandered off to head to class when Kevin's continence changed. He looked up in their direction slamming his book closed. Again, the scene froze, and Angelica stumbled to stand as she saw the most predatory look shine out of his eyes. She followed his gaze as it landed on her younger self who had glanced back over her shoulder. She recalled that the noise of him closing his textbook that day had drawn her attention, but she had missed where the sound had come from. Angelica looked at the young woman as horror overtook her. The girl she had been had never seen it coming but by the look on Kevin's face he had been very aware of her and probably for a while at that point. As she stepped away from them, she took the whole scene in from an outsider's perspective. The young woman was looking back curiously but completely unaware of what had really been going on. Kevin watched her intently as if he were a predator stalking his prey. How long had he observed her in college before making his move?

Angelica turned away from the scene sick to her stomach at what she hadn't known. She was standing in the road to the quad where she had the best vantage point to take in the whole group at once. Now however she felt as if she had seen enough. Everyone had been looking at the girls walking away so no one had seen what Kevin had been showing. When she turned away from the scene Angelica had been intent in walking away but faltered. Her hand flew up to her mouth blocking the scream she nearly released. She hadn't even known anyone was standing behind her until she spun and came face to face with him. Angelica took a step back while looking into the face of Trent. She must have caught a glimpse of him that day when she had looked back at the boys to find the source of the loud noise. He stood there stoically looking more like a man than the last memory she had had of him. He had bulked up considerably and his hair was cropped short and close to the skull. Laying limply from his hand was a small bouquet of flowers. Tears sprung to Angelica's eyes as she realized he must have come to her college to start again. His eyes no longer held any emotion in them as he stared blankly at the young adults in front of him. Angelica could only guess that he had seen Terrance hitting on her which caused him not to approach. What had once seemed like such a sweet memory to her now showed itself for the life changing event that it had really been. Angelica's vision spun around her, and her stomach pitched. How had she never truly seen any of what happened that day?